January 2, 2005

How Bush's Social Security Plan could work

http://www.iSteve.com/05JanA.htm#social.security.1

Bush's Social Security Plan: A reader writes:

  • If economic growth slows by half (in the midst of a global tech boom fuelled by Asian nerds unleashed from socialism)

  • If the stock market continues to grow faster than earnings

  • If the Bush upper income tax cuts are made permanent

  • If means test benefits cannot be introduced

  • If FICA taxes cannot be raised

  • If the the pension eligibility age is not moved out to take into account extended longevity (as life expectancy edges towards 80+)

  • If congress can be constrained from introducing loopholes for lobbyists and liquidators

  • And if Wall Street can be prevented from looting the greater fools overcharging fees or churning accounts

Then maybe, privatization of social security would look like a reasonable idea.

But why would one bet on so many ifs?

Considering what a superb job Bush did of thinking through every possible eventuality of the Iraq Attaq, he's obviously the man to upend Social Security. I know a lot of "conservative" pundits like Michael Barone are exulting that "conservatism" now means blindly backing radical gambles based on on one indifferently-informed man's hunches, but why is that conservative?


Steve Sailer's homepage and blog is iSteve.com

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