QotD: Government Pension Schemes

An unfunded national pension scheme available to the majority of the population is much like a Ponzi scheme: a pyramid 'investment' trick that is illegal everywhere — except when operated by governments. It depends on ever more suckers paying over ever more money (in this case, compelled by taxation) to finance the unfeasible returns promised to those entering earlier.

Guy Herbert, "Crisis, what crisis?", Samizdata, 2005-12-05