Last Updated: May 7, 2026 at 6:30 p.m. ET
First Published: May 7, 2026 at 6:53 a.m. ET
Dear Quentin,
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I’ve heard my mother say that she would have had more money for retirement if she hadn’t had to pay Social Security taxes and had invested the money herself, just like the woman who wrote to your column (“.css-1pe33jk.css-1pe33jk a,.css-1pe33jk.css-1pe33jk a:any-link{color:#262626;border-bottom-color:#262626;}.css-qxhvg8-OverridedLink.css-qxhvg8-OverridedLink:any-link{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;color:var(–color-interactiveLink010, interactiveLink010);border-bottom:1px solid;border-bottom-color:var(–color-interactiveLink010, interactiveLink010);}@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark){.page_supports_browser_dark_mode .css-qxhvg8-OverridedLink.css-qxhvg8-OverridedLink:any-link{color:var(–interactive-text-color);border-bottom-color:var(–interactive-text-color);}.page_supports_browser_dark_mode .css-qxhvg8-OverridedLink.css-qxhvg8-OverridedLink:any-link.page_supports_browser_dark_mode .css-qxhvg8-OverridedLink.css-qxhvg8-OverridedLink:any-link 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svg{fill:var(–color-interactiveVisited010);}.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink:focus-visible:not(:disabled){outline-color:var(–outlineColorDefault);outline-style:var(–outlineStyleDefault);outline-width:var(–outlineWidthDefault);outline-offset:var(–outlineOffsetDefault);}@media not all and (min-resolution: 0.001dpcm){@supports (-webkit-appearance: none) and (stroke-color: transparent){.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink:focus-visible:not(:disabled){outline-style:var(–safariOutlineStyleDefault);}}}.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink:any-link{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;color:var(–color-interactiveLink010, interactiveLink010);border-bottom:1px solid;border-bottom-color:var(–color-interactiveLink010, interactiveLink010);}@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark){.page_supports_browser_dark_mode .css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink:any-link{color:var(–interactive-text-color);border-bottom-color:var(–interactive-text-color);}.page_supports_browser_dark_mode .css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink:any-link.page_supports_browser_dark_mode .css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink:any-link svg{fill:var(–interactive-text-color);}}.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink:any-link.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink:any-link svg{fill:var(–color-interactiveLink010, interactiveLink010);}.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink:any-link:hover{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;color:var(–color-interactiveLink020, interactiveLink020);border-bottom:1px solid;border-bottom-color:var(–color-interactiveLink020, interactiveLink020);}@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark){.page_supports_browser_dark_mode .css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink:any-link:hover{color:var(–interactive-text-color);border-bottom-color:var(–interactive-text-color);}.page_supports_browser_dark_mode .css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink:any-link:hover.page_supports_browser_dark_mode .css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink:any-link:hover svg{fill:var(–interactive-text-color);}}.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink:any-link:hover.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink.css-i0lbhy-OverridedLink:any-link:hover svg{fill:var(–color-interactiveLink020, interactiveLink020);}The numbers don’t lie’: If I had invested my Social Security in the S&P 500 I’d have $4 million. Is the system broken?”).
In theory, that sounds like a good idea, but Americans are not great at managing money. If individuals were solely responsible for their retirement savings, many would start too late in life. A lot of people already live paycheck to paycheck — even those who earn good incomes. There would inevitably be years when circumstances forced them to stop contributing.
