The Lancet asserts this morning that a baby born today into an affluent home can expect to live to 100.
That's obviously good news, in the sense of helping everyone enjoy the full blessings of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
But at the same time, we had better be thinking harder about our plans for dealing with a geriatric population. Specifically, we can conclude that if people work for 40 years (say, age 25 to 65) and then live on retirement for 35 years (say, age 65 to 100) that'll be expensive. So we had better either a) increase economic growth, or b) delay the onset of work-incapacitation, so that seniors can stay in the workforce longer, past 65. Otherwise, we can be sure that others will have their own plan for dealing with oldsters.
Watch how Japan does it, then try to do it better.
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