Alpha Dominance

Image Source: http://dmichaelrose.blogspot.com/

Do you think the Boomers and their Parents are setting you up for a better life than they themselves had? 

If so, think again.  For the first time in history the vast bulk of the Nation’s wealth is held by seniors, and via the AARP they have the single biggest special interest group representing them.  Furthermore seniors turn out to vote in large numbers, giving them substantial political influence.  Of late a great deal of time has been devoted to talk of fixing the Social Security system, in part because as a pass-through system it has no capital base of investments backing it.  Consequently the payouts must be funded each year from the current budget (read taxes or deficit spending).  The unfunded social security obligation is now projected to be 53 trillion dollars, dwarfing our now gargantuan National Deficit.  According to the government data (see table 15.4) from 2006, these expenditures alone equaled nearly a trillion dollars, but the Boomers are a few years away from retirement yet and as they reach entitlement age these expenditures are projected to balloon enormously.  We youth stand to pick up the tab, but at the same time stand little chance of receiving payment when we ourselves reach retirement age since the system is unsustainable.

If this doesn’t make you angry, it should.  This equates to paying welfare to the wealthiest Americans.  Anyone who takes issue with minor forms of entitlement spending such as welfare should reevaluate this system.  It is clear to me that Social Security must be converted to a needs-based program and stop payments to those who are already affluent, while taking from we youth, whose inflation adjusted income has fallen 4% over the past 33 years.  Meanwhile productivity has increased a whopping 40% in just the past 25 years.  Inflation figures used are also woefully underreported:

Inflation, as reported by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) is understated by roughly 7% per year. This is due to recent redefinitions of the series as well as to flawed methodologies, particularly adjustments to price measures for quality changes. The concentration of this installment on the quality of government economic reports will be first on CPI series redefinition and the damages done to those dependent on accurate cost-of-living estimates, and on pending further redefinition and economic damage.

Chart Source: http://www.shadowstats.com/article/292

So what do we do to prevent the legal hijacking of our future potential?  Get angry.  Get political.  Demand that your interests be represented.  The reason we are getting screwed is that the perception is that we don’t know or care.  I think we all would like to see a future in which the American dream persists.  A future in which those who work hard and are prudent can make a decent life for themselves; can get an education, buy a home, take vacations, afford a family.  These privileges don’t come for free, you have to work and fight for them.  We could all stand to learn a lesson from immigrants who come here with nothing, get an education despite language barriers, or at least work hard and provide for their families.  It isn’t a coincidence that it’s mostly Americans who live in the street asking for handouts.  These are a product of an entitlement culture that expects a good life to be given to them regardless of their drive or efforts.  Wake up people, and ensure a fair society for your children.