Given The Chance To Start Over, What Would You Do Different With Social Security

[Sun Devil 92]

If anything.....

Social Security was a necessity when it was instituted.

It's history is less than straightforward.

Some people currently detest it and want to get rid of it. Some would phase it out.

Some would change it and keep in control of the government.

What would you do if you had complete control over the system.

Keep it, beef it up, phase it out, get rid of it.....????

 

[Dont Taz Me Bro]

Never create it

 

[Socialist]

Never create it

Oh, what a brilliant idea! How do you propose seniors get by, work their whole entire lives?

 

[Sun Devil 92]

Never create it

So, you'd get rid of it ?

 

[Sun Devil 92]

Never create it

Oh, what a brilliant idea! How do you propose seniors get by, work their whole entire lives?

This seems to pre-suppose that people can't save for themselves.

Is that what you are saying ?

 

[Dont Taz Me Bro]

Never create it

Oh, what a brilliant idea! How do you propose seniors get by, work their whole entire lives?

It's called saving for retirement. You have your entire working life to do it.

 

[Socialist]

Never create it

Oh, what a brilliant idea! How do you propose seniors get by, work their whole entire lives?

This seems to pre-suppose that people can't save for themselves.

Is that what you are saying ?

The current economic model, depending where you fall on the ladder, makes it extremely unlikely and nearly impossible for many people to save for themselves, let alone an amount needed to live off of for decades.

 

[TheOldSchool]

Sign up on the fight list. Then you go 1 vs. 1 when your name comes up against someone else whose name comes up. Survivor gets social security.

 

[Dont Taz Me Bro]

Never create it

So, you'd get rid of it ?

You can't get rid of it now without replacing it with something else because you've got four generations of people now who have been collecting from it. It's going to go away on its own, though, anyway, because it will eventually run out of money. Social Security won't exist by the time I'm old enough to collect from it and so I don't even consider it part of my retirement planning.

 

[TheOldSchool]

Never create it

Oh, what a brilliant idea! How do you propose seniors get by, work their whole entire lives?

This seems to pre-suppose that people can't save for themselves.

Is that what you are saying ?

The current economic model, depending where you fall on the ladder, makes it extremely unlikely and nearly impossible for many people to save for themselves, let alone an amount needed to live off of for decades.

Get a fishing rod and move to the coast. Live off fish and a potato garden. You'll be happier than you've ever been.

 

[Socialist]

Never create it

Oh, what a brilliant idea! How do you propose seniors get by, work their whole entire lives?

It's called saving for retirement. You have your entire working life to do it.

Never create it

Oh, what a brilliant idea! How do you propose seniors get by, work their whole entire lives?

It's called saving for retirement. You have your entire working life to do it.

Statements like this irritate me, they really do, it's a massive generalization that ignores, well, everything. Financial crashes? Low income families being stuck at the bottom of the ladder? Emergencies? Medical bills? Heck, college costs, working a low wage job your whole life, family costs, feeding yourself, stagnant wages.. Then again, so many people have this mentality that they just need to save money, people do save money, the problem is, it's hilariously unrealistic to assume anyone could save enough to prepare for decades without a program like social security.

 

[Dont Taz Me Bro]

Statements like this irritate me, they really do, it's a massive generalization that ignores, well, everything. Financial crashes? Low income families being stuck at the bottom of the ladder? Emergencies? Medical bills? Heck, college costs, working a low wage job your whole life, family costs, feeding yourself, stagnant wages.. Then again, so many people have this mentality that they just need to save money, people do save money, the problem is, it's hilariously unrealistic to assume anyone could save enough to prepare for decades without a program like social security.

If you worked a low wage job your entire life whose fault is that?

 

[Socialist]

Statements like this irritate me, they really do, it's a massive generalization that ignores, well, everything. Financial crashes? Low income families being stuck at the bottom of the ladder? Emergencies? Medical bills? Heck, college costs, working a low wage job your whole life, family costs, feeding yourself, stagnant wages.. Then again, so many people have this mentality that they just need to save money, people do save money, the problem is, it's hilariously unrealistic to assume anyone could save enough to prepare for decades without a program like social security.

If you worked a low wage job your entire life whose fault is that?

That's not the only thing that counts towards this, and here we go again with the faulting. A low wage job is $10-$15 depending on where you live, some places have ridiculously high costs of living, and if you have kids, $20 an hour is still barely enough.. You assume all low wage workers have no education, aren't trying to move up.. Jesus christ, it's the mentality of "fuck everyone but the people I view as successful, ignoring the fact that upward mobility mostly occurs when you're already born into a well off family" I just want to smash my head against the keyboard.

 

[Sun Devil 92]

Never create it

So, you'd get rid of it ?

You can't get rid of it now without replacing it with something else because you've got four generations of people now who have been collecting from it. It's going to go away on its own, though, anyway, because it will eventually run out of money. Social Security won't exist by the time I'm old enough to collect from it and so I don't even consider it part of my retirement planning.

As I understand it, even if the so-called "trust fund" went belly up, they'd still pay out 70% of current benefits.

The system is a Pay-go which means that they are using yours (assuming you are employed) and my deductions to pay current obligations. Shortfalls come from the trust fund (or that is what I understand).

You have people, like me, who have paid enough into it that I expect to get something out of it.

 

[Sun Devil 92]

Statements like this irritate me, they really do, it's a massive generalization that ignores, well, everything. Financial crashes? Low income families being stuck at the bottom of the ladder? Emergencies? Medical bills? Heck, college costs, working a low wage job your whole life, family costs, feeding yourself, stagnant wages.. Then again, so many people have this mentality that they just need to save money, people do save money, the problem is, it's hilariously unrealistic to assume anyone could save enough to prepare for decades without a program like social security.

If you worked a low wage job your entire life whose fault is that?

That's not the only thing that counts towards this, and here we go again with the faulting. A low wage job is $10-$15 depending on where you live, some places have ridiculously high costs of living, and if you have kids, $20 an hour is still barely enough.. You assume all low wage workers have no education, aren't trying to move up.. Jesus christ, it's the mentality of "fuck everyone but the people I view as successful, ignoring the fact that upward mobility mostly occurs when you're already born into a well off family" I just want to smash my head against the keyboard.

You are getting sucked into the same old "big picture" discussion. Please try to stay on the subject.

If you have a philosphy that would govern how you would adjust the system, please share.

But, please don't waste bandwidth (or our time) with "cry for the poor" rants.

 

[Sun Devil 92]

Statements like this irritate me, they really do, it's a massive generalization that ignores, well, everything. Financial crashes? Low income families being stuck at the bottom of the ladder? Emergencies? Medical bills? Heck, college costs, working a low wage job your whole life, family costs, feeding yourself, stagnant wages.. Then again, so many people have this mentality that they just need to save money, people do save money, the problem is, it's hilariously unrealistic to assume anyone could save enough to prepare for decades without a program like social security.

If you worked a low wage job your entire life whose fault is that?

I don't think this response is meaningful.

You'd need to describe "low wage" or define it.

But, you've already cast your vote.

 

[Sun Devil 92]

Never create it

Oh, what a brilliant idea! How do you propose seniors get by, work their whole entire lives?

It's called saving for retirement. You have your entire working life to do it.

Never create it

Oh, what a brilliant idea! How do you propose seniors get by, work their whole entire lives?

It's called saving for retirement. You have your entire working life to do it.

Statements like this irritate me, they really do, it's a massive generalization that ignores, well, everything. Financial crashes? Low income families being stuck at the bottom of the ladder? Emergencies? Medical bills? Heck, college costs, working a low wage job your whole life, family costs, feeding yourself, stagnant wages.. Then again, so many people have this mentality that they just need to save money, people do save money, the problem is, it's hilariously unrealistic to assume anyone could save enough to prepare for decades without a program like social security.

Your last statement is somewhat strange, given what you listed above it.

 

[Socialist]

Never create it

Oh, what a brilliant idea! How do you propose seniors get by, work their whole entire lives?

It's called saving for retirement. You have your entire working life to do it.

Never create it

Oh, what a brilliant idea! How do you propose seniors get by, work their whole entire lives?

It's called saving for retirement. You have your entire working life to do it.

Statements like this irritate me, they really do, it's a massive generalization that ignores, well, everything. Financial crashes? Low income families being stuck at the bottom of the ladder? Emergencies? Medical bills? Heck, college costs, working a low wage job your whole life, family costs, feeding yourself, stagnant wages.. Then again, so many people have this mentality that they just need to save money, people do save money, the problem is, it's hilariously unrealistic to assume anyone could save enough to prepare for decades without a program like social security.

Your last statement is somewhat strange, given what you listed above it.

I tend to rant when I'm irritated, maybe it did.

 

[Ernie S.]

As designed, the system should work. The problem is that it was expanded to children, spouses and the disabled.
Then, the government saw it as a cash cow that could be raided at will.
Return it to when it just paid a 65 year old retiree and when he died the spigot got turned off.
Hard assed? Yup, but OP asked...

 

[Ernie S.]

Never create it

Oh, what a brilliant idea! How do you propose seniors get by, work their whole entire lives?

It's called saving for retirement. You have your entire working life to do it.

Never create it

Oh, what a brilliant idea! How do you propose seniors get by, work their whole entire lives?

It's called saving for retirement. You have your entire working life to do it.

Statements like this irritate me, they really do, it's a massive generalization that ignores, well, everything. Financial crashes? Low income families being stuck at the bottom of the ladder? Emergencies? Medical bills? Heck, college costs, working a low wage job your whole life, family costs, feeding yourself, stagnant wages.. Then again, so many people have this mentality that they just need to save money, people do save money, the problem is, it's hilariously unrealistic to assume anyone could save enough to prepare for decades without a program like social security.

Your last statement is somewhat strange, given what you listed above it.

I tend to rant when I'm irritated, maybe it did.

You you really buy into the crap in your signature?