The Alleged Budget Surplus, Social Security, and Voodoo Economics

This book deals with the budget-surplus myth, the Social Security Trust Fund, and economic malpractice (voodoo economics) over the past 20 years. It exposes the deliberate deception of the public by politicians from both parties which has led to the erroneous belief that the government has surplus money which is available for financing a large tax cut or new government programs. The book points out that there is no significant non-Social Security surplus today and that the projected surpluses for the next decade are little more than wishful thinking based on unrealistic economic assumptions.

The author points out that the surplus in the Social Security system is a planned surplus resulting from 1983 legislation that raised both the Social Security tax rate and the tax base for the specific purpose of building up a surplus for the retirement of the baby-boom generation which will require every dollar of the Social Security surplus. The book also includes a detailed history of the economic policies and economic malpractice of the past two decades.

Allen W. Smith, Ph.D., has devoted much of his adult life to battling economic illiteracy, and his new book, Demystifying Economics, released April 15, 2000 is his most powerful weapon yet in his 25-year crusade. Smith's book, Understanding Inflation and Unemployment, was an alternate selection of Fortune Book Club, and his textbook, Understanding Economics, published by Random House, was used in more than 600 schools in 48 states. After teaching economics for 30 years, Smith retired as Professor of Economics at Eastern Illinois University in 1998 to become a full-time writer. Smith wrote a widely-read syndicated column on the economy from 1990-1993, and for the past six years, he has written a weekly philosophical column, "Contemplating Life," which currently appears in 14 newspapers.

Smith holds a B.S. in education degree from Ball State University and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in economics from Indiana University.