it sure seems like all the cool aid is funneled into the super-rich or corporations, at the expense of everyone else.
odd ethics, those.
here's something by economist monique morrissey:
May 27, 2010
"...is it true that Social Security is facing a crisis, and that benefit cuts in some form are unavoidable? The short answer is: No.
Social Security is currently running a surplus, and the two and a half trillion dollar trust fund is projected to keep growing for at least another decade.
This enormous trust fund isn’t there by accident—it’s the result of changes enacted by Congress in 1983 in anticipation of the Baby Boomer retirement. The savings in the trust fund are sufficient to meet this demographic challenge, so Congress should be proud of its foresight...
life expectancy in retirement has been growing relatively slowly in recent years, and...the increase was fully anticipated by the Social Security actuaries...rising life expectancy does not create a Malthusian dilemma. In fact, the ratio of beneficiaries to covered workers is projected to level off after the Baby Boomer retirement.
Similarly, Social Security outlays are projected to level off -- not spiral upward like health care costs.
This isn’t to say that Social Security costs won’t increase, but this increase is manageable...As Senator Kohl recently noted, “modest tweaks” are enough to ensure solvency and even strengthen benefits for the most vulnerable...can be closed without raising taxes on ordinary workers—just those with earnings above the taxable earnings cap of $106,800...
...ordinary workers, especially younger workers who will bear the brunt of any benefit cuts, cannot afford further reductions in benefits. Younger workers already face a higher normal retirement age of 67...
epi.org |
