Red Herring Alerts --- (ss 'reform")

http://www.americanprogressaction.org/site/pp.asp?c=klLWJcP7H&b=100480


SOCIAL SECURITY
Misinformation Mania

With White House privatization plans seemingly locked in a tailspin, conservatives are winding up their mighty howitzer of misinformation with one goal in mind: confusing Americans about the fundamental choices regarding retirement security. Some of their claims are so outlandish that a rebuttal seems unnecessary – take the new study blaming Social Security for hastening the decline of marriage, or President Bush's claim yesterday that private accounts would "provide a safety net for future retirees." Others have the potential to seriously mislead Americans about the president's plans. Below are five seriously specious claims to watch out for:

RED HERRING ALERT – THE "ADD-ON" MYTH: Last Friday, President Bush blurted "out something that sounded an awful lot like news" when he described his version of private accounts as "an add-on to that which the government is going to pay you." The truth: the "add-on" model of private accounts – creating an additional program completely apart from Social Security – is the polar opposite of the president's risky "carve-out" privatization scheme, which funds private accounts by raiding current Social Security payroll taxes. To see what a real add-on program looks like, see this report by American Progress fellow Gene Sperling.

RED HERRING ALERT – "BUT IT'S NOT PRIVATIZATION!": In his latest weekly e-mail, privatization pusher Rep. Allen Boyd (D-FL) claimed that "Many who oppose reforming the Social Security program have falsely claimed that personal accounts would lead to the privatization of Social Security." Sorry, but that line shouldn't fool anyone. "Personal" accounts carved out of Social Security are precisely what economists, analysts, and politicians – including President Bush – have always meant by privatization.

RED HERRING ALERT – CONSERVATIVE "COMPROMISE": Last week, two allies of President Bush offered up so-called "compromise" plans, attempting to corral pro-Social Security progressives who are actually interested in seriously addressing retirement security. A closer look reveals the plans are merely "Tangerine and Strawberry phase-out to be added to the plum version the president has already put on the table." Like the president's plan, both include massive, budget-busting transition costs, cuts to traditional Social Security benefits, and risky private accounts (One plan even raises the normal retirement age to 72 years old!). more # 4 and 5 red herrrings.......

the stuff below the SS part about Bush's war on the poor is devastating to read