Social Security comments from a Senator

[CrazyTrader55]

Ponzi scheme. He didn't say it in so many words, but yeah, it's a Ponzi scheme, and the further out you retire, the less you're going to get. The government has stolen (or in their terms, borrowed against the trust fund) and spent it.

Anyone near retirement age - and I am getting there - would be advised to retire as early as you can, because the longer you wait, the less is going to be there.

It's simple economics.

 

[ThunderKiss1965]

Ponzi scheme. He didn't say it in so many words, but yeah, it's a Ponzi scheme, and the further out you retire, the less you're going to get. The government has stolen (or in their terms, borrowed against the trust fund) and spent it.

Anyone near retirement age - and I am getting there - would be advised to retire as early as you can, because the longer you wait, the less is going to be there.

It's simple economics.

I've been calling SS a Ponzi scheme for years.

 

[Dagoth-Ur]

Ponzi scheme. He didn't say it in so many words, but yeah, it's a Ponzi scheme, and the further out you retire, the less you're going to get. The government has stolen (or in their terms, borrowed against the trust fund) and spent it.

Anyone near retirement age - and I am getting there - would be advised to retire as early as you can, because the longer you wait, the less is going to be there.

It's simple economics.

Your trying to explain things to people who refuse to understand.

 

[22lcidw]

Your trying to explain things to people who refuse to understand.

The politicians will address it when they have no choice most likely. Raise the age slightly, raise the earning cap slightly and/or enact a small surcharge to people with higher earnings.

 

[badbob85037]

Ponzi scheme. He didn't say it in so many words, but yeah, it's a Ponzi scheme, and the further out you retire, the less you're going to get. The government has stolen (or in their terms, borrowed against the trust fund) and spent it.

Anyone near retirement age - and I am getting there - would be advised to retire as early as you can, because the longer you wait, the less is going to be there.

It's simple economics.

Democrats billed SS as your personal, tax free, saving account that will always be there whenever you need it.

Democrat president, Jimmy Carter started to give it away to ones not paying a dime into SS.

Democrats in Congress voted to 'borrow' it and do as fast as we pay into SS.

Democrats voted to tax it with Algore casting the deciding vote.

Democrat Obama used SS funds to build an upper middle class housing development to house Middle East immigrants with 2 car garages, so they didn't have to park their second Beamer on the street.

Democrat tell us Republicans are going to steal our SS.

Democrats really suck.

 

[Admiral Rockwell Tory]

Democrats billed SS as your personal, tax free, saving account that will always be there whenever you need it.

Democrat president, Jimmy Carter started to give it away to ones not paying a dime into SS.

Democrats in Congress voted to 'borrow' it and do as fast as we pay into SS.

Democrats voted to tax it with Algore casting the deciding vote.

Democrat Obama used SS funds to build an upper middle class housing development to house Middle East immigrants with 2 car garages, so they didn't have to park their second Beamer on the street.

Democrat tell us Republicans are going to steal our SS.

Democrats really suck.

Link please.

 

[DGS49]

Honest to God, if you are a regular visitor to this Site, you should be informed well enough to know that this whole line of discussion is total bullshit.

Congress CAN NOT "raid the SS Trust Fund." IT CANNOT HAPPEN! That money is separate, as it must be - otherwise the whole unconstitutional house of cards will crumble to the pavement. Congress has "borrowed" that money when Boomers made the Trust Fund flush with money, but they cannot just take it to fund other stuff. It is funded by PAYROLL TAXES, not income taxes, tariffs, or other government revenues.

The increase in the retirement age - quite modest actually, given actuarial data - is a logical and reasonable step because Americans are living much longer than when SS was first passed.

But there should be NO CONCERN that the "trust fund" will run out of money, leaving today's working people in the lurch. Congress WILL ACT TO SHORE IT UP before it runs dry, otherwise they will be voted out of office, and they know it.

The solution is simple, if not easy. Remove the cap on FICA taxes. Done. They could also attack the massive abuses of SS disability pensions, which were never intended to be part of the SS program in the first place.

EVEN IF THE TRUST FUND WERE TO BE DEPLETED, SS stipends would only be reduced by about 20%, as the system continues to take in tens of billions of dollars every month, and it could survive on a pay-as-you-go basis.

 

[LibertyKid]

Honest to God, if you are a regular visitor to this Site, you should be informed well enough to know that this whole line of discussion is total bullshit.

Congress CAN NOT "raid the SS Trust Fund." IT CANNOT HAPPEN! That money is separate, as it must be - otherwise the whole unconstitutional house of cards will crumble to the pavement. Congress has "borrowed" that money when Boomers made the Trust Fund flush with money, but they cannot just take it to fund other stuff. It is funded by PAYROLL TAXES, not income taxes, tariffs, or other government revenues.

The increase in the retirement age - quite modest actually, given actuarial data - is a logical and reasonable step because Americans are living much longer than when SS was first passed.

But there should be NO CONCERN that the "trust fund" will run out of money, leaving today's working people in the lurch. Congress WILL ACT TO SHORE IT UP before it runs dry, otherwise they will be voted out of office, and they know it.

The solution is simple, if not easy. Remove the cap on FICA taxes. Done. They could also attack the massive abuses of SS disability pensions, which were never intended to be part of the SS program in the first place.

EVEN IF THE TRUST FUND WERE TO BE DEPLETED, SS stipends would only be reduced by about 20%, as the system continues to take in tens of billions of dollars every month, and it could survive on a pay-as-you-go basis.

Can we be honest, that continuing to increase the age is bullshit. There are plenty of people not living to 67 or not much beyond it.

 

[WorldWatcher]

Can we be honest, that continuing to increase the age is bullshit. There are plenty of people not living to 67 or not much beyond it.

Also, increasing the age for Social Security Retirement will result in a spike of Social Security Disability claims.

If they can't "retire" and can't work, then disability will increase.

WW

 

[Independent thinker]

Ponzi scheme. He didn't say it in so many words, but yeah, it's a Ponzi scheme, and the further out you retire, the less you're going to get. The government has stolen (or in their terms, borrowed against the trust fund) and spent it.

Anyone near retirement age - and I am getting there - would be advised to retire as early as you can, because the longer you wait, the less is going to be there.

It's simple economics.

Respectfully, you are wrong about much of that. Well, yes, you can kind of compare it to a ponzi scheme but in a ponzi scheme the bottom rung of the ladder winds up getting screwed over whereas with SS there won't ever be a bottom rung of the ladder.

But, everyone's situation is different. It's just not true that the further out you retire, the less you're going to get. Yes, the government has kind of stolen the money in a shell game but the money is still there, just under a different shell. There has been much written about the SS fund running out of money in the future, requiring about a 25% cut in benefits but, that's only if Congress never does anything to shore up the program, which is absolutely definitely going to happen, even though it will probably happen at the last second before midnight in 2032 but it will happen.

I've heard a lot of people over the decades claim that they don't have to work much or earn much to pay into social security because the program won't be there at all when they retire. So, they screw themselves over and retire with little benefits because they had always beleived the program wouldn't be there when they retired and then found out that they were wrong.

 

[RoshawnMarkwees]

Also, increasing the age for Social Security Retirement will result in a spike of Social Security Disability claims.

If they can't "retire" and can't work, then disability will increase.

WW

But they will be able to work as people live longer.
Of course, that trend will reverse as this current obese, unhealthy generation comes to retirement age — or sooner.

 

[initforme]

Many people work jobs that dont allow them to save much. Social security is all they have. Pull that away and man itd be pure chaos.

 

[CrazyTrader55]

Your writeup is partially correct.

Honest to God, if you are a regular visitor to this Site, you should be informed well enough to know that this whole line of discussion is total bullshit.

Congress CAN NOT "raid the SS Trust Fund." IT CANNOT HAPPEN! That money is separate, as it must be - otherwise the whole unconstitutional house of cards will crumble to the pavement. Congress has "borrowed" that money when Boomers made the Trust Fund flush with money, but they cannot just take it to fund other stuff. It is funded by PAYROLL TAXES, not income taxes, tariffs, or other government revenues.

The increase in the retirement age - quite modest actually, given actuarial data - is a logical and reasonable step because Americans are living much longer than when SS was first passed.

But there should be NO CONCERN that the "trust fund" will run out of money, leaving today's working people in the lurch. Congress WILL ACT TO SHORE IT UP before it runs dry, otherwise they will be voted out of office, and they know it.

The solution is simple, if not easy. Remove the cap on FICA taxes. Done. They could also attack the massive abuses of SS disability pensions, which were never intended to be part of the SS program in the first place.

EVEN IF THE TRUST FUND WERE TO BE DEPLETED, SS stipends would only be reduced by about 20%, as the system continues to take in tens of billions of dollars every month, and it could survive on a pay-as-you-go basis.

Your writeup is partially correct.

1. Congress has raided the SS trust fund. You are wrong. The fund has been raided, stolen from, borrowed against, whatever you wish to call it. SS money was "taken for other stuff". Payments are now being made to current recipients by workers who may or may not get all of it back in the future. There is no "individual account" in SS fund for each taxpayer. That money is gone. This is a Ponzi scheme - and Elon Musk - a fellow much smarter than either you, or I, has said the same thing.
2. Don't forget about INFLATION
3.. Social Security will never run out of money. You're right.
4. SS payouts WILL BE REDUCED in the absence of tax increases.
5. You said: Congress WILL ACT TO SHORE IT UP before it runs dry, otherwise they will be voted out of office, and they know it. Really? Why haven't they done so already? Why are we at this point?
6. You said: the increase in the retirement age - quite modest actually, given actuarial data - is a logical and reasonable step because Americans are living much longer than when SS was first passed. AGREE

 

[Mac-7]

Ponzi scheme. He didn't say it in so many words, but yeah, it's a Ponzi scheme, and the further out you retire, the less you're going to get. The government has stolen (or in their terms, borrowed against the trust fund) and spent it.

Anyone near retirement age - and I am getting there - would be advised to retire as early as you can, because the longer you wait, the less is going to be there.

It's simple economics.

We live much longer than 1932 when the retirement age was set

It should be raised even more than you are complaining about

 

[initforme]

We live much longer than 1932 when the retirement age was set

It should be raised even more than you are complaining about

Why? So we can have a bunch die off without drawing from it? Wr are going to ask people nearing retirement (57 +) to all of a sudden work longer? Those people shouldnt ser any changes. Grandfather them in. Make changes for below 57 year olds.

 

[Mac-7]

Why? So we can have a bunch die off without drawing from it? Wr are going to ask people nearing retirement (57 +) to all of a sudden work longer? Those people shouldnt ser any changes. Grandfather them in. Make changes for below 57 year olds.

Now you are being more specific rather than your opening emotional diatribe

I dont what the best cutoff date is

Maybe adding one year per year starting with people under 60 or 55 might be acceptable

With a maximum of 70?

 

[MarathonMike]

Ponzi scheme. He didn't say it in so many words, but yeah, it's a Ponzi scheme, and the further out you retire, the less you're going to get. The government has stolen (or in their terms, borrowed against the trust fund) and spent it.

Anyone near retirement age - and I am getting there - would be advised to retire as early as you can, because the longer you wait, the less is going to be there.

It's simple economics.

I started taking it at minimum age 62 when I retired. You don't know how long you are going to live and there's no telling what the Feds will do to the program in the future.

 

[initforme]

Now you are being more specific rather than your opening emotional diatribe

I dont what the best cutoff date is

Maybe adding one year per year starting with people under 60 or 55 might be acceptable

Lots of people are working hard so they retire by 55. Cant blame them for not wanting to work past that ripe old age.

 

[initforme]

I started taking it at minimum age 62 when I retired. You don't know how long you are going to live and there's no telling what the Feds will do to the program in the future.

Do you know a good source to go to for advice on this? My son is retired at 55, but has been kicking around when to start drawing. Is there much of an advantage to wait until 65? Some say wait unyil 70. But that seems more risky.

 

[Mac-7]

Lots of people are working hard so they retire by 55. Cant blame them for not wanting to work past that ripe old age.

I cant blame them either, but it doesnt mean we should allow it

People retiring at 55 or 65 and then collecting SS for 20 or 25 years will bankrupt the system