With friends like the NY Times, who needs fascists?

I just submitted this Letter to the Editor to the New York Times.

Re: “How Stingy Boomer Parents Became the Best TV Villains,” by Elizabeth Nelson (Sunday Magazine, 13 November)

Of course evil patriarchs make great TV. Elizabeth Nelson then sails into blaming older Americans for the housing shortage, labor trends, and “underinvestment in things like schools.” Not only are these folks living too long, they have the temerity to own things. “What’s theirs is theirs…. there is no great mechanism by which to wrest control over the resources of an elderly person.” Bummer! 

The ageism, ableism, and authoritarianism—hey, why wait?—are appalling. Both the 1% and the 99% are made up of all ages. Instead of falling for old vs. young framing, we need to join forces across difference—now more than ever.