The Coming Generational Storm: What You Need to Know about America's Economic Future
Editorial Reviews
Review
"The Coming Generational Storm lays out the problems in understandable language and compelling detail." -- The Washington Post
"excellent and scary" -- Nicholas Kristof, New York Times
"...Kotlikoff and Burns proffer plenty of evidence to back up their claims." -- Anne Wagner, National Journal
"This is a book any serious investor should absorb and act upon." -- Jonathan Chevreau, National Post
"... Filled with advice on protecting what you've got and making it grow before and during retirement." -- Chris Tucker, Dallas Morning News
"This may be the year's most important book. Essential." -- R. M. Whaples, CHOICE
"The policy solutions of Kotlikoff and Burns are specific and ingenious..." -- Michael Mandel, Business Week
"...[A] serious attempt to look at a problem that most people are trying to ignore." -- Alan Beattie, Financial Times
"Having painted a fiscal picture as awful as 'Guernica,' the authors unveil two bold plans....[An] engaging book." -- Todd G. Buchholz, The Wall Street Journal
"This is a sobering look at an impending crisis with implications for all of us. Recommended for all collections." -- Stacey Marien, Library Journal
Book Description
In 2030, as 77 million baby boomers hobble into old age, walkers will outnumber strollers; there will be twice as many retirees as there are today but only 18 percent more workers. How will America handle this demographic overload? How will Social Security and Medicare function with fewer working taxpayers to support these programs? According to Laurence Kotlikoff and Scott Burns, if our government continues on the course it has set, we'll see skyrocketing tax rates, drastically lower retirement and health benefits, high inflation, a rapidly depreciating dollar, unemployment, and political instability. The government has lost its compass, say Kotlikoff and Burns, and the current administration is heading straight into the coming generational storm.
But don't panic. To solve a problem you must first understand it. Kotlikoff and Burns take us on a guided tour of our generational imbalance, first introducing us to the baby boomers -- their long retirement years and "the protracted delay in their departure to the next world." Then there's the "fiscal child abuse" that will double the taxes paid by the next generation. There's also the "deficit delusion" of the under-reported national debt. And none of this, they say, will be solved by any of the popularly touted remedies: cutting taxes, technological progress, immigration, foreign investment, or the elimination of wasteful government spending.
So how can the United States avoid this demographic/fiscal collision? Kotlikoff and Burns propose bold new policies, including meaningful reforms of Social Security, and Medicare. Their proposals are simple, straightforward, and geared to attract support from both political parties. But just in case politicians won't take the political risk to chart a new direction, Kotlikoff and Burns also offer a "life jacket" -- guidelines for individuals to protect their financial health and retirement.
The Coming Generational Storm: What You Need to Know about America's Economic Future
The Coming Generational Storm: What You Need to Know about America's Economic Future,Laurence J. Kotlikoff,Scott Burns,The MIT Press,0262112868,Age distribution (Demography),Aging,Baby boom generation,Business / Economics / Finance,Economic Conditions,Economic aspects,Economics - General,Economics - Theory,History & Theory - General,Personal Finance - Retirement Planning,Political Science,Politics/International Relations,Population,Public Policy - Social Security,United States,Business & Economics / Economics / General
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