Building A Real "Ownership Society"

Jul 11, 2005

Authors: J. Larry Brown, Robert Kuttner, Thomas M. Shapiro

Publisher(s): Century Foundation Press

President Bush has proposed several initiatives to create an “ownership society.” The premise that we want to be a nation of owners is attractive and deeply rooted in the American psyche. Ordinary people want the financial security, opportunity, and liberty that come with owning assets. Yet in many respects, the Bush administration is promoting a program that turns away from well-established, successful policy strategies of broadening ownership and intensifies the shifting of risk to individuals.

In Building a Real "Ownership Society", cosponsored by The Century Foundation and the Institute on Assets and Social Policy at Brandeis University, J. Larry Brown, Robert Kuttner, Thomas M. Shapiro examine asset policies which have shaped the property-owning middle class, such as Social Security, the G.I. Bill, and college loans, and critique current "ownership" ideas such as Social Security privatization as ineffective and misguided. They conclude by outlining the principles and policies we must build on to promote real ownership and address areas of risk that jeopardize security for today's workers and their families.

View the press release here.

The Institute on Assets and Social Policy works to help broaden wealth, reduce inequality, and improve the social and economic well-being of American households by fostering the adoption of an asset policy framework through research, analysis, education, and public engagement. Visit them on the web at www.assetinstitute.org.