"We had to destroy the program in order to save it ..."

As usual, Paul Krugman deftly hits the nail on the head. There is not now any "looming fiscal crisis" that endangers Social Security, nor has there been for the last 20 years (since the Alan Greenspan-approved payroll tax hike). There is, however, a politcal crisis. See, it's a government program that pretty much works. This is something the ideologically-obsessed bufoons who control our government simply cannot accept. And so they will engage in their usual well-practiced game of political three-card monte to deceive people (and themselves) into destroying it.

I've never believed that Social Security would be there for my generation, but only because I have always understood that our political leadership would simply, in the end, prove too irresponsible to keep a good thing going. I had some renewed hope during the Clinton years, but responsible management has not quite proven to be a hallmark of the Bush Administration.