Social Security and the stock market

Editor:

A little while ago, Father Robert Gregorio wrote about Social Security and the stock market.

Imagine a business owner, age 25, contributed $10,000 into Social Security between employee and employer contributions. By the age of 65, that business owner would have put in $400,000. However, if the person lived they would only get a maximum Social Security benefit of $27,876.

If the same person died before collecting Social Security there would only be a couple hundred dollars paid by Social Security. If Social Security was privatized, and the same $20,000/year was put into a well-run mutual fund it would be a different story. The worst 40-year period for this particular fund, from 1934 until today, was 9.9 percent.

Oh, that awful stock market!

With $10,000 a year, earning an average of 9.9 percent for 40 years, it would have a value of $4,733,726.

Obviously, they could pass this on to their family even after they took out a substantial amount more than Social Security would have given them. If they did not want to put all the money into the market they could put it in a whole life insurance policy that pays dividends and at age 65 including the dividends they have over $944,000, a 3.81 percent return. And a death benefit of over $1,724,000.

By the way, if they become disabled the insurance company would pay the $10,000 for them every year until age 65.

Don’t you hate it when logic gets in the way of a good rant?

Howard Clark

Braddock