In the wake of a number of truly terrible op-ed pieces on increasing longevity, here is a somewhat better column from the Observer. "Certainly there are challenges ahead as lives lengthen. Pensions, for example, need a radical rethink ... But is this really so dreadful, so long as it is introduced fairly? We enjoy longer lives and better health than our grandparents, and continuing in work gives you a better income ... The building of a society that celebrates age is not an act of charity. Combating ageism and its ills is not about 'them and us' - it's 'us and us'. You will be old too. Bend the ears of politicians now and we will all share the benefits. We owe it not only to ourselves but to the generations before us, who fought to overcome the scourge of early death so that we now enjoy the right to become old."

Link: http://observer.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,6903,1451123,00.html