Golden years can conceal a dark undercurrent

The entire process of thinking about and planning for retirement in this country, and across the western world, is potty. Unless real action is taken to equip a large number of citizens for this important part of their lives, seeds of discontent are being sown in a cavalier fashion.

There are three strands to this argument:

* Financial planning for retirement remains a foggy and boring subject that most young people choose to ignore;