Yale University: The unforeseen consequences of the ‘great aging’ of America or Gerontocracy in America

Food for thought! What is democracy by elected representatives? A tyranny of the  majority? 

Is this Yale professor inciting/stoking an uprising/revolution of the younger against the elderly?

His chosen dichotomy is dubious and very simplistic! His prescriptions are even more dangerous and are calling for big government if not socialism!

According to Google Scholar this professor "Samuel Moyn

Professor of Law and History, Harvard University" has only a total citation count of 14521 (as of 7/30/2026 since 2021), but he has authored over 480 publications. Not very impressive!

Caveat: I did not read his book.

"Yale law professor Samuel Moyn’s new book argues that a “gerontocracy” now holds sway in America, with wealth and power disproportionately concentrated in the hands of older people. In a Q&A, Moyn explains how that happened, why it’s a problem, and how we might fix it."

"What Moyn calls “the great aging” has, he says, transformed America into a society in which older people control a disproportionate amount of political power and wealth [???] and “hoard” jobs and housing [???], depriving the young of opportunity and political say. 

Some of the statistics Moyn cites: The median age of congresspeople is more than 60. The median age of voters is 52; in some campaigns, donor ages average as high as 70.

Workers over the age of 55 now comprise nearly a quarter of the workforce, compared to 10 percent in 1990. ...

“If Americans deserve a society that is oriented to innovation and problem-solving, and equips and launches the young into the prime of life, the country is heading the wrong direction,” Moyn writes. ...

His book prescribes a host of possible strategies for wresting control from the aged, from making voting mandatory [???] and boosting public funding [???] of elections to reevaluating age-related tax breaks and bringing back mandatory retirements. Finally, he suggests that a more socialistic model of elder care in America would help reduce the angst around aging that compels older workers to cling to jobs and wealth. ..."

Yale Today

The unforeseen consequences of the ‘great aging’ of America

A record 57 House of Representatives members have announced they won't seek re-election ahead of midterm

Good news! Western democracies have too many lifelong, elected career politicians!

"A record 57 House members have announced they won't seek re-election, including 36 Republicans, the most GOP retirements ahead of a midterm in nearly a century."

Join the Flyover

Record number of lawmakers retiring from Congress ahead of midterms

How Ancient Greece Created the World’s First Democracy

Very recommendable!

Limited government or limited and small government?

With President Trump in his second term this question has garnered new relevance!

As a classical liberal I am all for limited and small government with term limits for all elected representatives!

Unfortunately, since World War II Western democracies have shown a strong tendencies to overregulate, to pass too many laws (and rarely if ever remove obsolete laws), and to concentrated too much power with the central government.

Unfortunately, term limits for elected representatives in Western democracies is a taboo. Only the US President is term limited (there might be some other exceptions).

Devolution of power in Western countries from central to lower levels of government is also long overdue reform!

10 effective things citizens can do to make change in addition to attending a protest like "No kings". Really!

Utterly stupid protests like "No kings" indeed can erode democracy! However, Western democracies have already survived many of such ridiculous protests in the past.

The author is "Shelley Inglis, Senior Visiting Scholar with the Center for the Study of Genocide and Human Rights, Rutgers University"

"That may well be the question being asked by “No Kings” protesters, who marched, rallied and danced all over the nation on Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025.

Pro-democracy groups [???] had aimed to encourage large numbers of Americans to demonstrate that “together we are choosing democracy.” ...

And while multiple GOP leaders had attacked the planned demonstrations, describing them as “hate America” rallies, political science scholars and national security experts agree that the current U.S. administration’s actions are indeed placing the world’s oldest continuous constitutional republic in jeopardy.[???]

Once a democracy starts to erode, it can be difficult to reverse the trend. ..."

10 effective things citizens can do to make change in addition to attending a protest

Next US Census to count only Legal Residents in U.S.

Who can argue with this common sense decision by President Trump! Demography is destiny!

A lot of political power in the US depends on getting the correct count of legal residents by state!

Illegal immigrants deserve/require their own, separate census or population survey!

Commerce to Make Census Reflect Legal Residents in U.S.

Notes on Democracy in the Middle East

The Middle East/Arab countries are special when it comes to democracy!

"... In the Middle East, democracy often means not freedom or prosperity, but instability, civil war, and suffering. The collapse of regimes in Iraq, Syria, Libya, and Yemen led not to flourishing democracies, but to bloodshed, sectarianism, and humanitarian disaster. The Arab Spring, once celebrated as a democratic awakening, mostly left behind failed states and stronger autocracies.

Meanwhile, the Gulf monarchies—Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait—have delivered relative stability, economic growth, and rising living standards without adopting liberal democracy. Even non-oil monarchies like Jordan and Morocco have provided more stable governance than their republican neighbors.

To many in the Middle East, democracy is not an abstract ideal. It is associated with civil collapse. People prize security and opportunity far more than abstract political freedoms, especially when "freedom" appears to bring chaos.

This does not mean Arabs are somehow anti-democratic. It means that in societies where institutions are weak, divisions are deep, and external interventions are common, the democratic experiment is fraught with dangers too often ignored by idealistic outsiders.

Western policymakers chronically underestimate how traumatic the past two decades have been for the region. "Democracy promotion," regime-change wars, and political experiments have left deep scars. For many Middle Easterners, a flawed but functioning government is preferable to the gamble of a sudden democratic transition. ..."

Democracy Dies Not Just in Darkness - by Ahmed Alrayyis

Steve Forbes: A Very Undemocratic Voting System Could Gain Ground This November - Ranked choice voting

Recommendable! I also have my doubts about this form of voting!

Iraq: From Civil War to Civil Discourse

Food for thought!

"... The story of Iraq teaches us that you cannot bomb freedom and democracy into countries. People cannot fight for freedom and democracy if they don’t know what democracy means. ..."

From Civil War to Civil Discourse

Belief in democracy is on the decline in Africa. Traditional institutions can help restore its importance

Recommendable!

Can some African traditions and traditional leadership (chiefs) promote democracy in Africa? The cautions answer seems to be yes.

Belief in democracy is on the decline in Africa. Traditional institutions can help restore its importance

UK General Election called by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on the 4th of July!

Let the people decide! Quite a gamble! As usual, the weather in London was rainy! There is also some background music.

Switzerland's Unique (and rare) Political System Explained - VisualPolit...

Very recommendable! Switzerland is a very special country! There are always elections (incl. referenda) in Switzerland. The Swiss government is a collegial body.

Look how many political parties are represented!

2024 could be the biggest global election year in history

Wow! Elections have consequences! Choose carefully!

"The coming year will be one of seismic political shifts. Over 4 billion people will head to the polls in countries including the United States, Taiwan, India, and Indonesia, making 2024 the biggest election year in history." (Source)

One-in-Five U.S. Mail-In Voters Admit to Committing at Least One Kind of Voter Fraud During 2020 Election

Large scale mail in voting is seriously problematic for a number of reasons!

I think, mail in voting should be severely restricted and limited to as few exceptions as possible! You have to vote in person and the voter has to be identified to reduce voter fraud. Otherwise, election integrity is in jeopardy!

The ad hoc switch to mass mail in voting throughout the country for the November 2020 elections despite notoriously poor quality voter registration rolls.

"17% of mail-in voters admit that in 2020 they voted in a state where they are “no longer a permanent resident”

21% of mail-in voters admitted that they filled out a ballot for a friend or family member

17% of mail-in voters said they signed a ballot for a friend or family member “with or without his or her permission”

8% of likely voters say they were offered “pay” or a “reward” for voting in 2020"

Heartland/Rasmussen Poll: One-in-Five Mail-In Voters Admit to Committing at Least One Kind of Voter Fraud During 2020 Election – The Heartland Institute

When the political pendulum swings

Recent election results in democratic countries from South America to Western Europe leave little doubt that something momentous is happening.

As they say elections have consequences!

There is good reason to believe that citizens in various democratic countries are finally fed up with leftist and greenish ideology and incompetence!

DEMOCRACY App for Germany makes direct democracy possible

I just learnt about this app available on Google Play! This could be a revolution!

Actually, we have the technology to conduct referenda on any political issue and more often than the famous direct democracy Switzerland. Direct democracy is within reach.

"Make yourself a member of parliament"

"Follow up bills and decisions.

Take part in votes in the Bundestag.

Control your politicians.

Strengthen your political influence."

DEMOCRACY - Apps on Google Play

DEMOCRACY 1 . 5 Weil deine Stimme zählt!

Credits: Unter der Glaskuppel

Blow to Democracy: Thailand's Parliament Fails to Confirm New PM with Palki Sharma

Recommendable! Very regrettable! Military rule may trigger new protests.

Should We Raise the Voting Age?

Caveat: I did not read the article, but the title raises an interesting question! Food for thought!

The usual trend in Western democracies was to lower the voting age further and further! Even age 16 has been considered!

How mature are actually 18 year old individuals to make mature, experienced, and reasonable judgments about ongoing politics/policies? How easy are these young people influenced by some propaganda and demagoguery? 

The standard argument and default, automatic rule was that adults are allowed to do anything else may not apply to voting! Let young adults gather some or more real world experiences etc. before voting! 😊

In my opinion, the more proper voting age would be 20 and older! 

Should We Raise the Voting Age? - Intellectual Takeout

Jon Stewart notes alarming fact about how the U.S. Congress works behind closed doors: 'Like an assisted-living facility'

I like that headline!

Fact is our elected representatives are becoming older and older like society at large! However, a gerontocracy poses serious dangers to a democracy! It will most likely create tensions between younger and older generations!

Thus, e.g. term limits for all members of the U.S. Congress would be one measure to improve the situation! Had term limits already been in force for a long time, the senile and demented Joseph Biden would most likely not have become president!

Jon Stewart notes alarming fact about how Congress works behind closed doors: 'Like an assisted-living facility' - TheBlaze

India readies remote voting to reach disenfranchised millions of voters

Good news! The largest democracy is becoming larger!

"India's Election Commission is piloting an initiative to offer remote voting for hundreds of millions of domestic migrants, a pathbreaking move to make the country's democracy more inclusive, but one some critics say is fraught with potential problems.

Many migrants face disenfranchisement due to their inability to travel to polling stations where they are registered as voters, as required by law. ..."

India readies remote voting to reach disenfranchised millions - Nikkei Asia Effort to bring internal migrants into democratic fold raises legal, tech worries