Oh, I need help again, this time with 401k's and social security.

[Mariana]

17. You know, he probably knows all that already.

One of the most slimy things I've seen RWers do is pretend to believe stuff they know damn well isn't true. A lot of them do it (think of all those ridiculous e-mails they pass around) and your friend appears to be no exception. Look how carefully he chose his words in the first post you quoted in your OP - he's trying to avoid lying outright, but nevertheless wants to give the readers the impression that they're in danger, right now, of losing their retirement accounts. I think he's deliberately misrepresenting the situation. If I'm right about that, then he's a perpetrator of the scare tactic, not a victim of it.