Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

Older Job Seekers Often Have Unrealistic Expectations
Humberto Cruz
Chicago Tribune
November 1, 2009

Overview: "More than 60 percent of Americans 55 to 70 who are working or seeking work have less than $250,000 saved for retirement,” according to a recent study."
http://tinyurl.com/yjs6osq

Robot Marketed to Be Grandma's New Live-In Helper
The Times
October 31, 2009

Overview: "Meet your grandmother’s new live-in helper: a robot built by an American company that has already pioneered robot vacuum cleaners and robot bomb-diffusers — 2,000 of which are on duty in Iraq and Afghanistan."
http://tinyurl.com/yksbuse

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

Testosterone Sales Soar Thanks To Aging Boomers
Frank James
NPR
November 2, 2009

Overview: “Once again, drug companies that make products meant for an aging population seeking to hold onto their youth, can thank baby boomers, mostly but not all men, who want to increase their libidos and general energy levels through use of the male hormone.”
http://tinyurl.com/yk5r9sq

Women Are Online, Shopping For Cosmetics
Stephen Reily
Engage Boomers
November 2, 2009

Overview: “At VibrantNation.com, we recently surveyed the 60,000 Vibrant Women (smart, successful women 50+) who receive our newsletter and visit our website weekly on the way they buy beauty products and services. This survey confirmed that these Boomer women may be the "last consumer standing" in hard times.”
http://tinyurl.com/ydlk3nj

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

Rescuing Real Estate
Linda Stern
Newsweek
November 4, 2009

Overview: "The battered housing market is getting some help from an unlikely source: retirees. Baby boomers on the cusp of collecting Social Security are bringing some much-needed vitality to the real-estate sector as they capitalize on reduced prices and low mortgage rates by lining up their next homes a few years early."
http://tinyurl.com/y9eopcv

When Wal-Mart Enters the Funeral Business
Idris Mootee
Blogging Innovation
November 4, 2009

Overview: "The first baby boomers are entering their mid-60s, and the death rate in the U.S. is expected to rise from 8.1 people per thousand in 2006 to 9.3 in 2020 (according to the National Center for Health Statistics). Yet the traditional funeral industry is hardly healthy: The Federated Funeral Directors of America, an accounting firm for independently owned funeral homes, found that in the past 20 years, its clients' profit margins have been cut nearly in half … Some funeral homes have responded by more innovation such as themed funerals, from backyard barbecues to mini concerts."
http://tinyurl.com/ydsa7fa

Aging adults keep on moving, stay active
Nadege Charles
Miami Herald
November 3, 2009

Overview: "Aging baby boomers ... are tapping into active lifestyle choices and creative social activities to boost their physical and mental health. From water activities, to creating art on recycled material and hip-hop inspired line dancing, seniors are embracing fun programs."
http://tinyurl.com/ylrrd7k

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

Guest Blog: Looking for Work in Your Fifties
WSJ Staff
Wall Street Journal
November 5, 2009

Overview: “Jan Thomas was senior communications project manager at the Alliance for Children and Families in Milwaukee, Wisc., before her position was eliminated in May 2008. Ms. Thomas, 59, previously worked in strategic PR, marketing and communications both as an internal employee and as a consultant. She lives in Sarasota, Fla.”
http://tinyurl.com/yjmsprq

A glimpse of the future: Robots aid Japan's elderly residents
Calum MacLeod
USA Today
November 5, 2009

Overview: “TOKYO — It looks like a scene from Robocop or one of the Terminator movies: A human steps into a sleek robot suit and is miraculously transformed, suddenly capable of astonishing feats of strength.”
http://tinyurl.com/yhprdv2

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

Elderhostel loses the 'elder' to attract boomers
Mark Miller
Newsday
November 6, 2009

Overview: “Memo to anyone trying to sell something to baby boomers: Keep the word "elder'' out of your brand name. Most boomers are in a state of profound denial of aging, so the E word is a definite turnoff -- even if you've got one of the most respected names in your industry.”
http://tinyurl.com/ye9wm7v

Editorial Notebook: Mickey's makeover
Peter Jensen
Baltimore Sun
November 7, 2009

Overview: “To baby boomers, Mickey Mouse is the perpetually cheerful and wholesome host of the "Mickey Mouse Club." To senior citizens, he's the star of movies and shorts dating back to 1928. But to youngsters today, he's mostly a corporate icon - a shill for Walt Disney theme parks and DVDs and the familiar symbol on a gargantuan inventory of merchandise, from bed linens to pancake molds.”
http://tinyurl.com/ycq9dl2

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

Healthy lifestyle, attitude help resilient seniors stay on track
Mary Brophy Marcus
USA Today
November 8, 2009

Overview: “Orville Rogers can make it twice around Coppell High School's track in a little over four minutes. That's a respectable time for many of the teens who attend the Dallas school. For Rogers' peer group, it's remarkable.”
http://tinyurl.com/yzsgpsx

Young and old all point fingers, but in different directions
Kevin Simpson
Denver Post
November 8, 2009

Overview: “Tyler Clark could write a book about all the ways baby boomers have left their size-16EEE economic footprint on the backs of subsequent generations. In fact, that's exactly what the 28-year-old Web analyst hopes to do — aided by contributions from fellow Generation X'ers solicited through his blog and Twitter account.”
http://tinyurl.com/yl9kplj

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

H1N1 Vaccine: A Generation Gap?
Anne Mai Bertelsen
Engage Boomers
November 9, 2009

Overview: "In the 1960s, teenage Boomers rebelled against their parents' politics, music and lifestyles. Today, there seems to be a generational divide on vaccines -- particularly on H1N1, which health officials have cautioned could afflict 40% of the U.S. population over the next two years without widespread immunization."
http://tinyurl.com/yk4a4rz

Fulfillment at Any Age
Susan Krauss Whitbourne, Ph.D.
Psychology Today
November 10, 2009

Overview: "It goes beyond the scope of my expertise to analyze Shakespeare's biography in terms of his projections about old age, though I find it interesting that this speech is the personification of "ageism," defined by the American Psychological Association as "prejudice toward, stereotyping of, and/or discrimination against any person or persons directly and solely as a function of their having attained a chronological age which the social group defines as "old.""
http://tinyurl.com/ybo43ct

By guest blogger Christine Owens, a senior associate at BCC & Associates and adjunct professor at Columbia University, teaching in the graduate program of Non-Profit Management.

The CIVIC generation (born 1901-1924) is well known for its charitable generosity and volunteer activity. Members of the ADAPTIVE generation ( born 1925-1942) are transferring tremendous personal wealth to both their children and charitable institutions, and the IDEALIST generation ( born 1942-1960) is engaged by hands – on charitable and volunteer efforts that is part of a grand moral movement such as Habitat for Humanity. This is according to Charles L. Eastman, “Philanthropic Cultures of Generational Archetypes.”

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

Baby Boomers by the numbers: Census reveals trends
Nanci Hellmich
USA Today
November 9, 2009

Overview: “The majority of Baby Boomers are white, married, have some college education and were employed in 2006, says a report from the U.S. Census Bureau. The report is a new analysis of 2006 data, the first time the government has examined specifics on Boomers since 1996.”
http://tinyurl.com/y8dwu4s

Burberry Looks Online for Ways to Gain Customers
Julia Werdigier
New York Times
November 9, 2009

Overview: “Angela Ahrendts still remembers when she bought her first Burberry trench coat. She was 21 years old, had just finished her studies in Indiana and was looking for a smart but warm coat to wear for her first job at a small men’s wear firm in New York.”
http://tinyurl.com/y893ws3

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

On the Front Lines of Healthcare Reform
Lois Romano
Washington Post
November 12, 2009

Overview: “As the policy director for AARP, the world's largest organization for people over 50, Rother has been on the front lines of the health-care-reform wars -- often under siege by Republicans and by some of his group's 40 million members.”
http://tinyurl.com/y88gg7s

The Case Against Retirement
Chris Farrell
BusinessWeek
November 12, 2009

Overview: “Financial and demographic developments point toward Americans working into their golden years. And that's a good thing.”
http://tinyurl.com/yz8n8vr

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

Baby boomers may face high disability rates
Shari Roan
Los Angeles Times
November 13, 2009

Overview: “Americans entering their 70s today are experiencing more disabilities in old age than did the previous generation, researchers announced Thursday. The shift in health fortunes comes as a surprise and predicts future high disability rates for the baby boomers as well.”
http://tinyurl.com/yglaqy9

Fat boomers less able to do chores: U.S. study
Julie Steenhuysen
Reuters
November 13, 2009

Overview: “America's baby boomers are likely to have far more trouble moving around as they get older than their parents had, U.S. researchers said on Thursday.”
http://tinyurl.com/yf4b6vg

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

The Food Issue: Family Affairs
Vicki Raab
The New Yorker
November 16, 2009

Overview: “For baby-boomers struggling to nurture failing parents in the absence of intact family networks and functional social structures, both books, brined in memory and embroiled in necessity, make consoling reading as Thanksgiving looms.”
http://tinyurl.com/yg695ta

Research finds creative solutions for aged health
Antonette Collins
ABC News Australia
November 15, 2009

Overview: “Can participating in the arts help people be happier and healthier? Scientific research suggests that, in some cases, it can.”
http://tinyurl.com/ye5vquy

More Disabilities in the 60s May Spell Trouble for Baby Boomers
Katherine Hobson
U.S. News & World Report
November 12, 2009

Overview: “Wasn't the coming generation of senior citizens supposed to be the most active of all? The baby boomers may not be power-walking happily into their later years after all, if the trend captured by a new study continues. Researchers from the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California–Los Angeles found that people ages 60 to 69 report more disabilities (things like being unable to walk up 10 steps without rest and having difficulty doing chores and getting dressed) than in years past.”
http://tinyurl.com/yft3kpf

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

AP: Senate to add option for long-term care
USA Today: On Deadline
November 17, 2009

Overview: “A new long-term-care option to help keep the elderly and the disabled — and baby boomers — out of nursing homes is expected to be added to Senate health legislation, the Associated Press is reporting.”
http://tinyurl.com/y85dafo

AP Sources: Senate weighs long-term care program
Ricardo Alonso Zaldivar
The Associated Press
November 17, 2009

Overview: “Senate health care legislation expected this week is likely to include a new long-term care insurance program to help the elderly and the disabled avoid going into nursing homes, Democratic officials say.”
http://tinyurl.com/y89bnbd

Sell Experiences, Not Products
Jim Gilmartin
Engage Boomers
November 16, 2009

Overview: “What are the biggest mistakes sales people make selling to Boomers? To begin, they sell products and not experiences.”
http://tinyurl.com/y8cerex

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

How Companies are Managing 'Unretirement'
Roseyln R. Feinsod
BusinessWeek
November 17, 2009

Overview: “In the talent wars. be careful what you wish for. Until very recently many of our client organizations were looking for ways to forestall the expected wave of baby boomer retirements and hold on to their experienced talent a bit longer. Now, with many employees' retirement savings and home values decimated by the market meltdown and continuing uncertainty about full economic recovery, companies are wondering when—or if—their boomer workforces will sail off into the sunset.”
http://tinyurl.com/ydglsvu

Sensible Cars For Old Coots
Jim Shea
Hartford Courant
November 18, 2009

Overview: “The older people get, the larger the vehicles they prefer. If Buick made buses, you wouldn't be able to get a parking spot at the senior center. The Coupe de Coot would make a Hummer look like a Mini Cooper.”
http://tinyurl.com/yd94sg5

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

Nellie McKay salutes Doris Day on 'Normal as Blueberry Pie'
John Soeder
The Plain Dealer
November 19, 2009

Overview: “Who better than Nellie McKay, a quirky singer with a touch of yesteryear about her, to salute Doris Day? McKay's fun new album, "Normal as Blueberry Pie," finds her revisiting songs popularized by mid-20th-century superstar Day.”
http://tinyurl.com/yff7qwc

There May Be a Smaller Ford in Your Future
James G. Cobb
New York Times Blogs
November 19, 2009

Overview: “Disarm the Patek Philippe. Park the Bugatti. Drain the last drops of Cristal. The party’s over.”
http://tinyurl.com/ykxsgoj

Will I Be Part of “Gen U,” the Generation Unretired?
Lynn Taylor
Psychology Today
November 19, 2009

Overview: “Many of us grew up with a stereotypical life plan: I'll go to school, college, get a job, get married, have a family, get a home, and maybe even have a white picket fence and a dog. “Then magically, at 65, I will retire and can finally relax. Some of these notions have faded into oblivion - in fact, “retirement” has been virtually redefined.”
http://tinyurl.com/ycv8asz

77 Percent of Senior Citizens Shop Online
Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing
October 27, 2009

Overview: “Seniors aged 65 and older (also referred to as “Matures”) have made the Internet an integral part of their everyday lives. In a recent study, 77 percent report that they shop online.”
http://tinyurl.com/y93bldz

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

Not Taking ‘Not Hiring’ for an Answer
Michael Winerip
New York Times
November 19, 2009

Overview: “BABY boomers have lived during an era of unparalleled prosperity. So when this deep recession hit — at a time when boomers were advancing to middle- and late-middle age — much was written about them being too spoiled to cope.”
http://tinyurl.com/ycxbgoc

Opponents of Botox Tax Go Big: Baby Boomers! Women!
Alicia Mundy
Wall Street Journal Blogs
November 19, 2009

Overview: “The Senate health care bill’s 5% tax on elective cosmetic procedures (breast implants, Botox wrinkle treatments, etc.) is drawing opposition from predictable quarters: Cosmetic surgeons and companies that sell products used in cosmetic procedures. … The American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery, which is fighting the provision, says “a large portion of those being taxed would be the baby-boomer generation. And as this age group continues to age, the more interest will be generated in cosmetic procedures.””
http://tinyurl.com/yf7tfoh

Baby Boomers Don't Use Preventive Services
Kristina Fiore
Medpage Today
November 19, 2009

Overview: “Only a quarter of baby boomers take advantage of preventive services such as flu vaccines and cancer screenings, a new report from the government and two powerful interest groups says.”
http://tinyurl.com/yfcpbwc

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

How Safe Are Our Roads?
Marilyn Geewax
National Public Radio
November 22, 2009

Overview: A new series investigates road safety, covering a variety of relevant topics including the potential impact of aging baby boomers. On Nov. 24, NPR will air a story by All Things Considered host Robert Siegel who travels to Florida to investigate special initiatives the state is taking to reduce highway accidents, “including an older-driver program and an anonymous tip line to alert police to potentially dangerous senior drivers.”
http://tinyurl.com/yc68cjz

Exhibits trace decades-old fashion, fabric trends
Deborah K. Dietsch
Washington Times
November 22, 2009

Overview: “Clothing the Rebellious Soul" at George Washington University's Luther W. Brady Art Gallery is a nostalgic look at counterculture fashions of the 1960s and early 1970s. … Organized by vintage clothiers Nancy Gewirz and Mark Hooper, the exhibit takes baby boomers on a groovy trip down memory lane.”
http://tinyurl.com/y8p3e2n

Baby boomers find growing acceptance of marijuana use
Steve Hendrix
Washington Post
November 22, 2009

Overview: “Smoking pot isn’t what it used to be for Joe Lee, 62, a vintage-record dealer in suburban Rockville, Md. In the late 1960s, as an art student in Baltimore, he kept his landlord in a constant state of suspicion, with clouds of marijuana smoke poorly masked by clouds of incense.”
http://tinyurl.com/y8ggu32

Doctors Debate: Should City Aid Growth in Palliative Care?
Anemona Hartocollis
New York Times City Room Blog
November 20, 2009

Overview: “Just how far should medicine go in turning death and dying into a growth industry? Two New York City doctors, the head of the city’s largest public hospital and a nationally known geriatrician, gently clashed on that topic Thursday at a City Council hearing to discuss how to deal with the demand for end-of-life care as the baby boomer generation ages.”
http://tinyurl.com/ya9n7ce

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

We Have Seen The Future, And It Is Old
Engage Boomers
Matt Thornhill
November 23, 2009

Overview: “Have you seen the advertising campaign for Dos Equis beer featuring ‘The Most Interesting Man in the World?" Each commercial depicts exploits from the "interesting man's" past, or he offers insight on a particular topic. For example, on the topic of "Life" he says, "It is never too early to start beefing up your obituary.’”
http://tinyurl.com/ye4gsol

Editorial: Our boomer-elders are a state asset
Minneapolis Star Tribune
November 23. 2009

Overview: “It's increasingly clear that money for public work is going to be scarce in Minnesota for a number of years. But the state's human capital forecast for the next decade is more hopeful. The reason: The number of 65- to 74-year-olds is about to spike.”
http://tinyurl.com/y934egd

Good news, Boomers: You only have to work a little longer
David Nicklaus
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
November 23, 2009

Overview: “We Baby Boomers have all heard this refrain, and perhaps uttered it ourselves: If the stock market doesn’t recover, I may never be able to retire. A new National Bureau of Economic Research working paper, however, finds that fear to be vastly exaggerated.”
http://tinyurl.com/yhph2o6

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

Baby Boomers Must Keep Pace With New Technologies
Jim Shea
Hartford Courant
November 25, 2009

Overview:”Baby boomers, in particular, need to make an effort to join the technological revolution. What is going on is not a passing fad, it's the future. And those who choose to ignore such innovations as the Internet, e-mail, smart phones and the social networking sites are going to be left in the cultural dust.”
http://tinyurl.com/yc92b9g

Your life, by personal historians
Dianna Marder
Philadelphia Inquirer
November 25, 2009

Overview: “By the time she reached 85, the urge to capture her life story in words and pictures caught up with Janet Mustin. She wasn't motivated by self-importance. Nor did she think a book about her experiences as a wife, mother, and respected watercolorist would be a worthy book-club pick. Instead, Mustin, who lives in Haverford, envisioned a legacy for her three daughters, their children, and their children's children.”
http://tinyurl.com/ylgmcyj

Taking Over Elderly Parents' Finances
David K. Randall
Forbes Magazine
November 25, 2009

Overview: “Millions of baby boomers are learning this lesson the hard way. As their parents live longer, adult offspring are finding they need to take over the finances of the people who once took care of them. It's a tricky business, emotionally and financially.
http://tinyurl.com/yg52xr9

7 ways to use face-to-face communication
Robert J. Holland
Ragan.com
November 24, 2009

Overview: “Survey released last year by the IABC Research Foundation finds that tech-savvy Millennials as well as their older Baby Boomer counterparts prefer face-to-face as the primary way to build relationships in the workplace. A survey earlier this year by the consulting firm KHR Solutions found that 56 percent of respondents prefer face-to-face communication with their bosses and more than half prefer communicating with co-workers face-to-face.”
http://tinyurl.com/lrxcdp

Top News From Today's "Boomiverse"

Medicare fraudsters rake in billions
Jerry Seper and Chuck Neubauer
Washington Times
November 30, 2009

Overview: “Medicare fraud is a multibillion-dollar business preying on an ever-increasing number of retiring baby boomers who often are being charged for medical treatments and products they don't need and for services they don't receive.”
http://tinyurl.com/yco9bgj

U.S. diabetes cases to double, costs triple by 2034
Julie Steenhuysen
Reuters
November 27, 2009

Overview: “By 2034, nearly twice as many Americans will have diabetes and spending on the disease will triple, further straining the U.S. health system and testing the viability of Medicare and other government health insurance programs, U.S. researchers said on Friday.”
http://tinyurl.com/yk7usbr

Diabetes expected to double, costs to triple by 2034
Tiffany O’Callaghan
Time Magazine Blogs
November 27, 2009

Overview: “Going forward, the incredible surge in diabetes cases and correspondingly high medical costs will largely depend on the aging population of Baby Boomers. Currently some 8.2 million diabetes patients are covered by Medicare, costing $45 billion per year. By 2034, researchers estimate that 14.6 billion diabetes patients will be covered by Medicare, and costs will balloon to a staggering $171 billion.”
http://tinyurl.com/yht7ofv

Does Grandma need to downsize?
Rona Fischman
Boston Globe
November 25, 2009

Overview: “Since 2004, the percentage of households who are projected to not be able to retire at 65 with a stable standard of living has increased. Here's the breakdown by age group: Early baby boomers went from 35 percent to 41 percent. Late baby boomers went from 44 percent to 48 percent. Gen Xers went from 49 percent to 56 percent.”
http://tinyurl.com/ya8lxaa