*** If you worked most of your adult life, then the first 7 years or so is just getting back what was actually paid into the system on your behalf. Then the next few years are getting back the earnings you could have made on the money taken from your paycheck IF you invested it prudently and let it accrue non-taxable profits. After that, you start collecting more than you paid in.***
Yes, my husband and I discussed this very thing last night after my friend dropped me off from our outing. He said after 10 years, most people are getting what they didn’t (forcibly) contribute. So I surmised that this could be one of the reasons that the Democrats (and many Republicans) are happy with the CCP virus being distributed. It helps the government balance their books. Then they pretend to care that people are dying, when in fact, they are relieved. It’s just another useless eater that they don’t have to send $ to or give rationed “health care” to.
And that is how SS got through the Congress. Most people who paid in would not live long enough to collect, and those who did would not collect for long. That would keep the system solvent, and allow for a "Trust Fund" that could be used as a record-keeping device to track how much should be paid in by current workers.