This is the same "financial community" that came screaming for a bailout two years ago. What a bunch of jokes. And its the same financial community that is pushing Republicans to increase the debt ceiling. They are completely undermining the resolve that at least some people have to face the debt crisis. And its the same financial community that heavily supported the Socialist in Chief in the last election. They have no credibility.
And yet, we do have to do something. We have to cut spending and entitlements. But no one--not even many conservatives--are willing to do so. Talk about extending the retirement age for Social Security and Medicare and you get screams about how people "paid into the system" and so their benefits shouldn't be touched, as if there is some magical pot of money available to be tapped. No one wants to face the fact that Social Security tax money was spend 10, 20, 30 years ago. It isn't there. The only way to "pay back" current retirees is by taxing the sh&t out of current taxpayers, who don't have a prayer of getting back what they paid in.
Well, the necessary stuff is unpleasant, painful and deeply unpopular. But it's necessary.
I'm just not sure that the financial community really wants it. I would bet that they are actually urging us to take the easy, happy road in which everything has a pleasant outcome for everyone. There's just one problem with that ...
What seems to constantly get lost in the Social security and Medicare issue is that for years they have been drained by people who paid nothing in: anchor babies, illegal aliens, and brand new immigrants along with their extended families. We’re talking hundreds of billions per year. This is an issue neither party has addressed.
I’d remove all freebies from these people before I’d pull it from those who worked all their life and as a condition of employment had a portion of the ‘sweat of their brow’ confiscated and redistributed.
Second, I’d remove the special health care and pension plans from our government and fold into social security and medicare.
Third I’d eliminate is the billions and billions of foreign aid that gets swallowed up in third world hell holes. Fourth defund all those new czarships and the alphabet soup of bureaucracies that are attached to the executive - EPA, HUD, HHS, Dept of Education etc.