The Real Deal: The History and Future of Social SecurityWill the Social Security system founder as millions of baby boomers enter their retirement years? Is the frightening vision of an impoverished old age a glimpse into the real future for Americans of the next generation? The authors of this book put debates about Social Security reform into historical perspective, consider various reform ideas, and elaborate a proposal to ensure that the system can continue to meet the claims of the retired and the disabled. Sylvester J. Schieber and John B. Shoven, leading experts on retirement issues, set forth a carefully considered plan to change the way we finance Social Security and thereby secure its future viability. |
Contents
Avoiding the Downstream Catastrophe | 1 |
From Conception to Maturity | 15 |
The Context for the Passage of the Social Security Act in 1935 | 17 |
Developing the Social Security Act of 1935 | 26 |
Starting Up and Starting Over | 59 |
To Fund or Not to Fund? | 66 |
1 Pattis Accumulated Pension Benefits and Fund Balances | 67 |
Unresolved Issues | 77 |
The 1983 Amendments | 183 |
Backsliding | 196 |
Fundamental Questions | 208 |
The Iron Rules of Arithmetic Assert Themselves | 229 |
Social Security in the Bigger Picture | 242 |
The New Realities | 261 |
Heathens in the Temple | 263 |
Social Security Today and Marginal Proposals for Reform | 290 |
1 Percentage of Workers Covered by Social Security and | 94 |
8 Hypothetical Population and the Operation of a PayGo | 109 |
A Deal That Couldnt Be Beat | 111 |
The Inside Movers and Shakers 43 | 115 |
The Outside Movers Shakers and Takers | 128 |
1 Purchasing Social Security and Pension Benefits During | 132 |
The End of the Beginning | 146 |
1 Social Security Dependency Ratios from 1940 to 1975 | 148 |
Overreaching and Stepping Back | 163 |
A Tale of Good Intentions Gone Bad | 165 |
A Framework for Understanding the Options for Social Security Reform | 308 |
The Return to PayGo Financing | 328 |
Wanting to Fund Is Not Enough | 346 |
The Benefits and Risks Under Alternative Forms of Retirement Provision | 372 |
A Proposal for Reform | 386 |
Its Your Money Were Talking About | 409 |
Notes | 419 |
441 | |
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The Real Deal: The History and Future of Social Security Sylvester J. Schieber,John B. Shoven No preview available - 1999 |