MONDAY JUNE 15, 2026

EDITOR'S NOTE

We're currently having some major issues with our computer system. As a result, many of our usual services and applications have disappeared and can't be recovered right now, including ,many of our photo editing and graphic design tools.

For the time being, we'll be displaying a simplified (redacted) version of our website while we work through these problems.

Thanks for your patience and understanding.  ...bruce

The Quiet Marriage Problem 

That Starts the Day 

You Both Retire

“[The husband] wants to feel valuable. His wife wants to feel included. Neither is getting what they want, and both are doing precisely what guarantees they will not.” 

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Celebrities Over 50 

Who Absolutely Love 

The Process Of Aging

In a world where cosmetic tweaks are increasingly becoming the norm for people of all ages, many celebrities over the age of 50 have chosen to fully embrace their aging instead of trying to conceal it. 

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How Do State Taxes 

Affect My 

Retirement Income?

Some states don’t tax retirement income at all. Others tax pensions and IRA withdrawals just like wages. A handful even tax Social Security benefits. Understanding how your state handles retirement income can help you avoid unpleasant surprises and may even factor into where you choose to live in retirement.

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Healthy Diet May Help Reverse 

Memory Damage Linked 

to High-Fat, High-Sugar Foods

There's growing evidence linking ultra-processed diets to long-term cognitive changes, and underscore the importance of nutrition in brain health. 

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The Number-One Food 

for Longevity Dietitians 

Want You to Add to Your Plate

It’s not the flashiest, but it’s the most powerful.

While fruits and vegetables are loaded with powerful plant compounds like antioxidants that support longevity, the best food you can eat for longevity is legumes. 

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Don’t Blame Old People 

For American Decline

Americans older than 65 will constitute one-fifth of the population, the same proportion as those under 18. For the first time, past and future will view each other across a demographic seesaw that is perfectly level. The boomer beneficiaries of “the great aging” have blocked the natural order and flow of time ...

The real reason 

Social Security is in trouble

By Robert Reich

The trustees of the Social Security fund said Tuesday that the fund will be depleted by late 2032, a year earlier than the trustees’ projection last year of 2033. If nothing is done, benefits will automatically be cut six years from now.

The common understanding is that Social Security’s shortfall is due to the huge postwar baby boom, now retiring, and to America’s increasing life expectancy. The usual recommended fix is to reduce Social Security benefits or raise the age of eligibility. As Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, warned Monday, “entitlement programs” like Social Security “have to be adjusted and fixed.” He said Republicans will introduce a plan to do that. Brace yourselves.

I used to be a Social Security trustee, and I call bull ----

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TUESDAY, JUNE 17, 2026 

©2026 Bruce Cooper

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As Mike Johnson 

Floats Social Security Cuts,

Trustees Report Shows 

Harm of Trump Policies

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) declared in a radio show appearance that “entitlement programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and things like Social Security” need to be “adjusted and fixed,” which critics say is euphemistic language for benefit cuts, given past GOP proposals such as raising the retirement age.

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Rising Inflation

Points to Significantly Higher

2027 Social Security COLA

Based on the newly released inflation data for May, the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for 2027 could be 3.8% or 1.0 percentage point higher than this year’s COLA of 2.8%, based on the May Consumer Price Index (CPI) data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Brain Supplements

That Do and Don’t Work

"Improves memory." "Sharpens focus." These are just some of the claims you may see on the supplements that 25% of adults over age 50 are taking to try to keep their brains healthy. Do these products work? It's often unclear. Know about some of these popular items.

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The Most Overlooked 

Aging-in-Place Upgrade

Experts Wish Homeowners 

Would Prioritize

—and It’s Not the Bathroom

You probably already know the importance of installing grab bars near your toilet and in your shower, and you may even already have plans to invest in a walk-in shower with a built-in bench. But according to aging-in-place specialists, improving your home's lighting is one of the most impactful changes you can make to enhance the safety of every room. But unfortunately, it's often an afterthought.

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How to plan

for aging alone

in retirement

Whether you’re divorced, your spouse has passed away, you chose to stay single, you’re estranged from your children, or you never had kids — there are many reasons people age alone. Here’s how to take action so that aging alone is easier and less stressful.

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Teaching Style to 

Your Grandchildren:

Fun Shopping with

the Next Generation

Not all that long ago, women over 60 were relegated to the hinterlands of style. Phrases like “dressing like your grandma” or “dressing like an old lady” were the unkindest dig one could make about someone’s attire. Today, fashionable women in their 60s, 70s, 80s, and even 90s are showing the world a new face, our face.  And we owe it to our grandchildren to teach them how it’s done.

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How to Know

Whether to Greet Someone

With a Hug, Handshake,

or Wave

When you see someone, whether you know them or not, you have to make a quick decision: Should you give them a hug? A handshake? Maybe just a wave? Some awkward half-lean that lands somewhere in between? You’ve got maybe four seconds to decide—and if you and the other person arrive at different conclusions, things might get weird.

Let’s take a trip back to our childhood days in what was then called elementary school, covering grades K through 6. Our biggest concerns revolved around simple things, like making sure we wore the right outfit for assembly day—white shirts, red ties, and blue pants for the boys, with a similar look for the girls. And, of course, there was the ever-present anxiety about when and where the Russians might decide to send bombers to wipe us off the map. Thankfully, we had our trusty school desks, supposedly bombproof and fallout-resistant, to dive under in case of an emergency.

Continue reading...

Normally, this space would feature articles from our archives. Unfortunately, thanks to a mysterious collaboration between Microsoft and my computer, our archived material has vanished into the digital abyss. As a result, there won't be an "In Case You Missed It" entry for the near future.

The United States generates more municipal solid waste per capita than any other nation on Earth: roughly 292 million tons per year, or about 4.9 pounds per person per day. Trash collection in the US is a local responsibility, managed by city and county governments, often with help from private companies.

Waste flows through an industrial ecosystem that spans garbage trucks, transfer stations, landfills, and waste-to-energy facilities. As of 2018, roughly half of all municipal solid waste is landfilled, about 32% is recycled or composted, and nearly 12% is burned for energy recovery.

New York City became the first US city to implement public-sector garbage management in 1895. Around that time, less than 25% of American cities had waste management systems, but by 1910, 80% did.