That's true
...and by 2017 the amount paid out will be greater than the taxes collected. We will then have to borrow money to pay for the IOUs...
Not quite accurate. At that point we will begin consuming interest income and will not begin paying off the IOUs, themselves, until 2027. The surplus is expected to see us through to 2041.
The T-Bills are liabilities, not assets. They are worthless. They can only be cashed in by the USG, which must borrow the money. The interest is also a liability and represents nothing except a paper transaction. There is a reason why the SSTF is included as part of our national debt and is listed as intra-governmental holdings. There is no money in the SSTF, interest or T-bills.
SS is a pay-as-you-go-system. In 2017 we will start borrowing to pay the benefits. The 2041 date is meaningless in terms of the viability of the program. It is used by the Dems to give people the impression that the crisis is far off and the SSTF will see us through. It is nonsense.
""The surplus is expected to see us through to 2041.""
that's if there was a real surplus, but there isnt