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Sunday, December 19, 2004

Fat Possum Records Evolves with the Blues Fat Possum Records Evolves with the Blues: "Fat Possum Records, based in Oxford, Miss., is an independent label founded as a platform for gritty bluesmakers R.L. Burnside and Junior Kimbrough. But as the label's artists have grown old and some have died, NPR's Jesse Baker reports on a shift to a new generation of blues-oriented alternative rock." (Via NPR's Weekend Edition - Sunday.) 3:53:07 PM  Permalink  comment []

A Suggestion A Suggestion: " In case I still have college age readers out there, let me suggest that one very helpful thing students could do regarding the Social Security debate is try and place op-eds in your campus paper making clear that, contrary to widespread belief, there is no 'crisis' that will cause the program to go bankrupt or otherwise become unable to pay benefits to members of our generation. Students are normally considered a reliable liberal constituency, but on this issue they are, in fact, the core of the conservative coalition. Any measures that undercut support for Social Security abolition among relatively upscale young people could have a devastating impact on the abolition campaign. Key points: According to the Social Security Administration, current revenues are sufficent to pay full benefits until 2042. According to the Congressional Budget Office, current revenues are sufficient to pay full benefits until 2052. After 2042/52 current revenues will be sufficient to pay around 70 percent of scheduled benefits. Since benefits rise faster than inflation, even these post-2042/52 checks will be larger in real terms than those received by today's retirees. The economic projections used by the SSA are very pessimistic and assume that the US economy will grow far slower in the future than it has in the recent past. Currently, Social Security is running a surplus, unlike the non-Social Security portions of the budget. The Bush privatization plan not only entails a guarantee of benefit cuts as large or larger than the cuts that are merely possible under the status quo, but will saddle our generation with $2 trillion in debt that will stifle economic growth and raise our taxes. Students who believe Social Security will not exist when they retire have been taken in by a years-long disinformation campaign funded by financial services companies that will reap windfall profits in the form of administrative fees that will eat up much of the returns any mandatory savings accounts may earn. The replacement of Social Security with mandatory savings has been tried -- and largely failed -- in countries as diverse as Chile and Sweden, where the government has been repeatedly forced to choose between large injections of new tax dollars and rapidly rising rates of elder poverty. Happy trails! I know it's not the kind of thing young people tend to care about, but we're the ones who are going to get screwed by this scheme." (Via matthew.) 3:50:03 PM  Permalink  comment []

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