Tuesday, March 08, 2005

Values in Social Security.

Earlier I wrote that laws reflect values. I note that in a broader post, Josh Marshall says something similar: It's about values.
But the cash value of work isn't the same as its moral value. And if you look at the values imbedded in all those Social Security actuarial tables, you see this principle: whether you were a janitor or a fast-food worker or a doctor or a tycoon, if you worked during your working years you shouldn't be left destitute when your working years are over (retirement) or when, through no fault of your own, you can't work anymore (disability). No matter what.

1 comment:

SheaNC said...

That's what keep trying to communicate to the "anti-social-security" crowd in blog discussions: that society as a whole, benefits from those who contribute to society as workers, and they deserve to be rewarded for their contributions. That, and it seems immoral to discard the elderly after they have been "used up" by some Dickensian taskmaster.