"Civilisation is judged on how it treats its weakest members."

Aristotle is right, but this also applies to the unborn, but at both ends of the spectrum, there is cruelty, indifference, torture and neglect. So this is what our 'civilisation' has been reduced to -
a victory for utilitarianism and a defeat for humanity, compassion and common sense.

What goes around will come around.

I agree SHRODE. The slogan, “Every child, a wanted child,” has been used by proponents of abortion as justification for ending the lives of “unwanted” children.

Now it appears that the children who managed to make it through are using a similar logic against their own parents: “Every parent, a wanted parent.” If a parent becomes “unwanted” then they are just forgotten about. Why not – if it was good enough to justify the killing of their siblings, why isn’t it good enough to justify abandoning the parents?

Of course, the “solution” to all this will be the legalisation and embracement of euthanasia. How much neater, quicker and cheaper it will be to subtly or not so subtly encourage Grandma or Grandpa to take the pill rather than hang around interminably using up the inheritance.

Just for you Murray, I promise to die before 2056.

There does that make you feel better sweetie?

“Aged care has become people farming where a crop of people produce profits all year round for facility operators. Putting the aged into socially isolated people farms is a national disgrace of which all must take responsibility.”

My mother ended her days happily in, first a low-care institution, then in an attached nursing home where she was cared for by loving, caring people who always did much more than they were paid to do. Aged care is not all bad, and it can be policed.

As for the cost of ageing, and the burden put on working people: get rid of income tax (which was supposed to be a temporary measure) and concentrate on consumption and many other taxes too numerous to mention here. That way there will be more people paying tax (including the old – there is not dignity in being ‘kept’) and there would be a reduction in big government, particularly as people who don’t pay tax now (loads of them) would start getting serious about politicians wasting their (taxpayers) money.

The great flaw in the article is the usual statist trick/error of identifying society with the state and the state with society.

Sooner, I hope, rather than later we will find the courage to ask the elderly how much further they want to go.
And not only ask, but listen to the answers.
How hard can that be? Ask and listen - we might just learn something.