As a recently retired Baby Boomer, I am tired of listening to 30-somethings whine about having to shoulder the burden of Social Security. They moan that they will have to contribute a disproportionate load to pay for the sheer volume of retirees from my generation, but the fact is that it was my generation that foresaw the shortfall and billed me for it in advance, providing a surplus that will last until 2042, when I will be long gone and they will be living off of my contributions.
This is the generation that wants to wait until 40 to begin a family, rather than sacrificing that extra paycheck that pays for their trips to Hawaii, trips that I have never made. This is the generation that changes jobs and careers like dirty socks, rather than staying invested in a company with a solid retirement program. This is the generation that votes against pension issues in favor of spendable money right now.
And now they want to withdraw their support of the generation that gave them life and privatize Social Security for their own reward alone.
But where are those workers who held purely privatized retirement plans in the ’90s? Most of them are still at work with no hope of retirement in sight because the lure of private investment proved fickle.
If it is true that the handwriting is on the wall for Social Security, this Gimme Generation should realize that the hand is their own.
