Published in:
01-06-2005 | Editorial
Changes in society’s fabric
Author:
Manfred Wildner
Published in:
Journal of Public Health
|
Issue 3/2005
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Excerpt
Societies are moving fast into the 21st century and it appears that the century to come will bring as much societal change as the previous one—we all hope with less loss of life. Yet this change does not come at no cost. We are currently witnessing Western societies in a state of post-demographic transition in which we are trying to strike new balances between the working young and the ever-increasing fraction of retired elderly, between the willingness of the healthy to pay and the demands of the sick, and between the “haves” and the “have-nots” of paid occupation, family, social security and personal perspective. It appears that the fabric of our societal “coat” is currently being rewoven according to a new pattern yet to emerge. …