I completely understand your making distinction between the legitimate receivers of entitlements and the freeloaders
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PLEASE do not refer to SS as an entitlement.
IMNSHO, an entitlement is something given which isn’t earned.
My kids getting my SS would be an entitlement, while my drawing is a result of MY work etc,
FICA is named Federal Insurance Contributions Act.
A payroll tax paid by the employer and employee.
In my case, having ventured into the ‘ownership’ phase, I ended up paying full load.
Whether or not my stab at entrepreneurship was successful or not is sort of moot, I still paid into an Insurance Plan forced upon me by the Government.
Whether it is prudent or not for me to ‘accept’ the money etc, I do so without qualm or remorse, as I have ‘contributed’ into the fund since 1953.
I expect no less than receipt of what I ‘paid for or at least paid into’, no more or less than if it were NY Life etc.
The MAJOR exception being NY Life didn’t reach into my pocket and take moneys ‘for my behalf’.
In a sense now, what with the Govt ‘FORCING’ all into health insurance what are the people griping about MY receiving SS now - while they are 30 or so - WHAT is their reaction going to be at 65 when it turns out that ‘FREE INSURANCE’ is not available because the ‘Money Managers’ Mismanaged the funds?
I always contributed the maximum in all of my 37 years of working. But if I live to be 100, I would call it an entitlement since I will collect lot more than paid in.
However I know personally people who contributed much smaller amounts since their earnings were much lower than mine, yet they are collecting monthly amounts not a lot smaller than mine. In my thinking theirs is entitlement.