Steve Conover suggests a better way

for Social Security:

Well, how about a new form of Treasury bond — say, "Social Security Retirement Bonds" — backed by the full faith and credit of the US government? They would become our own personal property, not redeemable until retirement age, not transferrable, void upon the death of the holder, and structured such that the timing of redemptions wouldn't change the projected cost of the social security system by a single dollar. The stock market wouldn't be an option; SS funds would be fixed in the form of new, nontransferrable government bonds with our names on them.

With a properly-designed SS bond program, the only difference would be this: the promises politicians have made would merely become our personal property, backed by the full faith and credit of the US government. Like the Treasury bonds now held by the Chinese, they would be secure from the whims of future US politicians.