The future looks bright: aging boomers to enjoy cutting edge crapper

"Toto, the Japanese toilet specialist, is releasing a rather surprising new bathroom facility for the elderly. The Japanese company provides toilets which incorporate electronic, water-saving or grime resistant technologies. Knowledgeable of the senior market, Toto already sells elevated toilets for the elderly and heated seat toilet with warm water bidet functions. Yet Toto's new toilet is equipped with a monitoring system which detects whether the occupant has fallen or needs assistance." "Toto's Techno-toilet Protects Aging From Falls" Seniorscopie

Cognitive dissonance: pundit believes authoritarian boomers will restore lost liberties

"We need to be constantly vigilant. We cannot stand silent, and we need not sacrifice those things we hold dear. We must not tolerate a loss of individual liberty; we must not let the qualities we possessed in our youth fade as of little matter. They have lain dormant too long; we've lost far too much already. We must awaken and reclaim our positions as gatekeepers. We must revive the revolutionary spirit that empowered us." "Where Have All the Baby Boomers Gone" Blogcritics.org

Experts: advertisers fail to score with image-conscious Boomers

"[T]he cursory commercial nod does not always appeal. Boomers gave the Cadillac ad low points in the survey, Led Zeppelin soundtrack and all.That indicates a deeper problem: Attempts to address this cohort are often laden with stereotypes, easy references to a peace sign, a Woodstock image or the idea of boomers as a selfish lot. That will only prove detrimental to companies over the long term, marketing experts say." "Aging Boomers Derided, or Ignored, by Ad Campaigns" Mature Market

New knees for fatty

"Surgery to replace damaged knees and hips with artificial joints has become so common among active baby boomers that it almost seems like a badge of honor. But evidence is growing that it's not only skiers and joggers fueling the explosion of operations, but obese Americans. Article Tools Some hospitals estimate that half to two-thirds of their patients having joint-replacement surgery are overweight or obese, and these patients are posing added challenges for medical teams." "Obesity is fueling a rise in joint-replacement surgeries" The Boston Globe via Boston.com

The price of hypocrisy: Boomer drug policies spawn police state tactics

"Americans have long maintained that a man’s home is his castle and that he has the right to defend it from unlawful intruders. Unfortunately, that right may be disappearing. Over the last 25 years, America has seen a disturbing militarization of its civilian law enforcement, along with a dramatic and unsettling rise in the use of paramilitary police units (most commonly called Special Weapons and Tactics, or SWAT) for routine police work. The most common use of SWAT teams today is to serve narcotics warrants, usually with forced, unannounced entry into the home." These increasingly frequent raids, 40,000 per year by one estimate, are needlessly subjecting nonviolent drug offenders, bystanders, and wrongly targeted civilians to the terror of having their homes invaded while they’re sleeping, usually by teams of heavily armed paramilitary units dressed not as police officers but as soldiers..." "Overkill: The Rise of Paramilitary Police Raids in America" Cato Institute

In Canada: hypocrite Boomers deny pot use, but keep on huffing

"This hypocrisy of simultaneously engaging in the pleasure of indulgence while maintaining a dignified disapproval is also apparent when talking about pot. The suggestion that 94 per cent of baby boomers see marijuana as a mere youthful indulgence is undercut by many other surveys showing steady increases in the percentage of people in the 30-to-50 age group who still consume pot. Pierre Berton may have been the only aging Canadian icon with the courage to admit to long-term pot use, but there are plenty of silent, stoned middle-aged Canadians leading highly productive lives. Yet these same stoners deny their pot use and claim to be actively steering their kids away from this bad habit. No wonder the laws have not changed in the past 40 years." "We Love Porn and Pot" NOW Magazine via Media Awareness Project

LTE: Boomers have corrupted conservatism

"It's clear from listening to conservatives that modern conservatism has become a philosophy of I, me and mine. I want it. Give it to me. Mine must be bigger and better than yours. Such an attitude is easily recognized as adolescent. A child with such an outlook is dealt with in a variety of ways: time outs, Ritalin, boot camps, etc. The problem is that many adults, particularly in their 40s and 50s, have never grown up." "Not Grown Up" The Huntsville Times (Alabama)

When good times go broke...

"Experts have calculated that the country's long-term "fiscal gap" between all future government spending and all future receipts will widen immensely as the Baby Boomer generation retires, and as the amount the state will have to spend on healthcare and pensions soars. The total fiscal gap could be an almost incomprehensible $65.9 trillion, according to a study by Professors Gokhale and Smetters." "Prof Kotlikoff said: "This figure is more than five times US GDP and almost twice the size of national wealth. One way to wrap one's head around $65.9trillion is to ask what fiscal adjustments are needed to eliminate this red hole. The answers are terrifying. One solution is an immediate and permanent doubling of personal and corporate income taxes. Another is an immediate and permanent two-thirds cut in Social Security and Medicare benefits. A third alternative, were it feasible, would be to immediately and permanently cut all federal discretionary spending by 143pc."' "US 'could be going bankrupt'" Telegraph.co.uk

Blundering Boomer leaders not "the best and brighest"

"These individuals aren't the brightest or best, nor the most virtuous or competent, among us. Quite the opposite in most cases. But they're clearly the most ambitious; as such, they define who we are and how history will remember (or forget) us. Whatever we Boomers may have been or done in our individual capacities, on the big matters that legacies are made of we have been outclassed, out of our depth, unable to offer the strategic leadership that would leave something of value to posterity. Most importantly, we have shown ourselves singularly incapable of greatness." "Baby Boomers: The Ungreatest Generation" Common Dreams

Mind games for President Bush

"The President of The United States, George W. Bush, this year received an extra special present from Nintendo. Most people send chocolates, some send a woolly jumper (Why Gran? Why?), but in Nintendo’s case they sent a shiny, brand new DS Lite, accompanied with a US copy of Brain Age: Train your Brain in minutes a day! Nintendo, along with these fantastic presents, sent a special birthday letter: Dear President Bush:Happy Birthday! Don't worry, turning 60 is an exciting milestone. As you know, you've joined millions of other baby boomers in an invigorating new decade of your life. And, like many boomers, you may be looking for ways to keep your mind sharp. That's where we come in." "Nintendo Sends George W. Bush A Birthday Present" PortablePlanet.co.uk

Boomer "Beer Baron" busted!

"A hearing officer has revoked the driving license of beer baron Peter Coors after ruling the executive was driving while under the influence of alcohol. The revocation decision followed two and a half hours of testimony Friday. Garber ruled that Coors, 59, did not stop at a stop sign and was driving intoxicated on May 28." "Beer Executive loses license" Associated Press (Denver)