New Book: Boomsday

[pfpelican]

I would like to recommend a book "Boomsday" by Christopher Buckley,
author of 'Thank You for Smoking', son of William F Buckley...
it's a humorous take on the Social Security Crisis.
It's an interesting take on the real world "solution"
I've seen where us seniors die from the Bird Flu, thus solving
the social security crisis, where the ratio of the taxed to those
of us receiving benefits goes down dangerously:

From the prologue:

"Thank you, Wendy Wong in Washington, for that report on the deteriorating economic situation.
"In Florida today, another attack on a gated community by youths protesting the recent hike in the Social Security tax.
"Several hundred people in their twenties stormed the gates of a retirement community in the early hours this morning. Residents were assaulted as they played golf. Demonstrators seized carts and drove them into water hazards and bunkers. Others used spray paint and garden implements to write slogans on the greens.
"One such message, gouged into the eighteenth green, read: 'Boomsday Now!' The word refers to the term economists use for the date this year when the first of the nation's seventy-seven million so-called Baby Boomers began to retire with full Social Security benefits. The development has put a tremendous strain on the system that in turn has sent shock waves through the entire U.S. economy.
"A maintenance worker at the gold course said it might be, quote, weeks before residents were able to play golf.
"In other news today, the vice president has shot yet another lawyer, this time, he says, in self-defense..."

 

[Elderdude]

I understand that the tounge in cheek premise of the book is that the government offers folks at age 65 a huge tax incentive for "off-ing" themselves. Less if they waited until 70.

 

[mickeyd]

I thanks for the reminder. I heard a review about this on the radio recently and it sounded interesting.

I have asked the local library to add it to their collection. I'll read it when they have it.