| Subject: |
|
Say, buddy, can you spare $13.6 trillion? (Social Security) |
| Name: |
|
AV Press |
| Date Posted: |
|
Oct 3, 07 - 1:29 PM |
| Where are you from? |
|
Antelope Valley |
| Message: |
|
Say, buddy, can you spare $13.6 trillion?
This story appeared in the Antelope Valley Press on Wednesday, October 3, 2007.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
EDITORIAL OF SEPT. 2, 2007 - In addition to leading the nation toward victory in World War II, during the Great Depression President Franklin D. Roosevelt founded the Social Security administration. Social Security has provided hundreds of millions of Americans with survival money as they reach old age.
The system has worked quite well since its inception in the 1930s - but there is serious trouble ahead.
The Bush administration said in a new Treasury Department report that Social Security is facing a $13.6 trillion shortfall. The report pointed out that delaying reforms is not fair to younger workers.
President George W. Bush has been advocating some measure of privatizing Social Security but has met with little success. He put forth a Social Security plan in 2005 that focused on creation of private accounts for younger workers, but that proposal never came up for a vote in Congress, with Democrats heavily opposed and few Republicans embracing the concept.
Current law levies a 6.2% payroll tax on the first $97,500 of an individual's annual income. Employers pay a matching 6.2% amount.
The problem is reaching critical mass because about 78 million baby boomers are nearing retirement age, and the smaller number of employed contributors will not be able to fatten up the fund sufficiently to meet the needs in coming years.
"Not taking action is thus unfair to future generations. This is a significant cost of delay," the report said. "Social Security can be made permanently solvent only by reducing the present value of scheduled benefits and/or increasing the present value of scheduled tax increases."
Neither solution is palatable to politicians or the people.
While Democrats have fought to protect current benefit levels, Republicans have been adamant that taxes should not be raised to cover the shortfall. This enormous problem will require that the Congress reach some kind of consensus in the near future.
Pardon our skepticism, but based on the long history of both contentious parties, the problem probably won't be solved this year or next, with millions of words pouring forth from politicians - signifying nothing.
Substantial benefits assure members of Congress a comfortable financial future. However, we, the people, must lobby strongly so the partisans come together in order for everyone in America to have an adequate safety net in retirement. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
Home
bravenet.com