Review nº 11

Name: Cristina Soledad Guzmán
Source: www.guardian.co.uk.
Date of publication: Wenesday September 10 2008


Review nº 11: Article ‘The long game’

What will the government do with you once you get older enough to stop working? The actual population of Europe seems to be getting older than in previous years. There are more older people than younger population hanging around, but they have to face the problem of monetary assisstance. This social problem is discussed in the article ‘The long game’ published in The Guardian newspaper.
In these days, the older population of the U.K. is increasing. There are more pensioners than children in the U.K., they constitute nearly 20% of the population. By 2050 there are expected to be 50 times as many. Similar figures can be found throughout the developed world. Some scientists believe that ageing slows above 100 years. The “old“ are no longer a homogenous population, they include: the young old (60-80); the middle old (80-100); and the oldest old (100-120). These are radically different phases of life. For many health and economic reasons, the quality of life of the young old has improved. However, the functional problems of the middle old and oldest old are not being addressed, resulting in a poor quality of life. Now, we tend to regard the age of retirement as the watershed between adulthood and old age, and a woman who retires at 60 would be expected to live another 25 years. This creates economic problems, both for the individual and the state. Due to that, many old people are already having to work as voluntary carers. But according to a survey, their quality of life is appalling, and one has to ask whether we are extending life beyond what is sensible and humane. Death is currently preceded by about 10 years of chronic disease or disability. If we do nothing about it, it will swallow up our health service, then our economy, and eventually ourselves.
This article reveals a different reality of European societies, in comparison with ageing in non-developed countries like Argentina. Their populations, especially the British population, is getting older. “there are more pensioners than children” says the author. And this fact has some negative consequences on the economy of the country, as well as on their personal economy and their lifestyle.
To sum up, on the one hand, it is very nice for some people to live longer, but at what cost? Living longer involves suffering the deterioration of our minds and bodies for longer periods and so we become a burden for the economy of our countries. But it does not means that older people should be let aside, the solution to some extent, could be to find some kind of work according to their capacities after the age of retirement. So that they would remain being productive and supporting themselves for longer periods.