WASHINGTON — The world’s 65-and-older population will triple by midcentury to 1 in 6 people.
The number of senior citizens has already jumped 23 percent since 2000 to 516 million, according to census estimates released on Tuesday. That’s more than double the growth rate for the general population.
Germany, Italy, Japan and Monaco have the most senior citizens, with 20 percent or more of their people 65 and older.
In the U.S., residents who are 65 and older currently make up 13 percent of the population, but that will double to 88.5 million by midcentury. In two years, the oldest of the baby boomers will start turning 65. The baby boomer bulge will continue padding the senior population year after year, growing to 1 in 5 U.S. residents by 2030.
N.Y.: ‘You Light Up My Life’ composer accused in rapes
The Oscar-winning composer and director behind the “You Light Up My Life” song and movie raped 11 women, many from Washington state, he lured to his apartment with the promise of a starring role in a movie, prosecutors said at his arraignment Tuesday. The women read a Craigslist online ad placed by the 71-year-old director, Joseph Brooks, and applied for the audition, prosecutor Lisa Friel said. Instead, once the women were in Brooks’ Manhattan apartment, he plied them with wine and forcibly raped them or used threats and coercive behavior to make them have sex with him, prosecutors said. Brooks pleaded not guilty.
Arizona: Swine flu fears shut Jerry’s Kids out of camp
Thousands of Jerry’s Kids won’t be going to summer camp this year because of swine flu. The Muscular Dystrophy Association, headquartered in Tucson has canceled the remainder of its summer camps because swine flu was reported in three of its earliest camps. None of the nine children and three adults sickened after camps in recent weeks have died. Comedian Jerry Lewis holds a telethon each Labor Day weekend to raise money for the association and his “Jerry’s Kids.”
New Jersey: Craigslist suspect breakup
The former fiancee of a man accused of killing a New York City masseuse he met on Craigslist has ended the relationship and wants to get on with her life. The lawyer for Megan McAllister said Tuesday his client visited Philip Markoff in jail on June 11. Attorney Robert Honecker Jr. said McAllister plans to attend medical school in the fall and is moving on without him.
14-year-old gets probation for posting nude pictures
A 14-year-old Clifton, N.J., girl who posted nude pictures of herself on MySpace.com will have child pornography counts dropped. The Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office said the girl must undergo at least six months of counseling and probation and must stay out of trouble. If she does, all charges will be dropped.
Ill.: Cop gets probation in beating bartender
An off-duty Chicago police officer convicted of pummeling a female bartender, Karolina Obrycka, half his size was sentenced Tuesday to two years probation and anger management classes for the videotaped attack. The judge also gave Anthony Abbate, 40, a home curfew of 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. and ordered him to perform 130 hours of community service. The judge said Abbate had a clean record before the incident, did not seriously injure the bartender, and underwent alcohol rehab “and has not had a relapse.”
Iraq: Pullback to be a holiday
The Iraqi government on Tuesday declared a public holiday to mark next week’s withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from Baghdad and other cities. American forces already have begun pulling back from outposts inside the cities ahead of Tuesday’s deadline, the first phase of a full withdrawal by the end of 2011. Students, however, will still have to take their final exams as scheduled.
From Herald news services
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