SOCIAL SECURITY SWINDLE

New York Post ^ | October 25, 2004 | NICOLE GELINAS

[OESY]

...This time around... Americans familiar with our democratized capital markets can see more clearly than in decades past that Social Security, in its present form, is an unsustainable swindle. The program's "investment" practices would never pass muster in the private sector — Kerry is pillorying Bush for daring to tentatively address a perpetual financial scandal....

But it takes courage for any politician to assert this fact — because the Dems' strategy to attract elderly voters is to perpetuate financial fears....

Bush's reforms would address a second flaw that makes Social Security resemble an institutional swindle rather than an investment trust. If Social Security were a private-sector entity, its "trustees" would soon find themselves exposed as short-term scam artists....

Social Security is marketed (fraudulently) as a universal, perpetual account for all citizens — including those young and unborn. But an impartial trustee would never willfully put future generations' income at risk to support the current generation....

Bush would give them a fighting chance to do better — in market-oriented retirement accounts.

Once in a while, Kerry tries to argue the Dems' case against entitlement reform on the merits. His main point: Reform will cost too much. In the final debate, he alleged that Bush's modest proposals would carve a $2 trillion hole into Social Security, by diverting payroll taxes needed to sustain today's retirees into private accounts.

But Social Security reform won't really cost anything. Yes, the feds will have to borrow more initially to cut checks to today's retirees. But that borrowing will be offset by a higher level of personal savings. Workers' investments in Bush's proposed personal retirement accounts won't disappear from the economy — those investments will fuel American capital markets, and fund future economic growth....

[Redbob]

Call it what it is:

social security is the largest pyramid scheme in the history of mankind.

[2banana]

Mr. Ponzi would be proud...

[wita]

No argument at all. What is to be done about it? What did Chile do to solve their retirement program?

[tob2]

Kerry admits the system is broke but he won't do a thing to fix it. At least Bush as proposed some changes. The one I like best is a national sales tax. Everybody has to buy food, gas, clothing, at the minimum. No one would be exempt, not even the big corporations. Corporate welfare would be done away with. Retirees and people on SSD would be contributing to the system. Everybody would be contributing. Of course, this would eliminate the IRS.

[William Terrell]

The only thing to do with Social Security is end it, take the consequences and recover.

[Bonddad]

Social Security was never meant to he be sole source of retirement income; it was meant as a supplement when FDR originally passed the measure. Over time, it has become something it was never meant to be.

As for privatization, the author makes a great point -- the returns of social security are a joke. The real question is how do you make the transition without causing maximum turmoil? I have no answer for that.

[Fredgoblu]

In the final debate, he alleged that Bush's modest proposals would carve a $2 trillion hole into Social Security, by diverting payroll taxes needed to sustain today's retirees into private accounts.

Yeah...I heard that one and had to laugh! He effectively told the audience we need today's payers to support yesterday's retirees. He all but called Social Security the Ponzi scheme it is!

But, by saying he wouldn't change the system, he also said to us current workers that we don't deserve any more than the -1% return that we currently expect to receive! Now, that's all fine and well, coming from a public employee, who's guaranteed a pension, and can thus opt out of paying SS taxes in the first place. But, if I'm going to be forced to put away 14% of my money every hour, I'd like to know that it'll give me at least a marginal return over the course of my life...and I'd like to know that my wife and child could lay claim to it if I die before retirement. Is that too much to ask?!?!?!

[tjg]

Social Security is a promise the 'greatest generation' made to themselves that subsequent generations have to keep.

[AuntB]

If the SSA, like most government bureaucracies would bother to attempt to run effeciently and could fire worthless employees there would be enough money to start a privitization plan. Remember none of those employees ever have to worry about SS being their retirement, health plans. They have another plan as do legislators.
A Sept. GAO report shows that the SSA paid out over a billion dollars in disability benefits last year to people who were not qualified. (God help you if you need and have earned it...you better have 3 to 4 years of savings, because it could take that long to process your claim!) Now we have an agreement with Mexico to give full SS benefits to illegals, who will need only 6 work credits to qualify. US citizens need 40. If they can't determine US citizens qualifications, I can't wait to see what they do with illegals. Also read the testimonies from this petition...the SSA is destroying lives.
http://www.PetitionOnline.com/mod_perl/signed.cgi?SSDC&251

*******
GAO-04-929

United States Government Accountability Office

September 2004

DISABILITY INSURANCE

SSA Should Strengthen Its Efforts to Detect and Prevent Overpayments GAO-04-929

Highlights of GAO-04-929, a report to the Chairman, Committee on Finance, U.S. Senate

The Social Security Administration's (SSA) Disability Insurance (DI) program is one of the nation's largest cash assistance programs for disabled workers. In fiscal year 2003, the DI program provided about $70 billion in financial assistance to approximately 7.5 million disabled workers, their spouses, and dependent children.

Total Overpayment Debt Is Increasing (1999-2003)
Dollars in millions 3,000

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

0 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 Year


SSA Should Strengthen Its Efforts to Detect and Prevent Overpayments

Overpayment detections in the DI program increased from $772 million in
fiscal year 1999 to about $990 million in 2003. The true extent of
overpayments resulting from earnings that exceed agency guidelines is
currently unknown. Based on available data from SSA, GAO found that about
31 percent of all DI overpayments are attributable to DI beneficiaries who worked and earned more than allowed. Moreover, GAO found that these overpayments contributed to mounting financial losses in the program. From 1999 to 2003, total overpayment debt increased from about $1.9 billion to nearly $3 billion.

Three basic weaknesses impede SSA's ability to prevent and detect earningsrelated overpayments. First, the agency lacks timely data on beneficiaries' earnings and work activity. Second, SSA uses inefficient processes to perform work continuing disability reviews (work CDRs).
Third, the agency relies on potentially inaccurate management information to effectively monitor and oversee some parts of this workload. These weaknesses contributed to some work CDR cases GAO identified that were as much as 7 years old, resulting in potential and established overpayments as large as $105,000 per beneficiary. In addition, GAO found that SSA relies on potentially inaccurate management information to administer its....`snip`

Source: GAO analysis based on SSA data.

www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-04-929.

http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/useftp.cgi?IPaddress=162.140.64.88&filename=d04929.txt&directory=/diskb/wais/data/gao

[AuntB]

See post #10.....SS is a bigger mess than you know.

[hosepipe]

[ ...This time around... Americans familiar with our democratized capital markets can see more clearly than in decades past that Social Security, in its present form, is an unsustainable swindle. ]

Actually; Nicole it was a swindle from day one..
There were some arguments in Congress on how to make it at least workable long term.. by NON democrats.. But FDR went with socialism not capitalism.. building a so-called "Trust Fund" to be later looted and raped by additional future democrats..