Life Extension
As the banishment of disease marches on, there may be some debate over how long it will be until we frail humans become immortal on earth, but there will likely come a time when death by 'natural' causes will be abolished. There is a lot of discussion about extending life until technology can 'bridge' us into this future, and it may not be as far out as one might (linearly) think.
Life Retread
Of course, if you are a US Supreme Court Justice appointed for life, that could be an even sweeter deal than it already is today. Others may not be so lucky, retirement planning depends on you actually expiring at a certain point, in most cases. (although there is an 'escape velocity' for your nest egg where it keeps growing despite your withdrawals, once you've saved up a very healthy amount)
While many will want to have these life extensions when they become available, I imagine they won't come free of charge, so there will be a pretty clear divide between the haves and have-nots, possibly triggering a massive social upheaval. Perhaps the concurrent advances in technology will save the day, and everyone will have a plethora of resources and opportunities available to them. It's more likely that governments will have a tighter grip on their populations, and will be able to control the disgruntled, or even provide a lottery system that is perceived as fair.
There has been a quite a bit of discussion over the technology needed for these future life extensions, but not as much about the social implications. There may just be too many unknowns to conjecture what civilization will look like as people are tightly joined together, and then freed from their mortal coil. Such is the nature of exponential growth that it will only get harder to see the future as time passes, because change will be accelerating even as our collective intelligence advances.
The crux of the dilemma is that old age might not provide wisdom, because the lessons of the past won't apply to the present. Hopefully, at a sufficient level of abstraction, wisdom will still be relevant to making vital decisions. On the other hand, even if it's relevant today, it is rarely applied. Maybe we better start working out some self-correcting mechanisms instead!
