"To each according to his need, from each according to his ability"
That was the mantra of Marxist socialism, under which millions of productive citizens in Eastern Europe lost their lives. It also appears to be one of the underpinnings of Mr. Levit's proposed solution to the Social Security dilemma.
While I definitely agree that Social Security needs to be privatized, two of the proposed changes are clearly unacceptable. They are: 1)means testing, and 2) lifting of the wage base. Under this plan, the most productive citizens would be taxed the heaviest and would get nothing upon retirement. This ammounts to nothing short of confiscation.
That said, it would be quite unFoolish not to offer a positive suggestion. What if citizens in the higher income levels (or any level for that matter) would forgo social security payments upon reaching the appropriate age, in return for an income tax credit for the corresponding ammount of money? This would ammount to a tax cut targetted in a laserlike fashion to help solve the Social Security problem.
Thanks
Blake Kellum