Re: Why Europe can't hold out - Brooks, NY Times

imbibe_at_mindspring.com
Date: 01/16/05 

Date: 16 Jan 2005 02:33:44 -0800

AKQJT wrote:
> imbibe@mindspring.com wrote:
> > AKQJT wrote:
> >
> >>There has been all sorts of unwarranted fear about
> >>aging population apocalypse with respect to universal
> >>health care systems. It ain't happening. The society
> >>of actuaries, the dept. of finance, and other
> >>researchers have shown that these fears are unfounded.
> >
> > Those running dogs were instructed by their
> > masters to pooh-pooh it!
> >

> No they were not. The population change will happen
> very slowly. Also there is no relationship between
> a country's age structure and its expenditure on
> social services.

Older people are more likely to vote, so there is,
of course, a DIRECT relationship between the age
structure and those expenditures! The reason we
insist on having a period of doddering infirmity
at the end of our lives is unwarranted fear of
death. We have enough problems, with water, oil,
land, pollution, war, etc., without adding to it
with our inexorable march toward 9 or 10 billion.
The best policy would be stop producing influenza
vaccines and stop killing infected birds. 

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