GREAT AGE DIVIDE
Americans from both sides of the aisle are focusing their attention on all the inaugural festivities this weekend leading up to a historic transfer of Presidential power on Tuesday.
All the discussions around what the new administration hopes to accomplish with the new Congress after all the ceremonies are done, are framed around familiar battlegrounds: Left vs. Right, Democrats vs. Republicans, Rich vs. Poor, Blue-collar vs. white-collar, Wall Street vs. Main Street, Legals vs. Illegals, West vs. Islam, Developed vs. Developing, Polluting vs. non-polluting, Global Consumers vs. Savers, Borrowers vs. Investors, Energy Consumers vs. Energy Producers, being just a few.
This Newsweek editorial by Robert J. Samuelson points out another battleground that gets far less attention than it should, and is likely more relevant to us as a nation over the next couple of decades than most of the ones mentioned above, the young vs. old*:
"Generational tension, and maybe generational war, is an inevitable
part of the Age of Obama.
It's known that America is graying. In 1960,
only one in 11 Americans was 65 or older. Now it's one in seven, and by
2030, it's expected to be one in five.
What's less understood is that the political system favors the old over the young in this fateful transformation. We risk becoming a society that invests in its past.
The plight of the U.S. auto industry provides an ominous warning. For years, the Big Three and the United Auto Workers constructed an ever-more-generous system of early retirement and retiree health benefits for their employees. But ultimately, the costs became oppressive. The main victims were younger workers, whose jobs, wages and benefits were squeezed to protect retirees.
Similarly, the promises made to retiring baby boomers may impose crushing costs on society. Taxes may rise, other government programs—from national parks to college grants—may suffer and long-term economic growth may slow. Again, the main victims would be today's young, who would pay higher taxes and receive fewer public services.
Already, the three major programs serving the elderly population—Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid—account for two fifths of federal spending. In fiscal 2008, that was $1.3 trillion out of total spending of $2.98 trillion. By contrast, all defense spending totaled $613 billion..."
"As a society, America is in the same box.
The conflicts between
generations may or may not incite open political warfare, but either by
design or default, we will be making decisions about America's future.
The old are well organized and highly protective of promised benefits, while the young are politically passionate and unfocused. For the young, the odds look lousy."
The whole piece is worth reading, and thinking about. Especially as we get our hopes up about what a fresh administration and Congress can do for us going forward.
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