February 24, 2005
THE DEAD DON'T VOTE:
Lawmaker finds a generation gulf on Social Security (Peter S. Canellos, February 24, 2005, Boston Globe)
The almshouse, a citadel of rust-colored brick overseen by a master and matron, was a place of fear for penniless elderly and orphans in the early decades of the 20th century.By the time Richard E. Neal, the city's current US representative, was orphaned in the 1960s, the almshouse was gone -- rendered obsolete by Social Security. A monthly survivor's benefit enabled Neal to go to college and made it easier for his younger sisters to live with relatives.
Neal's experiences have made him a fierce defender of the traditional Social Security system, and now he is putting his story on display to build opposition to President Bush's plan to allow people to invest portions of Social Security taxes in private investment accounts.
But he has found that some people's experiences send them in different directions.
This week, as he brought his story home to Springfield, he discovered that loyalty to the current system fades with successive generations -- especially among those with no connection to the time before Social Security, from fears of the almshouse to the devastating loss of savings accounts and stock-market investments in the Depression.
If time starts flowing backwards the Democrats are sitting pretty. Posted by Orrin Judd at February 24, 2005 7:24 AM
"..to build opposition to President Bush's plan to allow people to invest portions of Social Security taxes in private investment accounts."
Imprimis, this is a non sequitur. Putting a portion of one's SS into a named ("private") account does not destroy a "survivor's benefit".
Secundus, none of these people have any kind of answer to the inexorable demographic/Ponzi crash that the current SS system if marching toward. Standing still is not an option when the ground is being washed away under your feet.
Posted by: fred at February 24, 2005 12:31 PMNeal's experience is why this story is so hilarious: AARP, MTV's Rock the Vote join forces to fight Bush's Social Security plan.
I suppose given all the AARP-qualified rockers like Bruce Springsteen who turned out this past fall to Rock the Vote for John Kerry, the two groups must figure the aging musicians can herd the young whippersnappers into line and vote the way they did when they were just young pups. But if I remember right, the youths turned out for the concerts, and then mostly ignored the rockers' calls to support the ketchup gigolo in November. Odds are they'll have even less success here.
Posted by: John at February 24, 2005 3:18 PM