We're All Socialists Now

"We are all Socialists now! Or, we will be soon. . . . The Baby Boomers know that their kids won't support them in their old age, so they must expect that the government will take care of them during their senior years. Because we are living longer, we are naturally becoming even more socialistic. 'Speak for yourself,' you might be thinking. Let me ask you one question: Are you willing to support your parents in their old age without any government support whatsoever? If your answer is 'No,' then you are a Socialist. If your answer is 'Yes,' then you are probably Chinese. . . . The longer we live, the more health care we want to keep us going. But we know that we can't afford it, and that our kids won't pay for it. Hence, we will all turn to the government to pay for it with borrowed money. The collapse of fiscal discipline in Washington, DC and the ballooning federal deficit reflects our national embrace of old-age Socialism."

-- Wall Street economist Ed Yardeni