American Association Of Retired Persons

First the standards vanished from radio, as stations playing lots of Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee and Ella Fitzgerald went dark. Then over the past couple of years, the oldies format collapsed, and suddenly the sounds of Motown, Elvis and the Beach Boys were hard to find on the radio. Now even classic rock stations are starting to feel pressure, as commercial radio strains to find ways to connect with younger listeners who find most of their music online.

In late 2003, when the Bush administration was struggling to get its Medicare prescription drug program through Congress, a timely endorsement by AARP helped turn the tide in its favor. But the program has become more than just a legislative victory for the influential lobbying group and its pro-senior-citizen agenda. The private insurance plan carrying AARP's label is emerging as the leading choice of Medicare beneficiaries signing up for drug coverage. With at least 1.

"Gen AARP" as I like to call them -- have long had access to discounts at preferred travel providers. When my mother and I traveled to Amsterdam two years ago, I was able to book, at the Starwood website, an AARP rate room for her at the Sheraton Pulitzer Hotel. Her discounted rate was $183 per night at current exchange rates. My non-AARP rate was $80 more. Today, those big savings may be on the wane because AARP is discontinuing its members' ability to book directly with hotels.

Elton John, Bill Cosby, the Pillsbury Doughboy and a NASCAR driving simulator are among the highlights at this year's AARP convention and expo, rolling into the Anaheim Convention Center today. About 25,000 graying baby boomers and other vintage humans are expected at the three-day event, which offers a curious blend of clinging to youth and preparing for death.

In a sign of the intensifying political battle over Social Security, the AARP released a nationwide poll Monday indicating deep public skepticism about President Bush's plan for personal accounts. "Approximately four in 10 respondents initially favored private accounts," the 35-million-member seniors' organization said in a summary of its findings.

The nation's largest advocacy group for Americans 50 and older asked a federal court Friday to block the government from making a policy change that would allow companies to offer fewer health benefits to retirees when they become eligible for Medicare. AARP said in a lawsuit filed in Philadelphia that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission would overstep its authority if it gave final approval to rules exempting retiree health benefits from federal age-discrimination laws.

The Social Security program can be stabilized through a series of small fixes and does not need a major overhaul that would include private investment accounts, the nation's largest lobby group for the elderly said Wednesday. AARP, formerly known as the American Assn. for Retired Persons, said the amount of wages that can be taxed for Social Security should be raised from $90,000 to $140,000. The change could be phased in over 10 years and would cut the projected shortfall by 43%, AARP said.

As synonyms for the word "vile," my thesaurus offers some of the following: offensive, objectionable, odious, repulsive, repellent, repugnant, revolting, disgusting, sickening, loathsome, foul, nasty, contemptible, despicable and noxious. Any of those words would aptly describe the advertising attack launched last week against AARP, the largest advocacy group for seniors, by the conservative interest group USA Next. But there's one word that unfortunately can't be applied: surprising.

A conservative group called USA Next has succeeded only in damaging its own reputation and interfering in the debate over Social Security with its virulent attacks on AARP, said Bill Novelli, chief executive of the seniors group, in Austin. "USA Next are not serious people. They're not engaged in the debate and should be ignored," Novelli said in a speech at the University of Texas.