I opened my New York Times this morning, and I immediately began humming the bridge to a Pink Floyd song.
But it was only fantasy
The wall was too high, as you can see
No matter how he tried, he could not break free
And the worms ate into his brainHey You- Pink Floyd, The Wall
I’m not proud if it, but I don’t feel guilty either. The mind does what it wants to do much of the time, and I’m just along for the ride. It seems Susanne Craig took a moment off from attending the Stormy Daniels trial and making appearances on MSNBC to write an article about a worm eating part of RFK Jr.’s conspiracy-addled brain. And, amazingly, this wasn’t an analogy or hyperbole, but an account provided by the independent presidential candidate himself.
In 2010, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was experiencing memory loss and mental fogginess so severe that a friend grew concerned he might have a brain tumor. Mr. Kennedy said he consulted several of the country’s top neurologists, many of whom had either treated or spoken to his uncle, Senator Edward M. Kennedy, before his death the previous year of brain cancer.
Several doctors noticed a dark spot on the younger Mr. Kennedy’s brain scans and concluded that he had a tumor, he said in a 2012 deposition reviewed by The New York Times. Mr. Kennedy was immediately scheduled for a procedure at Duke University Medical Center by the same surgeon who had operated on his uncle, he said.
While packing for the trip, he said, he received a call from a doctor at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital who had a different opinion: Mr. Kennedy, he believed, had a dead parasite in his head.
The doctor believed that the abnormality seen on his scans “was caused by a worm that got into my brain and ate a portion of it and then died,” Mr. Kennedy said in the deposition.
Unsurprisingly, RFK Jr.’s description is probably inaccurate, as several experts consulted by Craig expressed doubt that a worm would actually feed on the brain even if it was living there. It may have contributed to cognitive difficulties Kennedy was having at the time it was discovered, but he was also diagnosed with mercury poisoning which is a likelier candidate for causing him to lose his grasp on reality.
In general, RFK Jr.s health is a mess. He contracted Hepatitis-C from shooting up drugs as a younger man. He has a neurological condition called spasmodic dysphonia which affects the vocal cords and explains his raspy voice. And he’s stated in a deposition that he’s been repeatedly hospitalized for atrial fibrillation which is brought on by “stress, caffeine and a lack of sleep.” That latter condition sounds almost ideally ill-suited for someone who wants to serve in a job as high-pressure as the president of the United States.
Not to be glib, but I have my doubts about a campaign slogan of “Vote for me, worms ate part of my brain.” The man should know better than to even offer himself as an option, but then he was some brain damage that explains his poor judgement.
If he were not acting so irresponsibly, I’d be more sympathetic. His father was assassinated in a crime that has still not been adequately explained. Likewise, with his uncle. I don’t blame him for being skeptical of official explanations. But he has no business running for president and he should drop out.