The world is disappointed by the spectacle symbolizing the dominance of elders.
In Ukraine and Palestine, elder politicians, trapped by past grudges, continue waging wars.
This is precisely the adverse effect of gerontocracy.
1. The Pitfalls of Top-Down Governance
Democracy is in crisis worldwide.
One cause is the introduction of corporate top-down methods into politics.
In corporations, a top-down approach is effective because it allows for quick decision-making and efficient execution.
Rapidly communicating and implementing decisions made at the top helps businesses respond swiftly to market changes, which is crucial for competitive advantage.
However, when this top-down approach is applied to politics, the situation changes drastically.
In politics, it is vital to reconcile diverse opinions and interests and to form consensus.
Imposing policies decided unilaterally by the leadership ignores the voices of many citizens.
Democracy is fundamentally about reflecting diverse opinions and making decisions through fair procedures.
When this is lost, power concentrates, corruption increases, and public trust erodes.
In the worst case, it can lead to dictatorship.
Nevertheless, top-down governance has become popular in the political arena.
This has given elder politicians, who have experience, wealth, and connections, overwhelming advantages, leading to the spread of gerontocracy.
President Biden and former President Trump are typical examples.
Elders like them, who grasp power and push forward with top-down politics, leave younger generations unable to compete.
While top-down management might be effective in business, bringing it into politics poses problems.
Recognizing the pitfalls of top-down politics and reinstating bottom-up democracy is necessary.
2. The Distortion of Aging Societies Leading to Gerontocracy
Elders who once laid the foundation of democracy have perhaps become a burden on society.
They were born in the 1940s, a time closer to the 19th century than to today’s 21st century.
In countries like Japan, there were no televisions or refrigerators, and electricity was limited to light bulbs.
Automobiles and trains were scarce, with steam locomotives being the mainstay.
They grew up in an era where the arrival of singularity, with AI surpassing human intelligence, was unimaginable.
Expecting such elders to understand digital technology or AI might be unrealistic.
Many of them have lived lives detached from science and technology, being outdated humanities majors.
They unhesitatingly impose their outdated values on younger generations.
Even when young people, full of dreams and hopes, try to bring about social change using new science and technology, they are thwarted by the barriers erected by elders.
Unfortunately, asking elders, who have lost hope and are aware of their mortality, to maintain the dreams and energy for challenges is unreasonable.
Thus, they not only fail to understand the new visions proposed by the youth but also dismiss them by saying, "Young people are just dreaming without facing reality."
Elders who cannot grasp change are obstacles to the growth and success of young people.
However, these elders are unaware of this.
With declining cognitive and physical abilities, they are becoming societal risks, akin to elderly drivers causing accidents by mistaking the accelerator for the brake.
3. A World Without Signs of Change
In the U.S., elderly politicians like President Biden and former President Trump are in conflict.
Young people may be disillusioned by such spectacles that symbolize gerontocracy.
In Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Israel’s invasion of Palestine, elder politicians, trapped by past grudges, continue to support wars.
Gerontocratic rule by elder politicians is robbing the future from young people worldwide, yet no one can loudly criticize it, perhaps out of deference or fear.
As economic disparity and stagnation worsen, even corporate leaders are aging.
These elder executives cling to past success stories and old networks, refusing to understand or accept the visions and systems proposed by young people.
They might be simply incapable of understanding.
If we do not dismantle the top-down politics and management held by elders obsessed with power and status, young people will have no future.
As long as the rule bound by the elders’ past values and networks continues, the innovative dreams and ideas of young people will not be realized.
In any case, as long as gerontocracy continues, societal progress might come to a halt.
To pave the way for a bright future, it is crucial for a generation capable of accurately recognizing and understanding “the 21st century—an alien world for the elders” to rise and end gerontocracy.
