Special Project of Economy Connection:
Social Security Resources
URPE members have been active in the fight to protect Social Security. They have spoken at conferences, in classrooms, on the radio, at demonstrations, and at government hearings. They have created websites, written articles and books, and composed songs. On this page we link you to some of what URPE members have produced. We also have links to useful websites and written material created by other organizations and individuals. As we continue to hear of more articles and sites we will add them to this page.
Updating Material
This page was created in the mid-2000s, when the Bush administration was trying to privatize Social Security. Now that there is another round of attacks on Social Security, we are updating the page. Many of the books and articles are from the earlier period, but are still relevant. New articles are followed by a green date. The organizing tools are either new or still relevant. The web pages listed at the bottom are all current.
Note: If you have trouble reading pdfs, make sure you have the current version of Acrobat Reader.
Speakers
If you need a speaker on Social Security for your educational or activist event, call Economy Connection at
(201) 792-7459 or send an email to Economy Connection.
Read about some talks URPE speakers have given on Social Security.
Books
Dean Baker & Mark Weisbrot
Social Security: The Phony Crisis
Barbara R. Bergmann & Jim Bush
Is Social Security Broke?: A Cartoon Guide to the Issues 2000
Robert B. Carson, Wade L. Thomas & Jason Hecht
Economic Issues Today: Alternative Approaches
See chapter with conservative, liberal and radical views on Social Security
Max Skidmore
Social Security and Its Enemies
Christian Weller & Edward N. Wolff
Retirement Income: The Crucial Role of Social Security
Testimony
Michael Meeropol testified in favor of a Springfield, MA City Council resolution to protect Social Security. The resolution was passed. See articles below for Michael's views.
Doug Henwood, Paddy Quick and June Zaccone testified before a subcommittee of the NYC City Council on May 12, 2005, on a similar resolution. Read their testimony.
Conferences & Panels
Brecht Forum, May 25, 2005
Doug Henwood, Paddy Quick, Mike Whitty
2005 Left Forum, April 7, 2005
Trudy Goldberg, Doug Henwood, Chris Rude
Articles & Interviews
Some URPE members/friends have written numerous articles on Social Security; rather than listing their articles separately, we have listed their websites.
Gar Alperovitz
What A Rich Nation Should Really Be Doing About Social Security
Katie Baird
Trust Fund Critics Detract f rom Real Social Security Debate
Dean Baker
Author of many articles defending Social Security, widely circulated in the Left and mainstream media. He is based at the Center for Economic and Policy Research.
Heather Boushey
Social Security: The Most Important Anti-Poverty Program for Children
Carroll L. Estes
Social Security Privatization and Older Women: A Feminist Political Economy Perspective
Ellen Frank
The Raw Deal, 2004, pp 93-101, updated version of articles below
Social Security Q&A 2001
The Myth of the Social Security Trust Fund 1999
Teresa Ghilarducci
The Political Economy of Social Security Reform in the U.S.
in URPE's Political Economy & Contemporary Capitalism
plus many articles on pensions and retirement economics;
see Dollars & Sense, May-June 2005
William Greider
Looting Social Security Part 1 Part 2 2009/2010
Whacking the Old Folks 2010
Obama Threatens Social Security 2010
Doug Henwood
Social Security, revisited
Michael Hudson
The $4.7 Trillion Pyramid: Why Social Security Won't Be Enough to Save Wall Street
Brent Kramer
Stop the Debt Commission’s Attacks on Retirees 2010
Social Insecurity: public and private pensions 2010
Eric Laursen
Peoples Pension Blog on Social Security 2010/2011
Back to Reaganomics 2010
Arthur MacEwan
Are Entitlements Weakening the Empire? (Dollars & Sense) 2010
Michael Meeropol
Bush Social Security Proposal a Huge Scam
Thomas R. Michl
Saving Social Security the Right Way
Social Security: The Manufactured Crisis
Bush Plan Threatens to Divide Americans
John Miller
The Social Security Administration’s Cracked Crystal Ball
Go Ahead and Lift the Cap 2008
Monthly Review Editors, October 2000
Social Security, the Stock Market, and the Elections
Monthly Review Editors, April, 2005
The Great Fear Stagnation and the War on Social Security
Warren Mosler & Mathew Forstater
Social Security: Another Case of Innocent Fraud?
Doug Orr
Social Security Q&A: Separating Fact from Fiction Updated 2010
Social Security Q&A: Separating Fact from Fiction
Arthur Perlo
Search Peoples World for many articles by Arthur and others on Social Security
Nomi Prins
Sections of Jacked: How "Conservatives" Are Picking Your Pocket (Whether You Voted for Them or Not)
Marta Russell
Targeting Disability
William E. Spriggs
African Americans and Social Security:
Why the Privatization Advocates Are Wrong
Christian Weller
See EPI's Social Security Issue Guide for many articles up to 2005;
also Center for American Progress
Richard Wolff
The Deficit Reduction Commission and Class War 2010
L. Randall Wray
Search for Wray under publications at Levy Economics Institute and UMKC's Center for Full Employment and Price Stability for additional articles
The Emperor Has No Clothes: President Clinton's Proposed Social Security Reform.
Killing Social Security Softly with Faux Kindness: The Draft Report by the President's Commission on Social Security Reform
Manufacturing a Crisis: the neo-con attack on Social Security
The Ownership Society: Social Security is only the beginning....
Does Social Security Need Saving? (with Dimitri B. Papadimitriou)
How Can We Provide for the Baby Boomers in Their Old Age?
More Pain, No Gain: The Breaux Plan Slashes Social Security Benefits Unnecessarily
Social Security's 70th Anniversary: Surviving 20 Years of Reform
Yavuz Yasar
It’s the Prices, Stupid: The Underlying Problems of the U.S. Social Security System 2009
Useful Flyers and Other Organizing Tools
AFL-CIO Charts Clear information, charts, links
Alliance for Retired Americans Fact Sheets
Economic Opportunity Institute Useful summary flyer
Midwest Academy 2-part Slide Show (dated but well-done):
Social Security is not Going Broke
The Bush Plan Weakens Social Security
National Jobs for All Coalition
Social Security: What's in It for Younger People? (Interactive quiz)
Social Security: What's in It for Younger People? (Flyer version)
Private Accounts Flyer One page flyer
No Crisis Flyer One page flyer
Facts About Social Security 2010
Social Security Packet: Summary and Update (rev. 9/10)
Articles by Helen Ginsburg, Trudy Goldberg, June Zaccone and others.
Some material is translated into Spanish.
Music
Ray Korona
SOCIAL SECURITY Fight-Back Song!
Brent Kramer
No Return
Web Pages of Organizations with URPE members that have Social Security Info
Center for American Progress
Includes many articles by Christian Weller, Heather Boushey and others
Center for Economic and Policy Research
Includes many articles by Dean Baker, Mark Weisbrot, Heather Boushey and other URPE members
Center for Popular Economics: Several "Econ-Atrocities" on Social Security by Gerald Friedman
Dollars and Sense:
Social Security Page with older articles by Doug Orr, John Miller, William E. Spriggs, Ellen Frank, Christian Weller, Paul Precht and Mark Weisbrot. Search site for newer articles.
Economic Policy Institute Many recent articles on retirement, by Monique Morrissey and others
2005 EPI SS Guide
Institute for Women's Policy Research (IWPR)
Women and Social Security -- Campaign, extensive resources, links, media watch
Labor Notes Search site
Section from Labor Notes September 2010 2010
Left Business Observer
Mostly older articles on SS, but much current context
National Jobs for All Coalition
Much updated info along with older info
People's World
Search site
Other Websites with Social Security Info
AARP
AARP has a lot of information on its site, and is probably the largest organization fighting to preserve Social Security, so we are listing it here. But beware of their positions – they say they want to increase SS's solvency, and some of the options they consider aren't so great. Most URPE people don't feel there is any solvency problem, and especially not a problem that must be addressed now. In fact, many feel that it should not be addressed now, because many solutions would weaken Social Security and make people less likely to fight to preserve it.
AFL-CIO general Social Security page
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Paul Krugman has written many articles on Social Security, from a liberal standpoint, for the New York Times.
Nation Magazine Search site for articles by Greider (see above), Nichols and others
National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare
Portside News, analysis, opinion, discussion of topics of interest to people on the Left. Many articles on Social Security. Search site.
Strengthen Social Security Broad coalition, lots of resources, short video, active campaigns
Talking Points Memo (TPM) A source for MoveOn.org's talking points (search site)
