I don't know the man well but people were saying he was very lucky to be with us.
Somebody then said it would have been better if he had died as he is only a pensioner and a liability to society.
Been the subject of many a discussion. Her indoors and myself thought long and hard about this - what are the positives for society at large to have a continuing abundance of retirees.
When you pack up work and start to claim your state pension along with a host of other benefits linked to the deterioration of health you generally stop contributing to the Treasury via tax and NIC.
When you think about it those that are of State Retirement age take more out than they put in. Yes they pay VAT on the goods that they purchase but that goes across all ages.
Looking at it from an accountancy point of view the negatives generally outweigh the positives. If the retirees were a business and this was happening at board room level - my advice would have been to sell up, close down or go into voluntary administration.
So your friend is completely right with those over State Pension age they are a drain on the finances of this country, even more so if you include what they cost the NHS.
The result of our discussion was that if the government made an offer to cover the cost of a decent funeral, buy a plot to plant us in and provide a half decent wake for those left behind all they need do is send us a 'DIY' kit to do the decent thing for society.