Gerontocracy in America

Gerontocracy in America is the book by Samuel Moyn discussed in Older workers aren’t retiring. Should they be forced to?. The Planet Money episode uses it to frame the claim that older Americans can hold disproportionate control over power, wealth, housing, and high-status work.

In the source, the book is not treated as a blanket anti-elder argument. It becomes a way to ask whether some roles should have endpoints or role transitions when older incumbents can afford to step aside but remain in positions younger workers cannot access.

Connections

• Samuel Moyn - author and interview subject.
• Mandatory Retirement Policy - proposal associated with the book’s argument in the source.
• Career Mobility Bottleneck - labor-market problem the book helps name.
• Phased Retirement Succession - compromise path that preserves contribution while making room.
• Olivia S. Mitchell and Lump of Labor Fallacy - counterargument and economic critique staged against the book’s premise.