Social Security is actually a form of social insurance. In fact it is like term insurance. With term insurance the company (in this case the federal government) figures out the average life-span and bases its premiums on that. When someone dies before the average age predicted by the actuaries, the money that would have been paid out is invested (put into government bonds in the case of Social Security). If you live longer then the average, you still get paid because the investments cover the extra expense.
The best way to cover your family is to have decreasing term life insurance and a savings plan such as IRAs or 401(k)s. The savings can be put in mutual funds that range from very conservative to speculative. This is a retirement plan.
Whole life is a very poor instrument for saving for retirement, yet that is what the privatizing of Social Security most closely resembles.
While whole life has a cash value, so do your IRAs and 401(k)s. They can be used in emergencies much the same as your whole life policy.
