‘That was the time when union membership was at 45% not the current 15% and when trade policies kept jobs in America and were not incentivized to send the jobs overseas.‘

Precisely. So how’s that union working out for you in 2008? Seriously, if it weren’t for the unions running amok years after their usefulness had expired, people wouldn’t have lifestyles that require monster pensions. Behold what your precious union agreements are doing to the big three automakers: giving foreign automakers more of an advantage over them, and by extension, all of us, and perpetuating American consumerism, increasing domestic demand and the necessity of investment in cheaper labor markets.

The incentive to move jobs overseas isn’t solely due to deregulation. It’s the inappropriate timing of our free trade agreements that are holding us back as more and more Americans enter retirement.

You want to end the cycle? Buy less and pay a little more to get that ‘Made in America’ logo. Oh, but we can’t because it’s a down economy, so maybe we could pull a ‘Logan’s Run?’ Half of our readers would be shuffled off this mortal coil!

So there you have it. It’s both parties’ fault.

SMS

That was the time when union membership was at 45% not the current 15% and when trade policies kept jobs in America and were not incentivized to send the jobs overseas. Want to see where your social security went look at the Republican policies of deregulation and free trade.

The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. Dont believe anything a Republican tells you.

My only worry would be, if this financial melt down going on now would lead to a race war, ethnic cleansing , or purity of race (WWII). Now that would be bad news for mixed blood peoples.

Thanks for the compliment. If I sound like a paid consultant, I must be doing something right!

But seriously, none of us here are paid. I can’t speak for them, but I for one am a policy-wonk and campaign strategy (dare I say) expert which is why my material sometimes reads like that of a ‘paid’ analyst. Sorry. What you see is what you get.

What’s wrong with that?

SMS

Anonomys, I was the one who said there are companies doing just fine. Here is a reality check for all of you, pro or con on this subject. NOTHING is safe in life. Life itself is a protracted gamble. Everyday we make choices that have effect on our future, good, bad, or otherwise.

You want “safe” put your money in an insured bank account and get the low paying safety of interest and FDIC protection, that’s about as safe as it gets. Or buy Treasury bonds backed by the govt. In this day that may be more risk than some want. Numismatic coins and precious metals have always been popular as well as hedges against inflation and because they retain intrinsic value, will always be worth something. There are many way to invest and enjoy your investments without being cash. While most of those are not listed as possible investments (most likely for tax reasons) for a privatized social security system there would be some risks involved in any of them.

The greatest differentiations in the current and a privatized system are that Congress would not be able to tap it as a resource to be used, when they feel the need, as is now done. Like the labor union bosses who steal the retirement accounts they have systematically taken from this pool of money and as Rob pointed out, made it a pay as you go system. The greatest danger here is that there will be fewer folks paying in, than getting paid if the statistical models hold. That is a huge problem for those on both ends. The end payee would have some control over what types of investments are used and what risks would be acceptable in a privatized system. Once again that choice issue. Right now, it’s just a black hole, you pour money in and pray that there is money there to come out the other end of the pipe. If SS were a private company, I dare say that the govt. regulators would have just cause in closing it down, the model simply is based on unrealistic numbers. It needs to be fixed, abolished or changed in some dramatic way, so it does make sense.

As I said before, I have no expectations that I will ever receive the money I paid into the system, especially now. I would like my daughter to have at least some control over her future and keep Congress from slopping at it’s trough.

The real question that should be asked is do you trust those in Congress to manage your future income.
If you believe in the same old system we have, then you must have faith in those who administer those funds.

I don’t.

It is a pay as you go system that been making huge profits for the government for many decades.

Also it is a Tax.

That was my gist, yeah, but I also think Social Security should be one of the choices, just not the only choice. If in the future we can reduce the number of people on the SS dole, we can get away from this whole pay-as-you-go system which makes no sense as people of my generation are still forced to pay retirement benefits for the last. If I’m paying FICA and not my IRA account provider, it’s harder for me to plan for my own retirement, isn’t it? And by the time I reach retirement, SS could be gone – no safety net at all. Is anyone else tired of working for everyone else for a promise?

‘I can do what ten people tell me to do, so I guess I’ll remain the same.‘ -Otis Redding… he had it wrong. Give me the dock on the bay and people leaving me alone any day!

Oh, and the same goes for the public schools. I share my position with Wayne Allyn Root.

SMS