To the editor:

I read with some amazement the letter in which the gentlemen has researched what his savings would have been if allowed to invest his share of what he paid into Social Security.

Has everyone forgotten what Social Security was designed to do? It was never meant to be a retirement plan. It was designed to keep those whose retirement savings weren’t enough from being completely destitute. It is just a safety net and that is all it was ever meant to be.

I’m interested to hear Bush’s plan on what he intends to do for those who can’t contribute to Social Security after his planned transition to privatization. Are we just going to let the physically and mentally disabled who are unable to work try to get by without this support? What about widows/widowers with children to care for? Their deceased spouses would not have enough saved up in a privatized plan for them to be able to rely on the supplement to their remaining income. Social Security provides a safety net for them too.

Privatization is not a good idea! This is one of the least compassionate plans that our “compassionate conservative” president could come up with. How typical of an administration who chooses those least able to defend themselves to “reform.”

Heather Sexton,

Lawrence