The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1935-01-18
COMMUNICATED
TOWNSEND OLD ACE
PENSION PLAN.

So much Is said about the Old Age
Pension plan submitted by DR.. Town
send that am taking this opportunity
to criticize this plan because of certain
defects that will be involved in our
present day economic system.
Discussion of this plan has been made
in our classes at the University of Min
nesota, and many have been for it and
many have been against it. In my pro-
posed article am only trying to ex-
plain to you why I think this plan will
not go through.
There are in the United States, 10
million people over the age of sixty. OF
this ten million, million are gainfully
employed. Out Of this four million, 2
million would refuse to accept the
Townsend pension plan as they are re-
ceiving more than $500 per month.
This then leaves eight million people
who will be eligible under the Townsend
Pension plan. At 5000 per person per
month, as stated under the plan, a fund
of 20 billion dollars will be required.
The cost is equal to about one-haf of
our national wealth of 1882. This
means that eight million people will
control one-haf of our national wealth
and the other one-hah will be in con-
troll of the rest of the population,
totaling ITO million. All this plan at
tempts to do is to transfer twenty
billion dollars from the productive group
and donate it to the group of persons,
60 years or over, meeting the conditions
of the plan.
The Townsend Pension plan has three
detectives:
/. To give security to the aged. This
can only be accomplished if through
this plan it can be brought out that
prosperity and employment will be re-
stored.
2. To discourage crime This is a
minor objection in that the facts are
vague just as to how much crime is
contributory to the aged people.
8. To restore prosperity is the great
est objective that is being sought by the
Townsend group. s.
Prosperity cannot be restored unless
you restore, employment. AS previously
stated, there are four million people
60 years of age or over that are gain
fully employed. This would mean that
two million, on being eligible for the
pension, would have to be replaced by
those under 60. The total unemployed
during 1930-34, averaged nine million
annually. This would still leave society
with seven million unemployed.
Prosperity cannot be restored unless
you increase the purchasing power.
Under the Townsend Pension plan, you
do not increase the purchasing power,
but you take it away from the produc-
tive group and transfer it to the 60
years of age or over group. You can
not increase purchasing power by a
transfer of funds, as you are depriving
one class of being able to use such
funds for his own consumptive use.
You are taking the right to purchase
away from the group under 60 and
giving the power to purchase to those
above 60. You can say that purchasing
power is increased to the extent of the
20 billion. The reason Is that it is
proposed by this plan to raise money
by bond issue. The investors would
transfer their funds from savings and
buy such bonds, and these would be
the 20 billion dollars in which to pur-
chase.
Prosperity cannot be restored unless
by the Townsend Pension plan you can
stimulate business activity. Business
activity will be greatly reduced because
there is no inducement to save. Every