Aging of Baby Boomers May Not Be Bad News for American Economy, Author Argues in Latest Milken Institute Review.

LOS ANGELES -- The aging Baby Boom generation, generally believed to be the Godzilla that will ravage the economy when its members retire, may have a kinder, gentler side.

Brad Edmondson, the former editor of American Demographics magazine, writes in the latest issue of The Milken Institute Review that while the U.S. population is aging, "the way it ages may turn out far less costly than has been so widely assumed."

With changes in diet, habits and medical care, many aging Baby Boomers are expected to live far healthier and more productive lives than previously anticipated, Edmondson says.

Also in this issue of the Institute's quarterly journal of economic policy, Ian Parry, a senior fellow at the Washington, D.C.-based Resources for the Future, looks at a recurring idea for weaning us from oil's grip: increase taxes on gasoline.

Parry argues that this approach will actually do little to solve the myriad problems of pollution, congestion and geopolitical security linked to America's huge appetite for oil.

Other highlights from the new Review:

--Two scholars - Lynn Karoly, a senior economist at the RAND Corporation, and Ron Haskins, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institute - debate the value of expanding pre-school education to all children.

--Online competition is stirring up the real estate brokerage business, and Robert Hahn, Robert Litan and Jesse Gurman of the AEI-Brookings Joint Center for Regulatory Studies argue that web-based brokerage needs to be defended against the big boys.

--Raymond Baker, a senior fellow at the Center for International Policy in Washington, D.C., takes an in-depth look at the extent of global money laundering.

--James Barth, a senior fellow at the Milken Institute, Gerard Caprio, a director at the World Bank, and Ross Levine, a professor at Brown University, write about what it will take to make global banking safer.

--Radha Chaurushiya of the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business offers a reality check for India's economy.

About the Institute: The Milken Institute is a nonprofit, independent economic think tank whose mission is to improve the lives and economic conditions of diverse populations around the world. (www.milkeninstitute.org)