The Bush Social Insecurity Plan

I proclaim the new official name of the Bush plan.

Opponents of the plan to destroy Social Security need to give it a label. As long as it keeps being called “Social Security reform,” it’s a winner. “Privatization” is a more accurate label, with a pretty negative connotation. But I’ve been hoping for something better.

Nick Burbules of Progressive Blog Digest says that BushCo is trying to replace “Social Security” with “Social Risk.” That’s good, I think, but not very catchy.

But “Social Insecurity” might work. It’s accurate, it’s catchy, and it makes the point that needs to be made. Yes, the DNC tried it last time and it never really caught on, but that was before the issue started to dominate the headlines.

So, by the authority never vested in me, I hereby proclaim that the official Democratic label for the Bush Social Security plan is “Social Insecurity.”

It is so ordered.

Author: Mark Kleiman

Professor of Public Policy at the NYU Marron Institute for Urban Management and editor of the Journal of Drug Policy Analysis. Teaches about the methods of policy analysis about drug abuse control and crime control policy, working out the implications of two principles: that swift and certain sanctions don't have to be severe to be effective, and that well-designed threats usually don't have to be carried out. Books: Drugs and Drug Policy: What Everyone Needs to Know (with Jonathan Caulkins and Angela Hawken) When Brute Force Fails: How to Have Less Crime and Less Punishment (Princeton, 2009; named one of the "books of the year" by The Economist Against Excess: Drug Policy for Results (Basic, 1993) Marijuana: Costs of Abuse, Costs of Control (Greenwood, 1989) UCLA Homepage Curriculum Vitae Contact: Markarkleiman-at-gmail.com