Forbes on Fox tomorrow (Social Security)

Well, they've had me on back to back! I'll be appearing as part of a panel, with Steve Forbes among others, discussing whether or not the "Social Security Crisis" is real. 11 am eastern on Fox News. But, many of you don't have Fox News, so here were my two arguments:

1) I pointed out that I've seen timelines for global warming disasters that are more pressing than Bush's timeline for the Social Security collapse, but he hasn't done a thing about global warming. I also called Bush "a drama queen."

2) I tried to get this in, but it was quick -- people keep saying that Social Security is just a bunch of "IOUs" and that the government borrowed the Social Security money we've all paid, so there's really no money in the Social Security Trust Fund. True enough, but how does the government borrow money? With Treasury bills. Treasuries are our national debt. They are known throughout the world as the safest investment you can buy, almost akin to stuffing cash under a mattress, but you get interest. The reason is that, through the Civil War, two World Wars and the Great Depression, the US government has NEVER defaulted on its Treasury bills. Never even once. Never even missed an interest payment. Now, the Social Security Trust fund contains $1.3 trillion worth of Treasurys. To believe that those Treasurys don't represent actual money is to believe that the US government will default on about 1/5th of its debt! And not, only that, but that it would default on the portion that's meant to pay for the retirement of its own citizens! Many a country's economy has been completely tanked over far less an infraction. Honestly, if our government defaults on the T-bills in the trust fund... we have BIGGER problems to face than Social Security.

And here's one argument I didn't make, but wanted to: People keep saying this is a demographic problem. Because of the Baby Boom, and because our generation hasn't had so many kids, we have less workers paying in than will be retiring. Fair enough. The same is true in Europe. You know what the solution for both the US and Europe is? Cloning! No. Immigration. There are plenty of babies being had around the world. They might not be born here, but they might want to move here, buy a condo, and use their cultures to save our own ailing pop culture. The history of progress in the US (if you're not a Native American) is the history of immigration. The only reason we have the financial wherewithal to have Social Security in the first place is... the sweat and labor and ingenuity of immigrants. Maybe it's time we faced reality and started inviting people in.