New Fiction Book Advocates Radical Solution to Pension Crisis
If you read Thank You For Smoking (and/or saw the video), you understand Christopher Buckley 's ability to put things in perspective with humor. With his new book Boomsday, he seems to have done it again. The plot takes generational warfare to new heights. According to the book description on Amazon.com, escalating Social Security expenses compel "Cassandra Devine, a charismatic 29-year-old blogger and member of Generation Whatever" to suggest that "Baby Boomers be given government incentives to kill themselves by age 75." As you can imagine, the book is creating controversy. Click here to read more.
We've written extensively about the looming financial crisis due to increased lifespans. Click on the Demographics folder to access previously published posts (on the left hand side of the home page of this blog.)
Living longer if you are healthy, and have economics means, sounds like fun. Who wouldn't want to take a course in the classics or travel the high seas with family and friends? Unfortunately, for the younger folks who will be forced to foot the bill through higher taxes, things are not quite so grand. This is not to put blame on senior citizens. (Let's face it. We're all heading in that direction.) Unfunded benefits have never been a good idea.
If you don't mind some dismal reality with your coffee, check out The Coming Generational Storm: What You Need to Know about America's Economic Future by Laurence J. Kotlikoff and Scott Burns or Running on Empty: How the Democratic and Republican Parties Are Bankrupting Our Future and What Americans Can Do About It by Peter G. Peterson.
The questions remain. Who has the power to solve what many believe is an imminent retirement system meltdown (including Social Security and Medicare)? What precludes them from doing something now? What is the consequence of playing ostrich, ignoring red flags and staying with the status quo? Take our 2 minute "Pension Crisis" survey and tell us what you think. Click here to start.
This post is written the day after April 1 by design. This is no April Fool's Day gag. Crushing "pay as you go" programs are here to stay until courageous leaders step up to the plate and take action or economies around the world implode.
