We hear it so often: Age is no longer revered and in fact more and more it's seen as an encumbrance on society, with older people a drain on the health care system and the entire public assistance infrastructure.
Politicians ponder how to take care of them, particularly as more baby boomers head into retirement.
But that's really quite far from the truth, and not just in the U.S. but worldwide. Older people, those in their 60s and 70s, give back to their societies far more than they receive in benefits.
In the U.S. alone, those in their 60s and 70s contribute $40 billion to the economy in taxes and voluntary work, and that comes on top of the generosity they extend to their immediate families. That's among the findings of a huge study spanning 21 countries from HSBC, the global financial services giant.
“It was an amazing finding,” says Ian Martin, head of pensions and retirement income at HSBC Insurance UK. “It dispels the myth that older people are takers or receivers. They are massive contributors.”
The HSBC Future of Retirement study, done in conjunction with Oxford University’s Oxford Institute of Ageing, surveyed 21,000 people between the ages of 40 and 79 in 21 countries and territories around the world.
With people living longer, researchers were looking to gain insights into what these older people are doing with their lives and how they fit into the global economy. What they're doing, far more than prior generations, is giving back.
“There is a much longer period of positive contribution than we have seen before,” says Martin.
The effect, he says, is that those in their 60s and 70s have become the foundation on which their nations stand. Rather than being economic dependents, they're the underpinnings of their nation's economies.
These younger elderly are especially important contributors to the economies of families, he says. “Their contribution is of such an order that it suggests family life would struggle without the contribution of older people,” says Martin.
In terms of financial support, in the U.S. even in the oldest age group in the study-- the 70- to 79-year-olds– nearly 40 percent contributed to a friend or family member in the last six months. Yet only 11 percent of that age group has received financial support from a friend or family during that period
In terms of practical support, such as housecleaning or shopping, some 27 percent of the 70- to 79-year-olds surveyed in the U.S. provided some form of it to a friend or a relative in the past six months. That’s higher than the 19 percent that received this type of support.
When it comes to personal care, such as helping a friend or relative bathe, 13 percent of this same age group provided this type of help, while 3 percent received it.
The older age groups are also involved in helping the wider community. Across the globe more than 66 percent of over-60s do some form of volunteer work, and more than half of those give a half a day a week or more. In the U.S. this amounts to about 3.7 billion hours a year, or $19.1 billion worth, calculated at the minimum wage.
Then there's another $20 billion in just tax revenues from those who are still working, and as the study learned, that's a surprisingly large share of over-60s in the U.S.-- 45 percent of 60- to 69-year-olds and 19 percent of those 70 to 79, or some 11.5 million people putting in a total of 15 billion hours, full or part time.
Meanwhile, elsewhere in popcult, the new release “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End” was No. 1 at the box office over the long Memorial Day weekend, bringing in just over $142 million. “Shrek the Third” dropped from No. 1 to No. 2 with slightly more than $69 million brought in, pushing “Spider-Man 3” to No. 3 with another $18 million brought in, bringing its total to $307.6 million, No. 21 all-time.
In DVD rentals for the week ended May 20, according to IMDb.com, “Pan’s Labyrinth” finished on top, knocking “Night at the Museum” out of the No. 1 spot after three straight weeks, with “Dreamgirls” moving down to No. 3.
On iTunes for the week ended yesterday, Rihanna’s “Umbrella” was No. 1, while both “American Idol” finalists had songs in the top 10: Jordin Sparks at No. 4 with “This is My Now” and Blake Lewis at No. 5 with “You Give Love a Bad Name.”
In books, “The 6th Target” by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro was at No. 1 on The New York Times hardcover fiction bestsellers list for the week ended May 19, its second week in a row in the top spot. “The Secret” by Rhonda Byrne topped USA Today’s chart for the week ended May 20 after spending a week at No. 2.
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TOP MOVIES
Weekend Box Office Estimates
Weekend of May 25-28, 2007
|
|
Rank
|
MOVIE
|
Engagements
|
Box office (millions)
|
|
1
|
Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds End (
Buena Vista)
|
4,362
|
$142.06
|
|
2
|
Shrek the Third (Paramount)
|
4,172
|
$69.09
|
|
3
|
Spider-Man 3 (Sony)
|
3,723
|
$18.00
|
|
4
|
Bug (Lionsgate)
|
1,661
|
$4.20
|
|
5
|
Waitress (Fox Searchlight)
|
510
|
$4.00
|
|
6
|
28 Weeks Later(Fox)
|
2,013
|
$3.30
|
|
7
|
Disturbia (
Paramount)
|
1,632
|
$2.40
|
|
8
|
Georgia Rule (Universal)
|
1,904
|
$2.38
|
|
9
|
Fracture (New line)
|
907
|
$1.60
|
|
10
|
Wild Hogs (
Buena Vista)
|
426
|
$1.44
|
|
Source: Yahoo Movies
|
|
IMDb TOP DVD RENTALS
Week ending May 20, 2007
|
|
Rank
|
TITLE
|
Last week
|
|
1
|
Pan’s Labyrinth
|
-
|
|
2
|
Night at the Museum
|
1
|
|
3
|
Dreamgirls
|
2
|
|
4
|
Music and Lyrics
|
5
|
|
5
|
Because I Said So
|
4
|
|
6
|
Catch and Release
|
7
|
|
7
|
Déjà Vu
|
3
|
|
8
|
Stop the Yard
|
-
|
|
9
|
The Queen
|
6
|
|
10
|
Alpha Dog
|
8
|
|
Source: IMDB
|
|
ITUNES TOP 10 SONG DOWNLOADS
for week ended Sunday, May 28, 2007
|
|
Rank
|
TITLE
|
|
1
|
Umbrella, Rihanna
|
|
2
|
Party Like a Rock Star, Shop Boys
|
|
3
|
Makes Me Wonder, Maroon 5
|
|
4
|
This is My Now, Jordin Sparks
|
|
5
|
You Give Love a Bad Name, Blake Lewis
|
|
6
|
Home, Daughtry
|
|
7
|
Never Again, Kelly Clarkson
|
|
8
|
Buy You a Drank, T-Pain
|
|
9
|
Big Girls Don’t Cry, Fergie
|
|
10
|
Thnks Fr Th Mmrs, Fall Out Boy
|
|
Source: iTunes
|
|
NEW YORK
TIMES BESTSELLING BOOKS
Week ending May 19, 2007
|
|
Fiction (hardback)
|
|
Rank
|
TITLE
|
Last week
|
Weeks on chart
|
|
1
|
The 6th Target
by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
|
1
|
2
|
|
2
|
Bad Luck and Trouble by Lee Child
|
-
|
1
|
|
3
|
Invisible Prey
by John Sandford
|
-
|
1
|
|
4
|
The Yiddish Policemen’s
Union
by Michael Chabon
|
3
|
3
|
|
5
|
Simple Genius by David Baldacci
|
2
|
4
|
|
Nonfiction (hardback)
|
|
1
|
God Is Not Great
by Christopher Hitchens
|
4
|
3
|
|
2
|
Einstein by Walter Isaacson
|
1
|
6
|
|
3
|
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle
by Barbara Kingsolver with Steven L. Hopp and Camille Kingsolver
|
5
|
3
|
|
4
|
Plato and a Platypus Walk Into a Bar
by Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein
|
-
|
1
|
|
5
|
A Long Way Gone
by Ishmael Beah
|
6
|
14
|
|
Fiction (paperback)
|
|
1
|
The Husband
by Dean Koontz
|
1
|
3
|
|
2
|
Water for Elephants
by Sara Gruen
|
2
|
5
|
|
3
|
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
|
3
|
8
|
|
4
|
The Memory Keeper’s Daughter by Kim Edwards
|
-
|
48
|
|
5
|
The Fifth Horseman by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
|
5
|
5
|
|
Nonfiction (paperback)
|
|
1
|
The Final Move Beyond
Iraq by Mike Evans
|
-
|
1
|
|
2
|
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
|
1
|
17
|
|
3
|
The
Glass
Castle by Jeannette Walls
|
2
|
71
|
|
4
|
Blink by Malcolm Gladwell
|
3
|
7
|
|
5
|
90 Minutes in Heaven
by Don Piper with Cecil Murphey
|
5
|
30
|
|
Source: New York Times
|
|
USA
TODAY BESTSELLING BOOKS
Week ending May 20, 2007
|
|
Rank
|
TITLE
|
Last week
|
|
1
|
The Secret by Rhonda Byrne
|
2
|
|
2
|
The 6th Target
by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
|
1
|
|
3
|
The Husband
by Dean Koontz
|
3
|
|
4
|
Invisible Prey
by John Sandford
|
-
|
|
5
|
Bad Luck and Trouble by Lee Child
|
-
|
|
6
|
Oh, the Places You’ll Go by Dr. Seuss
|
14
|
|
7
|
Water for Elephants
by Sara Gruen
|
8
|
|
8
|
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
|
6
|
|
9
|
The Dangerous Book for Boys by
Conn and Hal Iggulden
|
19
|
|
10
|
Susannah’s Garden by Debbie Macomber
|
5
|
|
Source:
USA Today
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