From Publishers Weekly
Outlays from Social Security are predicted to exceed income beginning about 2013. Beard, chairman of the National Development Council, has a response to this looming problem that resembles campaign literature: it makes a direct appeal to the grass roots, has good sound bites? "a plan that can... turn every hard-working American into a millionaire"?and avoids the tough questions. His proposal of a two-tiered scheme for saving Social Security and also generating major new economic growth combines a safety net (Tier 1) with the opportunity to make money (individually managed retirement funds, Tier 2). The transition from the existing system would be supported through the sale of bonds (voluntary if enough are purchased, mandated otherwise), and a new private-public corporation would oversee the money and its management. This "manifesto for financial independence and security" stresses the potential benefits of using money to make money, shows how people earning more than $5000 a year could benefit under the new system and provides some fundamentals on how individuals and small businesses can set up productive pension funds. But it tends to belabor the readily comprehensible and buttresses the proposal through repetition rather than exploration of the assumptions that make it work?e.g., compound interest averaging 8%, opportunity for 40 to 50 years of steady employment for 80% of the working population, unbounded economic growth.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Beard, who now heads the American Institute for Public Service, sets forth a plan to prevent the inevitable insolvency of the present Social Security program. His provocative recommendation would supplement Social Security benefits with mandatory private pensions funded jointly by individual and employer contributions. If each worker made a joint contribution to a private fund at the rate of $30 per week over a period of 45 years, notes the author, a personal fund of over $1 million would be available to supplement Social Security benefits. Beard provides ample reason for taking this action, but he leaves much to the imagination for its implementation. Nevertheless, his purpose is to stimulate debate and raise awareness of the need to reform Social Security. Making this book available in libraries would abet that worthwhile objective.?Joseph Barth, U.S. Military Acad. Lib., West Point, N.Y.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
