Despite some valid concerns expressed here, (Biden's treatment of Anita Hill, some of the kissing business), I think the argument here is somewhat obtuse, and at times unfair.

Biden was not my first choice in the primary either. His age, his more conservative brand of Democratic Party politics. The somewhat naïve notion that reaching across the aisle can still work. I shared all of those concerns.

Yet, he won.

True, he beat Trump, and much despised, dangerous, proto-facist with zero intellect. But he was all of those things four years ago. Though I accept Russian interference in the last election, Hillary Clinton still didn't get the job done when it came to beating Trump. Biden did. (Clinton wasn't my first choice 4 years ago, either, in case that was difficult to surmise.)

My point being, I don't think we can attribute Biden's win entirely to "he was the one who wasn't Trump." It helped for sure, but not as much as all the polls were telling us it would. Flaws (and there are plenty) aside, this particular flawed candidate beat out 20 or so others, and ultimately knocked Trump out of office. As he himself would say, that's a big f____ing deal.

And based on how it shook out, I don't know that a Warren or a Sanders, (my preferred primary choices over the last two cycles) could have actually beaten Trump.

Second, while I agree that a cult of personality around presidential candidates and presidents has been, and probably will continue to be an issue with many in the electorate, it's quite the hyperbole to say that "nobody likes Joe Biden." Obviously the right people at the right time liked him.

Hell, I myself like him as far as that goes, even though I would have much preferred Warren to be president. Yet there is a large chasm between, "Biden didn't inspire the rock star adulation of a Barack Obama" and "nobody likes him anyway." This essay ignores that chasm, and concludes the only reason such a bore as Biden won was that 80 million people shrugged and went, "eh. I don't like this clown, but whatever."

Nor would I call "bullshit," as the author does, on the Biden empathy factor. Now I don't know what's in the man's heart anymore than anybody else does. And as I said, I don't like some of the things he has said and done, especially in the Senate. But a man who has buried a wife and two children almost certainly possesses some notion of concern for the suffering of others. At least I am unwilling to dismiss the possibility, even if he has been an ass at times.

(As for the linked piece for the Hill, that I feel is mere misrepresentation. All that should matter to us, as the public is, does a public official support abortion rights within the legal constructions of our society. Joe Biden does, and even that article mentions that. His position as a Catholic, in regards to Catholic dogma should only be of concern to a voter if he stated it was how he would run the White House. This simply isn't the case.

Side note, the fact that people on the left did, to some extent, become disillusioned with Obama suggests that the left in fact isn't as prone to perpetual rock star worship once the rubber hits the road. As much of a movement and cult figure as 2008 Obama was, it's nothing compared to the "Trump is God's right hand" loyalty we see from the right.

Finally, why can't we consider his "boring" as part of his strength in this case? A prating chimp has flung his droppings all over the country for four years, to aggrandize himself. Can we not pause and consider the fact that maybe the boring guy is exactly what we need in the immediate aftermath of all of that?

Biden won't fix all the damage. Warren or Sanders or Booker would not have done so either. He is in fact "another" elderly white man, and will probably end up doing things I would prefer he not do. But he's given us the first even female and minority VP, broken several other cabinet ceilings, and as mentioned, in the end showed up during a pandemic, followed the rules, held no standard rallies and STILL knocked Trump off the throne. Maybe there was just a tad bit more going on than "let's vote for a guy we don't like at all, so we can finally take care of ourselves."