The real Reagan story? Aging society

[AmyStrange]

The real Reagan story? Aging society
MARK TRAHANT
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER COLUMNIST

FROM: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/177479_trahant13.html
Last week's all-news TV channels (the cable stations that formerly carried news) missed the Reagan story I'm most interested in: I had quite enough of Ronald Reagan, the extraordinary; what about Ronald Reagan, the ordinary?

Reagan the ordinary is the story about a 93-year-old man living with Alzheimer's disease for more than a decade. Reagan the ordinary is the story about families that must cope with intense medical demands. Reagan the ordinary is the extraordinary demographic trend that's changing America.

Like so many older people these days, Reagan kept working long after the so-called "retirement" age; he worked a dozen years past age 65. He then retired to California where more than 400,000 people are older than 85.

We are in an era when people live longer -- and that has many ramifications for the way we live, fund government and design our medical system.

<SNIP>


My take: obvious (I hope)

[izzie]

1. I see no reason not to work but their is a time to stop.

To many old people are out on roads driving that should not be there. So they also most likely should not be working either. I would say RR was having problems long before we were told because of the way he acted and I think Nancy was watching out for him. I watch a lot of wifes do this for husbands that are a little older. I do not think their is any set age to say these people should stop working and driving and that is another problem.