Social Security--a Ponzi Scheme?

Three cheers for D. Hiipakka! His letter, “Social Security--Greatest Ponzi Scheme Since 1920s,” offers a proper analysis of Social Security that is so often lacking in major publications.

I’m taking time to write because I know The Times will get dozens of letters from elderly and liberal readers denouncing Hiipakka for his insensitivity to the plight of the elderly.

Unfortunately, very few consider the plight of the young. If I privately invested the $146 that is forcibly deducted from my paycheck each month for Social Security, I would likely be a millionaire by age 65. Instead this money is going into government coffers, not to be invested for my future, but to be distributed immediately. And those current recipients might very well have a higher standard of living than I do!

Politicians--liberal and conservative alike--worship at the altar of Social Security, since they are too cowardly to lead rather than follow on this important issue. The elderly do vote with more frequency than the young, but members of Congress are supposed to represent all members of the community. They are doing a great disservice by not allowing young people free choice in designing our futures.

In the not so distant future, the under-40 population will rebel against oppressive, unfair taxation. Better to resolve this problem now--on the side of freedom--than to allow a dispute between young and old to escalate into “class warfare” 10 or 20 years from now.

TED BROWN

Los Angeles