Jordan Hayes wrote:
> JayHecht at aol.com wrote:
>
> > According to the IRS, more than 3/4 of those about to retire
> > do not have enough to maintain their standard of living.
>
> Have they ever?
>
> /jor
Ingrid: That's a fairly assenine remark, especially when you consider the truly astounding increases in human productivity that have been recorded in the past century. Maybe some "gready old geezers" have overly high expectations about what kind of lifestyle they should/can maintain in their remaining years, but, as John Hecht, among others, has pointed out, there is no Social Security crisis, and there is no impending doomsday scenario based upon the high retiree/worker ratio that we can expect and should hope for in the foreseeable future. People have become much more capable over the course of recent history of providing for the comfort and neccesities that make life bearable, and if it weren't for the demands of capital to receive its unfair slice of the pie, we would all be able to sleep soundly at night knowing that we don't have to worry about having our basic needs met and that we can spend our retirement years, should we be so lucky to get there, with a modicum of dignity and comfort. The problem is not with what most of us want and should be able to expect, but with an economic system that requires that many struggle and suffer so that others can maximize their profits. And BTW, these wondrous productivity increases have occurred because of human ingenuity and the accumulation of human knowledge and NOT, as is so often claimed, because of our much vaunted market-based economy and the demands it makes. There's so much more I could say about this, but I have to prepare for a month-long trip to Europe that I'm taking starting tomorrow, but I'll be happy to argue with you when I get back.
Regards,
Ingrid