If More Experience Means More Competent or Talented, then Why would Anyone Choose?:

[JoeOtterbein]

A younger:

Healthcare Professional?
Jet Pilot?
Restaurant Chef?
Vehicle Repair Technician?
Ship Captain?
Electrical Repair Technician?
Plumbing Repair Technician?
(You know I could go on and on, plus props to all the pros we rely on every minute. Of any age!)

So why not a younger political candidate than an older politician?

If you are Senior like me, then I don't need to tell you what the secret ingredients are, and there is no reason to believe someone else much younger than either of us does not know those ingredients (In food the 3 are Fat, Sugar and Salt, unfortunately for our health! Well I may as well spill those beans now!) too and then do a better job at representing our collective interest.

The extra goodie is that the younger politicians might be able to teach us a trick or two!

[JI7]

1. younger is the wrong word since many younger people can have more experience

less experience might be better term

[DownriverDem]

2. Because this time

folks know the Dems have to win. They just don't want to take a chance with newbies. It's more the tone of the times. Folks are craving normalcy. Biden represents that. These are not normal times.

[gtar100]

3. Still just hearsay. I hope I don't have to vote for Biden simply for those reasons.

Younger generations (I have children) are wanting to hear answers on climate change that don't sound like the same old compromises with polluters. That's just one issue I hear about from them but it's a big one. It's why many of them like Bernie Sanders because he speaks loud and clear about the imperative of strong action on climate change. He also happens to be a weathered man of many seasons as well, so age isn't the deciding factor for them. I hope Biden can rise to the occasion with bold ideas as well because he's going to need them. Long time before primaries. He's not a shoe-in given the shenanigans we're up against in elections. Hillary is testament to that.

And this word "newbies" ought not be used to describe any of our candidates. The spectrum of Democratic candidates that get attention here certainly do not display the naïveté that your pejorative implies. We are fortunate to have so many good choices.

[MrsCoffee]

12. If Hillary is a testament to anything it's that phrases like "I hope I don't have to vote for Biden

simply for....(fill in the blank)” are absolutely ridiculous and self defeating.

[BannonsLiver]

16. Exactly right.

What an awful thing it would be to have to vote for Joe Biden.

Makes me wonder if people have had their GD heads buried in the sand the last 2 years.

[Terry_M]

8. Yes - just like when we nominated 'Mr. Electability' John Kerry and went on to win... oh wait...

Maybe it's worth remembering that we've tripped up and lost with well polished/experienced candidates who also failed to excite enough people to show up to push them over the finish line with their lack of fresh/new ideas and perspective.
Yes I'm oversimplifying (like your post is), there's a lot of different factors and so on. Nevertheless hearing 'people are craving normalcy' reminds me of other elections that we went on to LOSE (most recently - to the least normal candidate in our lifetimes).

[WeekiWater]

4. I don't go out and "choose" someone younger...

From any of the fields on your list.

[emmaverybo]

5. There's an age cap on commercial jet pilots and most of the other professions you listed

demand a level of manual dexterity and labor, as well as eye-sight, that the presidency does not. There are some good older electricians and plumbers, but they usually need a crew. Those trades play havoc over the years with hands, knees, backs...
I don’t see how your examples make the case you are trying for.
It’s difficult, if not impossible, to imagine how a much younger candidate could come close to Joe’s
experience, stature on the world stage, trust and confidence he inspires, or perceived ability, right now, to unify us. He also has, as I have written here before, a public speaking gift. He is known for being able to emotionally connect with an audience. He still has it.
But the voters will be the ones to decide if comparative age is a yardstick, and just how important a one.
It appears for now, the question you pose has been answered as it relates to the Dem field.

Outside of age, issues could crop up that would shoot a younger candidate to the top and throw all three older competitors to the bottom rungs.
If the long primary shows age alone affects any of them, they will be flushed out.

[oasis]

6. "There is no substitute for experience".

[highplainsdem]

7. Joe, I don't think your new version of the younger-beats-older argument is any more convincing

than the last version.

But at least it is less insulting to older candidates and older Democrats in general, and I appreciate that.

[Honeycombe8]

9. I might go along w/that, if there were a very younger experienced leader running...

But he's the only one.

[dsc]

10. well I have to say in terms of say health care

that if I had a choice of someone who just got out of med school and someone who has been a successful doctor for 20 years I know how I am going to choose. #nobrainer

[Demsrule86]

11. It depends on the person and the situation. Biden has the right experience though

Sanders is older to get Trump out and to fix this country...some who are in the Senate now especially those with Gop governors should not have run at all. We can't afford to lose those seats. Also those who could run for the Senate in red or purple states with a GOP Senator should do so and not run for president. We stop the GOP if we win the presidency but without the Senate no policy or judges. This is one our weaknesses as a party...to focus on presidents and presidential elections and not on Congressional and state elections....also during midterms...have the president's back. Our last two presidents had two years before facing devestating midterms and then played on GOP turf the rest of their predidency...no more f'ying message voting because we will never achieve anything if this continues...no policies and now no judges.

[loyalsister]

13. And, long term professional relationships are valuable

I am currently in a position where my doctors are retiring, and it's a big loss. It really sucks when they have to retire suddenly.
A lot of people have similar attachments to mechanics and other repair technicians. People own cars and houses for a long time, and it's nice when they are familiar with their customers. They often train others to carry on their businesses and legacies and retire at reasonable ages.
Because, anything can happen and they feel a responsibility to make sure someone has taken over so that patients and customers have new providers in place.
Consistency and longevity matter. Youth contributes to the ability to credibly offer that.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

14. The only experience age implies is life experience. And even then, there are plenty of old people

who have worked really hard to not learn from life.

[BannonsLiver]

15. Why not let the voters sort it out?

[question everything]

17. It is not about age; it is about experience working in the a political environment

where, yes, compromise is part of getting things done.

The White House is not a training ground as we see each day. And this holds for Marianne Williamson and others who came out of the blue want to be president thinking that if Trump can, why not them?

It also about executive experience running a medium size city and a prosecutor office and a state.