Baby Boomers, all 76 million of them, were supposed to go gently into retirement, the first financially secure generation. Then smething happened.
Social security has always been the third rail in politics. Smart elected officials stayed clear of it. So, it was brave for Congressman Paul Ryan to build his profile as a far right reformer of entitlement programs like Social Security and also Medicare. That worked out nicely, didn't it. He is the pick for the number-two spot on the GOP ticket.
Immediately, the media such as POLITICO are analyzing this choice in terms of can it prove to help Mitt Romney win. After all Ryan, in addition to his name recognition especially in the midwest, brings Inside the Beltway experience.
However, I have a hunch that the media will shift quite quickly from weighing the pros and cons to declaring: This dog can't hunt. There are 76 million of us Baby Boomers who have had the rules of the financial security game changed. Instead of having the choice of a retirement on own terms with plenty of discretionary income, we lived through our houses and portfolios losing value, the shock that employers wanted to hire those under-40, and an economic slowdown that seemed as brutal as what our parents or grandparents had endured.
No way are we going to allow any experimentation with our Social Security and Medicare. And research shows that the aging not only follow the issues but show up on voting day, even with CNAs who help us with our oxygen tanks and walkers.
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