Letters to the Editor

Find a way to put security back in Social Security

Author: Larry Wilson

Published: May 22, 2005

The May 13, "Raise Age to Retire?" quotes Eugene Steuerle, a senior fellow at the Urban Institute, as saying that retired people today spend a third of their lives retired.

Assuming most retire at age 65 to collect full Social Security, that means he expects them to live to age 97. The National Center for Health Statistics lists the average life expectancy to still be early to mid 70s (mostly depending on your gender). Which means any mathematically proficient Iowa seventh grader could advise Steuerle that people would have to retire at age 50 and receive full benefits so they would live to age 75 and be retired a third of their life.

That Social Security will have a shortfall in retirement funding in a few years if nothing is done is likely. But until those debating the issue learn basic math skills, there would appear to be little hope they can make any kind of intelligent decision to fix the problem.

-Larry Wilson,

Huxley.