Posted on 01/29/2023 9:19:11 PM PST by SeekAndFind
“Still money in the trust fund.”
The WV file cabinet is overflowing:
The Republicans and Democrats agree—time to buy a new file cabinet!
“endless government funded social programs”
They are pretty much worldwide and have been going on for many decades.
“the math doesn’t work”
If 30% of income is taken from half the population, the other half can get 3/7ths the average amount of the productive population has left in government freebies. That’s the math and it works as long as the productive people do.
There is no doubt some adjustment will have to be made to Social Security since the trust fund is expected to be drained out in 2034.
I started to collect my SS at 67, I went back to work part time because inflation became so bad I was worried about having to spend more than planned in retirement my 401K was also worth a hell of a lot more when Trump was POTUS!! I am 70 right now working part time THERE IS NO WAY I could work full time!! I am utterly exhausted after an 8 hour shift on my feet, granted I am working a Home Depot lots of lifting walking a 40,000 sq. foot store all day but there is NO WAY I could do this 5 days a week at my age!! 75 is not going to be feasible for most people, I was at Walmart a couple of days ago for groceries I stopped to talk to the gentleman checking receipts at the door he was 91 years old had to go back to work part time to make ends meet God bless him he was in great shape for 91 and he was SO THANKFUL he was able to work for the extra income because if he wasn’t healthy enough to do it he said he would be starving to death utilities and groceries have skyrocketed!!
A SS trust fund Treasury bond is every bit as likely to be paid as any other Treasury bond, and perhaps more so.
Of course not. That is part of the original intent. Besides, the spouse doesn’t even need to work any, they get a spousal benefit equal to 1/2 their spouse’s benefit plus survivor benefits.
There are lots and lots of places to cut costs.
A bond is a promise.
The “fund” is a promise.
To call it a “trust fund” is laughable on its face.
Those who wish to believe a government promise are free to do so, but “trust fund” is intentional fraud.
Means testing was not mentioned in my post but it is already done both for SSI and Mediscare. The highest medicare premium is more than three times the base rate. SSI is means tested by taxation. For a couple the mediscare premium can be over $13,000 a year.
The example you give is one of those I can think of. It is not just fraud, it is theft. I have run across many who do the same and carry on with some other activity. I have a BIL who has done the same thing. He was constantly off from work because of his feet and bone spurs yet could always find the energy to go work his cattle or hunt when he was off on disability.
I believe you are talking about Medicare Part B.
It is helpful when folks identify which part of Medicare they are discussing.
When I worked for a D Congresscritter back in the 1980’s we knew how to fix Social Security:
1. Move up the retirement age but have it only effect those at least 20 years from retirement. Have it regularly reviewed and tied to current life expectancy.
2. Limit the payouts for those who are still working. If you chose to work, you get reduced benefits until you stop.
3. Investigate and prosecute fraud. No one other than surviving spouses or dependents should get payments if they did not put money in. Strict mandatory jail time for those who illegally collect after a relative has passed. Disability status to be reviewed annually for those collecting disability.
That’s just micro nibbling at the edges!
Total all government salaries (state & local) (2021*) is $25,833,037,145 ~ $25.8B
Federal employee total payroll for 2M federal employees is $136.3B
So total is ~ $162.1B all government employment.
Social Security, Medicare & Medicaid is 53%+ (2021*) of a
$6.27 trillion (2022). 53% of 6.27 trillion is $3.32B.
All government salaries are .049 percent of spending when compared to Social Security, Medicare & Medicaid.
Compared just to federal payroll its ,041 percent.
* Source US Census Bureau. They didn’t have 2022 data on the web site. I am sure the figures aren’t better!
“My late Dad and I retired at 67, that was enough.”
I retired at 60 when I got sick of the BS. My dad started giving me a hard time about how that was too young. Then I reminded him that HE retired at 55 from his govt job. He never mentioned it again. When he retired he sold the house in Brooklyn and moved to south Florida. He lived to 98 (Grhs).
Have you looked at our national debt recently?
If the older generation is more than half the population and more money has to go toward interest payments on debt then it eventually breaks and we’re not even including the other social welfare programs leftists would like to have.
The math doesn’t work...unless you borrow until you break.
I would easily go with your last statement. Too many are on SSDI which I hear is from the general fund but I don’t trust them to say the truth (SS people).
We paid into Social Security, and not by choice. It's our money; not welfare.
Many older American workers have been "outsourced", "insourced", and otherwise displaced and/or replaced by foreign workers, usually several times over, during the past 26 years by various fraudulent visa programs.
1.6 Million visa workers per year, about 40 Million over the past 25 years, have come into the USA specifically to replace or displace American citizen workers. Some go back home eventually, but most stay, and those get their Green Card, and eventually US citizenship.
If the genocidal Leftist who wrote this drivel wants to save Social Security, he should start researching the massive misuse of SS funds for refugee immigrants, illegal aliens, drug addicts and others siphoning off SSA funds from the legitimate SS recipients.
“Disability status to be reviewed annually for those collecting disability.”
There have been some great posts on this thread about the flaws in the “disability” concept.
There are many folks who are unable to perform tough physical jobs that are totally capable of working at office jobs.
With this age of “work at home” those numbers of “disabled” who in fact could work has exploded.
It is the root definition of “disability” that needs to be challenged—tinkering at the edges is a waste of time.
I have a better idea: expel all migrants who take any form of public assistance, leaving more in the budget for the native French.
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