The entire social and fiscal debate ignores this monster of an issue, but it’s only a matter of time. The kids are moving back home when they graduate and can’t find work. Soon, grandma and grandpa are going to be moving in, too. There’s a reckoning ahead that policymakers and the news media haven’t begun to think clearly about — or focus the public on.
What’s the answer? A good place to start is New America’s report “Expanded Social Security: A Plan To Increase Retirement Security for All Americans” by Michael Lind, Steven Hill, Robert Hiltonsmith and Joshua Freedman. The authors show that the two private legs of the famous “three-legged retirement stool” — pensions and savings — won’t come close to delivering adequate retirement income. (The third leg, of course, is Social Security).
