March 10, 2016

The by far best “collect as you go” pension plan, is built around loving kids and a healthy economy.

Sir, I refer to Michael Skapinker’s “Five possible scenarios for a ‘work till you drop’ world” March 10.

In my book “Voice and Noise” of 2006, on the issue of “Social Security in Real Terms” I wrote:

“In order for your savings and social security investments to be worth something when you need them, the real economy must be in a reasonable condition at the time of your selling your investments. When I hear the many discussions about the financial preparation needed to accommodate for the upcoming demographic changes, I find it truly amazing how little is being said about the economy in real terms.

Considering that there will be many fewer young ones to drive people around and shovel snow, much of today’s beautiful real estate might drop in value when the elderly start selling their houses to live close to a metro, hospital, and more reasonable weather conditions. So, before putting the money away in a private accumulation trust I think we need to rethink the whole retirement strategy.

Also we should never forget that historically, through all economic cycles, there is nothing so valuable in terms of personal social security as having many well-educated loving children to take care of you, and that you can’t, in real terms, beat that with any social security reform.”

I have the very loving very great kids, but I am still very concerned. Regulators concocted credit-risk weighted capital requirements for banks, and that is seriously distorting the allocation of credit to the real economy. If that mistake is not soon corrected, our economies are doomed to stall and fall.

How many kids of working age are not already living in the basements of their ‘work till you drop’ parents?

Sir, as I see it, we have no choice but to fire, immediately, the current bunch of dumb bank regulators.

@PerKurowski ©