You are correct. Dem LBJ pushed through the legislation that removed the SS contributions from the “lock box” and put the funds into the General Funds account, where Congress could then spend those funds on other things.
I’ve been drawing SS since age 62. Was laid off at age 59, but still carried as Leave of Absence Without Pay so it would allow me to collect my pension at age 60, after over 35 years at the company (so I wouldn’t sue for ageism). Had to go 9 months with no income. Just figured I would get more of my money back by starting at age 62, rather than waiting until age 67 to get a little more per month. ....I’ll not live long enough to get back what I paid into FICA over my many years of contributions, but the monthly checks do help.
re: starting at age 62
I started mine early too. I figured out how I would lose over the three years if I waited and it wasn’t enough to worry about.
I am not a fan of SS, at all. The purpose of my original post was to point out that had the system been run like it was designed to run we would not be in the trouble we are now.
Not only did they steal our money, they began using SS to handle all sorts of disability things that had nothing to do with retirement.
In today’s entitlement society many people forget it was never intended to be a worker’s sole source of retirement income. It was to be a safety net. It started out a 1 percent contribution on the first small portion of a worker’s pay. But like anything government does it took on a life of its own. And it grew and grew and spread its reach into more and more of our lives. Now we have the results common to EVERY government program. It’s to the point now that every worker covered is making a 15% contribution to their retirement fund. Only to have it stolen and then made to feel guilty, as though it was something they’ve done that got the program into trouble!
Words cannot describe the disdain I have for anything government.
I think you will see them remove the cap for SS taxes this year just before the elections.