Re: Social Security trap...

From: "Tricia P" <tpete@hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: Social Security trap...
Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 11:11:41 PST

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I suppose I'm opening myself up to be flamed, but I guess I don't 
understand why privatizing it is going to make it so much better, as 
some people seem to believe.   Why should I trust some investment 
company or stock brokerage any more than the government?  I think there 
are some things that are better left in public control, and this is one 
of them.  Plus, without adequate financial knowledge, how are people 
going to know how to invest those funds in their privatized IRA's?  I 
already know people who invest their 403(b) money in GIC's...and these 
are people in their 30's and 40's!  They aren't going to be getting any 
better returns than what social security is getting.  I do agree that 
things need to change, but some of these solutions I find a little 
unsettling.  Sounds like some of these arguments could potentially be 
coming from people who could stand to make a pretty penny off it...like 
brokers and financial institutions.




>From: "Jeff Salisbury" <jeff@csd.sdl.usu.edu>
>Reply-To: persfin@lists.xmission.com
>To: persfin@lists.xmission.com
>Subject: Social Security trap...
>Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 11:30:34 -0700
>
>Greetings,
>
>I read an article last night in my local newspaper on Social Security 
- -- I
>thought it was outstanding.  The basic points of the article were:
>
>1. Every American pays 12.4% of their annual wages (the first $68,400) 
into the
>Social Security system.
>
>2. The return on this "investment" is pathetic.
>
>3. Because many Americans are unable to save/invest sufficiently beyond 
this
>12.4%, and because the Social Security benefits are so meager, they 
will be
>trapped into a poverty level retirement.
>
>While I believe this article is right on target, I am aware of the 
dilemma of
>scrapping the current system.  How can we make the transition without 
leaving
>the people already trapped out in the cold?  Perhaps this is another 
example of
>governmental good intentions gone awry...
>
>I've included the full text of the article below...
>
>Best Regards,
>
>Jeff Salisbury
>
>
>##################################################################
>
>The following story appeared on deseretnews.com on March 08, 1999, 
12:00 AM MST
>
>Headline: Stop the Social Security poverty machine
>

   <big snip>

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