I love how proponents of privatization forget three crucial items. First, the Wall Street managers of these accounts will want to take a cut via fees and whatnot, thus increasing the necessary return you MUST make in order just to MATCH SS.
Second, what if you're not as smart (or lucky) as you think you are and lose a chunk of your money? Guaranteed you will then "reconsider" and expect others to cover your retirement. Get enough people doing this, and what has REALLY happened? The Wall St. types make out like bandits and everyone's returns suffer.
Third, and most important. If you're not making a lot of money, you CAN'T put any aside for retirement. If you're in this bracket, it's also very likely you aren't familiar with high finance, so making personal choices isn't the best option for you. Even if you are very educated, you may still not be a very astute investor, thus requiring you to spend your time and talents trying to keep up, or paying more to finance types who may rip you off, defraud you, or charge you yet more fees!