Thursday, Oct. 12, 2000 | 9:20 a.m.
First, exactly in what form are the Medicare and Social Security surpluses going to be placed in the lockboxes? If in the form of cash (which I seriously doubt) why not invest it in the private sector of the economy, e.g., bank CDs, mutual funds, individual common and preferred stocks and the like? If they were in a blind trust the Congress and the White House could not use their power to manipulate (which is their current excuse for not taking this option).
If, however, in the form of U.S. treasury bonds, that is the same scam used since 1936, e.g., the cash surplus used to purchase the treasury bonds would be spent on both pork barrel items and other vote-getting programs. More importantly, the only source of revenue to redeem the treasury bonds is the federal income tax. The larger each year's surplus, the greater the need for future Congresses to increase the federal income tax rates.
While we wait with bated breath for an answer from one or more of these current candidates for a big job in Washington, D.C., maybe it would help if some of the readers were to send a letter or e-mail or make a phone call to one of the above raising the same question.
LAWRENCE B. JOHNSON
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