Calling Hillary Clinton sick is just another form of sexism

The current 2016 presidential election continues to polarize the political climate of the United States. While both candidates have caused distaste within their respective parties, the competition between Democrats and Republicans becomes more ferocious.

Recently, some Trump supporters have taken to claiming Hillary’s supposed “health issues” are impairing her judgement and subsequently her ability to serve as president.

In all honesty, I can empathize with those who aren’t exactly her biggest fans, but the claims being made have absolutely no substance and, frankly, reflect poorly on American politics. The Los Angeles Times explains perfectly: “Mocking a candidate’s physique is a low blow regardless of gender. But the charges against Clinton are particularly pernicious, in part because they’re so familiar.”

A site called The Conservative Tribune was one of the first where I encountered making these statements. After expressing their grief that Clinton took her private jet from Martha’s Vineyard to a fundraiser just 20 miles away, The Tribune claimed her unforgivably elitist behavior was due to the fact that: “her physical health [does] not hold up to a potentially choppy boat ride — or anything more arduous than a private plane surrounded by private attendants.”

Yes, maybe Clinton’s method of transportation was a bit excessive, but it’s news to me that sea sickness, an extremely common ailment, makes you an unfit politician.

A crackpot site called Radar Online also claims Clinton is so sick she’ll be dead within the year. How do they know this? She wears wool coats. I don’t think anyone in all her years as a politician has ever seen Clinton in anything other then her classic pantsuits. According to this site, not only is Hillary deathly ill, but also suffering from “decision fatigue”. The symptoms include low on mental energy, recklessness, and impulsivity. If you ask me, decision fatigue sounds eerily familiar to a rebranding of female hysteria.

A good deal of other articles cite Ed Klein, an author who says Bill Clinton himself has advised Hillary to back out of the race towards the White House due to her critical health. Klein’s book Unlikable aims to expose Hillary and her alleged physical complications. Klein writes: “Bill believed she was in denial and was ignoring what could be life-threatening symptoms.” According to Klein, Hillary was told she should currently be followed by a physician at all hours.

Nonetheless, more reputable sites such as Politico have discredited Klein. Aside from this, anyone with any sort of common sense would take a step back, analyze, and look at this as tabloid writing rather then actual reporting.

There is nothing wrong with holding conservative views or being disapproving of a party’s candidate. However, there is something incredibly wrong with releasing what is essentially gossip about something as important as a presidential election.

If garbage information is being released from either side of the two party system, how can anyone make a sound minded decision about the future of their country?