Life Expectancy (Essay Sample)

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Is Increased Life Expectancy a Blessing or a Curse?
Living longer has a number of implications for the old person and the community at large. There are pros and cons on an increased life expectancy. However, the merits have by far outnumbered the demerits.
A person who has lived for 100 years is an icon and a role model in the society. Children and the youth would look up to him/her. His/her lifestyle in regard to diet, general health, and social status is guidance to many. How did he/she survive early deaths due to lifestyle diseases? Therefore, in such an old person, we have a teacher in many aspects ("Effects of Higher Life Expectancy”).
I bet someone like Martin Luther King Junior would have made tremendous achievements had he lived for longer.
To mention a few, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates have changed the world in a tremendous way. Only God knows how the world would be right now if the two were to die at 20. The iPod, iPhone, and iPad would not have been available. Steve Jobs made it possible for the blind to make calls, receive calls, send messages and receive messages. Furthermore, Bill Gates has contributed a lot to the world. The MS Windows OS and the Bill Gates Foundation to assist the needy are enough testament that life expectancy contributes a lot to the society ("Bill Gate, Steve Jobs and the rising Billion”).
With everything, however, comes a problem. The people who live longer after their retirement often experience financial constraints. They outlive their savings. In fact, they demand more money to survive. This strains the governments and companies on pension schemes because these retirees need more funds to sustain themselves. In addition, they tend to demand more attention and love from their chi...