The slow march of time is the one thing in our lives we are never able to change. It continues on and on, making us older and older every trip around the sun. People get old, and younger people come in behind them, then get old themselves. It is almost the only constant in life we can guarantee. In 2024, the status quo is the same. Baby boomers are getting older, and new generations are getting younger. But there is a problem brewing.

Experts are warning that a 'silver tsunami' is coming for the economy. In short, the main threat they predict is that there will be more people over the age of 65 than children by the year 2030. Why is that a threat?

Economist Vance Ginn says this is a 'generational accounting problem.'

"Basically, you have more older people compared to younger...and this will create a disaster, given the social security and Medicare situation...you have a lot of baby boomers retiring, and fewer people coming into the workforce," he says. "We could see more labor shortages over time...this is a ticking time bomb."

Some economists fear that the aging population will become unmanageable with one-in-four people over the age of 65 by 2060.

We have talked many times before about how social security is not just failing but falling apart. Ginn says it might come to an end sooner than you think.

"Over the next decade, both of these programs will be bankrupt...and they will have to cut benefits drastically...this problem will only escalate further as well," he says.

The idea of changing social security has been floated around for decades now, with no one in Washington really taking it very seriously. It has mostly been just about political posturing.

There are a few solutions that the government could implement to help fix the problem. Cutting back the egregious government spending is one, more economic growth is another.

But saving the programs themselves presents more of a challenge, and one people will not like.

"We need to raise the retirement age...that is always a political nonstarter...but at the same time, we cannot afford this...this is not going to just go away," says Ginn.

He adds we also need to move to health savings accounts to save Medicare.