We can't all save for retirement

At least, according to Captain Capitalism:

Even with this idealistic scenario (where governments never default, corporations provide annualized returns of 12%, there's no inflation, and Obama's Magical Job Unicorn farts out jobs), the total global market capitalization for stocks and bonds will be....
$665 trillion.
Still about 35% short of the [$1 quadrillion] total [needed to support all retirees].

Based on the Retirement Calculator if I want a retirement income of £30K at a realistic retirement age, I'd have to save £1M by the time I retire. Ouch

These figures may be seized upon by the pro-Government folks to illustrate the inherent folly in private saving-for-retirement schemes. Unfortunately they forget that governments don't have a magic money tree, unless they can control their own currency and let the money printing presses rip - thereby impoverishing the currently-employed for the benefit of retirees. Any illusion that the Government is "providing for" the retiring population should be calibrated by the realisation that governments do not generate value and hence money spent now is taken from current tax contributions, and this every-increasing outflow can only be sustained by a corresponding every-increasing tax base. Good luck finding an instance of the latter that grows at a rate comparable to the former.