What a Day

Well the Pope passed away today. RightWingRocker has a nice post on the Pope prior to his passing. He should be remembered as one of the truly great Popes. Remember, he was instrumental in the crumbling of the "iron curtain."

Also, The Baron has a fabulous post about attending a Town Hall meeting hosted by Congressman Mike Sodrel. Being near a major university, Ol' BC can just imagine the scope of questioning the Congressman had to endure. The Baron sheds light on this in his usual witty fashion. There is, however, some very good information pointed out on the issue of Social Security reform. As you may or may not remember, this is one of Ol' BC's pet topics. The Baron had this little tidbit which Ol' BC thinks needs to be pointed out from time to time.

For example, during the discussion on Social Security, he was explaining
that the average life expectancy when the program was created was 61, but now it
is 77. However, he never said that the retirement age has only gone from 65 to
67, meaning that the original Social Security plan never intended the average
guy to draw a check. Now, nearly everyone will draw a check.
I might have
compared the program’s formation to modern times, and explained that if Social
Security were formed today, it would mean that the retirement age would not be
67 but 82 or 83 - five years above the average life expectancy, which is exactly
where FDR set it the first time. Then, once the ooohs and aaaahs quieted enough
for me to continue, I would probably say something witty like, “And that, my
friends, is why we can’t continue to tax our way out of this problem.

That's powerful stuff. Ol' BC understands that the math thing can be challenging and confusing, but most elementary students can grasp this - BUT can the Democrats in Washington?

Just a thought.