It hurts when old friends of distinction in their fields cover failing mental acuity with a long-practised civility, using words and phrases that come easily to mind. I slip into it myself from time to time. It's easier to be glib, to offer no resistance, than to take the time to think out a reasoned response. I see it in younger people, too, where it's not so much diminishing sharpness as a discourteous sluff-off, for which there is no excuse. Bless Mr. and Mrs. Highsmith!