Hope you better in commodities evaluation than on the SS and 401K
evaluation. 401K is a free choice item. You can join or not. Most of my
employers over the years had a wide range of choices. Stock funds, bond
funds.

No choice you mentioned is guaranteed.
Not even the poor return money markets, which can actually go
negative.
No 401k I know of offers a single insured option.
That may or may not be ok for a youngster, but it's not for me.
Pigs get fat, hogs get slaughtered.
You can invest any way you please with your 401k, but don't fool
yourself there's no vigorish or that you operate in a free financial
market. I have done well with my 401k's because I made it a point to
save to the max and live frugally, and because of employer
contributions and tax savings, not because of investment returns.
All else being equal, the return on commonly offered bank CD's would
have increased my savings considerably.
As to 401k's comparison to SS, many employees aren't offered 401k's or
don't have the money to contribute for a variety of reasons.
A 401k is an inadequate substitute to replace the intent of SS.
That is my opinion.
You may disagree.
I'm done with it.

And millions of people are employed by publicly traded corporations.
There are bad ones, but the majority are run by good people. Otherwise, you
are accusing all employers of being crooks. Just not noticed if not
publically traded. As to SS, where is the tax money to come from? When you
only have about 3 workers for each retiree. Is even worse in Europe. In
about 10 years, there will be only 2 payers for each retiree. Why there are
lots of public employee strikes in France and Germany. The governments are
trying to correct the situation.

I covered that SS scare BS in another post with a SSA cite. You can
read it or not. The solution is printed in black and white by the
SSA. If you disagree feel free take it up with them.
I'm done with it.
As to corporate sleazeballs, read the newspapers. I've met and worked
with them in person and think an American corporation whose execs toss
Iraq vets' resumes in the trash because it's cheaper to import a
foreigner is a sleazeball corporation.
You may disagree.
I'm done with it.
Your putting words in my mouth about "accusing all employers of being
crooks" is not an admirable trait. But that's ok, since I'm not you.
As to commodities trading, I have just as many teeth as the trader on
the other side of the contract. So far mine have proved sharper.
But that's my gambling hobby, not my retirement plan.
I'm done on this thread.

--Vic