SS was a scam, but a somewhat well intentioned one (in terms of slightly benefitting those in need).
privatizing SS is a bigger scam. (funneling money marked for those in need to the stock market, where it can be quickly lost to the already rich)
i can't even imagine what it's going to be like when those of us in our 20's and early 30's hit retirement age:
i don't know anyone aiming for a pension.
our chances of getting SS are low, low, low.
most people i know live week to week.
most people i know are in debt.
sure, some people are set. of course. but i have a feeling a lot of the people i know are going to be homeless and starving when they're elderly...
and the only thing that lets me sleep at night is that the odds of us getting that old before a bigger crash renders it all meaningless approach nil.
I was going to start a thread called "Social Secutity... ZZZZZZZZZ...," but then I noticed that there was already a thread on this debate going.
Earlier today I found myself writing about these issues in response to an Atrios post... In my post,I wrote:
The Social Security issue has always been strange for me. As someone in their early thirties, it has always seemed like an issue outside of the scope of my concern. Sort of like rooting for a major league baseball team when you live in Butte, Montana: it can be a fun sport to watch, but without a hometown team, it remains a bit removed and there is no personal stake.
Social Security does not feel outside of my scope of concern because the benefits are, knock on wood, thirty years away. It feels irrelevant to me because every since I was a teenager, I have never expected Social Security to still be available for my generation when we reached retirement age.
Because of this, I have never really dug deeper into Social Security than the headline level I pick up the gist of the debate from sound bites and headlines, but avoid participating in any in-depth discussions or debates.
So, pretty much my thoughts on this current round have been Giving the public control over investing their accounts on the stock market is about as wise as loaning your I-Pod to a heroin junky who is desperate for their fix.
I also read, somewhere along the line, that privatizing Social Security would take billions off of the national debt, so there is the sly, machiavellian angle the Administration is approaching this issue from.
Details, though Here I am weak.
Today, I saw a post by Atrios that inspires me to take a closer look at the Social Security debate.
He writes:
Look, this is our issue. This is one we should be confident about winning -- perhaps not the legislative battle, but the '06 election. Democrats shouldn't be running scared from this, they should be salivating at the prospect of being handed a gift on a silver platter. They just need to be a bit smart.
He provides a couple of links that look at Rep. Harold Fords probable jump to the Republican side of this debate.
If Atrios is right, than this issue moves from the periphery, from being political background noise, to being very close to the heart of my political interests.
It is time to take a closer look at the issues emerging in the Social Security debate.
Mostly, on the nuts and bolts, I agree with EricMetro here...
EricMetro said:
1: Man, I am not sure if I understand a gawdamn thing about Bush's plan. Seems horrible to me. I don't think I have the aptitude to study stocks and make informed decisions on them any more than a stock investor would be able to come into the studio and EQ and compress a vocal correctly.
Why would I want this???
But if this is an issue where the Democrats can gain some ground against the Bush Administration, then I will try to follow it more, and I encougrage others to try to do this too.
Still, I admit, getting through every post on this thread was a challenge... I felt like Homer Simpson drooling on my self after the first few posts, going, "Numbers, so many Numbers..."
I think that is exactly why I do not want control over my own Social Security funds.
[Edited on Dec 26, 2004 by mastvam because my code skills suck...]
ferret
I'm lost
OLD SKOOL
DEC 22, 2004 10:00 PM