Changing ideologies and growing older...

[Alcon]

Well, I think there are a number of contributing factors beyond your lovely stereotyping:

1. The idealism of youth wanes and is replaced with hopeful pessimism.

2. Taxes.

3. More likely to be religious, and be providing for a child. Tax cuts, again.

"Why is it that almost no one gets disease at old age, unless something very drastic happens in their life?" is a weird question. I never really found any correlation between drastic events, and I'm not really sure how that relates to politics.

You will probably not become a socialist, but maybe you will end up at the point where you can stop condensing the opinions of those disagreeing with you into a "mental disorder."

[Alcon]

i think when you become older, you become more populist.  you get more socially conservative as the end draws nearer and you think more of death; but as you become more dependant on Medicare and Social Security, you also become more economically liberal as well -you don't want anyone to imperil your economic security through privatization schemes. 

Maybe seniors are more populist, but people of middle age and middle class are generally probably libertarian-leaning - then again, I suppose it depends heavily on how well-off you are.