L. Randall Wray — Lies, Lies, And More Lies About Social Security And Medicare

The election tomorrow is a minor diversion. The real show begins on Wednesday (or whenever the “winner” is finally declared). That’s when Pete Peterson will move into the White House and begin to dismantle Social Security and Medicare.

The enemies of the social safety net have been softening up the electorate since the early 1980s, with a steady drumbeat of lies about Social Security and Medicare “running out of money”. Most folks have been duped. What they see is that both Democrats and Republicans agree that the programs are “unsustainable”. All the mainstream media has bought Peterson’s lies. And almost all economists are on board, too.

Wall Street hates these programs. Social Security gives workers an alternative to sending their retirement savings to Wall Street. Wall Street hates competition. They want the whole retirement shebang. They want to suck as many fees as they can out of your retirement savings, and then blow the whole wad on crazy speculative schemes that make them rich and you poor. That’s why they’ve always fought tooth and nail against Social Security retirement. They do not want you secure. They want you to live in crippling fear. They hate the whole notion of “security”.

Economonitor | Great Leap Forward
LIES, LIES, AND MORE LIES ABOUT SOCIAL SECURITY AND MEDICARE
L. Randall Wray

Let's just say it. It's all about extracting economic rent.