Published December 02, 2012
Bank chief misses Social Security boat
DON AYEI n an ongoing discussion of the federal budget, Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of Goldman Sachs, said in a interview with CBS, “Social Security wasn’t devised to be a system that supported you for 30 years after a 25-year career.” Wow! First of all no one is supported by Social Security. If that’s all your income, you are just surviving! Second, as my grandmother used to say, “don’t talk about others until you have walked a mile in their shoes,” Blankfein should heed her advice. I know of no one who has had only a 25-year career and then spent 30 years retired, except perhaps an injured worker. The average Social Security retiree lives 16 years after retirement, and most, like myself, have worked double the years in our career that Blankfein supposes. Blankfein is probably concerned that he will have to pay Social Security taxes on all his income, like the rest of us. I don’t understand why anyone would want the opinion of an ill-informed, overcompensated CEO. Blankfein needs to spend some time down here in the trenches with the “little people.” Maybe then we can respect his opinion.