Matthew Schmitz, writing in the Witherspoon Institute’s publication Public Discourse, makes some good points about modern society’s closeting away of the elderly from the young, and the resulting impact it’s having in the health care overhaul debate.
I’ve often pondered how the Boomers’ kids will handle end-of-life care, considering many of our parents championed causes that denigrated marriage through no-fault divorce and human life through abortion. We might soon find out.
Schmitz writes:
Our society has not always been very clear about what obligations grown children have toward their aging parents. But in the case of the Boomers, the question becomes exceedingly complex. Taking advantage of the rise of no-fault divorce laws, they sought flexibility and happiness through more negotiable romantic and sexual attachments. They had fewer children than their parents? generation, but those they did have were buffeted by the chaos of divorce, remarriage, custody battles, and multiple Christmases.
Now, the balance of dependence is tipping. As boomers enter their second childhood, we may witness the historical irony of aged parents experiencing some of the chaos and uncertainty felt by their children. What responsibilities of care does one have toward a stepfather? Toward a parent with more than one set of children? It?s no longer a question of who gets to keep the kids but rather of who gets stuck with the grandparents.
Later, Schmitz argues that the “segregation of the young and the old should be a more alarming sign of how our country will deal with aging Boomers than any health-care proposal in Congress.”
That’s only looking at the social implications, too. The financial burden ? given how many Boomers there are and how few younger folks to subsidize their retirements through Social Security ? adds a whole new dimension.
