America Needs to Radically Rethink What It Means to Be Old — The Atlantic

In 1899, a mere 4 percent of the US population was over sixty-five—forget making it to eighty-five.

But the entire concept of being entitled to retirement is, at most, two generations old. Before World War II most Americans worked until they died. That was the expectation and the reality. The labor force participation rate of men age 65 and over was above 50% until the 1940s:

In short, imagine it’s your last year of life, as well as of work. On the Sunday afternoon before the first day of each month, contemplate these questions: If I had one year left in my career and my life, how would I structure this coming month? What would be on my to-do list? What would I choose not to worry about? I am willing to guess that “taki

On a personal level, I’ve become even more deliberate in my decisions about what to do and when. The other day my friends and I rented a boat and I thought about wakeboarding, which is like snowboarding on water. At age 50, was I still in good enough shape to do it? Probably. Would I be in good enough shape seven years from now? Definitely not. Thi

As Americans live even longer with some regularity, the country may become wiser but less knowledgeable. And given that knowledge is essential to driving the cycles forward, the crisis of 2080 may well be built around the heavy weight of a large elderly population, in good health and filled with wisdom but unable to move beyond a cycle that’s faili