Interesting article on how Baby Boomers and their kids as a demographic force can pull the US back economically. That is if certain realities are accepted and the mistakes of the past Leary from.

Here is an extract;

But the biggest factor, one that will quickly pick up speed in the next few years, is demographic. The baby boomers and their children, the millennial generation, are looking for places to live and work that reflect their current desires and life needs. Boomers are downsizing as their children leave home while the millennials, or generation Y, are setting out on their careers with far different housing needs and preferences. Both of these huge demographic groups want something that the U.S. housing market is not currently providing: small one- to three-bedroom homes in walkable, transit-oriented, economically dynamic, and job-rich neighborhoods.

For the full story click here

I suppose as PM she cant say anything else!

JULIA Gillard has dismissed as “stupid and wrong” a senior union official’s belief that the 9/11 attacks were a conspiracy but has refused to discipline him.

Kevin Bracken, the Victorian secretary of the Maritime Union of Australia and Victorian Trades Hall Council president, today renewed his call for a fresh inquiry into the 9/11 attacks, claiming the “official story doesn’t stand up to scientific scrutiny”.

He claimed elements of the former Bush government, military personnel and security services were involved in the attacks.

But VTHC secretary Brian Boyd today distanced unions from Mr Bracken’s views.

The Opposition opened parliamentary question time on the matter today, with Victorian MP Josh Frydenberg asking the Prime Minister what action she would take against Mr Bracken “to send a message that such remarks are unacceptable”.

For the full story in the Australian click here.

Veteran US actor Tom Bosley, most famous for playing all-American father Howard Cunningham in the 1970s TV series Happy Days, has died at the age of 83, his agent says.

After Happy Days, Bosley had a string of roles in TV shows, most notably as a crime-solving priest in The Father Dowling Mysteries.

He also played an active role in the Screen Actors Guild.

His agent Sheryl Abrams said he died in hospital on Tuesday morning.

Happy Days began in 1974 and ran for 11 series, becoming a worldwide hit.

From the BBC.

Boomers identified as a great market to target for online opportunities. The word is not to worry about the other generations as there are plenty of opportunities to market to the 78 millions baby boomers in the US, let alone the rest of the world.

As the recession continues younger generations are scaling back on their expenses but boomers continue to spend in markets such as travel.

So not only is it an opportunity for the major brands to cash in, but also anyone with a business, especially an online business as more boomers become internet savvy.

See the full report here.

According to the MetLife Mature Market Institute, the boomers are pushing new ground for an aging population. It seems like only yesterday that we were all 20!!!

Following is an extract from the story.

Over the next decade, aging early baby boomers will result in a 50 percent increase in the number of people 65 to 74 years old, a growth rate not seen in 50 years.

The study, Early Boomers: How America’s Leading Edge Baby Boomers Will Transform Aging, Work & Retirement reports that those born between 1946 and 1955 will transform the American concept of retirement by forgoing the tradition of a leisure-filled life.

The late 20th Century pattern of working until about age 65 and then spending one’s remaining years in the leisure pursuits is very likely over. Instead, their financial obligations among other things will encourage many of them to remain in the workforce, some indefinitely said the report.

Read the full story here.