Dean Baker has an especially insightful column about the extent to which the hand-wringing about the ability of Social Security to pay its future benefits is exaggerated:
Social Security and the Economy | Beat the Press
Some highlights:
This matters because the main reason that revenue is projected to be lower in 2012 than in 2011 is that unemployment is now projected to be higher and wage growth is projected to be lower. This once again shows the importance for Social Security of having adults in charge of managing the economy. When the economy does badly, Social Security's finances do badly (repeat 256,000 times). ...
According to the latest projections from CBO we still have more than a quarter-century before the [Trust] fund will first face a shortfall. Even after that date the program would still be able to pay more than 80 percent of projected benefits, which would be more than current beneficiaries receive. {emphasis added}
Social Security and the Economy | Beat the Press
Some highlights:
This matters because the main reason that revenue is projected to be lower in 2012 than in 2011 is that unemployment is now projected to be higher and wage growth is projected to be lower. This once again shows the importance for Social Security of having adults in charge of managing the economy. When the economy does badly, Social Security's finances do badly (repeat 256,000 times). ...
According to the latest projections from CBO we still have more than a quarter-century before the [Trust] fund will first face a shortfall. Even after that date the program would still be able to pay more than 80 percent of projected benefits, which would be more than current beneficiaries receive. {emphasis added}