“Will you still need me, will you still feed me when I’m sixty four”
~ Paul McCartney (composed when he was 24 years old)
Seniors always carry two things in their pockets: photos of their grandchildren and random dog-eared clippings of the news they think is important. The older we get the easier it is to forget. So if you want to get retirees to engage in a conversation about reforming social security or the health care system there is only one way to do it, have them look at the pictures of their grandchildren while discussing the relevant issues.
Picture by Kevin Trotman
For most older people when they’re looking at their grand kids they can’t bring themselves to ask the youngsters to sacrifice for them. It just goes against everything that comes with being a parent or grandparent-we do what we have to so our offspring can have better lives not the other way around. When Social Security was created in 1935, the average adult didn’t live long enough to collect benefits. Today, they’ve twenty years left to live and they plan on living them to their fullest.-That’s a lot of purchasing power for services, health and even starting 2nd careers.
