The trade off is that then the old drag down the kids in terms of careers, where they can live, time that might be otherwise invested in children, etc.

One side of my family is Chinese/Jamaican and the other White, so both cultural sets of values exist in my family and both sets of grandparents are worried about being a burden later on and while the polite thing to say is that they aren't, they genuinely are, especially if you don't have a lot of kids or they don't live nearby.

My Chinese/Jamaican grandfather had to leave his mother behind in Jamaica to build a life here in Canada and she supported that decision as it meant breaking the cycle of poverty for good. None of her descendants (at least for a while) would own nothing but two old dining chairs.

Western countries don't have enough kids and strong enough family units (a bunch of relatives living in close proximity say), for this to work. I'm an only child and there's just no way I could have my parents live with me if they needed care.

Moreover, the elderly in 3rd world countries tend not to live as long, many of the old people in Western countries are.. for the lack of a better word, living far past their expiration date.

I find it pretty hard to see it that way. Most people aren't equipped to deal with the senile. Taking care of aging family members just causes stress for the caregivers and the old people can tell that they're a burden. Surrounding them with people in similar situations and trained caregivers plus the option to be drugged out of their misery seems like a much kinder thing to do.

The patients in the article have dementia, which requires all day care, often by a professional. Where else would the elderly receive such care?

A lot of this has to do with a lack of resources. There isn't enough labor available at home to take of the elderly most of the time and the ones in a home typically require extensive care. My father and mother in law both went to a nursing home because they couldn't perform basic daily activities.

What do other cultures do for people who can no longer take care of themselves?

>One of the most disgusting parts of western culture is how they relegate their old to these nursing homes.

Most people can't afford it and last time I checked, Medicare doesn't cover it at all or not enough to make it affordable.

Of course in the 80s and 90s, long term care was much more affordable and wasn't as, uh, let's call it, profit seeking.

did you ever live with mentally ill old person?

It may be incredibly hard to the point that it is even difficult to describe it