Master of the Universe Crusades Against Social Security

[World Traveller]

I've never posted a new post, buth this one made me so mad, it's a first. Comments, Snippets, Link.

Pete Peterson even wrote a well-hyped book 3-4 years ago about how Social Security could bankrupt US Gov't. I've paid 7.25% SS taxes most of my life and my employer has matched (money that otherwise might have gone into my salary). And we all know that SS Admin only has Treasury IOU's to cover our retirement. The extra money SS Admin collected over the years due to Greenspan Commssion's SS tax increases (early '80's) has already been spent to fund Reagan and Bush tax cuts for the wealthy. Now you know why I'm mad!!

Dean Baker strikes again. Last paragraph tells how Pete is now lobbying Congress to keep his 15% tax rate, while the rest of us pay the 7.25% SS tax and 25% income tax.

Pete Peterson Doesn't Need His Social Security By Dean Baker

Fifteen years ago, Peter Peterson used some of the immense wealth he had accumulated as an investment banker to create and bankroll the Concord Coalition. The Concord Coalition was designed as a bipartisan organization promoting fiscal responsibility, with its primary targets being Social Security and Medicare. Peterson and his crew put out screeds, with titles like "Grey Dawn," that attacked these programs and warned that the growing wave of elderly would bankrupt the country.

Of course, there is a Social Security trust fund that holds more than $2 trillion in government bonds. Under the law, these bonds are to be repaid from general revenue, which comes almost entirely from the personal and corporate income tax. In other words, the bonds held by the Social Security trust fund, which are supposed to pay the Social Security benefits of retired workers, are effectively tax obligations for wealthy people like Mr. Peterson. If the bonds held by the Social Security trust fund are never repaid, Mr. Peterson and/or his heirs could save tens of millions of dollars from their future taxes. It shouldn't be surprising he is trying to convince the public that the trust fund doesn't really exist.

But, this is just one side of Peter Peterson. He was in the news last week for a totally different reason. It turns out, a loophole in the current tax code allows hedge fund and equity fund managers (like Mr. Peterson) to pay taxes on their compensation at a much lower rate than ordinary workers. While middle income workers like school teachers and firefighters typically face a 25 percent income tax rate, Peter Peterson and other fund managers get to pay the much lower 15 percent capital gains tax rate on the tens of millions they earn each year.

According to The Washington Post, Mr. Peterson was actively lobbying Congress to ensure he and his ilk are not taxed like ordinary workers. The Post reported that Mr. Peterson's efforts apparently paid off: He and his fellow fund managers will continue to enjoy special tax breaks. As Pete Peterson says, he doesn't need his Social Security.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/101507F.shtml

[Richard Steele]

1. K&R. (And congrats on starting your first thread!) nm

[JDPriestly]

2. War makes countries poor -- not elderly people.

The alternative to Social Security is for elderly people to move in with their children once the parents' money runs out. Most kids prefer paying for Social Security.

Edwards' solution is so obvious that it is almost embarrassing to have to mention it: make all income subject to the Social Security tax except certain income of two-income families that in excess of and below certain intermediate amounts.