I posted this on the Bakeen oil blog "Million Dollar Way". The best blog on North Dakota oil.

http://milliondollarway.blogspot.com/2011/01/social-security-now-running-deficit-not.html#comment-form
On a practical note "assumed income" could look at things like the current market cost of housing versus the actual housing costs paid by the person.  To give a personal example I paid off my mortgage in 2005 and my housing is zero debt. My real time housing costs are quite low, probably $1K per month less than market rent.  Would this be "assumed income" if SS were means tested?

We have a real "slippery slope" here if some bureaucrat starts to define "assumed income" in means testing for SS.

As for getting both pensions and SS I have a good county/state level pension which was basically a "shotgun IRA".  I had 5% taken out of my check for three decades.  We also had a portfolio manager who staunchly resisted "political statement divestitures".  He had a 30 year annual return of 11% before the 2008 crash.
Other local pension funds never met a divestiture they didn't like and their rate of return over the same period is 0% to 4%.

Anyway, I'd stay start with a benefits freeze so there is pressure to look at the "slush fund" aspects of SS.

I follow this stuff.  This was long but I need a new spiel to cross post on my http://65y.com blog.