Only 'crisis' is privatization proposal

President Bush keeps talking about the Social Security "crisis," but the only "crisis" I see is his attempt to privatize it. In this time of corporate scandals, lost pensions and

stagnant wages, working people need something that is guaranteed and risk-free - that was always the genius of Social Security.

The president makes it sound like his "ownership society" (his public relations term for privatization) will give everyone a new freedom to make more money. But creating private accounts would mean a 40 percent cut in benefits for everyone, whether you choose to set up an account or not. That doesn't seem like much of a choice to me.

Social Security does need improvement but that should mean ensuring benefits, not putting them on the Wall Street roller coaster. There are plenty of opportunities to invest in the stock market: Congress and the president should strengthen Social Security to make sure working people get the benefits we've paid for. We deserve it.

Robert N. Woodson, Rockport

Letters to the Editor - Skagit Valley Herald