The problem is the increasingly long span of life when people are not working but still consuming, possibly requiring expensive personal and medical care. The goods and services consumed have to come from someone working somewhere.<p>What we could <i>really</i> do with is establishing some new norms for short-week working for older people (and the not so old). There are plenty of people who&#x27;d be happy to do a few hours a week to top up their income and stay in contact with the world, but are starting to be physically incapable of the 40 hour + commute week.