THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, January 31, 1995 TAG: 9501310005
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A14 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: Short : 27 lines
Your editorial, ``Cut, hike or adjustment?'' (Jan. 19) is guilty of outright deceit. You claim that correcting erroneous CPI statistics are ``back-door entitlement cuts.'' This is simply not true and is designed to scare retirees into thinking that their Social Security checks are going to be reduced. Your assertion is like that of politicians who claim they are cutting spending when they reduce projected spending increases, while actual spending is going up.
If you want to propose using inflated CPI numbers to provide pensions for retirees that grow faster than the rate of inflation, or that grow faster than the average wage earner's paycheck, let's debate that. Don't try the old trick of calling a pay raise a pay cut if it isn't as large as last year's raise.
ARIE J. KORVING
Chesapeake, Jan. 19, 1995 by CNB