
 |
|
Nov. 20, 2009
Nov. 19, 2009
Jonathan Tobin: ADL Crosses the Line with Report Bashing Obama Critics
Nov. 18, 2009
JWisdom.com: The (Jewish) Dating Game
with Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff (8 minutes)
Nov. 17, 2009
Steven Emerson: How Does the 4th Amendment Impact Terror Finance Investigations?
JWisdom.com: If Frank Sinatra married Edith Piaf
with Rabbi Y.Y. Rubinstein (2 minutes) Life lessons from what would be regarded as the most inappropriate lyrics ever sung
Nov. 16, 2009
JWisdom.com: Deconstructing faith
with Rabbi Warren Goldstein (9 minutes)
Nov. 13, 2009
JWisdom.com Sarah's subjective reality
with Rabbi Sroy Levitansky ( 6 minutes)
Nov. 12, 2009
JWisdom.com Does God get tired?
with Rabbi Harvey Belovski ( 5 minutes)
Nov. 11, 2009
JWisdom.com Marriages are not made in Heaven
with Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff (VERY fast 15 minutes)
Nov. 10, 2009
Michael Doyle: Author of book exposing CAIR ordered to remove supporting documents from Web
JWisdom.com If the creation so loudly shouts the existence of the Creator, why aren't more people believers? with Rabbi Naftali Brawer (9 minutes)
Nov. 9, 2009
Mark Steyn: Shooter exposes hole
in U.S. terror strategy
JWisdom.com It's never too late to
have a happy childhood with Sarah Chana Radcliffe (5 minutes)
Nov. 6, 2009
JWisdom.com Zero to 1/60th: How
to Empower An Hour with Gavriel Aryeh Sande (7 minutes)
Nov. 5, 2009
JWisdom.com Hidden Hints: Unlocking
Faith & Prayer with Rabbi Jay Yaacov Schwartz (10 minutes)
Nov. 4, 2009
JWisdom.com When God played peacemaker
With Rabbi Sroy Levitansky (5 minutes)
Nov. 3, 2009
JWisdom.com Are you are closet idolater?
With Sara Yoheved Rigler (10 minutes)
Nov. 2, 2009
JWisdom.com Abraham's Strange Change
With Rabbi Yitzchok Fingerer (5 minutes)
|
| |
Jewish World Review
May 3, 2007
/ 15 Iyar 5767
Is 60 The New 40 Or Is 40 The New 60?
By
Lloyd Garver
| 
|
|
|
|
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
The other day, I read another one of those articles called, "Is 60 the new 40?" We hear about this supposed phenomenon all the time. 60 is the new 40, 70 is the new 50, 110 is the new 108, etc. It means that people are living longer today, they're healthier, and they're enjoying life more. All that is great. However, at the same time that people are feeling much younger than people their age felt in previous generations, an all-powerful culture of youth is dominating our society. People in their 20s are getting cosmetic surgery to look younger. Men and women in their 40s are considered too old to work in some fields. More and more people are forced to take early retirement at an earlier and earlier age. So while older people are feeling younger these days, our society may be seeing them as older, not younger. Maybe in terms of perceptions, 40 is the new 60.
First, the good news: Today, the average age for someone moving into a nursing home is 81. In the 1950's, it was 65. In a 2005 Merrill Lynch survey of people between the ages of 40 and 59, 76 percent said they planned to retire when they were about 64 and then start an entirely new career. Men and women in their 70s and 80s race in almost every marathon. Seniors teach and take classes, travel, and just seem to live fuller lives than ever before.
But that's not how society sees them. Judging by TV commercials, right when we get out of baby diapers, we have to prepare ourselves to get into adult diapers. And look how young the people are in the ads for Viagra-like products, hair dyes, and arthritis medications. It's as if Madison Avenue is saying that it's over for you once you're past the grand old age of 25.
There is one area in our society in which being older is not held against you. And it's the one area that maybe it should be presidential politics. Being young can actually hurt a candidate. We hear things like, "Is he too inexperienced?" or "Is he mature enough?" The majority of today's candidates are too old to be considered for most jobs in the "real world." But apparently, Americans like their leaders to look like parents, or grandparents. It's ironic that just when people might be getting a bit more forgetful, when they may have a few more health problems, when they have less and less of a connection to America's youth, that's when they are considered the right age to lead our country. Americans don't seem to want any hand without liver spots to be on that dangerous, red button.
But for the rest of the population, ageism is a problem. People employed in television and other fields no longer worry about being blacklisted. But they fear being "graylisted." If you're lucky enough to still work at your job after 20 or 30 years, those young people who roll their eyes when you start talking about how things were done "back in the old days" are the same people who want your job and will probably get it.
So, does our culture truly appreciate and admire those who have all that comes with telltale gray hairs? You may read dozens of magazine articles celebrating the vitality of the aged, but you won't see one ad like this in any of those publications: "Lacking Experience and Wisdom? Want to Look a Little Older so More People Will Respect You? Try Our New Aging Cream for Instant Wrinkles and Gray Hair."
But I'm not worried about my future. If I get to the point that nobody in my chosen field wants to hire me, if it takes me even longer to remember people's names, if all my hair turns white, and if I have no idea what young people are thinking about, I'll still have one option open to me: I can always run for president.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Lloyd Garver has written for many television shows, ranging from "Sesame
Street" to "Family Ties" to "Frasier." He has also read many books, some of
them in hardcover. Comment by clicking here. Visit his website by clicking here.
Archives
© 2006, Lloyd Garver
|
|

Arnold Ahlert
Mitch Albom
Michael Barone
Dave Barry
Tony Blankley
Andy Borowitz
David Broder
Stratfor Briefing
Mona Charen
Linda Chavez
Ann Coulter
Greg Crosby
Larry Elder
Suzanne Fields
John Fund
Frank J. Gaffney
Lloyd Garver
Jonah Goldberg
Julia Gorin
Jonathan Gurwitz
Paul Greenberg
Lewis Grossberger
Victor Davis Hanson
Betsy Hart
Nat Hentoff
David Horowitz
Laura Ingraham
Cheri Jacobus Jeff Jacoby
Paul Johnson
Jack Kelly
Ed Koch
Ch. Krauthammer
Michael Ledeen
John Leo
David Limbaugh
Kathryn Lopez
Rich Lowry
Michelle Malkin
Jackie Mason
Dick Morris
Bill O'Reilly
Jim Mullen
Clarence Page
Kathleen Parker
Dennis Prager
Wesley Pruden
Tom Purcell
Jonathan Rauch
Celia Rivenbark
Robert Robb
Cokie & Steve Roberts
Pat Sajak
Debra J. Saunders
Culture Shlock
Roger Simon
Michael Smerconish
Thomas Sowell
Mark Steyn
John Stossel
Cal Thomas
Bob Tyrrell
Diana West
Dave Weinbaum
George Will
Walter Williams
Byron York
Mort Zuckerman

Robert Arial
Chuck Asay
Baloo
Chip Bok
Dry Bones
Lisa Benson
John Branch
Gary Brookins
John Cole
J. D. Crowe
John Deering
Brian Duffy
Everything's Relative
Mallard Fillmore
Jake Fuller
Bob Gorrel
Joe Heller
David Hitch
Jerry Holber
Steve Kelley
Jeff Koterba
Dick Locher
Chan Lowe
Ranan R. Lurie
Jimmy Margulies
Rick McKee
Michael Ramirez
Kevin Siers
Jeff Stahler
Ed Stein
Danna Summers
John Trever
Gary Varvel
Kirk Walters

How 2
Lori Borgman
The Savvy Consumer
Elder matters
Fixit
Dr. Peter Gott
GET A JOB! by Marty Nemko
Richard Lederer
Tech Maven
Every Monday Matters
Nutrition Myths
Bookmark These
Bruce Williams
How Stuff Works
|