Robert Reischauer quotes:

They fight so much for two reasons. One is they don't want to be blamed for breaking the spending caps. And secondly, they don't want to be blamed for spending the Social Security surplus on non-Social Security problems.

Any substantial tax reform would involve substantial redistributions of tax burdens and substantial changes in asset values, and you need some 'lubrication' (i.e., transition rules).

There is no perception among the American people, nor their elected representatives, that there is a serious problem that needs fixing.

We'll have a different set of values, and society will adapt. That doesn't mean these changes are all good, just because we will accept them. But the 'Chicken Little' view of history isn't correct. Changes take place gradually, and people and institutions adapt.