Comments on: Bush: Social Security Shortchanges Black Seniors

By: The Tar Pit

The Tar Pit — Sat, 29 Jan 2005 01:26:07 +0000

Privatizing Social Security and Black Actuarials
Much is being made of black life expectancy, but it should be noted that the figures usually parlayed are for life expectancy at birth. Today Hugh Hewitt, who discussed this issue on this afternoon's radio program, linked to life expectancy at birth ...

By: ipwatcher

ipwatcher — Fri, 28 Jan 2005 22:19:26 +0000

Too bad Bush was completely wrong about blacks being shortchanged by Social Security, as was shown by a study done by the Social Security deputy chief actuary after the Heritage Foundation made this erroneous claim in the late 90s.

By: JackLewis.net

JackLewis.net — Thu, 27 Jan 2005 14:45:50 +0000

He should've played the Jack
Meeting privately with 22 black religious and business leaders who backed his reelection last year, Bush warned that Social Security...

By: McGehee

McGehee — Thu, 27 Jan 2005 02:50:19 +0000

Only the ones in red states, I'm sure.

By: Crerar

Crerar — Wed, 26 Jan 2005 23:49:08 +0000

No mention of the fact though if Blacks are net gainers or losers of social security contributions.

By: anjin-san

anjin-san — Wed, 26 Jan 2005 21:34:43 +0000

Why don't we work to improve our health care system and make sure blacks have equal access?

Just another wild & crazy idea...

By: James Joyner

James Joyner — Wed, 26 Jan 2005 20:48:36 +0000

Umm, no one is arguing that blacks should be excluded from the system. The purpose of the argument is twofold

1. To gain the support of a significant voting bloc--that happens to be 90% Democrat and

2. To illustrate the problem with a government-owned benefit program vice a private account. Blacks will still die earlier, at least in the short run, but they'll at least have the ability to decide when to retire and will their savings as estate under a private/personal system.

By: denise

denise — Wed, 26 Jan 2005 20:46:38 +0000

I didn't think Bush was talking about using any sort of profiling or weighting of SS pay-ins or benefits.

I thought he was just pointing out that if you switch to a personal retirement account system, then each individual is funding his/her own retirement and not someone else's. In the case of blacks, that means not paying in enough to cover whites, who generally live longer.

I'm not sure it's a winning argument, but it's not a preference program.

By: paladin

paladin — Wed, 26 Jan 2005 19:49:31 +0000

I'm not a fan of Rush Limbaugh's, but when I was out driving on Monday, I was listening to him (gimme a break, in my area it's him, country, jesusnetwork or Yo!Yo!Yo!). Rush said that if the debate has come to carving off special interest groups (not just blacks, but women also live longer than men) for special treatment, that means the system is broken. I agree. We will be financing Bill Gates' retirement under the current system. This is the 21st Century, not the 1930's. Social Security is not a private savings account, it is a tax. Once you say that blacks are an exception, then everyone will want to be an exception. Haven't we learned anything from the past?