October 1, 2007, 5:38 pm
A Modest Proposal
Oh, baby: “Sixty percent of America’s likely voters oppose giving every child born in the United States a $5,000 savings bond, or ‘baby bond,’ ” according to a national telephone survey by Rasmussen Reports, which also “found that just 27 percent support the concept suggested on Friday by Senator Hillary Clinton.”
While the numbers speak for themselves, Rasmussen decided to get the ubiquitous political scientist Larry Sabato to gild the lily in its press release: ” ‘The baby bonds proposal is one of the few mistakes Hillary Clinton has made in her campaign,’ according to University of Virginia Professor Larry Sabato. ‘Should Clinton become the Democratic nominee, she may have handed a powerful issue to the Republican candidate.’ ”
Support for the Baby Bond proposal declines with age. It is favored by 50% of voters under 30 but only 12% of voters over 65.
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My question is why are people jumping all over this? Vicki Livingston comments on the article this way:
What a lot of fuss over an idea first introduced by former Treasury Secretary Snow. He proposed to add to the first $5,000 another $1,000 every birthday to 18. The magic of compound interest and time was supposed turn the original amounts into a very large retirement fund—a vastly cheaper way of funding Social Security. He said people could borrow their college loans from it and the plan could be modified to pre-fund Medicare as well. I can’t vouch for the numbers but the idea of enlisting time to meet these expensive obligations at a tiny fraction of their present costs is very appealing. Senator Clinton narrowed the focus to college ex[p]enses,forgetting apparently a larger importance: the profits accrued by commercial loans that leave graduates up to their eyeballs in debt.
theteach
7 comments:
Although I like Hilary as most of the Europeans do, 5000 $ for each child born seems a lot to me ! Who will pay that ? In Belgium for each new born child the parents get a certain amount now I don't know exactly the today's amount but I remember we got 250 $ in 1973 when my son was born and that was quite a lot at that time. The money is to help to buy the first needed stuff for a baby. That seems more reasonable to me.
An interesting idea.
I am all for this if the initial funding came from somewhere other than my tax dollars.
Sorry, I do not like the idea of handing out my tax-dollars to someone else. If they want to create a fund through fedral means, then it should be avalible. Nobody should be forced to buy into it if they do not want to and NOBODY should be forced to pay for it either.
Interesting Gattina, Maybe $5000. is what it takes in 2007. 34 years difference between 1973 and 2007. Apparently this is an idea that's been suggested before in place of SS benefits. I don't know we'll see what happens. But it's a generous idea, don't you think?
Anime, you pay taxes don't you? We all pay taxes to the government and the government pays for things like Medicare and Medicaid and other government bennies for people. Like schools for example. I don't have kids that use the schools but I pay for them...you too, I assume, don't have kids but you pay for schools. this money Hillary suggests is a way to fund SS payments or to wipe out SS payments.
Oh, yes I pay taxes. Both state and Federal.
It should be noted that I do NOT like paying Social Security or allowing my tax-dollars to go into the broken wellfare system.
I would gladly pay Social Security if that money went to ME. But it doesn't. It goes to someone else, who could very well be abusing the system.
I think we have gone around about the wellfare system before, and, frankly I don't agree with its current setup. I do not mind helping someone out for a little while...but the current system is set up to be easily abused and not really help people, but keep them where they are at. So yes, I take issue with these things.
I do not mind paying State and Federal taxes to fund public schools either. I do not have kids, with little intenton of getting any in the future. Still, I do not mind paying those taxes as long as they are rolled up into the State and Federal taxes I already pay.
I do NOT like the idea of having to pay MORE taxes for a benifit that I do not and will never receive. Sorry. No.
"... this money Hillary suggests is a way
to fund SS payments or to wipe out SS payments."
But what about those of us who are no longer children? How about those who do not have children and are, in general too old to start this program, but STILL need to be concerned about retirement? What about older people who no longer have children and are unable to have more who need the Social Security to continue to live?
I do not see a viable way to implement this AND still maintain a retirement system.
So no...I do not approve of this idea. I have already stated that I do not mind helping people out, and that programs should be in place to do that. However, I DO mind being forced to pay out more money. Programs such as this (to include wellfare and others) should be a voluntary thing - not one that is mandated.
Hey, Anime, I understand. I'm closer to retirement than you are. Anyway I do know where you stand on such a topic and you're with a lot, no, most people who have had something to say on Hillary's baby bonds.
You say: I do not have kids, with little intenton of getting any in the future.
Can I ask why you have little intention? Or if that's too personal a question just ignore it.
I am married but I have no children .
*shrug* It is no big deal to ask.
For one thing, I am single...and i am uncertain of being able to find someone who is willing to put up with me for an extended period of time, who in the same vein, I am willing to do the same.
I found someone like that once...or at least I thought I did. I do not deal with treachery too well and after 5 years, I am only now starting to let that go. Yeah, AF40K doesn't forgive easily.
Other than that, I just don't really like kids. The less time spent around them, the better I like it.
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