The following is an excerpt from an email I recieved from The Sovereign Society. The information that they provide is forward looking and accurate. In 2004, they forsaw the derivatives and real estate crises. They alerted their members again in 2006 about the financial crisis to come. Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with the Sovereign Society.
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In October 2008 – with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 45.6% from its high a year earlier, and still plummeting – a congressional committee was convened. The House Education and Labor Committee met to hold hearings on “The Impact of the Financial Crisis on Workers’ Retirement Security.”
You may not have heard about it. It didn’t make headlines. And for good reason.
Throughout the hearings they discussed ideas like “Guaranteed Retirement Accounts” and “Universal 401(k)s.” Ideas that sounded harmless enough.
Until you read and dissect the actual testimony. Then you get a very different picture…
Dateline: October 7, 2008, Washington D.C.
Dr. Teresa Ghilarducci – Professor of Economic Policy Analysis at The New School for Social Research testified before the committee.
She explicitly urged congress to let workers “trade” their current 401k accounts for interest in a “Guaranteed Retirement Account.” Those without a current retirement plan would also opt in to the GRA. Every worker not in a defined benefits plan would be required to “save” 5% of their monthly income. (The same way you “contribute” to fund Social Security.)
Then, when the worker retires, the GRA would pay an “…annuity, based on accumulated funds.”
Translation: they’ll let you hand over everything you’ve saved for retirement so far. Take one more dollar out of every twenty you earn. And spoon feed it back to you each month after you retire.
Take note: She makes no mention of you ever being able to get all your money back. These meetings didn’t stop there…
Dateline: October 22, 2008, San Francisco, CA
The committee reconvened later that month on October 22 in San Francisco. Professor Jakob Hacker testified saying reforms should be, “…bold swift and guided by a commitment to a shared fate.”
He offered an idea similar to Dr. Ghilarducci, called the “Universal 401(k).” Again, harmless sounding, but no less radical. You’re still handing your savings over to the government.
A couple other key points also became clear…
The government would hold all your “contributions” over the course of your working lifetime. To “dissuade” you from touching your “savings,” they’d hit you with stiff penalties to withdraw any of it before you retire.
He recommended your money be put in an index fund that converts to an annuity when you retire. That way it would “guarantee” you retirement income. But that also means you couldn’t get all your money after you retire even if you wanted to. Unless, that is, you pass a government mandated means test. Proving you’re sophisticated enough to handle your own finances.
Committee chairman – Rep. George Miller – concluded, “I expect that we will be back here repeatedly until we can ensure greater security for the retirement of hard-working Americans.”
It’s all documented. You can verify it all yourself.
Private retirement funds are like a giant piggy bank waiting to be raided. They’ll do whatever they must to get at that money. They’ll eliminate tax breaks for contributions by you and your employer. They’ll offer you “one time only” incentives to get on board.
The government needs to “nationalize” as much of that private retirement money as it can. To put in their coffers. “Guaranteed Retirement Accounts.” “Universal 401(k)s.” Call it what you will, it all boils down to one horrible reality.
It’s the government confiscating your money. And then spending it like their own.
Now some might say the U.S. government would never do something that outrageous. But the truth is…
They’ve done it all before…
over and over again!
Stay tuned for part 3…
