Insolvency looms for federal entitlement programs, government warns ("TurboTaxCheatTimmy" says)

Los Angeles Times ^ | 5/13/11 | Noam N. Levey

[NormsRevenge]

Caught in the sluggish recovery from the last recession, Social Security and Medicare face an increasingly dismal fiscal future, the federal government reported Friday in its annual review of the two mammoth entitlement programs.

Medicare, which now provides health insurance to some 47 million elderly and disabled Americans, could begin running a deficit in 2024, five years earlier than projected last year.

And Social Security, which last year began paying out more in benefits than it collected in taxes, now faces insolvency in 2036, compared to 2037 in last year’s projections.

Over the years, the Social Security and Medicare trustees have produced widely varying assessments of the financial health of the two programs, as the nation’s economy has moved through periods of growth and stagnation.

But the latest estimates by the trustees are expected to intensify pressure on both parties in Washington to move forcefully to shore up the two programs.

"We should not wait for the trust funds to be exhausted to make the reforms necessary to protect our current and future retirees," said Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, who chairs the board of trustees.

[NormsRevenge]

the tune flows thru my head.. apologies to simon and garfunkie

Mama don’t take my entitlement away
Mama don’t take my entitlement away

Mama don’t take my entitlement away

NOOOooOOOoo..

[NormsRevenge]

When Kimchi Meets Fan

developing *-?

[Lucky9teen]

But...but...Harry Reid said it was fine.

“No, this is something that’s perpetuated by people who don’t like government. Social security is fine, are there things we can do to improve social security? Of course, I’m not going to go to backdoor methods to whack social security. I’m not going to do that, we have a lot of things we can do with this debt. But one places I’m not going to be part of picking on is Social Security”

[circlecity]

"And Social Security, which last year began paying out more in benefits than it collected in taxes, now faces insolvency in 2036,"

Uhhh, if it's paying out more than its taking in then it's already insolvent. And those bogus IOU's don't change a thing because there's no pot of gold set aside to pay them off. We have to borrow to pay the difference, a classic sign of insolvency. If your empty left pocket owes your empty right pocket $1000 dollars, your right pocket is still broke.

[Lucky9teen]

REID: One of the thing that always troubles me, when we start talking about the debt, the first thing people do is run to social security. Social Security is a program that works and it’s going to be, it’s fully funded for the next 40 years, stop picking on social security. there are a lot of places…

GREGORY: “Senator, you’re really saying the arithmetic on social security works?”

REID: “I’m saying that the arithmetic on Social Security works. I have no doubt it does.

[the_devils_advocate_666]

Great, social security benefits are going to run out just in time for me to collect them. But they’ll probably up the age in the next 15 years anyway.

[Tzimisce]

See what you greedy, thieving taxpayers are doing to our society?!

I hope you’re happy with yourselves!

/sarc

[NormsRevenge]

Oh that Timmy..

Billionaire investor Warren Buffett (C), chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, sells jewellery to Cheryl Stich (L) and her mother Dione Kempinsky, both of Los Angeles, at Borsheims jewelry store in Omaha, Nebraska, May 1, 2011. Buffett made a short appearance as a jewelry salesman at Borsheims on Sunday as part of the events for Berkshire shareholders. Buffett, who is called the "Oracle of Omaha" and one of the world's richest men, attracts about 40,000 people a year to the city for the annual meeting of his ice-cream-to-insurance conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway Inc. REUTERS/Nati Harnik/Pool

[Ruy Dias de Bivar]

***Social Security and Medicare face an increasingly dismal fiscal future****

No it isn’t! Here is the gov’t promise from 1964!

Self-Supporting

“The program is designed so that contributions plus interest on the investments of the social security trust funds will be sufficient to meet all of the costs of benefits and administration, now and into the indefinite future—without any subsidy from the general funds of the Government. Both the Congress and the Executive Branch, regardless of political party in power, have scrupulously provided in advance for full financing of all liberalizations in the program.”

And here is where your hard earned money went! Read and weep!

http://www.socialsecurity.gov/OACT/ProgData/fundFAQ.html#n4

THE OLD AGE PENSION CHECK
Roy Acuff & His Smoky Mountain Boys - 1939

When our old age pension check comes to our door,
We won’t have to dread the poor house anymore.
Though we’re old and thin and gray,
Good times will be back to stay,
When our old age pension check comes to our door.
When her old age pension check comes to her door,
Dear old grandma won’t be lonesome any more.
She’ll be waiting at the gate,
Every night she’ll have a date,
When her old age pension check comes to her door.

Grow a flowing long white beard and use a cane,
‘Cause you’re in your second childhood, don’t complain.
Life will just begin at sixty,
We’ll all feel very frisky,
When our old age pension check comes to our door.

Powder and paint will be abolished on that day,
And hoop skirts will then be brought back into play.
Painted cheeks will be the rage,
And old maids will tell their age,
When their old age pension check comes to their door.

All the drug stores will go bankrupt on that day,
For cosmetics, they will all be put away.
I’ll put a flapper on the shelf,
Get a grandma for myself,
When her old age pension check comes to her door.

There’s a man that turned this country upside-down
With his old age pension rumor going ‘round.
If you want in on the fun,
Send your dime to Washington,
And that old age pension man will be around.

[Ruy Dias de Bivar]

Opps. Frorgot to add this!

http://www.ssa.gov/history/ssa/usa1964-2.html

[Marty62]

HUH, then why are the Dummies and their paid mobs accusing Repubs of wanting to kick Granny to the curb. It’s the Repubs that want to restructure to SAVE the program.

Maybe the Death camps for the elderly are going to become a reality.

[NormsRevenge]

U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner departs after meeting with a bipartisan group of lawmakers and Vice President Joe Biden to work on a legislative framework for comprehensive deficit reduction at the Blair House in Washington May 10, 2011. Top U.S. lawmakers made progress on Tuesday during a second meeting aimed at finding a way to raise the country's soon-to-be-reached debt limit, participants said. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

[hattend]

To big to fail... right, Timmy?

[hattend]

Too big to fail... right, Timmy?

[hattend]

Caught in the sluggish recovery from the last recession

I like how they make it sound like the recession is over.

[achilles2000]

Thank you for saving me the trouble of pointing this out. These programs are cash-in and cash-out. A negative cashflow is unmistakable insolvency. Reporting it any other way is journalistic malpractice.

[Personal Responsibility]

In reality this is true - SS is broke.

In theory however, the money SS was ahead of the game all these years could have (SHOULD HAVE!) been set aside in that “lockbox” for the day when it went upside down.

Just because it’s now paying more than it’s taking does not make it insolvent. The fact that the “lockbox” had been “picked” was robbed and left with nothing inside is what makes it insolvent.

To use / modify your example, if my empty left pocket owes my empty right pocket $1000, I’m only broke if there is no money in my bank account. If there is money in my bank account, I’m in bad shape because I’m drawing down my account but I’m not yet insolvent.

In theory, SS could become solvent again if there was more money being deposited by workers than withdrawn by retirees. Demographics do not suggest that will become the case but it is not impossible.

[hattend]

With any luck, he is holding his resignation letter.

[TheOldLady]

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