EP 971 Older Americans are Hanging on to Power, Privilege and Resources Longer than Ever

 Have you ever heard the word gerontocracy?  Well, according to our guest, you’re living in one.  The point may be best illustrated by the last two presidential campaigns where we elected an elderly man, Joe Biden, to be our president in 2020 and when feeling that he was too old to serve another term, we replaced him with another old man, Donald Trump.  It’s not only happening in our politics among the candidates, funders and voters (oh it’s true that older Americans outvote and other demographic groups), but also in business and other endeavors.  Many of them, baby boomers, were brought up on the youth culture of the 1960’s and cannot see themselves giving up their positions and privileges.  This trend has an impact on many things, including the ability of young people to move on up, the differential in social safety nets between young and old and the types of short- term issues our politics might address at the expense of long-term ones, like the warming of the planet.  It’s a fascinating topic and our guest, Samuel Moyn, a Yale professor describes its many implications in detail in his new book, “Gerontocracy in America:  How the Old are Hoarding Power and Wealth–and What to Do About It.”  He is our guest today.

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