Fortunately I've been bitching about this almost daily.

Concise summary of note:

Princeton economist Alan S. Blinder, a former vice chairman of the Federal Reserve, said that although the outlines of Bush's plan were becoming clear, the package was not desirable.

"Under these changes, Social Security would be neither social nor provide security," he said. "This would be a piece of a program to expose people to more and more risk…. There are millions of Americans who have no desire and no ability to gamble on the financial markets, and they shouldn't be pushed to."

Accidental-accuracy-from-an-osteocephalic of note:

But administration officials and some analysts say it is a mistake to view Social Security reform only from the perspective of its effect on federal finances.

"It's the classic conundrum of what do you look at," said William W. Beach, head of data analysis at the conservative Heritage Foundation. "Do you look at the trust fund or do you look at the worker's portfolio? I argue that you want to look at the outcome for the worker first, and the trust funds second. Others see it differently."

Why the osteocephalic is right:

Lee Price, the Economic Policy Institute's research director, said some people, such as those who retired when the stock market was down, would suffer through no fault of their own.

"For the vast bulk of the population," said Brookings Institution economist Peter R. Orszag, "Social Security is the critical foundation upon which one should be building a comfortable retirement. You should be taking risks on top of this core foundation, not within it."

Investments to Kick Off Social Security Discussion
Critics prepare to block Bush proposal to shift payroll taxes into private accounts.
By Warren Vieth and Joel Havemann
Times Staff Writers

December 15, 2004

WASHINGTON — It will be months before President Bush and members of Congress agree on how to restructure Social Security, if they come to terms at all. But the rough contours of what Bush has in mind have begun to emerge, and battle lines are forming.

The president and his aides will present their initial thoughts during a two-day economic conference that begins today a few blocks from the White House. Administration critics were already voicing their opposition Tuesday to the apparent direction of Bush's plans.

Bush has said he wants to shore up the finances of the Social Security program and allow workers to shift some of their Social Security payroll taxes into private investment accounts, but he has not endorsed a specific proposal. Some analysts expect him merely to state basic principles and leave Congress with the task of restructuring the program, which faces cash shortfalls as baby boomers begin retiring and benefit payouts exceed payroll tax collections.