Right, so many americans do need their hands held. It's just an unfortunate fact of life. You give them the chance to fuck it up and they will. They will put it all in some hot stock, and boom a crash destroys any measure of security they once had. A large number of americans with no savings, at retirement age will wreak havoc on our economy.
The chain is only as strong as it's weakest link and Bush is replacing what was once a tungsten alloy link with a shoestring.
SS is part of the social net. It is so successful because everyone puts into the pot. The rich put up to 88k, the poorer put in what they can. If we individualize everything (leaving out what will become huge administrative costs for each individual account) then those lower down will see their SS benefits shrink down to just what they put in.
Yes, that is social redistribution, but that was the point. It was a necessary mechanism to help ensure this country didn't become a hellhole after another depression. We apparently have such a short memory. Maybe we do need another depression to wake everyone up to reality.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...rity_challenge
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"I fully recognize it's going to require a bipartisan effort to address the issue," Bush said, ruling out payroll tax increases to help pay for an estimated $2 trillion in start-up costs.
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You can be sure it will be plenty more than 2 trillion too. Politicians love to low ball things to roll up enough support for it.