The 401K Experiment Failed

The chatter for government take over of private 401(k)'s is getting louder...

So, how has the 1981 401K experiment worked out? It's 2009, and no one can afford to retire. Wealth is massively concentrated at the top. So maybe it didn't work out so well - for us. Pretty well for those at the top, though.
But I'm not advocating a return to corporate-funded pensions for their workers. I think we should tax corporate profits and put money into greatly expanding Social Security so everyone - not just people who work for corporations - can afford to live well when they are old. That would be the solution a democracy would choose.

(PS another problem with 401Ks and the "individual" approach is that you don't know how long you are going to live, so you don't know how much to take out each month. When "pooled" as with a pension plan or Social Security actuaries can determine how much on average to pay out. The only plan that can work mathematically is a socialized plan.)