Boomer anti-aging fears and the decline of the graceful exit

...[T]he Baby Boomers' dread of aging (even their retirement commercials retain some hint of triumphing over time) has pervaded a culture that once prized the good sense of knowing when to leave your neighbor's cocktail party, and doing so quietly. The Boomers introduced the notion of the high-spirited party animal that has to be dragged away. Little value is placed anymore on deferral. You stay around as long as you can, dignity be damned. The worst fate is to be "on the sidelines." It's likely that this thinking has had an effect even on those, like O'Connor, who are members of an earlier generation. "To Retire or Expire" American Spectator