The Best Economy-Minded Bloggers Out There

According to the Christian Science Monitor, they have "assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there." This is from one of them:

No discussion of the upcoming collapse of the bond market would be complete without a mention of Social Security.

At least, after they’ve lost their money in stocks, real estate and bonds, Americans will at least have Social Security to live on, right? Wrong!

You know all that money you pay in Social Security taxes? Where do you think it goes? Into current expenses and US bonds!

That’s right, the feds just use the money to finance whatever fool scheme they’ve got going at the moment…and give the Social Security Administration a bond in return. In theory, the SSA has assets. In practice, all they’ve got is the hope that the feds can squeeze enough money out of taxpayers to meet their obligations.

And from there, the blogger goes on to use terms such as "Ponzi scheme", "chain letter" and "default." He also claims that assuring that there is enough money to pay future Social Security benefits would require "doubling every tax we pay, starting now."

You might be interested in the fellow who wrote this, Bill Bonner. He works for Agora Financial. Here are a few "Special Offers" from Agora's homepage, which may give you an idea of where this fellow is coming from:

• "Last year $200 could have turned into $10.1 million following 5 simple steps revealed in this secretive retirement blueprint."
• "Steve Sarnoff makes one pick each week. Since November 2006, not one pick has lost value! It’s no wonder our readers could have turned $5,000 into $1 million in just over 5 years!"
• "One investment should rocket even faster than gold over the next 12-24 months... yielding at least 3-to-1 gains on every dollar invested... GUARANTEED."

ALJs Concerned About Threats

From a press release:

The Hon. Randall Frye, Pres. of the Assn. of Administrative Law Judges and a federal judge with the Social Security Administration based in Charlotte, N.C. and the Hon. Dana Leigh Marks, Pres. of the National Assn. of Immigration Judges and a federal immigration judge in the Department of Justice based in San Francisco, will release new data on threats and attacks directed at federal administrative law judges and will discuss concerns by judges about the level of safety in federal courtrooms where Social Security and Immigration cases are heard at a National Press Club Newsmakers press conference, Monday, August 30, at 10 a.m., in the Zenger Room of the National Press Club, 13^th Floor, National Press Building, 529 14th St., N.W., Washington, D.C. ...

Between March and August of last year, 28 threats were recorded on Social Security offices that handle disability hearings and in the same period 10 individual judges who hear disability claims were threatened. Threats to the wives and children of judges also has been reported. In January, a gunman, possibly upset about a reduction in his Social Security benefits, killed a U.S. courthouse security guard and injured a deputy marshal in Las Vegas.

Judges have reported chairs being thrown at them, their robes being grabbed while on the bench and one respondent in an Immigration hearing reportedly attempted suicide in front of the judge.

Complicating matters and increasing security risks is the fact that most Social Security and Immigration judges do not have a bailiff or a security guard in their courtrooms and many of these facilities are only protected by private security guards. A large number of these courtrooms are now located in leased office space rather than government buildings.

ALJ Fallon Passes

Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) Thomas H. Fallon of Boston has passed away at the age of 68. He had been an ALJ for 16 years. Prior to becoming an ALJ he had served as mayor of Malden, MA.

The Center Cannot Hold

These are some recent quotes about Social Security "reform" from scholars at the Brookings Institute, a supposedly centrist think tank:

• Isabel Sawhill: "Democrats must accept the need to slow the growth of Social Security and Medicare benefits."
• Alice Rivlin: "[D]o we want to allow rapid growth in programs supporting seniors (including Social Security) to drive out spending for education or scientific research or improving infrastructure that might contribute more to future economic growth?"
• Henry Aaron: "Other proposals that would cut Social Security spending or otherwise help reduce deficits deserve consideration."

What we see here are people who are trying to stay in the middle. On their left are Democrats who essentially want to keep Social Security as is. On their right are Republicans who are searching for a way to end Social Security, either through privatizing it or by cutting its benefits enough so that public support for Social Security spirals downward. The problem is that there is no middle ground for the would-be centrists to stand upon. These centrists end up with the less dramatic Republican option of cutting benefits but this is still an option based upon the premise that Social Security must cease to exist, a premise that these centrists do not accept.

Must Be Something In The Air Or Water

Joe Klein of Time picks up on Matt Bai's theme that only wild left-wing Democrats could oppose a "few minor fixes" to Social Security, such as raising the retirement age to 70 and reducing benefits. After all, "a move toward federal fiscal responsibility might encourage the U.S. business community to start investing the $1.8 trillion in cash it is hoarding and thereby create some jobs."

The Washington punditocracy is nuts. The idea that deciding to reduce Social Security benefits decades from now could provide an economic stimulus today is preposterous on its face. The changes that Klein favors are not "minor" in any sense. What is wrong with these people?

New Regs On Step-Children

From today's Federal Register:

We are revising our regulations to reflect changes made in the Contract with America Advancement Act of 1996 (CAAA) to the entitlement and termination requirements for Social Security child's benefits to stepchildren. Under the CAAA, we consider a stepchild as dependent on a stepparent to receive child's benefits based on the stepparent's earnings only if the stepchild receives at least one-half support from the stepparent. Also, we terminate a stepchild's benefits that are based on the stepparent's earnings if the stepchild's parent or adoptive parent and the stepparent divorce, unless the stepparent adopted the stepchild and the stepchild can qualify for benefits as the stepparent's adopted child.

Why Raising The Retirement Age Isn't Such A Good Idea

From Hard Work? Patterns in Physically Demanding Labor Among Older Workers by Hye Jin Rho:

Employment in physically demanding jobs or in jobs with difficult working conditions is a major cause of early labor-market exit among older workers. Raising the retirement age is particularly concerning for near-retirement age workers with such jobs. Despite the fact that the retirement age increase is supposed to encourage workers to work longer, many workers would be physically unable to extend work lives in their jobs, and they would most likely be left with no choice but to receive reduced benefits.

An analysis of the Current Population Survey (CPS) and Occupational Information Network (O*NET) shows that in 2009 6.5 million workers age 58 and older (about 35 percent) had physically demanding jobs, while 5.0 million workers age 58 and older (about 27 percent) had jobs with difficult working conditions. More than 8.5 million workers age 58 and older (about 45 percent) were employed in difficult jobs (physically demanding jobs or jobs with difficult working conditions).

Physically demanding jobs include general physical activities, handling and moving objects, spending significant time standing, or having any highly physically demanding work. Highly physically demanding jobs involve such elements as dynamic or trunk strength, or kneeling or crouching. Difficult working conditions include cramped workspace, labor outdoors, or exposure to abnormal temperatures, contaminants, hazardous equipment, or distracting or uncomfortable noise.

It is easy to think that raising the retirement age to 69 or 70 would be no problem -- if you work in an office and seldom have any significant interaction with people who truly labor for a living. Unfortunately, the people making decisions about this work in offices and seldom have significant interaction with people who truly labor for a living.

New Edition Of Social Security Disability Practice

The 2010 edition of my book, Social Security Disability Practice, has been released. It is available for sale from the publisher, West, which is now part of Thomson Reuters. I just received my author copies this afternoon so you know the book is hot off the presses.