Working Longer: The Solution to the Retirement Income Challenge
Author: Alicia Haydock Munnell
Daily headlines warn American workers that their retirement years may be far from golden. The average worker needs more retirement income than ever, due to increased life expectancy and soaring health care costs. But the main components of the retirement income system—Social Security and employer-provided pensions—are on the decline. What's more, fewer employers are providing retiree health insurance, forcing households to purchase their own coverage or do without.
This bleak picture has inspired calls to fix Social Security, shore up employer pensions, and redesign 401(k) plans. But as Alicia Munnell and Steven Sass show in this thought-provoking book, the most effective response to the retirement income challenge lies elsewhere—in remaining in the workforce longer. At first blush, it may seem almost Orwellian to suggest that saving retirement requires reducing its length. But working longer does not mean working forever. By staying on the job for another two to four years, retirees in 2030 can be as well off as those in the current generation.
Working Longer investigates the prospects for moving the average retirement age from 63, the current figure, to 66. The authors ask whether future generations of workers will be healthy enough to work beyond the current retirement age, as well as whether older men and women are willing to do so. They examine companies' incentives to employ older workers and ask what government can do to promote continued participation in the workforce. Finally, they consider the challenge of ensuring a secure retirement for low-wage workers and those who are unable to continue to work.
Spending a few additional years in the laborforce can make a big difference. By continuing to work until their mid-60s or beyond, most individuals should be able to secure a reasonably comfortable retirement. Implementing such a change on a large scale will not be simple, however. It requires thought and planning on the part of individuals, employers, and the government. In Working Longer, Munnell and Sass explain what each of these groups can and should do to keep the American dream of retirement alive.
What People Are Saying
Hedrick Smith
"This book is a badly needed wake-up call. With lifetime pension plans dwindling and employer health benefits to retirees shrinking drastically, Americans-especially the Boomer generation-need to face the reality that Munnell and Sass describe: longer lives, higher costs, and inadequate savings in their 401k plans and elsewhere. This means that average Americans are going to have to work longer or face poverty in their so-called golden years."--(Hedrick Smith, correspondent, PBS Frontline: "Can You Afford to Retire?")
Jane Bryant Quinn
"The retirement landscape is different from the one you might have imagined just a few years ago. The good news is that you're living longer. The bad news is that health care will cost more, pensions are shrinking, and your investments might not have grown as fast as you'd hoped. Munnell and Sass show you how-by working a little longer-you can overcome these challenges and live the retirement you'd planned."--(Jane Bryant Quinn, financial columnist and author of Smart and Simple Financial Strategies for Busy People)
Robert Hutchens
"The United States has a retirement income problem. This remarkable book examines one potential solution to the problem: increased work by older Americans. Munnell and Sass provide thoughtful answers to the key questions. This is a lucid, thorough, and thought-provoking contribution to a very important debate."--(Robert Hutchens, Cornell University)
Senator Herb Kohl
"As Americans live longer and healthier lives, many seniors will need to generate additional income to remain financially secure. The skills, experience, and expertise of these seasoned workers can only stand to benefit our economy. This book is a timely and comprehensive look at the challenges and opportunities of recruiting and retaining older workers."--(U.S. Senator Herb Kohl (D-Wisc.), Chairman of the Senate Special Committee on Aging)
John H. Biggs
"We have made remarkable progress in improving health and longevity. Now we need to figure out how to finance the substantially longer retirements these gains have produced. In Working Longer, Munnell and Sass make a strong case for moving the average age at retirement from 62 to 65 or 66-and thereby safeguarding the future of most retirees. Anyone who is interested in preparing our country for a better retirement future should read this elegant essay."--(John H. Biggs, former chairman and CEO, TIAA-CREF)
Book review: New Holland Professional or Down That Aisle in Style
Presidents' Most Wanted: The Top 10 Book of Extraordinary Executives, Colorful Campaigns, and White House Oddities
Author: Nick Ragon
The presidency is a special office. Along with the vice president, the victorious candidate is our only nationally elected official, and the position has come to symbolize American government worldwide. In many ways, the office is greater than the people who have occupied it.
In the 200-plus years of our nation's history, the presidency has grown and evolved dramatically. With the exception of Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Jackson, the nineteenth-century office holders exerted little executive power and mostly deferred to Congress on domestic affairs. Teddy Roosevelt began to change all that, and FDR completed the transformation with his New Deal, laying the foundations for the modern presidency. With the onset of the Cold War, the "imperial" presidency was in full bloom, and after a brief lull, the government's response to the war on terror has given the office new and unprecedented powers. Undoubtedly now the presidency is not only the most powerful and important job in the United States, but arguably in the world.
Presidents' Most Wanted™ celebrates the office, the people who inhabited it, and the process of winning it, with thirty-five chapters packed full of all sorts of presidential trivia. It covers everything from elections to first ladies to blunders and triumphs, and gives the reader an in-depth look at the most powerful person in the world.
Table of Contents:
List of Illustrations ixAcknowledgments xi
Introduction xiii
Firsts 1
Advisers 7
Distinguished Cabinet Members 14
Great Speeches 23
Bold Decisions 34
Legislative Accomplishments and Notable Achievements 43
Memorable Quotes 51
Generals Who Became President 58
Assassinations and Attempts 67
Illness 74
Biggest Blunders 82
Feuds and Rivalries 90
Scandal 97
Embarrassing Moments 105
Closest Elections 113
Presidential Losers 121
Debates 129
Third-Party Candidates 138
Primary Upsets 145
Campaign Slogans 152
First Ladies 157
Mistresses 166
Offspring 173
Vice Presidents: The Powerful and Memorable 180
Vice Presidents: The Forgettable and Regrettable 189
Ranking the Presidents: The Great and Near Great 196
Ranking the Presidents: The Good 207
Ranking thePresidents: The Average 216
Ranking the Presidents: The Bad and the Ugly 223
Postpresidential Careers 230
Tourist Destinations 238
Memorials and Monuments 244
Movies 251
Hackers in Chief 257
Ten Things You Didn't Know About the Presidency 264
Selected Bibliography 271
Index 275
About the Author 287
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