Invest In That Doom Bunker

It may be doom bunker time because I think John Boehner has a point and Rachel Maddow is wrong.

Recently, Boehner garnered some headlines when he said this:

We're all livin' a lot longer than anybody ever expected and I think raising the retirement age - going out twenty years so you're not affecting anyone close to retirement - and eventually getting the retirement age to 70 is a step that needs to be taken.

Rachel Maddow commented on this with this sarcastic commentary:

Attention all sixty-year olds! Attention all fifty-somethings! John Boehner wants you to know that Republicans are going to raise the retirement age on social security. Okay, everybody good? Don't forget to vote in November you demographic that always votes. Every single election. Every single time.

Ummmm... I think it's perfectly fine to have a difference on the policy proposal but I was annoyed by Rachel ignoring the clear phrase "going out twenty years so you're not affecting anyone close to retirement." That is not exactly a vague phrasing that Mr. Boehner used. Come on, Rachel! You're better than that!

As for my opinion on the proposal. Personally, I appreciate that it's an actual idea - and a potentially politically unpopular one at that - rather than what we typically get from Republicans (generic talking points about lower taxes, less regulation, and support for free markets). What is not clear to me without doing additional research is the imperative for the idea. I hear all sorts of comments on the solvency/sustainability of the social security system. I believe I saw John Ralston say in his interview with Nevada GOP senate candidate Sharron Angle that the system is projected to be solvent until 2037. That sounds promising. But perhaps we should try to do better? Raising the retirement age, raising the tax rate, cutting benefits, and some sort of means testing are all options. I encourage the conversation to happen before it is forced upon us.