"After the State of the Union speech, President Bush carried his message to Tampa, Fla.

'We have a duty to make sure there's a retirement system for our children, too,' he said. 'And that's what I want to talk about ... I also believe the role of a president is to confront problems -- not to pass them on to a future president, future Congress, or a future generation.'

But, in a way, the very debate over Social Security does just that. Instead of talking about the bigger issue -- redefining work and retirement -- we're stuck on one (important) element."

Get the Story:
Mark Trahant: What ails Social Security? Demographics (The Seattle Post-Intelligencer 2/13)

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