Nobody’s Perfect, But …
Some people really should know better.
Robert Reich has a good piece today that more people should read: The Hoax of Entitlement Reform.
He does a good job of laying things out and explaining why Social Security and Medicare have nothing to do with the deficit, and shouldn’t be part of the discussion, and then he blows it suggesting a change to Social Security that will guarantee its destruction: means testing.
If you include means testing in determining Social Security benefits you change it from an insurance program into a welfare program, and it is easy to destroy welfare programs. If you pay into the system, you should get the benefits, no matter what you are worth when you apply. The amount you receive is based on the amount you put in, just like any other insurance program.
Another point that the people who advocate changing the age at which you receive benefits don’t seem to grasp is that the more money you put in, the more you get back, so the savings won’t be as large as they believe. I know people who have delayed taking benefits to increase the pay out.
