What exactly I'm doing awake at 1:36 am...

I left the spider alone, and have been relaxing and reading a book called Boomsday, by Christopher Buckley. Someone else summarizes it better here:

Christopher Buckley's first novel since Thank You for Smoking is Boomsday. In a satire reminiscent of Jonathan Swift's "Modest Proposal," the plot of Boomsday revolves around a blogger's idea to provide government incentives (tax breaks, etc.) for Baby Boomers to kill themselves (er, "voluntarily transition") in order to ensure the long-term solvency of Social Security. Outrageous, yes ... but wait'll you see what happens to the idea once the "American political system" gets a hold of it (no spoilers here, go read the book).

Okay, well yes, it is an amusing book, all the political goings-on around Washington, DC. Buckley is clever, and makes some none-too-veiled jabs at our current administration, and at the flawed governmental system in general. Pretty fun.

But. It got me thinking. It's a bit like science fiction, only it's predicting a future that's right around the corner. Unless something is done, our Social Security system will be insolvent in some amount of years--is it 10? 20? (I think these people have thought it out a bit more carefully than I). Also, I can't help but wondering if the much-debated "illegal immigrant" problem could be part of the solution? Who wouldn't want millions of legal workers paying for their retirement?

I've gotten a couple of reports from Social Security about my retirement: If I retire when I'm 65 years old, I'll get something like $300 a month. That's low because many of my jobs haven't paid into SS, but into a private fund instead (which I immediately withdrew and spent each time I changed jobs). On the other hand, my Mexican AFORE and another fund with Seguro Social de Mexico promises a bit more than that, and includes free health care. SO, let's tally, shall we? After four years of working in Mexico, I have more money saved for retirement there than I do after what, 15 years working in the US?

The reason is, I must confess, the Mexican savings fund I have doesn't allow me to take anything out of it until I reach retirement age. The savings funds here have always allowed me access to the money. I guess I need more discipline. My own fault, but I'm trying to work with what I was given!

So that's another reason to live in Mexico.