A crisis exists.Charles Morris's assertion that there is no Social Security crisis is simply untrue un·true adj. un·tru·er, un·tru·est 1. Contrary to fact; false. 2. Deviating from a standard; not straight, even, level, or exact. 3. Disloyal; unfaithful. . Morris writes that after 2018 "the trust funds will have to start digging into their accumulated surpluses," which he claims have been mounting for the last twenty years TWENTY YEARS. The lapse of twenty years raises a presumption of certain facts, and after such a time, the party against whom the presumption has been raised, will be required to prove a negative to establish his rights. 2. . The truth is that these surpluses do not exist; over the years, that money has been spent on other federal programs. The "trust funds" consist of Treasury bills that can only be paid back from the federal government's general revenues. In other words Adv. 1. in other words - otherwise stated; "in other words, we are broke" put differently , starting in 2018, we will have to start raising income-tax rates (or some other taxes) to pay for Social Security benefits. After that, the problem will continue to worsen wors·en tr. & intr.v. wors·ened, wors·en·ing, wors·ens To make or become worse. worsen Verb to make or become worse worsening adjn , until by 2078 the costs of Social Security and Medicare will exceed the entire federal budget. If this doesn't constitute a crisis, I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. what does. JEROME F. WINZIG Minneapolis, Minn. THE AUTHOR REPLIES: As my article makes clear, the seventy-five-year deficit in the Social Security trust funds, on fairly pessimistic pes·si·mism n. 1. A tendency to stress the negative or unfavorable or to take the gloomiest possible view: "We have seen too much defeatism, too much pessimism, too much of a negative approach" estimates, is less than $4 trillion. The cost of extending the president's tax cuts over that same period is just short of $12 trillion, while the cost of the new Medicare drug program is $8 trillion. The $4 trillion deficit in Social Security, moreover, could be covered by relatively minor program changes without gutting it as the president has proposed. If the administration were truly concerned about the country's future ability to pay principal and interest on government bonds, it could drop its insistence on extending the tax cuts, which disproportionately benefit the wealthiest 10 percent of the population. To the extent there is a "crisis," in short, it has been created by this administration. CHARLES R. MORRIS |
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