Point of Clarification concerning Social Security

Point of clarification to your social security comparisons to ponzi scheme: It was the democrats who accused Bush of trying to privatize social security; not the reverse as you stated. You were right about your first comparison though. The rate of return for one's lifetime social security contributions is miserably low. This is why it is a rip-off when looked at from the standpoint of its original form, which was for everyone to "invest" into the system for their individual retirement funds. However, for several decades, social security has simply been an income transfer from one demographic group (wage earners) to another group (Social Security recipients). Unfortunately, the relative number of payers is getting too small to support the increasing number of recipients and eventually the system in its present form will break, just as a ponzi scheme will eventually break when it runs out of available payers at the lower level of the pyramid.