Rich Folks, Poor Folks,Old Folks

In recent times one of our successes has been in providing natal and post-natal care for infants.  Somehow, we have managed--for the most part--to overcome our selfishness and take care of the poor in our society for a few weeks or months at the start of life.

When the end of life approaches, however, it's a very different matter.  By then we are divided up into groups by wealth.  When old age comes, poor are shuffled off to isolation, ignomany, and at last the relief of death:  and what they leave behind is an empty bed in a back room somewhere.  But the rich get luxury treatment even beyond the time they can enjoy it--and though their old age can be very, very expensive, they still leave ample inheritances for those next in line.

Why can't we change that, quite simply?   When I am too old to drive a car, I quit driving.  Maybe I can't even have a license any more.  When I am too old to work, I retire.  If I am rich, of course, I can have a chauffeur, or take taxis everywhere.  And if I retire "well," I will have a big wad of savings stashed away, and a fat pension, and nurses and maybe a place in a fancy retirement center.

Let's do away with all that:  with the chauffeur-driven class, and the idea of retiring "well."  Let's all enter old age the same way:  go out as we came in, naked, without privilege.

Death is supposed to be the great leveler.  Let's back up a bit, and make old age the leveler.  We needn't use a cut-off age, as the Social Security system does; we can develop measurements for graduation into geriatic care.  And the care facilities will be all be first-class.  Everybody will get the same good care and treatment.  Rich and poor won't mean anything any more once you get old enough--just as now they don't mean anything when you are dead.

But the Social Security system in the United States is bankrupt.  How can we pay for this kind of old age care?  That's simple:  we will finance it with the excess wealth possessed by the rich old folks. Once you enter geriatic care, you won't need money any more.   Everybody will "contribute," paying together, each according to his material means.  "Inheritances" will become something other than money--and maybe the accumulation of money will cease, in time, to be a value in our society.

And maybe even the churches will catch on, and quit all this nonsense of fancy buildings and exotic "vestments," and gold this and gold that and three-tiered gold hats.  What kind  of god needs or wants that?  The Christians' god said, "Give up all you have, and follow me"--and he said that to all his people, including his bishops, etc.  And none of our other gods were or are wealthy, or hungry for money.  And surely gods didn't want their places of worship weren't locked up at night, to protect their wealth from the poor and homeless among their people.

Let's reform--and re-form--human life.  Let's make a genuine society, in whiuch we all take care of everybody.