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BasilExposition75 t1_jc24hsd wrote

Reply to comment by ThePurpleDuckling in [OC] US Social Security Fund History by PM_Ur_Illiac_Furrows

Well, considering those "assets" are really just IOUs from the taxpayer, who is already on the hook if SS goes belly up, I am not sure this graph is really a good interpretation of reality.

It isn't like they have a stock portfolio for this-- it is treasuries. The money has been spent already.

And look at when those assets were acquired. We just saw a huge bank fail because they were holding treasuries with low interest rates. With treasury rates around 4% or higher, we should probably discount some of that asset line.

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warren_stupidity t1_jc2eclr wrote

They are 'IOUs' they same way a t-bill is an IOU.

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BasilExposition75 t1_jc3jzs2 wrote

Yes. A T-Bill is an IOU. When it is the government that holds them, it is an "I Owe Myself".

If a company claimed their internals accounting were assets, they would be prosecuted for fraud.

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ktxhopem3276 t1_jc2gwcg wrote

>Well, considering those "assets" are really just IOUs from the taxpayer, who is already on the hook if SS goes belly up, I am not sure this graph is really a good interpretation of reality. It isn't like they have a stock portfolio for this-- it is treasuries. The money has been spent already.

The trust fund will sell the bonds and someone else will buy them. Demand for us bonds is immense bc it is the exchange currency of the world.

> And look at when those assets were acquired. We just saw a huge bank fail because they were holding treasuries with low interest rates. With treasury rates around 4% or higher, we should probably discount some of that asset line.

The bank failed due to a run on deposits triggered by a concentrated customer base in ventures capital startups. Bonds only decrease in value if they are sold before maturity so the slow and predictable draw down of the trust fund is a non issue with regards to interest rate fluctuations

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