Make Social Security Safe for Pensioners

It is my impression that now is the time to start thinking of converting the Social Security system to a real federal pension system to which everyone in the country who works, from the president and legislators on down, would be required to contribute. Income from the program would be placed in the general fund, and payment of pensions would have first call on government revenue. If there wasn’t enough current income to meet pension obligations, all pensioners would suffer equally in proportion to the amount they would otherwise be entitled to.

My objection to present schemes, such as the 401(k) plans, that invest pension funds in the stock market is that there are too few “widows and orphans stocks,” where money invested is safe. I know of a number of elderly widows living on invested money who had very handsome incomes up until the return on treasury bills dropped below 2%, and even large pension funds such as Florida’s have lost a lot in falling stock prices recently.

Kenneth L. Perry

Newport Beach