Linkmeister

Deep breath

If yesterday's Social Security and Medicare funding revisions worry you, go read Fred Clark.

We do know, for certain, that 2037 is 28 years from now, and that little bit of arithmetical obviousness allows us to extrapolate a few other certainties. We know, for instance, that all still-living children born in 2007 will be turning 30 in 2037. This marks excellent timing on their behalf -- as the largest-ever pool of American workers will be entering their peak earning years, infusing a wave of cash into the Social Security system just as the trust fund representing decades of overpayments by Baby Boomers is finally depleted.

He goes on to say that the trustees at the Social Security Administration don't seem to recognize that. He doesn't say, but I will, that it's in the interests of the doomsayers (many of whom seem to have ties to Wall Street and might just have personal financial gains in mind -- fee income!) to ignore that arithmetic.

Medicare is a separate problem, and one that can be ameliorated in part if Obama's health care reform goes through. The reason that Medicare is running out of money is that health care costs keep rising and the people who use Medicare are by definition older people who have larger health problems which cost more to address. If Obama's plan succeeds in reducing costs, Medicare will have far fewer financial difficulties in the future.