My Childhood Best Friend died at age 61. He has been working since he was 16 Years Old and paid in Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars just as I have.
His Family got $255 from SS to help pay to Bury him.
His Wife is three years older and started collecting SS after he died. Since she has also worked all her life she ended up getting an additional $200 a Month as the surviving Spouse. Plus, she is still working Full Time at age 65.
They hated Bush for suggesting that people keep part of the Money paid into SS. Die young, and all the Money is gone.
I’ll bet most people don’t even realize that Employers have to match the SS Tax being paid in. Total Compensation Costs make a $15 an Hour Employee cost $18 an Hour.
Yes, you pay in your entire life and if you die young or before you can even begin to get your money back in benefits, your money goes to pay for people you don’t even know vs. for your own family. The very least the government goons could do is cover the cost of a basic funeral with what’s left of what you paid in. But nooooo.....