March 02nd, 2007

"If we really wanted to watch a movie about issues pertinent to today, we'd all be renting movies about Social Security reform!!!!!!"

Talk show host Glenn Beck, commenting on Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth

March 01st, 2007

Come stop by our booth back toward the center of bloggers' row.  We have lots of candy and a basketball game that will teach you about Social Security reform.  It's tons of fun!

We've also got the petition for our Count Us In! Campaign (www.CountUsIn.org), so you can sign up to tell Congress that personal accounts belong in the 2008 budget while you munch on some chocolate.

One other thing: keep an eye out for the Hershey's Kiss costumes.  They are S4's way of telling you not to kiss your savings goodbye! 

February 26th, 2007

Demetrius Minor, the S4 chapter leader at Georgia Military College, had a guest column published in the Augusta Chronicle.  You have to sign up in order to view the entire column, so here is a preview:

ATTEMPTING TO meet unfunded liabilities via failed efforts of the past - payroll tax increases and benefit cuts, for example - would represent a failure to consider who will actually pay for our selfishness. Postponing reform, meanwhile, amounts to handing down a broken piggy bank and asking future generations to contribute more to it than we did.

Personal retirement accounts are the solution to this problem, and so it is no accident that the president has included an investment opportunity for young workers in his 2008 budget. It is your job to act now and let your voice be heard. Save Social Security now!

Nice work, Demetrius!

February 22nd, 2007

South Africa's treasury department released a draft of its new pension reform plan and...guess what?  The plan includes a form of personal accounts!

It's unclear whether workers will be able to invest their savings, but it is clear that the accounts will be "in the name of every contributor" rather than in the name of whichever government officials want to spend the money.

Here is a key excerpt from the article, which for some reason refers to the plan with the slightly perjorative word "scheme": 

"The scheme aims to fill the gap between SA's state-funded social grant system and the private retirement fund industry, ensuring that all working people save towards their retirement and that everyone participates in a basic social insurance arrangement that protects their household incomes in the event of death, disability or unemployment.

It will be financed by a social security tax, which Manuel revealed yesterday will be administered by the South African Revenue Service and will be collected in individual accounts in the name of every contributor."

February 21st, 2007

"Writing about music is like dancing about architecture" begins a quote attributed to Elvis Costello.  "It's a really stupid thing to want to do."

Well, the same might be said of talking about talking.  There is a good article in yesterday's Baltimore Examiner about the need to get on with real conversations about entitlement reform, rather than continuing to discuss potential discussions.  Here's an excerpt:

Democrats ought to take the “everything’s on the table” messages they’re getting — and keep getting, in public and private — from Paulson, Portman, Bolten and Bush as a “yes” and get on with actual talks about what everyone agrees is an impending crisis that can only be dealt with on a bipartisan basis.

February 16th, 2007

Mark Harris was on "The Edge" today, a Montana radio show hosted by John Stokes.  Mark talked about the Count Us In! Campaign, as well as the ridiculous approach to reform taken by Senator Max Baucus. 

Baucus opposes personal accounts, but he also thinks that we should avoid tax increases or benefit cuts.  It's an approach that reminds me of what President Clinton said: "You can't just attack the other guy's ideas unless you have something to say."  Based on the opinions of the radio show's callers, lots of people are waiting for Baucus to explain how exactly he thinks we ought to reform the system.

In other Count Us In news, Kristina Rasmussen wrote an excellent article for the Business and Media Institute about the inclusion of personal accounts in the 2008 budget.  Here is an excerpt:

"[A] group of dedicated young activists called Students for Saving Social Security has partnered with groups like the National Taxpayers Union and launched a new Web site (http://www.countusin.org) to unite grassroots supporters of personal retirement accounts. They are collecting online petitions in support of the president's proposals and will deliver them to Congress when grassroots pressure in favor of reform is needed most."

Read the entire article here.

February 13th, 2007

There was a long interview with Rep. John Spratt (D-SC) published in yesterday's Roll Call under the headline "Baby Boomer Blues."  The interview--which, unfortunately, is subscription only--focused on the need for entitlement reform, and the new chairman of the House Budget Committee talked at length about some of the developments within the debate.  Here are a couple excerpts:

On the possibility of the parties working together for reform:

"Of course [Sens. Kent] Conrad (D-ND) and Judd Gregg (R-NH) have talked extensively about it on a trip they took to South America and came back with some fairly specific ideas.  I think it is premature, but it doesn't hurt to talk about it and see if anything grows out of it."

On the order in which entitlements should be fixed:

"Social Security would come first because there are a variety of ways of fixing Social Security.  Nobody wants to talk about any individually because you'll find them hung around his neck in the next election and they are much easier to support as a package when you can say these things done together will make Social Security assuredly solid for another 75 years.  If you can say that, then you can get people to take what would otherwise be some unpleasant steps..."

February 12th, 2007

by Evan Dent

Well, that's what I try to tell myself, anyways! I'm driving up and down the state of Florida and have painted our website--www.SecureOurFuture.org--on my back windshield. Gotta advertise, ya know??

Apparently, painted back windshields are an oddity down here because--wowsers! I've been getting SO MANY weird looks from people as they drive by. Well, it might be because on my side windows it says "Yo check out my ostrich!" and it has an arrow pointing towards it. The other side says "I love riding ostriches!"

I'm going to try to take pictures of people as they drive by but I'm not making any promises, b/c it turns out I'm not the best photographer while driving. I'm just hoping that the weird looks I get will translate to people remembering our Web site, clicking over to it, signing up, donating cash money, telling their friends to do the same, then going out to karaoke and singing Twisted Sister's "We're not gonna take it". That's my goal for the painted back windshield.

February 09th, 2007

by Evan Dent

I've been travelling all over Florida the past couple days, spreading the word to college students that their senators are MISSING.  I make missing posters for each of the senators.  They aren't missing physically, but they ARE missing on the issue of Social Security.

 
I don't think many students are aware of that, so I've been trying to inform as many as possible. Not only do I post them around campus, but I walk right up to students, show them the poster and ask if they've heard anything about it. Most students--like 99 percent that I talk to--end up agreeing with me that we need to get these sentators off the "Missing" list and start working to reform the system by allowing us more control and ownership of our tax dollars.

It's really awesome! Now we just need more students spreading the word about their Missing Senators! Let me know if you'd be interested in getting some Missing Posters for YOUR senators--I can get you some in a jiffy!