EDITORIAL
Social Security, setting the record straight. Last night, I heard yet another speaker refer to Social Security as an unfunded entitlement. This is a prevalent, but false representation. It is far past time to set the record straight. Social Security is a savings program, or so we were told. As one of the tens of millions of hard-working Americans that paid into this system for a lifetime, with absolutely no benefit, I can attest to the fact it has been funded. Another mischaracterization is the way the Social Security "problem" is described. Let's be clear. The "problem" is not old people; the problem is embezzlement by a Congress and federal government that cannot keep its hands off our money. It took our savings, spent it, left behind lots of IOUs, and extended benefits to millions that did not pay into the system. Who has to pay those IOUs? We the People, of course. By a sleight-of-hand, our labors were turned into more debts. I am no fan of socialist programs, but if anyone wants to speak honestly on the topic, he or she should draw a sharp distinction between Social Security, which has been funded by its beneficiaries, and Medicaid, for example, which actually is an unfunded "entitlement" program.
Funded but embezzled. Nicely said.
Hat Tip Kirk
"The "problem" is not old people; the problem is embezzlement by a Congress and federal government that cannot keep its hands off our money. It took our savings, spent it, left behind lots of IOUs, and extended benefits to millions that did not pay into the system. Who has to pay those IOUs? We the People, of course. "
ReplyDeleteWhile I get the emotion of it, but sorry, no... not buying it.
We The People, particularly those of the Greatest Generation, offered our wallets to politicians we knew to be pickpockets, we knowingly nodded to what even the most cursory of examinations would show was plainly a lie of spin.
True, while in every speech Social Security was referred to as 'Insurance', but even before the internet, if you bothered to read beyond the opening paragraphs, it was clear that it was a ponzi scheme, pure, simple and blatantly so.
We The People invited ourselves to be duped, like any mark, by the conman, because we thought we were going to get something for nothing. We The People thought we'd be getting something on the cheap, something we damn well knew we didn't earn or deserve... that we got conned ourselves is no excuse, we thought that we were getting the better of the conman, and so were no better than him. We conned ourselves.
Knowingly. If someone didn't know, it was only because they went out of there way to not know.
Like any twelve step program, the first step is admitting we've got a problem - so repeat after me folks,
"Hi, I'm Joe American... and I habitually seek to get something for nothing."
To be followed by a Loud chorus of "Hi Joe!".
This is very well put, but the problem is that once the money has been embezzled, it's not like we can get it back. We can't go arrest the embezzling congress critters and get the trillions back.
ReplyDeleteIt's all gone "up in smoke" as Cheech and Chong used to say.
The way I see it (FWIW) is if the economy doesn't collapse and go away, SS will be means tested at a minimum. If you saved for your retirement, you're the "evil rich" and don't get anything. The alternative is to raise collection/retirement age to 85 or so. Neither one of those alternatives will be very popular, but the first one seems much more likely.
If the economy collapses, which seems more likely, all bets are off. Which is an incentive to collapse it.