Quote:
Originally posted by Tyrone Slothrop
Did you even bother to read what Hume said? From the top again, Hume said:
- In a written statement to Congress in 1935, Roosevelt said that any Social Security plans should include, "Voluntary contributory annuities, by which individual initiative can increase the annual amounts received in old age," adding that government funding, "ought to ultimately be supplanted by self-supporting annuity plans."
Hume inserted the words "government funding" there to imply that Roosevelt was talking about something like what Bush wants to do. He wasn't.
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Ty --
Here is your original quote of Roosevelt's speech, taken from Drum:
"In the important field of security for our old people, it seems necessary to adopt three principles:
"First, non-contributory old-age pensions for those who are now too old to build up their own insurance. It is, of course, clear that for perhaps thirty years to come funds will have to be provided by the States and the Federal Government to meet these pensions.
"Second, compulsory contributory annuities which in time will establish a self-supporting system for those now young and for future generations.
"Third, voluntary contributory annuities by which individual initiative can increase the annual amounts received in old age.
"It is proposed that the Federal Government assume one-half of the cost of the old-age pension plan, which ought ultimately to be supplanted by self-supporting annuity plans."
Now, Hume may have been spinning a bit, but that last paragraph (in bold) sure looks as though it says that the old-age pension plan (and by extension government funding for it) ought to be replaced by self-supporting annuity plans -- exactly as Hume said.
[I'm not sure this matters to a reform argument -- except insofar as it urges us to avoid allowing SS to reach a deficit, as the government doesn't actually fund SS now.]
Also, Bilmore is correct that Drum did say, with no visible support or relevance except to grind his own political axe, that FDR didn't really care about his third point anyway -- voluntary contribution annuities.
Don't drink the Kool-Aid every time they bring the pitcher around.
S_A_M
