alt Hacker NewsIsn't it better for society if retirees downsize to a retirement community and allow young families to move in to the neighborhood with schools and amenities?
Replies
atomicnumber3 • today at 4:14 PM
If we're going for a "better for society" angle, I have so many other things that are far more impactful for society and less damaging to the individuals that we will never get around to messing with evicting pensioners so younger families can use their spot to get to school.
VLM • today at 4:31 PM
Given the enrollment collapse we're not running out of space in our schools LOL such that we have to kick seniors out of their houses to make space.
They're also economically and socially viable participants in the community.
While that may be useful, there should never be a necessity to move out of a house you’ve paid off, and quite well may have built up to support your own aging in place. Some people want a “forever home”, and that’s okay.
In some countries and cultures the good of the many comes before the good of the individual, no matter the sacrifices required to get there. The US (and to a slightly lesser degree, Canada) generally does not subscribe to such a cultural mantra.
Edit to add: for the cases where the societal good really does outweigh the personal good, we have a tool for that: eminent domain, which is how we build train lines and so forth.