Jewish World Review March 31, 2002 / 18 Nisan, 5762
Andy Borowitz
U2's Bono proposes sweeping social
security overhaul
But Plan Faces Stiff Opposition From Aerosmith's Steven Tyler
http://www.NewsAndOpinion.com |
In a sign that he intends to step up his day-to-day involvement in the workings of the
Federal government, Irish rocker Bono of the platinum-selling band U2 delivered a
1062-page plan to Congress today to insure the Social Security program's solvency
through fiscal year 2050.
But Bono gave a sneak preview one night earlier, interrupting a U2 concert at
London's Wembley Stadium to explain his proposal.
"In 2000, the Social Security system took in $568 billion and paid out $415 billion,"
Bono told the standing-room-only crowd in a 45-minute presentation complete with
pie charts and bar graphs.
"But some privatization of the program will be necessary to insure its solvency when
the so-called Baby Boom generation retires," said Bono, who co-authored the
proposal with U2 guitarist The Edge.
While Bono's plan is garnering high marks on both sides of the aisle in Congress, it
faces stiff opposition from one quarter: Aerosmith front man Steven Tyler, who
excoriated Bono's proposal at an Aerosmith concert in Foxboro, Mass.
"Bono's plan requires breaking into the Social Security lockbox by fiscal year 2012,"
said Tyler, interrupting a verse of Aerosmith's smash hit "Jaded" to talk about Social
Security. "My plan doesn't go anywhere near the lockbox."
Tyler delivered his own 1312-page Social Security proposal to Congress this
morning, and while some in Washington welcomed the attention that the two
rockers were bringing to the issue, others remained nonplussed.
"Quite frankly, I think we were all better off when these guys were just trashing hotel
rooms and flipping over vans," said one member of the House Ways and Means
Committee.
JWR Contributor Andy Borowitz, a former president of the Harvard Lampoon, is a regular humor columnist for Newsweek.com, The New Yorker, The New York Times and TV Guide. Recognized by Esquire magazine as one of the most powerful producers in television, he was the creator and producer of the hit TV series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and producer of the Oscar-nominated film Pleasantville. He is the author, most recently, of "Trillionaire Next Door: The Greedy Investor's Guide to Day Trading" and "Rationalizations to Live By". Comments by clicking here. Visit his website by clicking here.
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© 2002, Andy Borowitz
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