JoeB131
Diamond Member
Welfare is nothing like a pension, welfare is free government money for NOT working.
Social Security is money that the government takes from your pay over your working life to fund your pension.
Except if you live long enough, you get a lot more out than you ever paid in. So WELFARE.
And that's the problem, actually. When SS was conceived, people rarely lived past 65. Now the average life expectancy is 78. Furthermore, with smaller families after the Baby Boom, you have less people paying in. (The fact the One Percenters have driven down wages hasn't helped, either.)
A "defined benefit pension" is similar to SS except you can choose to receive a lump sum of cash (dumb idea because of taxes) or various lifetime options, such as for a surviving spouse. Pensions are earned thru working.
You're right. Social Security isn't a pension. It's welfare. Deal with it.