Can't you replace "retiree" with citizen/employee and use the same argument to advocate for a planned economy and/or company towns? ie.
"Providing citizens with cash, which they then use to independently procure good and services across millions of individuals, is fundamentally inefficient.
Instead, we should treat each citizen as a ward of the state, and provide them with Government housing, cell phone and plan, food (cooked or ingredients), and a limited amount of electricity/water - plus a small stipend for private purchases."
Re:The Broken Promise of Retirement
by chrisseaton on Sunday June 27, 2021 @04:23PM
(#27654950)
I don't think many people in the US look forward to spending their last years with 'a limited amount of electricity/water'.
Re:The Broken Promise of Retirement
by seattle_spring on Sunday June 27, 2021 @09:44PM
(#27657268)
> The other fault of the current system is that we link retirement to age - instead, it should be linked to health: if you can continue working, you should be expected to do so.
Please no. People should not have to work until they cannot work anymore. Our incredibly flawed system of today is still miles ahead of your proposal.
Instead, we should treat each retiree as a ward of the state, and provide them with Government housing, cell phone and plan, food (cooked or ingredients), and a limited amount of electricity/water - plus a small stipend for private purchases.
The other fault of the current system is that we link retirement to age - instead, it should be linked to health: if you can continue working, you should be expected to do so.
With the savings, we can eliminate regressive taxes like sales taxes (or just enable the currently totally unsustainable system to keep functioning.)