Working Forever?

"Some People Will Have to Work Forever!"  At least, that's what a newspaper headline I saw today claimed.  Apparently it has to do with the 'pensions crisis' which means some people won't be able to afford to retire.  Ever.  Of course, such a headline begs a number of questions.  Most obviously, do they really mean that some people will end up working forever?  I mean, unless someone has sneakily stumbled upon the secret of immortality, the stark truth is that, as mere mortals, we'll all die eventually.  Thereby making working forever an impossibility.  Indeed, if, as the story seems to be claiming, people didn't retire and were forced to work into old age, it would probably result in a fair number dying earlier than they would otherwise have expired.  Which brings us, of course, to another question the headline begs - which people will find themselves in this situation?  Well, we can be sure it won't be wealthy Tory donors, bankers, newspaper owners or members of the cabinet.  So I guess that we have to assume that, as ever, it will be the working classes - most specifically the poorest and worst paid members of society. 

But exactly what is this 'pensions crisis' they speak of?  Do they mean that there's a generation of workers currently too poorly paid to make proper provision of their old age?  Are they speculating that the government's next round of welfare cuts will include the abolition of the state pension?  Who knows.  (I couldn't be bothered to actually read the article accompanying this sensationalism, so we can only speculate).  Indeed, does it matter?  All they want is an alarmist headline with which to frighten the middle classes.  (I've no doubt that Middle England will find the prospect of those hoards of impoverished elderly working class people roaming the land terrifying - no doubt these working class living dead will be forced to turn to cannibalism to survive). There's obviously another big question the headline leaves begging: is it approving of this speculative situation?  Bearing in mind that it was a notorious right-wing rag, one might assume that it would be all in favour of something that forced plebs, (to use the alleged nomenclature of a recently resigned senior Tory cabinet member), to work until they died prematurely, thereby preventing them from claiming benefits, pensions, expensive geriatric health care and the like.  So, is this headline an expression of outrage at at a possible future social injustice, or a celebration of a new Tory policy initiative?  After all, impoverishing an entire generation and forcing them into life-long serfdom is surely a key component of the Tory bastards' masterplan to take this country back to feudal times.