• Posted By Crazy Single Mom @ 8:31 PM • • •
Tuesday, January 25, 2005
Social Security, an oxymoron
I don't do politics, especially in my blog. This doesn't mean that I have no strong beliefs or know what's going on, I simply know that my political view may not be yours. That said, I can't stay silent when it comes to social security reform. If you don't agree with me, that's alright, this is my blog and my views, you are welcome to express your views on your blog.
Social Security right now pays about $14,000 a year, which works out to be about 40% of an average workers pre retirement wages. Some people live on nothing but that. Right now, social security has taken in more taxes than it has paid out benefits, which in a perfect world would mean that even without anyone putting anymore money into Social Security, there would be enough money until about 2040 something. Social Security has invested the excess in government bonds and the like. Sounds good right? Here's the problem. The government has borrowed against Social Security for tax breaks, the war, and other such things. Which means that when Social Security goes to cash in the bonds it has, the government will at that time have to do some drastic measures to pay it back.
Our President, thinks it wise to privatize Social Security, leaving it in the hands of the common man to look out for their future. This sounds good on the surface, can anyone else see the problem here? Most of us don't know how to invest that money. A lot of us wouldn't, and those of us who do would probably lose a great deal, think of 401K's. This means that instead of coming up with that money that the government "borrowed" from Social Security in the future, it would in essence have to come up with that money now. Which would mean tax hikes and/or benefit reductions for the average man. Our President says no to tax hikes, after all why not give us the bread and circuses now, and let us pretend that we won't have to pay for the ticket. And also the benefit reduction, which he is not against. His family has more money than god, what's a few benefit reductions to him.
Either way you slice it, we the future retirees, will be the ones that suffer. I don't know what the answer is, but I do know that the presidents plan has many short comings, kind of like his thinking when getting us into this war. Give now, don't think of tomorrow, do now, there are no consequences to action, that seems to be the way that Bush does things, and his cabinet of yes men seem to follow right behind him.
I fear for our future. I fear for my rights as a woman. I fear for the rights of my child. I don't feel safer, I don't feel more secure, and I don't see the benefit of giving me a tax rebate now when I have no idea if I have any money coming to me when I am old.
<< Home