0570 - Evasions

The OO, accompanied by the entire Staff, will be making a ceremonial journey to Washington, DC next week. Therefore, no column will be forthcoming, though material will be gathered at the source. Today, we attempt a non-partisan excoriation of the evasions of both U.S. candidates on problems of overwhelming importance for one’s children and grandchildren, and for the great globe itself. The problems are large as a mountain, but are treated as invisible by both parties and both candidates. [Please note that we consider Nader a non-candidate, since he understands not the two party system and is arrogant even beyond the incumbent. Besides, he looks unacceptably scruffy.]

The United States, Europe and someday the rest of the world are facing a pension (sometimes called Social Security) problem. Like all problems all Politicians avoid, this stems from an inescapable fact: people are living longer when they can get proper drugs and medical attention. If you are a life insurance company, you sell your policies or your annuities based on a life expectancy table. If people should start dying younger, then you would lose money on writing your life insurance, since you expected your policies not to pay off until years in the future. If you sold annuities expecting people to die at an early age, and they live longer, then you the underwriter will lose money, because you will pay out more than you took in. My good friends, the candidates will not touch this simple and obvious problem: Social Security is paying out more than it takes in because people are living longer; there are more and more old geezers, and fewer young workers. Instead of facing the problem, each candidate evades, each in his own phony way. People, we say unto you, either Social Security must take more in, or the retirement age must be postponedto take account of the longer life span. That is truth; talk of private savings accounts is twaddle.

Another problem the candidates will not touch in depth is health care. Yes, Kerry has a health program, and Bush has a Medicare drug program we can’t fathom. But, you know in your well-preserved heart that the super-modern medical procedures now available are super expensive, and in truth, the U.S. Federal government would find it all but impossible to give everyone the heart care that, say, Bill Clinton got. The OO has a friend who has to take a single drug that costs $16,000 a year. [The drug is marvelous.] We do not say that the problem of providing the very best health care for everyone is soluble, because we think the cost trend is to make it impossible to pay for everyone’s tip-top care. The rich do get richer, the saying goes, but the fact is they also stay healthier – and for a reason. Who has talked about that?

Even the TV talkers are noticing a third related problem: the candidates (even the phony “Conservative” one) are proposing to spend a lot more and to tax a lot less. May we say, that don’t work. The result, after a few years, is either inflation (our bet) or higher taxes, or still worse. Face facts, boys.

And last, but not least, no Pol will discuss overpopulation, the last deadly threat to our children, and their children. The world is overpopulated, violently so in many places. Untold suffering results. So-called countries – say Haiti – are dysfunctional. Others are pits of misery. Others send – what – some 13 million illegals to the U.S. Our solution is to insist on birth control before giving away a dime in aid. Condoms first, then economic assistance. Well, Candidates?

Next time: ImperialRome [OO #571]

| Printer-friendly page | Send this article to a friend |

Home