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Gerontocracy has always thrived in undemocratic places—Communist people’s republics, Gulf monarchies—where only death could pry power from the ruling elders. American gerontocracy is exceptional for being freely elected. Donald Trump will soon be an octogenarian, and is president in part because the preceding...
The strongest version of this narrative highlights a legitimate and growing intergenerational imbalance in political and economic power, backed by data on wealth concentration, housing affordability, and entitlement spending. The article effectively steelmans the case that older generations have consolidated advantages—through policy, demographics, and economic luck—that younger generations may never replicate. It acknowledges counterpoints, such as younger Americans earning more in absolute ter...