As I recall in the 90s this was a hot button issue with the neglect and abuse suffered by some in such care homes a source of shock and shame. The issue lead to recriminations that modern Western society fails to value the old compared to other societies and it was often seen as a deep social problem, I remember an episode of the X-files (looking it up Excelsis Dei) had a similar ripped from the headlines feel about abuse and neglect at a nursing home and a Malaysian who is horrified at the way Americans deal (or fail to deal) with the elderly. As I said this whole thing may have been just too simplified, but I can see a lot of the roots of how it might have seemed like a good idea to some writer etc.
Frustration wrote: ↑Mon Oct 18, 2021 7:45 pm And there you're wrong. The way the aliens react to the news strongly indicates that unwillingness to complete the traditional suicide isn't unexpected or new. Furthermore, there is quite clearly a long list of social consequences associated with expressing unease or discontent with the tradition, much less actively flouting it.
"You'll bring shame and dishonor to the family" is and has been a powerful motivator in many cultures, including our own.
That kind of pressure can be extensive, without qualifying as coercion.
As I recall part of the narrative of the episode is basically everyone goes along with this practice, turn 60 and off yourself, the idea of someone not doing it seems almost unheard of based on the reaction of the character to Lwaxana suggesting not doing it yet it is referred to as suicide. To be clear the implications of my phrasing of my statement was basically it seems like they must be lying about everyone going along and it being voluntary. Now you seem to think they were lying about universal compliance which is fine, but if not everyone is actually committing suicide at 60 that is one way of answering my objection that it sounds unrealistic that everyone just goes along with this stark rule: yeah it is unrealistic obviously they don't all go along with it.
Note it is perfectly possible for something to never have happened before and for people to be able to predict that it will have negative social consequences and even the kind of consequence. No one to my knowledge has ever walked down main street of a town naked except for body paint in the style of the aliens from Let This Be Your Last Battlefield singing the Star Trek theme song, but I can well believe that if someone announces this plan to their daughter she would warn that it would bring shame upon the family if they did it. So I'm not sure that exchange proves what you think it does.
