Month: June 2010

Dylan Matthews balances Social Security by lifting the contribution cap:

Currently, wages over a certain yearly total ($106,800 this year) are exempted from Social Security payroll taxes. Medicare's payroll tax has no such cap. This has raised the question of how raising the cap could extend Social Security's solvency….Congressional Research Service looked at this question in 2008 by evaluating three different proposals. The first would raise the cap so that 90 percent of wages are taxed (CRS estimates this would mean a cap of $171,600 in 2006) and pay higher benefits to those affected; the second would eliminate the cap and pay higher benefits; and the third would eliminate the cap for taxes but would not increase benefits…

While all proposals put a dent in the shortfall, completely eliminating the cap without increasing benefits actually creates a long-term surplus, and eliminating the cap while increasing benefits comes close. The nature of Social Security as a social insurance, rather than welfare, program suggests that the latter proposal may be more palatable, as it retains the connection between what wage-earners pay into Social Security and what they get out of it.

This is basically a big new tax on the rich. But it is also the closing of a silly loophole. In an ideal world, it would be unnecessary. Now, this reform, or something like it, seems to me to be essential.

Kelly Rand spies an urban design project:

Greenaid takes old gumball machines, rehabs them and turns them into “seedbomb” dispensers. The seedbombs are made from clay, compost and seeds and are perfect for the cracks, crevices and empty spaces found in daily life. They can be temporarily placed in sidewalk cracks, empty planters and in missing concrete pieces from parking lots.

Suck UK commercializes the concept with hand-grenade replicas.

Steinglass ponders the complicated ethics of reporting on unsophisticated political dissidents who don't understand the potential consequences of speaking out:

I’ve..interviewed highly educated, self-conscious dissidents who knew precisely what they were getting themselves into and had a reasonable sense of what strategies were likely to be effective. I’m happy to report the statements of this…sort of dissident. Moreover, I’m obliged to. They’re political activists who are making news. My job is to report the news. They’re acting quite deliberately, and they can take care of themselves. With the less sophisticated dissidents, however, things get complicated. I sometimes feel that these are people who have been pushed over an emotional edge by the unfair treatment they’ve received, and are lashing out in a fashion that, in the end, will only hurt them. By running interviews with them, you’re essentially exploiting and to some extent egging on their self-destruction.

Joyner yawns:

This reminds me of the brilliant pieces telling us that China is overtaking the United States economically because they’re growing at a much faster rate.   Mature, large entities do indeed tend to be “stagnant” relative to emerging upstarts, given that there’s much less for the former to grow.  But it doesn’t at all follow that the upstart’s rapid growth is sustainable.  Indeed, it’s almost a mathematical given that it isn’t.

(Image via Steve Rubel)

Jonah Lehrer advocates for intelligence tests that account for "unconscious, automatic, contextual, emotional and speedy" thinking.

Tony Woodlief defends parenting:

Instead of asking parents and non-parents whether they are happy right now, we might ask whether they are becoming more like the people they want to be. And then we might see children not as factors that may or may not be contributing to our happiness, but as opportunities to practice what most of us — perhaps me most of all — need to do more often, which is to put someone else before ourselves.

The caption to the above entry from "Shit My Kids Ruined" reads:

Our sex life! haha!

The best reaction thus far:

Ok Ghana you win again. Tell you what…Double or nothing over women's tennis, basketball, hockey, war, baseball, golf, swimming, diving, oil spills, box office proceeds, internet porn sites, criminals incarcerated, women's downhill, bass fishing, NASCAR, or GDP?

Today on the Dish, Andrew spoke ill of Senator Byrd, readers dissented en masse, and Nick Gillespie pushed back. Due credit to Byrd on the Iraq war here. Andrew fisked Douthat over reasons to stay in Afghanistan, called out Cantor on the deficit, and commented further on the Weigel-WaPo row. Dave spoke out. Dissension in the Vatican here. Get your Palin fix here and a huge dose of Trig-gate here.

The nationalism of the World Cup explored here, here, and here. More Cup coverage here, here, and here. The blogosphere slowed down and the iPhone's phone continued to falter.

In assorted commentary, Kristol hearted Obama on Afghanistan, George Will invoked Vietnam, Joel Wing checked in on Iraq oil, Marc Lynch addressed the Islamic threat, and Beinart looked past the Tea Party to see the government's success. Laura Freschi tackled the source of food aid, Hale Stewart worried about housing, and Greg Beato was barraged by ads. Robert Stacy McCain had some wise words on the stigmatizing of reporting by conservatives, TNC talked journalist discourse, and Politico accidentally spoke the truth on access. A reader compared McChrystal and Barry Bonds and another called out conservatives who demonize libertarians.

Hewitt Award here and Malkin here. Hathos here. MHB here, VFYW here, and FOTD here. Andrew punted on the female orgasm.

— C.B.

Dan Ariely trumpets a study:

One of the most interesting analyses on the ways in which our decisions kill us is one by Ralph Keeney (Operation Research, 2008), where Ralph puts forth the claim that 44.5% of all premature deaths in the US result from personal decisions – decisions that involving among others smoking, not exercising, criminality, drug and alcohol use, and unsafe sexual behavior…Using the same method to examine causes of death in 1900, Keeney finds that during this time only around 10% of premature deaths were caused by personal decisions. …

This is not because we’ve become a nation of binge-drinking, murderous smokers, it’s largely because the causes of death, like tuberculosis and pneumonia (the most common causes of death in the early 20th century) are far more rare these days, and the temptation and our ability to make erroneous decisions (think about driving while texting) has increased dramatically.