John Hancock

If John Hancock was still alive....

• He would undoubtedly feel bullied, by now, from people saying "Put your John Hancock here". (This expression means, "Sign your name here" and is often used when people must sign minor legal documents, such as when buying a car. It's meant to be a cute, friendly expression, even if the speaker is not really your friend.)
• Because there was no ceremonial signing of the Declaration of Independence, Hancock likely would have been called into many Congressional Committee Hearings held because of "conspiracy theorists" claiming the Declaration was a fraud. Sadly, he would have spent over 150 years of his life (now 200 years minus his age when it was signed) defending the very document that made the US free.
• He could have been tried for treason by the British and spent his life in a British prison, as an example if nothing else.
• He would undoubtedly by now be very tired of getting customer phone calls at his home number for "The John Hancock Insurance Company". Of course, he could have also sued them for not having permission to use his name and likeness---IF he had lived 200 years.
• Because he was one of the wealthiest men in the Thirteen Colonies, by now he's be on the Forbes 500 list of richest people.
• Since he was a merchant, he'd probably have fleets of ships to travel the world looking for beautiful fabrics and goods.
• Since he prospered in smuggling... well (depending on his ethics and political beliefs), he'd either have a range of "smuggling" possibilities (drugs, illegal aliens, trafficking)---OR---he would use his knowledge of smuggling to help combat these social ills.
• Since he was a Bostonian, he perhaps would have loudly spoken out against the Boston Marathon bombers and perhaps have demanded to put the bomber in the stockade in the public square for his lengthy punishment, or perhaps called for his hanging.
• Of course, as a former Governor of Massachusetts he would still be eligible for protective services. He likely would have been a sought-after speaker, since previous political office holders speak at universities etc. With his speaking engagements and "retirement salary", he would have added probably a million dollars or more per year to his wealth.
• Because he'd be over 200 years old, bio-medical companies would pay him endorsements to represent their "longevity" brands, while medicine and science would want to study his longevity genes.
• Being over 200 years old, he'd be lonely. All his family would be dead. His two children died when young, so he would have no direct descendant line. His extended family tree would be the descendants of his once distant relatives....now more distant in death.
• He might have suffered PTSD from the suffering he witnessed in the Revolutionary War. That would be a terrible "nightmare" to carry with him for over 200 years.
• Of course, every 4th of July, some civic group or military veteran group would pressure him to speak before setting off fireworks. You can't help but wonder that he would NOT be so awed by fireworks that sound like canons going off from enemy ships, lighting up the skies as destruction reigned on the ground and killed people in colonial towns, like Boston.
• He likely would have been a prolific author, on the New York Times' Best Seller's list dozens of times or more. He would still not be finished writing 200 years of history, on a variety of topics.
• He could hold realistic "reenactments" of the 1700s. A one man history book.
• Because he supported the poor, he would today be sought after by every person down on his luck, hoping Hancock might help.
• He would be the oldest US and world's oldest military veteran. His pension, if left to accrue interest, could be massive.
• Since he failed as a candidate in the 1789 U. S. presidential election, he might have later become a US President.
• However, since he was already in bad health in 1789, well can you imagine having to live more than 150 years longer while being sickly and feeling badly... Perhaps it is best that humans have a "lifespan", because it would be terrible to have to live 150 years longer with illnesses, diseases, poor health conditions.