Today the Ft Worth Star-Telegram had a story about the government's desire to annuitize individual 401(k)'s. The government thinks that there is too much risk for individuals to have their retirement money in the market. They think it would be better for the government to annuitize the funds so that the individual would have a guaranteed stream of income during retirement. Apparently the government would guarantee the annuity, since most annuities are run by insurance firms that have money invested in markets. The government seems to not recognize that there is more risk than just a falling stock market. There is also a risk of inflation. Given the enormous extent of deficit spending by the government, inflation is a significant risk. Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats have long wanted to get their hands on the 401(k) and IRA money. They could use that money to pay current bills just the way they have with Social Security funding. They would also like to annuitize the 401(k) and IRA funds so older people would not have so much wealth that is transferred to heir on death. Democrats have long argued that it is fundamentally unfair that some people leave money to their children. Hilliary Clinton and Nancy Pelosi have both commented that it is fundamentally unfair that some people can leave money to their children. Annuitizing 401(k)'s and IRA's would at least stop that practice among the vast middle class, which is the group they are concerned about. They don't care what their really rich supporters do.