I believe most people worry about their post-retirement future. What can I do to be an active and healthy senior citizen? Do I want to live in a nursing home? Will I die alone? As a young adult, my worries in this area are still vague, but from my early 20s, I've been practical about one topic related to retirement. I have been doing my best to make sure that I save enough money.
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インディアナ州でのタウンミーティングで社会保障制度改革を訴えるブッシュ大統領。改革が実現すれば、老後の安心を個人が確保しなければならなくなる |
Japan is known for having a booming senior population and a shrinking birthrate. The country should be proud of having the longest life expectancy in the world, but the fact is that the younger generation must bear the burden of supporting the aging population.
Americans face the same worries. President George W. Bush has been promoting the idea of social security reform. The fear is that the social security "bank account" will go bankrupt if the current system does not change. Young workers who are contributing to the current social security system wonder if there will be any money "left over" when it comes time to claim their share. Currently, a certain percentage of our pay is automatically deducted in the form of a social security tax. Bush proposes that citizens put a certain percentage of this money into private investment accounts.
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt started the social security system that is currently in place. He was a classic Democrat and believed that government-sponsored programs could help improve society. He believed that the rich should help support the poor, and the young should help support the elderly. This equalization occurs through mandatory taxation. It may seem unfair to the healthy workers who shoulder the burden, but the "payback" comes later, when one finds oneself infirm or incapacitated.
Bush is on the opposite side of the spectrum. He believes that individuals should be responsible for their own choices. I agree that it's a good idea to save one's own money for the future, but the danger in encouraging - or even mandating - citizens to invest in the stock market is that investments can lose value. Unsuspecting citizens may fall prey to shady investment schemes while fattening the coffers of financial advisers who manage their money. The key word in social security is "security." It's a comfort to be able to rely on a certain amount of income in retirement, even though one might be able to earn more through private investments.
The life expectancy in the United States is lower than it is in Japan and the proportion of young workers is higher (partly because of immigration). In this sense, the social security situation may not be as bad as it is in Japan. However, other fundamental differences between the United States and Japan make the retirement picture less rosy here.
First of all, the idea of lifetime employment went out the window decades ago, and along with it went the idea of companies offering pensions to their retirees. With workers switching jobs every few years, they cannot rely on a company after retirement. Second, nuclear families are the norm and it's not very common for younger generations to serve as caretakers for their parents and grandparents. Like it or not, seniors must live independently or rely on paid services such as nursing homes.
Even if social security manages to stay afloat when I retire, and even if I stay at my company long enough to be able to draw a pension, the guaranteed amount will not be much. That is why I have been investing money for retirement since I graduated from college. This is different from saving money in a bank account: The money is specifically allocated for retirement and I cannot touch it until I'm at least 65. Probably because the government realizes that social security alone cannot support the elderly, it offers generous tax-breaks to those who invest in their own retirement accounts.
Investing in a private retirement account is a great option for those who can afford to put away money for another 40 years, who can tolerate the risk of its losing value, and who can make prudent investment decisions. However, I think such investments should supplement, and not replace, a guaranteed social security program.
Shukan ST: May 6, 2005
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- social security
- 社会保障
- post-retirement
- 退職後の
- senior citizen
- 高齢者
- nursing home
- 老人ホーム
- vague
- ぼんやりした
- booming
- 急増する
- shrinking birthrate
- 低下する出生率
- life expectancy
- 平均寿命
- bear the burden of 〜
- 〜の重荷を負う
- bank account
- 財源(文字どおりには「口座」)
- go bankrupt
- 破たんする
- be 〜 left over
- 〜が残っている
- when it comes time to claim their share
- 自分が年金を受け取るときがきたら
- pay
- 給料
- is automatically deducted
- 自動的に天引きされる
- investment accounts
- 投資商品
- President Franklin Delano Roosevelt
- 第32代大統領(1933〜1945)
- classic
- 典型的な
- Democrat
- 民主党員
- government-sponsored
- 政府が保証する
- equalization
- 平等化
- mandatory taxation
- 強制的な課税
- shoulder
- 負う
- payback
- 見返り
- infirm
- 衰えた
- incapacitated
- 体の不自由な
- spectrum
- 考え方
- encouraging 〜 to 〜
- 〜に〜するのを奨励すること
- mandating 〜 to 〜
- 〜に〜するのを強制すること
- stock market
- 株式市場
- Unsuspecting
- 疑いを持たない
- fall prey to 〜
- 〜のえじきになる
- shady
- いかがわしい
- investment schemes
- 投資計画
- fattening the coffers of 〜
- 〜のふところを肥やす
- manage 〜
- 〜を運用する
- rely on 〜
- 〜に頼る
- income
- 収入
- proportion
- 割合
- immigration
- 移民
- fundamental
- 根本的な
- rosy
- 楽観的な
- lifetime employment
- 終身雇用
- went out the window
- すっかりなくなった
- decades ago
- 数十年前に
- along with it went〜
- 〜も同様になくなった
- pensions
- 年金
- retirees
- 退職者
- nuclear families
- 核家族
- norm
- 普通
- caretakers
- 介護者
- paid
- 有料の
- manages to stay afloat
- かろうじて存続していたとしても
- draw 〜
- 〜をもらう
- guaranteed amount
- 保証額
- (is)allocated for 〜
- 〜に充当される
- generous
- 気前のよい
- tax-breaks
- 減税
- can afford to 〜
- 〜する余裕がある
- put away money
- 貯金する
- tolerate the risk of 〜
- 〜のリスクがあっても持ちこたえる
- prudent
- 賢明な
- supplement 〜
- 〜を補う
- replace 〜
- 〜に取って代わる
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