Choice Outstanding Academic Title, 2007.Doubts about the ability of
industrialized countries to continue to provide a sufficient level of retirement
benefits to a growing number of retirees has fueled much recent debate and
inspired a variety of recommendations for reform. Few major reforms, however,
have actually been implemented. In "The Political Future of Social Security in
Aging Societies," Vincenzo Galasso argues that the success of any reform
proposals depends on political factors rather than economic theory. He offers a
comparative analysis of the future political sustainability of social security
in six countries with rapidly aging populations--France, Germany, Italy, Spain,
the United Kingdom, and the United States. Using a