Social Security arithmetic isn’t hard. Tedious perhaps and with counter-intuitive results but once certain terminological obstacles are swept away not requiring advanced math skills. But oy that terminology! This post proposes to start demolishing those conceptual barriers. Social Security is considered ‘solvent’ when its ‘Trust Fund’ is in ‘actuarial balance’. The Social Security Trust Fund […]
No not the striking down of the mandate part, heck probably a thousand fingers were poised over an equal number of ‘Send’ keys when the ruling came down. Me? I took a shower and started thinking about the practical implications of ACA as it will operate under current law as modified today. Starting with the […]
If past file conventions hold true these links should work immediately on release of the 2012 Social Security and Medicare Reports Monday morning. This link SHOULD get you to the CURRENT summary. Which means 2011 until it means 2012. When it does. Social Security and Medicare Summary Report BTW from all evidence 99% of all […]
The first link is to the 2011 Report and is meant as a teaching tool. The Table shows projected income, cost, and balance projections over what the Trustees consider the ‘short term’, which is the same ten years used by OMB and CBO in their scoring. Table IV.A3.—Operations of the Combined OASI and DI Trust […]
This post was provoked by a moment of frustrated pique, another in a series of ‘shakes cane at clouds’ moments as this classic New Deal Liberal is driven to craziness by otherwise sensible social liberals who still fetishize markets. And yes I am pointing fingers right at Erza K, Matt Y and Kevin D. But […]
(Still cross posted from dKos. But since coberly and I have an extended colloquy there maybe not a bad place to start)Part 1 was kind of a set-up in both senses of the word in that it didn’t really deliver on the post title. But I think a necessary set-up and so lets resume. When […]
(cross posted from Daily Kos Social Security Defenders Group)There are three prevalent myths about the assets in Social Security Trust Funds, plural because there are two of them OAS-Old/Age Survivors and DI-Disability Insurance. The first myth, which comes mostly from the Right, is that those assets are just ‘Phony IOUs’. The second myth comes mostly […]
To which some might be tempted to respond: “What fresh hell is this?!” Well it is an attempt to backfill some of the argument behind my last post on consumption vs accumulation in relation to investment and marginal rates. A.V. Chayanov was an early Soviet era agricultural economist of enormous influence during his time. Unfortunately […]
Hey remember me? Just a quick driveby to start some discussion. Classical, neo-classical, and neo-liberal economics all share a common mistaken psychological premise, one that is simple but deep, and in itself explains why they don’t understand the aims of Progressive Taxation. Label it how you like, the academic discipline that emerged from England in […]
{Crossposted from dKos Social Security Defenders Group} Social Security has been off the radar this week for obvious reasons, progressives being more focused on efforts of Republicans to win the War on Women via the Continuing Resolution. Plus while Paul Ryan’s original Roadmap proposed privatization of Social Security his Budget proposal for next year left […]