So ... I'm not a boomer (thank God). I'm what is called a "war baby" - born during WWII. I think Social Security began in the 1930s and contrary to popular belief it is not an "entitlement" in the sense that "entitlement" is so freely tossed around these days. It is "earned" by employers paying into Social Security an amount based on current salary of each employee and each employee has a matching amount taken off the top of their paycheck ("FICA tax") along with federal, state or other applicable income taxes.
Not too long ago, DOL issued new regulations regarding home healthcare workers who were previously classified in the same category as babysitters who get paid whatever they get paid, period - no overtime time. The new regs. make it so that home healthcare workers would now be paid time and a half for everything over 40 hours a week. My boss threw an absolute fit right in front of me when I stopped by one day to turn in my time sheet. She was not going to pay anybody overtime pay and was going to have to reschedule everybody's hours so that no one would have more than 40 hours a week. Well, having worked for labor lawyers, I came home, turned on my computer and looked up the DOL regs. Hmmm - does not apply to independent contractors - and everybody who works for my boss is an independent contractor. I just kept my mouth shut and let the boss stew in her own juices until a few months later when she learned apparently from the state auditor that the regs. did not apply to independent contractors. They don't want to be bothered with the issue of having to deduct taxes and reporting FICA, etc. So at the end of the year we all get 1099s. That means, for IRS purposes, I am a business owner. I have to pay FICA taxes as an employer AND as my only employee in my non-existent "business." I have to pay a matching employee FICA in addition to my federal income taxes. In other words - roughly 15% of my tax dollars is FICA taxes. I do not see ONE PENNY of those FICA taxes going toward an increase in my base Social Security. Every penny of it goes into the Social Security Trust Fund to help cover those future retirees who come long after I'm dead and gone. If current Social Security recipients are lucky, we might get a 1 or 1-1/2% COL increase - provided Congress decides a cost of living increase is necessary. They're going to give themselves a raise, COL or not.
Social Security IS a Trust Fund, and as such, should not be borrowed from or otherwise tampered with and managed wisely with growth in mind as other Trust Funds are managed. I think we all know that Congress has borrowed money from this Trust Fund with empty promises to repay such borrowed money - which has never be repaid. So, yes, there is a problem with Social Security and maybe the time to end (or phase it out) has come. There are so many retirement plans these days, whether employer sponsored or private plans, that were not available back when Social Security was established. On the other hand, jobs are damned hard to come by these days and today's young workers don't stick around one job long enough to establish a good retirement benefit. They job hop every year or so hoping to get higher pay for today as opposed to looking to the future income they might need. I don't know the answer.