Category: Aging (Page 1 of 6)

March 2025

By Richard Fleming

Photo courtesy of Alexander Grey

The Covid pandemic began to devastate the U.S. and the world in March 2020. It was five years ago this month. Like a lot of people, I had shelved many of my recollections about the pandemic in the back of my hippocampus, the area of our brain where memories are stored. I stopped thinking about Covid. My time and energy shifted to focusing on how to live in old age.

But five-year anniversaries are significant. To mark the occasion, the media recently began presenting articles on life during the pandemic and how it changed our country in profound ways which reverberate to the present.

Reading these stories reconnected me to the pandemic. And they made me a bit surprised by how remote it had come to feel. I was only 68 years old when it started. That feels like a lifetime ago. I posted previously about how time accelerates as we age. A year now flashes by in about six months. So why does the pandemic seem far in the past? When people live through haunting and ominous experiences, memory repression is one way of coping. But with the arrival of the five-year anniversary, it may be time to excavate some pandemic memories to seek lessons, especially as they relate to the older generations. What follows are selective and incomplete assessments. I welcome learning from your reflections. Please feel free to post them in the comments section.

I want to start with the powerful emotional and subjective feelings I experienced in the early months of Covid, then move on to more objective analyses.

As I think back, I remember how humbling, scary, and confusing it was to realize how vulnerable we all were: my family, my friends and neighbors, our whole society, and of course myself. The early months of Covid were unquestionably the most unsettling and uncertain time in my 73 years. How many of us were going to die? No one could say. How long before the pandemic would ease up enough to allow family get togethers? No one could know. Would we ever resume what was previously known as “normal everyday life”? No one was certain.

As the months and years went by, answers to these questions emerged. The uncertainty and fear started to subside. And the lessons we could learn or, more precisely, should learn, began to crystallize.

*    *    *

Maintaining the public’s health requires an effective system of public health. As the virus spread from community to community and state to state, as the death toll rose into the hundreds of thousands, it uncovered the reality that health care in the U.S. suffers from what I will call “three poors.” It is poorly-organized, poorly-financed, and poorly-available to many people.

Testing, treatment, and – after they became available – vaccinations were not well deployed. Rollout of prevention and therapeutic measures was chaotic and inconsistent. Medical equipment was often not available. While large amounts of money flow into our health care system, too much ends up as profits for the private sector. Not enough pays for actual medical care. If our government spent its health care dollars more effectively, the total costs would likely drop. And too many people in our country either have no health insurance or inadequate coverage. People with poor access to quality medical care had worse outcomes during the pandemic.

When healthcare and science become infected with politics and mistruths, everyone suffers. It did not take long after the virus started its rampage that shysters and grifters began trying to profit from the suffering. They had supplements to sell. They promoted unproven and disproven remedies. They could only succeed by undermining trust in expertise and science. And many politicians tried to wield the pandemic as a weapon to retain power.

Many of the efforts to undermine science were justified as, “I’m just asking questions.” But just asking questions, whether about vaccines, medications, or how Covid spreads, only fueled skepticism about what infectious disease experts were saying.

Another common theme was, “Do your own research.” Right, as if a person could go on the internet and after half an hour discover “facts” that infectious disease experts with decades of experience were supposedly trying to cover up.

Science evolves as experience is gained and studies are performed. Covid-19 was a novel coronavirus, and physicians’ understanding of how it was transmitted, what it did to the human body, how to limit its spread, and how to treat it advanced over time. But rather than viewing this developing understanding as confirmation of science’s ongoing quest for truth, Covid deniers claimed it proved that scientists were dishonest and that influencers and podcasters had a better understanding of the pandemic.

These attacks on medicine had impacts in the real world. Covid infections, hospitalizations, and mortality were significantly higher in regions of the country where more people were just asking questions and just doing their own research.

During a pandemic, individualism harms community health. Many people believed it was their individual right and their sole decision whether to mask; take precautions around family, friends, and neighbors; and get vaccinated. But when dealing with a deadly virus spread easily through the air, each individual’s personal decisions can and do impact the health of others. Many people who were very careful and followed the advice of public health experts died from Covid because members of their communities were exercising their personal freedom.

Old folks are viewed by many as dispensable. It became clear early on in the pandemic that older people were more vulnerable to bad outcomes from Covid infections. Younger people were not immune from serious problems, but the risks were far lower. This reality unveiled some disturbing opinions. A viewpoint which emerged early on and seemed to gain strength with every passing month said the best way to handle the pandemic was for old people to isolate themselves at home and let society carry on as usual. People espousing this outlook felt protecting old folks was too great a cost, not just in medical expenses, but in economic and business activity. For some, any limitations on going to clubs, parties, restaurants, and entertainment venues were too painful to contemplate. Since old people had already lived their lives and would be dying fairly soon anyway, why adopt extreme measures which would hurt the younger generations?

*    *    *

Summarizing the lessons I hope we have learned:

• The pandemic should serve as a siren call that our health care system needs to improve and insurance coverage should become universal and affordable.
• Infectious diseases do not respond well when evidence-based medicine is attacked and politicized. Viral social media posts do not facilitate treatment of viral diseases.
• If we recognize we live in a community, we are more willing to make small sacrifices to protect that group. We come to understand that when one part of the community is harmed, everyone else in the community will also be harmed. Sooner. Or. Later.
• A society willing to sacrifice its elders on the altar of preserving business activity and unencumbered lifestyles would be a sad place in which to live. And not just for old people.

But have we learned these lessons? How will we respond the next time? There are many dangerous bugs out there, one or two mutations away from becoming easily transmissible among humans. Ebola, mpox, hemorrhagic fever, bird flu, paramyxovirus, and many others are lurking, waiting. And there are bugs which can already spread among people, like measles and multi-drug-resistant TB, which could become pandemic problems if we drop our guard. The recent cuts to U.S. funding for health services overseas and the continuing campaigns against vaccinations and simple safety precautions domestically makes the spread of such infections more likely.

When one of these pathogens starts to spread among us, how will we respond?

Will science and expertise be embraced or ignored?

Will individual liberty and free choice trump community health and safety?

Will older and more vulnerable people be viewed as worthy of protection, or as too expensive and therefore expendable?

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March 2025

By Richard Fleming

Truth be told, I sometimes fall prey to what might be called “senior exceptionalism.” I view my fellow oldsters as quite remarkable people. Our generation was born into an era marked by turmoil and strife, at home and abroad. Racial injustice was pervasive. Women’s place was in the home. Political assassinations were not unusual. Our country was fighting a bloody war to keep Viet Nam from turning into… what was it again?

The Baby Boomers did not rest serenely during these years. We worked hard trying to improve our country and our world. We did many things well. We did many things not so well. But we tried. We worked hard at our jobs. We raised our families in the best way we knew how. And we have mostly now entered our golden years, after a lifetime of service. We are truly an exceptional group of people.

However.

We may be extraordinary but we cannot escape the rules governing the physical world we inhabit. Our minds and bodies are subject to the laws of physics, chemistry, biology, and aging. Wishful thinking offers no safe harbor.

Occasionally my mind wanders into speculation about ethereal topics like longevity, human durability (or lack thereof), extra-terrestrial life and what form it might take, spirituality, the possibility of an afterlife, and what my wife and I will have for dinner tonight. You know, topics which old people tend to ruminate about because we have too much time on our hands.

But inevitably such mental diversions are interrupted by the need to empty the bladder or take out the trash. And it is in these moments, when I attempt to heft myself up off the couch, that I am forced to remember the constraints of immutable physical laws. In particular, I am confronted by the challenges of living in a world governed by Isaac Newton’s three laws of motion, published in 1686.

*    *    *

What were those three laws again?

First, he observed that an object at rest tends to remain at rest, and an object in motion tends to remain at motion. Well, this applies to me. In spades. Especially the part about a body at rest. As an old guy, when I need to arise from the couch, it takes a significant force of will to overcome Newton’s first law. Once I get going, though, it is fairly easy to keep going in the same direction at the same speed until the bathroom door approaches. It is at moments like these that I marvel at Newton’s wisdom.

His second law says the acceleration of an object depends on the mass of the object and the amount of force applied. How does this apply? When taking a morning walk with my wife on the trail behind our house, even though we are moseying along at a pretty good clip, younger folks easily pass us by. And they are not even breathing heavily. I was dismayed by such youthful disregard and insolent behavior until I remembered this second law. It was a definite “aha moment” for me. My mass has definitely increased with age, and the amount of force my legs can apply has clearly decreased with age. Eureka! Now I understand. I can try as hard as I want, but Newton’s second law brooks no exceptions. With more mass and less force, my ability to accelerate will be less than what can be mustered by those youngsters dashing past.

The third law tells us that whenever one object exerts a force on another object, the second object exerts an equal and opposite force on the first. This certainly helps explain many of the phenomena I experience on a daily basis. I understand now why, when I am using a wrench to try to loosen a rusted nut, it is extremely hard. That nut is clearly pushing back against me. When I try to slide a heavy couch a few inches to clean the floor, the couch is obviously resisting my efforts. And, most importantly perhaps, I now understand what is happening when I am sometimes a bit constipated. I can push all I want, but the matter I am trying to expel just pushes back. It’s just science. Newton’s third law.

*    *    *

Science can be very useful in helping us old folks understand and navigate the challenges of the world we live in. Newton’s laws in particular can help us realize that the problems we increasingly face are not our fault. When we experience difficulties with standing and walking, with our activities of daily living, they are explainable by scientific laws.

In conclusion, I still believe in senior exceptionalism. But I also admit that despite our special status, we are still subject to the laws of science. And most of us seniors have learned, after many decades of trials and tribulations, joy and sorrow, that we must obey the law.

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February 2025

By Richard Fleming

Photo courtesy of Logan Weaver

As the U.S. seeks to find its way forward into the second quarter of the 21^st Century, our journey as seniors is becoming more uncertain. Will our Social Security benefits continue at the same levels? What is going to happen to our health care? Will our Medicare and Medicaid benefits be restricted or require higher copays? How many of us risk losing insurance coverage altogether? Will our bucketloads of prescription drugs cost more? With regulations insuring minimum staffing levels at nursing homes gutted, what will life in those institutions look like? Immigrants make up a large proportion of the workers who provide care for us seniors, both in our homes and in long-term care facilities. Will we need to cope with a shortage of people willing and able to provide us the support we need as we grow ever older?

But I digress.

My intention in this post is to discuss the way old age limits us, cognitively and physically, and highlight what should be one of the important ramifications of this fact. To cut to the chase, I feel we need old age limits for elected office. Discussion of this subject is topical, should be non-partisan, and is long overdue.

Age limits for elected office were included in the U.S. Constitution when it was written in 1787. But they were only younger age limits. To run for president, a person had to be 35 at the time they took office. Senators had to be 30. And Representatives had to be 25. There were no older age limits.

So the founders acknowledged a person’s age should be a determinative factor in whether they were qualified for office. They understood that to  govern effectively and well, a person needed a minimum level of life experience, wisdom, and judgment, qualities which young adults took time to acquire. And they knew the more responsibility the office carried, the more these qualities were needed.

Why didn’t the founders set upper age limits? One of the principal reasons was that few people in those years lived into old age, and the founders could not conceive of a 70-year-old president. (From this point on, I will focus on the presidency, though my observations apply to all elected offices.) Among our first eight presidents, six were under age 60 when they took office. The other two were 61. The physical and mental limitations that typically begin accumulating in people in their mid-60s and older were not viewed as relevant when the Constitution was being written.

Life expectancy now is much longer, and many people live into their 70s and beyond. The pool of old people potentially interested in the White House is vastly larger.

Four of our most recent eight presidents were 69 years or older when they assumed office. The “oldest presidents club” seems to be steadily gaining members. It would be easy to draw on their experiences to identify multiple problems in governance linked to their age. But I opt to take a different approach, since I truly do not see this issue as partisan. Instead I will look at my personal experience with aging to illustrate the risks of having old folks serve in the Oval Office.

*    *    *

I am a reasonably healthy 73-year-old. And there is no doubt my age limits me – physically and mentally – in myriad ways. Stamina-wise, I have less energy and reserve than ten years ago. These days, after a few hours babysitting our young grandchildren, I am worn out and need to sit down. For a good long time. Ten years ago, the same babysitting responsibility was no big deal. After a half day of charging around after the grandkids in our house, the yard, and the park, I felt fine. Energized. Ready for more.

Minor house projects take longer to complete. Decluttering even one room seems to take forever nowadays. When I was in my early 60s, I was quick and efficient with such tasks. If I don’t sleep well on a given night, I am more tired the next day than was the case previously. And good refreshing sleep is becoming harder to achieve on a consistent basis.

Mentally, I notice subtle (and some not-so-subtle) alterations compared to a decade ago. Like other Boomers, I forget names easily. I often don’t remember why I went to the next room. I still love reading books, but my reading speed has slowed. I have difficulty recalling the plot of a movie I saw on TV just one week ago.

I teach occasionally at a nearby medical school, which I continue doing for the mental stimulation and because it is fun to interact with young adults. But I find that preparing for these teaching sessions is more time-consuming. Medicine has advanced significantly since I left practice, and it is a bigger challenge now to learn new information. When I was in class a week ago leading a seminar on diabetes, the eight students knew their stuff. They were smart and well-prepared. But they had questions, and those questions were difficult. I needed to listen very carefully to be able to answer appropriately. Thank goodness I succeeded, for the most part. After completing three seminars in one day, I was exhausted, mentally and physically. When I was 60, I could work ten-hour days five days in a row and be only a bit tired when the weekend arrived. Those days are long gone.

I talk with my friends about their experiences with aging, and they are very similar to mine. I am more fortunate than many, but less fortunate than some. Overall I feel my personal experience of normal aging is typical.

And I know for a fact that at this stage of my life I should never serve in elected office. The challenges of even being a small-town mayor, much less a U.S. Senator, Congressperson, or President, are overwhelming. I have no doubt I could do some of the work. I could put on a good show. I could pass. But I would not be doing a good job. For people over age 65, there simply is not enough there there, in the brain or in the body. And the limits I am experiencing are shared to one degree or another by everyone in our age group. None of us are exempt.

I also feel we old folks need to move out of the way so that younger people can take on the responsibility and authority of government. The more that Boomers try to hog elected offices, the more that Gen X and Millenials are shut out of opportunities to serve. These younger generations are qualified, energetic, mentally sharp, and innovative. Our country would be better off turning the reins over to them.

*    *    *

To conclude, I propose we enact a law that people over age 70 are not allowed to serve in any elected office. We could call this the “Retirement Requirement Act” of 2025. Old people will be forced to start relaxing, enjoying their grandkids, throwing out their alarm clocks, and strolling through their neighborhoods. For those seniors still plagued with boundless energy, they can do volunteer work.

The time has come. We all know it. The limitations of age require age limits for elections.

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January 2025

By Richard Fleming

Photo courtesy of Florencia Viadana

While different generations inhabit the same physical spaces, we live in dissimilar worlds. For old folks, our language, priorities, thoughts, social engagement, cultural interests, and modes of communication vary significantly from those of the younger generations. Our daytime activities and nighttime interests share little in common with people born a half century after us.

I do not mean to exaggerate or exacerbate generational distinctions. We share much in common. We are all members of the same society. We enjoy the closeness of family and warmth of friendship. We eat similar foods. Most importantly, young and old alike aim to find meaning, value, and love in our daily lives.

But the generational divide can be profound. As I venture further into old age, I increasingly recognize a prominent feature distinguishing the way old and young folks interact with the world. Old people tend to live much of their lives in analog ways. Young folks typically live their lives digitally. This observation may seem obscure, so let me delve into the phenomenon, drawing on examples from my own life. While I suspect many of my examples will resonate with other seniors, every old person lives their own life in their own way. And your experiences may be vastly different.

*    *    *

Let me start by celebrating the wonder of paper. In my life, I rely heavily on paper, the ultimate analog platform. My preference for paper encompasses many realms. I like to read paper books more than digital ones. I find it comforting to hold a physical volume. I love the feel of paper in my hands; touching a screen feels removed and impersonal.

When I have receipts I need to retain, for example after purchasing an appliance or keeping track of a warranty, I always obtain the information on a piece of paper. If these records are sent by email, I print them up at home. I then put the physical documents into manila folders in my gray metal filing cabinet, a useful analog device which has performed its job – keeping papers organized – flawlessly for the past fifty years. I always know exactly where to find documents when I need them. Easy peasy. I do not keep records in digital format in “folders” on my computer. And the idea of storing important documents on my phone makes me shudder.

When I’m trying to cook something new, I invariably prop open a cookbook. If I find a new and interesting recipe on the internet, I print it on paper so I can easily see the instructions as I fumble my way around the kitchen.

When traveling, it is so much easier to print up the ticket or boarding pass rather than searching for it on my phone. Ditto for going to the movies. I just pull the paper tickets out of my pocket and presto, entry accomplished.

I recently found out there are young people who have no clue what a stapler is. They have never seen one. They have never used one. When you are living your life digitally, staplers have no utility. For myself, I use a stapler several times a week. If I didn’t, the individual pages of documents I need to store and recipes I want to use would scatter all over creation, making my blood pressure shoot up.

*    *    *

Let’s look at other aspects of living life in analog. Home automation – the ultimate manifestation of a digital lifestyle – deserves review. Over the last three years, we had to replace several aging appliances, including a washer and dryer, a refrigerator, and a coffeemaker. In each case I was encouraged – by the appliance itself! – to connect the device to the internet so that it could be accessed and controlled “more easily.” Hello? What were they talking about? Naturally I declined each offer. What benefit could possibly accrue from using my phone to start a washing machine or setting the temperature on the refrigerator? I can answer that question easily without searching the internet: none. I see no virtues to “smart lightbulbs.” I see no merits to using Alexa or internet-connected home “pods.”

My wife and I still have a landline telephone. We do use cell phones. And as we learn more of their features, we gradually use them more than the landline. But there is a reassuring comfort to having a landline. And yes, it has an easy-to-use answering machine built in.

I love getting together with friends for coffee or lunch. Seeing each other in person is more rewarding than interacting through exchanging text messages in a – what is it called? – “chat group.”

At Christmas, our analog life expands. My wife and I send physical holiday cards to our friends and family. We get Christmas-themed postage stamps at the Post Office and affix them to paper envelopes. Then we drop the cards into an analog container known as a U.S. mailbox. We give physical presents to our kids and grandkids. We bake Christmas cookies, relying on paper recipes of course, and hand-deliver them to our neighbors.

When a “small planetary alignment” occurs, an amazing phenomenon Earth is graced with this month, I enjoy looking up at the sky to see Mars, Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn all in a row. I know I could see images of this planetary parade on the internet or social media, but viewing it with my own eyes is magical.

These are just a few examples of living life in analog, and how it differs from living life digitally.

*    *    *

Digital phenomena are characterized by bits and bytes, strings of ones and zeros, computer code. Digital methods are intrinsically more efficient, abrupt, edgy, straightforward, and quantitative. Analog phenomena are, by their very nature, more contoured, rounded, and impressionistic. Analog methods are gradual, somewhat inefficient, nuanced, and qualitative.

Though I find that analog living comes more naturally to me, I want to say in closing that I am not anti-digital. Some aspects of digital living can be useful. I frequently send text messages and emails to friends and family. Digital communication has its uses. It can more be efficient than phone calls. Asynchronous communication like emails and texts can avoid disrupting real time, analog activities that others are engaged in. I rely on calculators to balance our bank accounts (though I still know how to add and subtract using pencil and paper). I use the internet to search for information and read newspapers. I have learned how to stream music and TV programs. But my default comfort zone is largely analog.

This review has only scratched the surface of the differences between analog living and digital living. I cannot say one is more virtuous than the other. Young people grew up in a digital world. For them, digital methods are intuitive and automatic. Cell phones, apps, QR codes, ApplePay, social media, internet-connected homes – all have been integral to the younger generation from their earliest years.

Old folks came of age in an analog world. We are comfortable and confident using analog methods. We grew up with newspapers tossed on our doorsteps, landline phones, LP records, and navigating road trips using paper maps. We are slowly learning how to live life digitally, but it takes time to grasp these new-fangled techniques, and they can be complex and anxiety-provoking.

Hopefully, over time, we old folks will gain more confidence in incorporating the benefits of digital living into our analog lives. Our futures can become fuller if we do so. And hopefully the younger generations will learn that analog living can be a valuable complement to the rapid pace of their digital existence. There is virtue in learning from each other.

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December 2024

By Richard Fleming

Photo courtesy of Stephane Juban

Even though I often feel middle-aged, society views me as a senior. Unequivocally and unambiguously. I try to be unobtrusive and not too disruptive as I navigate the highways and byways of living life as a senior. But the reminders of my true status are constant and unavoidable.

A few recent examples illustrate my point.

My wife and I went to Las Vegas in late October for a few days to spend time with old friends. Most of our time was spent eating and reminiscing about the past. But we also indulged in some activities on our own.

*    *    *

After we arrived in the city, my wife discovered Kamala Harris was having a rally in North Las Vegas during our stay. We decided to attend, since seeing a presidential candidate live and in person is an uncommon opportunity. And we were feeling optimistic she could win.

We took an Uber to Craig Ranch Regional Park, where the rally was to be held. Wow, was it crowded. In fact, the front entrance to the venue was closed off. We feared we had arrived too late and they would turn us away. Campaign volunteers were standing at the entrance and we asked a nice young man if we could get in. He assured us there was still room, but we would have to go to the far side of the amphitheater to be admitted. He pointed us to a spot 10 yards away and told us to stay there to be picked up by golf carts transporting people to the back entrance. We went to the pickup place to wait.

After a while I noticed the same campaign volunteer telling other latecomers – folks younger than us – they could walk around the perimeter of the amphitheater to the rear entrance. We looked at each other and agreed there was no need to wait for a golf cart when we could just walk with the other people. The walk was simple, about a half mile on level ground. A couple of golf carts, all carrying old people, lapped us. Clearly the young man at the entrance was trying to be nice and solicitous since we appeared to be old.

The rally ended up being amazing. The turnout was huge, the crowd was very diverse by age and by race, and people were very excited.

We had two take-home messages from this experience. First, size truly doesn’t matter. Harris’ rallies around the country were larger than Trump’s, but she still lost. And second, young people view us as old and a bit fragile. While I appreciated the staff member’s courtesy and concern, it also felt a bit humiliating. He did not ask us if we were OK walking a half mile to the back entrance or did we need a golf cart. He simply assumed we were members of the golf cart generation.

*    *    *

We also went to The Sphere in Las Vegas, a massive orb which hosts concerts, conferences, and multi-media events. Our ticket included a visit to an area inside the venue where we could interact with several robots powered by artificial intelligence. We were among the first to arrive and walked right up to a robot to talk with her. It was fascinating. We spent a while asking the robot questions and answering her questions of us.

Finally, after about five minutes, the robot asked if we would like to take a selfie with her. Of course we said yes. We turned around and saw there was now a small crowd of people behind us, waiting to chat with the robot. We knew we should quickly take our selfie and get out of the way. I pulled my cell phone out, found the camera app, and started to flip the image to selfie mode.

At that point, a charming young teenager standing right behind us with her family said, “Here, let me take your picture.” She quickly grabbed my phone, took our picture with the robot behind us, smiled, and said, “I took a lot so there should be good ones for you.” I appreciated her gesture. But I also realized she knew that if we old folks tried to do a selfie, it would take forever. She knew that she could speed things along if she just took over. Young people can be so adorable and so thoughtful. Harrumph!

*    *    *

And then there was my fumbling attempt to tap my credit card on the payment terminal in a coffee shop at the hotel where we were staying. I thought I finally knew how to tap cards but was having hard time with this particular machine. I tapped one place that looked correct. No response. I tapped another promising spot. Still no response. I tried once more without success, so the cashier took my card and did the tapping herself. She said to me, “It’s OK, I understand.” Four simple words, which spoke volumes.

*    *    *

These brief and unremarkable events over the course of a few days in Las Vegas brought home to me that, truly, I am no longer middle-aged nor am I viewed as middle-aged by the world in which I live. I should not complain. I know the folks I was interacting with were trying to be helpful and patient, and that is far better than if they were acting frustrated and impatient. I also learned that what happens to old people in Vegas does not stay in Vegas. Quite the opposite.

I need to let go of the lingering illusion that I stand on the threshold of old age. I’m sure one day I will fully embrace my status as a senior. Maybe in 2025?

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November 2024

By Richard Fleming

Photo courtesy of Sheggeor Laker

In a recent post I posed a thought experiment: imagine what the world would be like without old people. That post was motivated by my periodic perception that some young and even middle-aged people view seniors as superfluous old fuddy-duddies who are clueless and uninformed about how the world works. I offered some speculative scenarios about what the world would be like if there were no old people. Such a society might have a few advantages for younger generations. But it would also create problems. My conclusion – not motivated by self-interest of course – was that on balance the world is better off with seniors.

To better understand how other generations contribute to society, I want to briefly posit a different thought experiment: what if the world had no young people? Such a land is difficult to contemplate, but imagine a world where there is no one under age 21. What would such a world be like, especially for seniors? There is no question our lives would change dramatically.

*    *    *

Let’s look first at potential advantages. We would no longer have young grandchildren in need of babysitting, storytelling, mentoring, and perhaps some financial support. Our spare time would open up, allowing us to pursue more hobbies and leisure pursuits. Our world would be quieter, with no babies crying, no toddlers acting out, and no loud teenage parties on neighborhood porches and back yards. Parks would be more peaceful without kids running wild. Public money would no longer be needed to maintain playgrounds with teeter totters, swings, and fake elephants which young children love to climb on.

Government spending on K-12 education would no longer be needed, meaning Social Security could be better funded. Our adult children would have much more time available since they would not have young kids at home to deal with. Their free time could be redirected towards helping their elderly family members, i.e. us old folks.

*    *    *

But there would also be significant disadvantages in a world without the young. There would be far less laughter and fun, since young people laugh more than other generations. There would be less joy and happiness, without exuberant youngsters roaming the land, playing, smiling, and engaging in pretend games. Young people are blessed with an intrinsic optimism, come what may. Without such hopefulness, our world would be much grayer.

The grandparent role would largely disappear, which would cast a shadow over the lives of seniors. It is undeniable that taking care of young grandchildren can be tiring. It is a responsibility we typically shoulder more at the same time our daily energy levels are starting to flag and sag. But taking care of young grandkids is invigorating. Seeing our grandkids frolic and smile, explore and learn, love and hug, is rejuvenating. Watching them grow and develop into young adults helps us recall our own childhoods. Grandchildren keep us oriented in time and space, and help us remain grounded in the realities and challenges of life.

*    *    *

My conclusion? The world is far better off including the younger generations. Actually, let’s wrap up these silly thought experiments about a world without young people or without old people. And let’s not even attempt to speculate about a society without the generations in between. It should be clear that any theoretical benefits from the absence of one generation or another would be far outweighed by the serious problems such an absence would create.

Some generational friction is inevitable, and I am certain this has been true throughout human history. But we are all allies. We need each other. Each generation enriches and adds its color to the fabric of society. Each brings its own strengths and shortcomings to the richly-woven quilt. Childhood would not be the same without old folks. And old folks could not survive without the young.

So as another year is wrapping up, I want to offer thanks that we are all in this together.

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November 2024

By Richard Fleming

Photo courtesy of Unseen Histories

I originally aimed to write a post on what a world without young people would look like, but decided it would be more important to offer a few thoughts on our recent presidential election. The post about young people will appear soon.

The results of this election pose challenges to everyone in our country, including the silver-haired generation. Why did Trump win, what may be ahead for seniors, and what can we do? I offer a few thoughts as an old guy who has been around the block a few times over seven decades. I know other seniors have different understandings of what just happened and what is ahead. My perspective is mine alone and I welcome other views.

I will start out acknowledging it is easy to get discouraged by this election. But old folks have shorter horizons than younger people, so we don’t have time to mope. We’ve lived through bad presidencies before. We know how to survive them and how to move forward. We need to buckle up and get ready for the challenges ahead.

*    *    *

Why did Trump win? There will be extensive analyses of this question in the years ahead, but it was clearly due to multiple factors, not just one or two. New data will emerge to help our understanding and I don’t want to attempt an analysis here. But a notable point the media seems to be understating or late in communicating is that Trump did not win by a landslide. Although votes are still being counted, Trump’s popular vote count this year will be about 3% higher than he received in 2020, but 6% below Biden’s vote total in 2020. While Trump made gains in a number of demographic groups, these were relatively small. Trump won because Harris received 7 million fewer votes than Biden got in 2020. Democratic-leaning voters were not motivated to turn out. Trump won less than 50% of the votes cast in 2024. This is not a popular mandate for Trumpism.

*    *    *

What lies ahead for seniors? While everyone in the country will be affected in various ways, I want to focus on potential problems the Trump administration may create for those of us trying to live out our golden years with peace and stability. Of course it is impossible to know with certainty what is to come. But based on Trump’s words, his early appointments, and his track record, the following  problems are clearly within the realm of possibility.

Social Security. Trump and the GOP have repeatedly signaled their readiness to weaken Social Security (SS). They talk about raising the retirement age for benefit eligibility, even though longevity in the U.S. is declining. Trump’s promise to eliminate taxes on Social Security benefits may sound attractive, but it would weaken the SS Trust Fund. And if the budget deficit balloons under Trump, as many economists predict will happen, political pressure will increase to reduce government spending. And all safety net programs will be in the crosshairs.

Medicare and Medicaid. Trump and his backers feel government health insurance programs are too expensive and would be more efficient if they were turned over to private businesses. But health care cannot be provided effectively, equitably, and humanely if it is delivered by profit-making groups. Medicaid is especially disliked by Trump because he feels its beneficiaries are not really deserving.

Health insurance. Obamacare is squarely in the bullseye for the Trump administration. Trump wants to withdraw government support for this program and allow insurance companies to charge more for people with pre-existing conditions. Old age is by definition a pre-existing condition, so our health insurance will likely become more costly and with fewer benefits. Also, Trump’s policies will likely lead to higher drug prices, even though Americans already pay more for prescription medications than is the case in any other country.

Public health. Trump is committed to reducing and deregulating proven health safety measures. If another catastrophic pandemic breaks out in the coming four years, Trump will oppose mask and vaccine mandates. Seniors may end up being sacrificed on the altar of libertarian freedom. If RFK, Jr., is allowed to “go wild” on the FDA, CDC, HHS, and other agencies overseeing public health, seniors will end up in a dark creek without paddles. Looking at RFK, Jr.’s intentions, one saving grace for old folks is that we won’t be hurt if he removes fluoride from drinking water, since our teeth are already shot.

Inflation. According to most experienced economists, Trump’s tariffs will lead to higher costs on all imported products. Most seniors are on fixed income, and higher prices are the last thing we need.

Undocumented immigrants. Trumps’ vow to deport undocumented immigrants will be devastating to millions of hardworking taxpaying people who came to the U.S. for a better life. Many have lived in the U.S. for decades and have established deep roots in many communities. The people Trump wants to target support seniors in myriad ways, from caregiving, to food production, to service work, and other realms. The main damage from Trump’s policy will be to the immigrants themselves. But seniors will suffer as well.

The above just touches on what could await us Boomers and the Silent Generation in the years ahead.

*    *    *

What can we do? Much has been made of the fact the guardrails which held Trump in check last time are now gone. While this is true as far as his appointees, the American people can serve as the ultimate guardrails. We can resist the anti-democratic, unconstitutional, corrupt policies he hopes to implement.

And seniors can be among the country’s strongest guard rails. Just because our stamina is slipping and we need to see our doctors more frequently does not mean we cannot write letters, make phone calls, attend public meetings, show up in officials’ offices, support pro-democracy organizations, and march in peaceful protests.

When seniors stand up for democracy, we are blessed with superpowers which can make our efforts surprisingly effective. Our graying hair, slower gait, and raspy voices afford us a special air of gravitas and a mantle of legitimacy. And we are motivated by self-interest. We have a special responsibility to challenge Trump, since he comes from our generation. We cannot allow our legacy to future generations to include Trump changing our country into a place we no longer recognize.

Of course, old folks cannot do this alone. We need to work with Gen X, Millenials, and Gen Z. Younger folks have more strength, stamina, and creativity than us old codgers. By working together, our efforts will be more successful.

As of November 5, 2024, we seniors have a new item added to our bucket list – serving as the ultimate guardrails against what Trump intends. Some of us can do more, and some can only do less. But every action we old folks take, whether big or small, will be a powerful statement for our generation’s values.

(Note: this post was updated November 24, 2024, to more accurately present the votes counted since the post was initially published.)

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October 2024

By Richard Fleming

Photo courtesy of Kimson Doan

We old folks sometimes feel invisible. A while back, I was walking along a beach in Maui, surrounded by beautiful young people frolicking in swimsuits, and I barely merited a glance. No eye contact. No acknowledgment of being alive and upright. Several few months ago I had to go to the grocery on a Friday night to pick up some food for the weekend. Most customers were young or middle-aged, since the oldsters had retreated to their homes hours earlier. As I moseyed down the aisles, I felt like a ghost. Not a glance, not a smile.

While such experiences are not unusual, they don’t happen everywhere. When my wife and I go to the Benicia Senior Center to pick up food for our Meals on Wheels delivery route, the center’s staff person smiles and says hello.

But it is common for Boomers and the Silents to feel society either ignores us or sees us as a burden. This can be true in the public arena, in commerce, in culture, and definitely in the political realm. Some political leaders say older women have no reason to concern themselves with abortion rights. Some say the age of Social Security eligibility should increase, even though life expectancy is dropping. And some feel spending on Medicare is excessive.

The other day I started to wonder what the world would be like if there were no old people. If we are irrelevant and burdensome, what if we no longer existed? What if society consisted exclusively of people up through age 60: just the young and the middle-aged? Mind you, I’m not advocating for this to happen. I offer it simply as a thought experiment, to see whether society would be better off without us.

*    *    *

There may be advantages to a world without the elderly. The vast and expensive array of safety net programs for seniors would become unnecessary. Nursing homes – most could be eliminated. Social Security in the U.S. – scaled way back. Medicare – ditto. Society spends vast sums of money helping the elderly and these funds could be redirected to youth-oriented projects. Federal spending could be reduced. Budget deficits might disappear. People’s taxes could be cut.

With more take-home income, young and middle-aged folks would have more money for discretionary activities. Vacation travel and entertainment spending would likely grow. The expansion of these leisure industries could provide employment opportunities for the millions of workers no longer needed by hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, medical equipment supply firms, home care agencies, optical sales offices, hearing aid manufacturing and distribution, and local Social Security offices, since these businesses would lose many of their “customers” if seniors disappeared from society.

And there is more! People would spend less time waiting in lines at retail establishments, since there would be no old people fumbling with their credit cards at the payment terminals, not knowing where to tap, dropping their cards on the floor.

If no one needed to worry about living into old age, lifestyles could become more flexible. Living to 60 requires much less work and effort than living to 80. People could tune out health care professionals nagging them to eat more fruits and vegetables and avoid ultra-processed foods. Those carping voices encouraging regular exercise could be dismissed as background noise. People entering middle age would no longer need to worry about having enough money to live in retirement, since retirement would be an unknown concept.

Parents would no longer be tasked with telling their young children to stop staring at old guys with walkers trying to shuffle across the street before the light turns red. And if there is no one over age 60, fewer parents would have to serve as grandparents, a role which can be exhausting.

Movies could be more uplifting. People would not need to suffer through films like “On Golden Pond” or “The Father.” Families could sit on their couches and stream the original seasons of “Matlock,” avoiding the contrived new remake featuring Kathy Bates as a septuagenarian lawyer coming out of retirement (even though it is a cute story). With no oldsters around to consume television programs, broadcast TV could disappear since young people only watch streaming services.

And, perhaps most importantly, we would not need to worry about 78-year-olds running for president and whether their cognitive state is intact and appropriate.

*    *    *

While such a vision of society sounds attractive, I would be remiss if I did not also mention some of the down-sides of a world without old people.

Without seniors, society would lose many of its storytellers. Old folks are amazing repositories of tales about family and what life looked like in the good old days. These stories help inform younger people about history, their ancestors, and society’s past. Such tales can be both interesting and useful. And they can help the younger generation build a better society in the future, avoiding the mistakes of the past.

A world with fewer grandparents could be quite burdensome. Grandparents provide great assistance to families by babysitting, providing financial support, and by conveying small gems of wisdom to the young. If children had no grandparents, their sense of family, life, and community would be much more limited.

If society no longer needed to spend money on support systems for the elderly, this money might end up being spent entirely on the needs and wants of the young. This could have the unintended consequence of leading society to become more self-indulgent and prioritizing the here-and-now. If no one lived past 60, there may be less concern for the future and what it might bring, since our individual futures would be quite short.

Negative impacts in the cultural realm could also appear. In the absence of movies featuring endearing old people, there would be less crying in theaters, and tears can be therapeutic. Popular culture might slip into de-emphasizing empathy and understanding, emotions which charming old people are uniquely positioned to foster.

*    *    *

I’m sure I’ve left out much of the good and the bad that would be manifest in a world without old people. But hopefully I have captured some key facets of what life would be like. So what do you think? Does a world without seniors sound better, healthier, and less stressful? Or does it seem less wise, less grounded, and less empathetic?

This thought experiment would not be complete without also considering what a world without young people would look like, and this will be the topic of my next post.

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September 2024

By Richard Fleming

Photo courtesy of Dominic Kurniawan Suryaputra

(In this post, I am not addressing cognitive problems from dementia, which are sad and crushing. My focus is on what happens in the course of “normal” aging.)

To be honest, there are often times when I don’t feel “older but wiser.” Older, yes. Wiser, not so much. And I think many seniors feel similarly.

So what does the cute phrase which sits atop this blog really mean?

To understand, it may be useful to look at how memory, intelligence, and wisdom evolve and as we grow old. These three characteristics are closely interconnected. But they are also distinct. The normal aging process produces changes in all three.

*    *    *

Let’s start with memory. All seniors begin to have trouble remembering things. It happens to all of us to varying degrees. And the problem typically tends to worsen as we grow older.

Using myself as an example, I tend to forget names. I often have trouble recalling past events, like where we went on vacation two years ago. Or the location I celebrated my 60^th birthday. Or where I put the stapler. Or why I walked upstairs to the bedroom this morning. These small gaps are frustrating, but pretty much inevitable with increasing age. Sometimes I can dig up the missing information by concentrating and thinking really hard about what I’m missing. But at other times it is more likely to come back if I stop trying and just wait for the missing information to pop into my head.

The memory problems of seniors stem from the same aging processes that affect all organs in our body. Cellular debris from normal metabolism accumulates, making neural connections less efficient. Neurons (our brain cells) shrink and their connections to each other slowly fray. Although the metaphor is inaccurate in many ways, I view my brain as a fixed-capacity hard drive. The storage capacity filled up at age 60 or so, and any new incoming information requires some existing data be deleted. I keep looking for a way to defrag my hard drive to increase its storage capacity, but so far no luck. If anyone has ideas, I welcome them.

*    *    *

Moving on to intelligence, this brain function relies on a good memory. But it involves more than simply being able to recall facts and data. Intelligence is the ability to process information, learn new concepts, and reason through complicated ideas. Because our memory tends to decline over time, it is not surprising our intelligence will follow a similar trajectory. It is hard to be smart when there are things we don’t know or can’t recall.

But for seniors, intelligence is often better preserved and declines more gradually than memory. Why? It is because a lifetime of making decisions can help us reason through complex situations more efficiently. Our brains benefit from years of experience, and this can offset some of the decline in memory.

An example from my own experience: older physicians often make difficult decisions as ably and reliably as younger docs. Young physicians typically have a larger database of facts readily available in their brains. They are more recently trained and their memories are more facile. But older docs can often navigate complicated clinical problems just as quickly as their younger colleagues. Their long years in practice equip them to understand a patient’s situation and arrive at answers more efficiently.

However, time inevitably catches up. As the years accumulate, the complex neural networks in our brains weaken. We begin to lose some of the efficiencies in neural processing that help counter the attrition in our memory. For those of us lucky enough to live into the upper age ranges, our intelligence will sooner or later fray around the edges. And this slippage will continue.

To apply this to my example above, if I were to develop a serious cardiac problem, I would be perfectly comfortable consulting with a cardiologist in her 60s but would be hesitant to see one in her 80s, even though both have great reputations.

*    *    *

Finally, let’s tackle wisdom. At first glance, wisdom and intelligence may seem identical. Smart people are commonly viewed as both intelligent and wise. But wisdom is not the same as intelligence. Wisdom is more nuanced and complex. Wisdom relies on understanding, empathy, and emotion. It requires good judgment and an ability to anticipate the consequences of decisions. Wisdom emerges from the ability to integrate intelligence into the complicated reality of life.

People can be very intelligent but not very wise. A high school economics teacher might be whip-smart about a range of economic theories but not wise enough to successfully explain them coherently to a classroom of 16 year olds. A politician may be very knowledgeable about a range of policy details but not wise enough to understand the impact of these policies on the real world, short term and long.

Intelligence tends to be detailed and quick. Wisdom tends to be generalized and gradual.

So how is it that seniors can become wiser as they grow older? Though wisdom benefits from memory and intelligence, it is not determined by them. Declines in memory and intelligence do not necessarily lead to less wisdom.

Wisdom requires a richness and depth of experience and understanding. And seniors accumulate these by the bucketful. Over the years, we live through the good and the bad. We see the impact of our decisions on others and ourselves. We live with how the actions of others affect us, our families, and our communities. With time, we tend to gain empathy, understanding, and judgment. We’ve been down many of these same roads before, and we know what lies around the next bend. We see and understand the world differently than when we were young.

And this enables us to gain a higher level of wisdom, even as our bodies and minds age and grow more fallible.

*    *    *

For seniors, our journeys into and through old age share many features in common. At the same time, each person’s experience is unique. Memory, intelligence, and wisdom do not change uniformly and follow the same time frame for everyone. Many factors impact whether we can grow older and whether we do become wiser. Your results may vary.

Speaking for myself, I am fortunate to still be growing older. I hope to gain more wisdom by living life as fully as possible. And I trust that at some point I will acquire enough wisdom to know how to grow old with perseverance, acceptance, dignity, and grace.

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September2024

By Richard Fleming

Photo courtesy of Mourad Saadi

I still find it challenging to accept the fact I live in the land of old-age. On the surface, I do not feel that different than 10 years ago, when I was in my early 60s. I wake up, have my morning coffee, read the paper, and embark on my day. Yes, I have some more aches and pains. The joints feel a bit stiff at times. But I have been lucky as far as serious health issues, and I just don’t feel like I’m elderly, an oldster, a dinosaur. I feel like I’m maybe halfway through middle-age.

But it is important to stay grounded in reality. And the reality is this: I am currently older than 90% of the population of the U.S. I don’t have to search an online encyclopedia to know I am a senior in every sense of the word – officially, unofficially, practically, socially, scientifically, medically, and culturally.

I realize, too, that I am seeing an increasing number of signposts which help clarify that I am a citizen of the nation of the old. In case anyone in my generation reading these words may also be in denial, I want to share some of the markers of old-age that I am coming to understand. A person can walk past – or experience – two or three and still be middle-aged, but once you get to four or more, the verdict is in. And there is no appeal.

• You decide to listen to an oldies station on a streaming service and are surprised it is filled with songs from the 2000s and 2010s.
• You’re watching a movie whose main characters are Gen Z, and you don’t understand most of the slang they use.
• Moving your joints creates noises people can hear across the room.
• You’re always on the lookout for chairs, wherever you are.
• Young people in the grocery store initially line up behind you, seeing that you are one cart away from the checker. But when they get a good look at you, they switch to a longer line because they assume you will take forever to figure out how to pay for your groceries.
• Cashiers in stores start telling you how and where to tap your credit or debit card on the terminal before you even get a chance to use the card.
• Millennials or Gen Z’ers you’re interacting with in public call you “young fella” or “young lady.” And they say these words loud enough for others to hear.
• You start needing to see the doctor four or more times per year.
• When you go out for coffee with friends, an increasing proportion of your time is spent talking about medical issues that you and your friends are experiencing.
• You start accumulating so many prescription medications they require two or even three shelves in the medicine cabinet.
• You always need the closed captioning turned on when you watch TV.
• The TV shows you are watching have commercials mostly about wheelchairs, medications, and nearby senior living options. And yes, you still watch broadcast television.
• You start regretting you do not live in a one-story home.
• Your weight starts to creep up year by year even though your eating habits have not changed. Human metabolism slows down in old age – a betrayal if there ever was one – meaning we must consume fewer calories to maintain a stable weight.
• It becomes significantly harder and more energy-draining to babysit your younger grandchildren now than it was to watch your older grandchildren when they were the same age.
• It takes all day to complete the basic chores and errands required to keep your home functioning. In the past, you could do them all while working full time and raising kids, and still have time for leisure activities.
• You start paring down your bucket list, as it becomes clear you cannot possibly accomplish all the goals you added to it when you were middle-aged.
• You start spending more time thinking about how your end-of-life will unfold, and what your legacy will be.
• Your oldest child turns 50.
• One of your children becomes a grandparent.
• Cuddling in bed at night feels as intimate as, well, you know…

Though I have not walked past every one of these markers of old age, I have experienced many. Enough to make my status clear. I am sure this list is not complete and welcome additions if you would like to leave a comment.

These signposts help define the boundary between the lands of middle-age and old-age. This boundary is not a brick wall we abruptly encounter one day on our expedition into the future. We are not middle-aged one day, old-aged the next. There is a zone, a period of transition as we cross from one land into the next.

But they are two separate worlds. And the thing is, once we have entered the realm of the silver-haired, we can never return to the land of the middle years. We may occasionally look back and see that world retreating behind us. We may recall the joys and trials of traversing the realm of middle-age. But we must continue our journey forward, moving further into the land of old-age, where we will discover its unique joys. And its unique trials.

*    *    *

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