Geriatric revolution in policy

I'm not the wagering type, but I'd bet money that our vice president will be 70 percent prosthetic before the Bush administration is through. First it'll be a hip, then he'll need a kidney. Next thing we know, a robot with remote-controlled facial expressions will air live from the White House. \n And he won't be the only one, not by far. But it's not bio-ethics that I'm commenting on, but the potential for political misrepresentation we face as the baby-boomer generation ages. By 2030, about 20 percent of the population will be over 65, and this sector will be the part of the population most likely to vote. \nThere's hardly anything wrong with their growing share of political clout -- taxation does equal representation (unless you're from the District of Columbia), and voters deserve to have their interests met. The only aspect that edges the future scenario into the realm of science fiction is the inclination of our generation to regard politics as a joke -- or not to regard them at all. \nMedicare and Social Security have already dominated the campaign promises of the last two presidential elections, but it's easy to pledge 40 acres and a cane when the boomers break the 65 barrier. \nThere's hardly anything for our generation to complain about in this scenario. Ten years after we graduate from college, an entire generation will retire, launching our career advancement at ludicrous speed. Older people often have more wisdom, patience and humor than youngsters -- and more willingness to share it. But no matter how kind people are, they go to the polls in self-interest.\nPeople vote for the candidate who will sustain their wealth, health and peace of mind, so politicians try to deliver these things to people who actually vote. \nLet's try another scenario: the year is 2030. Legions of Mercedes endlessly circle the neighborhood, music blaring and tinted windows rolled down. It's not rap music you hear, but Fleetwood Mac and that's not gin and juice in the cupholder, but V8. All of this will go on around a city block where our children will be schooled in burned-out apartment buildings. \nSo maybe the generation at the helm of the nation's longest period of peacetime economic expansion won't be the social deviants of the future, but the potential exists considering the voting power they wield. \nIf current education policy proposals are any indication, the baby boomer generation leaders are already starting to act irresponsibly. Give every student achievement tests every year -- Bush said it, and no one seems to be arguing. \nThis will be an expensive, exhaustive effort, and all we'll learn is how poorly or exceptionally students are doing. No one will know any more about the world, just his or her place in it. It's a policy equivalent of seeing that a plant is withering and investing in a high-powered microscope rather than water and fertilizer. \nI don't foresee a geriatric revolution spreading from Florida and seizing the nation, but the elderly -- just like anyone else -- will continue to look out for themselves at the polls. That means our generation has the additional incentive to be active participants in civic life and establish a presence in the political landscape.\nAs we spend these years preparing for our careers, the political forces are already working to our detriment. This month Congress threw out ergonomic standards that would have forced businesses to safeguard workers from carpal tunnel syndrome and other repeated stress injuries that often occur in office jobs. \nLeisure time is on the steady decline also. Between 1969 and 1987 the hours American workers put in on the job jumped the equivalent of more than a month's worth of labor per worker, per year, according to a Harvard economist. \nIn addition, the Bush tax plan proposes a $200 million cut aims at programs that provide child care, prevent child abuse and train doctors at children's hospitals.\nThe trend toward a senior-centric government is starting, and it will only continue -- or worsen if we sit on our votes and fail to respond to policy that goes against our best interests. The baby boomers could become the bio-bots and live forever at the expense of the younger generation's health and welfare. Pointing-man posters with the slogan "Uncle Sam Wants You" might take on a whole new meaning -- for your kidneys.