The seniors get far more out of the programs than they contributed. The average Medicare recipient receives three times what he put into the system.
This graph shows that the average man and woman (average defined in the study as average income over their working lives and living to the average life expectancy) who start receiving benefits in 2010 get over 3 times more in benefits than they pay in to the system! Of importance, the study accounts for inflation by calculating all past taxes and future payments in 2010 dollars to provide an accurate comparison.
If the notion that Medicare recipients are simply "getting back what they paid in" is false then where is the money coming from? Simply, the excess received is being borrowed from younger generations and the cost is more than we can bear.
But I have to say, your interpretation that the children are going without because the money is instead being funneled to the elderly is quite a stretch.
The entitlement programs represent an unfunded liability of over $100 trillion. We have a $17.5 trillion national debt that continues to increase. Who is going to pick up the tab for all of this? The entitlement programs are pay as you go, i.e., today's workers pay for today's retirees. In 1950 there were 16 workers for every retiree; today, there are 3; and by 2030 there will be two. Our children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren will be saddled with unimaginable debt that will lower their standard of living. This is the legacy of our generation and some of the ones before it.
Do you see a solution?
We must reform the entitlement programs for starters. It may mean mean testing and privatization. Unfortunately, we just passed what may be the biggest entitlement program of all--Obamacare. Or we may need a financial collapse to reverse direction.