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PII News Release
Contact:
For Immediate Release:
David Hogberg
Thursday, February 21, 2002
319-385-3462
Social Security Reform is Not Like
Enron
Mt. Pleasant, IA –
The recent failure of Enron
Corporation has caused many to make false claims about Social Security reform.
In a February Institute BRIEF, Public Interest Institute Research Analyst David
Hogberg addresses these false claims made in a column by Bob Ray Sander of the
Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
The first false
claim made by Sanders is Enron is typical of retirement investing in the stock
market. Hogberg says the truth is the Enron case is atypical. The employees
of Enron had most of their retirement funds invested in Enron’s stock. Most
retirement funds are diversified, which means they are made up of stocks from
many different companies from different sectors of the economy.
The second claim is
reforming Social Security with personal accounts would put ordinary Americans at
risk of losing their retirement funds. Hogberg says if Sanders thinks
privatizing Social Security would look anything like the Enron situation, he has
not read the report by the President’s Commission to Strengthen Social
Security. This report calls for investments in funds which are very
diversified.
The third claim is
the stock market is a risky gamble. Hogberg counters by saying if the stock
market is so risky, why do so many major retirement funds invest large amounts
of assets in it?
For further
information about this Institute BRIEF or Public Interest Institute, you may
call 319-385-3462 or log on to the PII web site at: www.limitedgovernment.org.
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