• The King County Journal, Bellevue, Wash., on Social Security reform The King County Journal, Bellevue, Wash., on Social Security reform President Bush is still stumping for changing Social Security, but it’s become obvious that people want to slow the
• The King County Journal, Bellevue, Wash., on Social Security reform
The King County Journal, Bellevue, Wash., on Social Security reform
President Bush is still stumping for changing Social Security, but it’s become obvious that people want to slow the process down. Given the significance of any changes, Congress should plan on more discussion and less action.…
The president wants future retirees to divert part of their Social Security payroll deductions into personal investment accounts, a change that he says would give them the possibility of greater retirement benefits and take some pressure off Social Security itself.
That may be what would happen, but like many things, the devil is in the details. So far, the details are far from clear.
What is apparent is that there are many individuals and organizations with concerns and questions. Most, if not all, Democrats in Congress oppose changes. That’s probably more a political stance than a reluctance to modify the system. However, a number of Republicans in Congress also have reservations. And important groups, such as the AARP, are opposed to some of what Bush has offered.
What’s important is to come up with a fix to Social Security that puts the Depression-era program on firm financial ground for the long run. For now, there’s no agreement that the president’s ideas do this.…
Republican leaders in Congress say it may not be possible to craft a Social Security bill this year. That’s not necessarily bad, especially if the time is spent further refining and explaining the options to fix the program. The public’s unease shows that more work needs to be done.
The Times Herald-Record, Middletown, N.Y., on Martha Stewart
One of the secrets to living a rewarding life, so the gurus of such things tell us, is being able to glean positive results from whatever comes your way, especially the self-generated nasty stuff. Lemonade from lemons, etc.
Once again, Martha Stewart shows us the way. The maven of stylish living has apparently managed to transform the tackiness of being sentenced to five months in a federal prison into a model for personal rehabilitation. Forget Martha the Merciless, aloof corporate bully. Say hello to Martha the Humble, friend of the downtrodden and advocate for prison reform. …But there has always been something a little different about Stewart, something that compels attention and provides instruction for thousands (maybe more) of average Americans, especially women, who are trying to make the best of their lives. What she says and does, likes and dislikes, matters to a lot of people. So if there are positives to be drawn from her incarceration, they ought not be casually dismissed as just another celebrity story. …She went to prison for lying to federal investigators about what she had done, even though a jury decided the actual sale of stock was not illegal insider trading. Again, the cover-up trumped the act in question. Also, unlike her male counterparts, Stewart did not seek to stay out of prison by constantly appealing court decisions. She voluntarily agreed to do her time. There is a certain honor in that approach that makes it easier to seek and be accorded redemption.
None of this is guaranteed, of course. If the new Stewart is really a false image being marketed for broad consumption, consumers will figure that out soon enough.
