Fixing social security

[mxracer317]

Take a gander at this. We are the biggest, most powerful empire that has ever existed on the face of the earth. When it all comes tumbling down, well…………..

https://www.usdebtclock.org/

Fun fact: If you were to hop in a time machine and set the dial back ONE trillion seconds (National Debt is over THIRTY-FOUR trillion)

When you step out, you'll return to the land before time.... ONE trillion seconds would take you back 31,688 years ago.

That's for anyone who thinks taxes won't increase in the future to pay for reckless government spending.

America needs less government, not more.

 

[AvidIndoorsman]

I just don't think it is unreasonable to expect people to fund their own retirements.

If companies don't want to pay pensions, then employees know that going in. Let capitalism do it's thing. They'll either draw talent through paying more, or deciding to pay less and fund a pension plan.

The way it is set up currently, people are spending their money involuntarily to fund other people's retirements. Deincentivising hard work and incentivising laziness is not a great recipe.

We are just going to have to disagree.

That’s just not how capitalism works, and that mentality is what has lead to the ballooning US gini index.

Fundamentally I believe in the American middleclass and for it to survive capitalism needs guardrails.

 

[KG92]

SS is a scam. Should have never existed.

It should slowly be phased out over the next 20 years. And let people opt out and immediately receive an inflation-adjusted payment of everything they or their company has ever paid into it.

Those who need their hand held by the government and can’t plan and fund their own retirement with (decades of advance notice) can always stay in and mooch for a couple more decades.

Of course, this would likely lead the already unstable system to a collapse and therefore won’t ever come to fruition.

I’ve hustled and worked my ass off for my entire adult life and have been blessed enough to have made good money. I won’t ever get back from SS what I put in, not even close, unless I live to be 130.

I know that I could have managed and invested that money much better for myself and my family than the federal government.

Supporting the very idea of SS is admitting you trust the government to manage your own money better than you do, which, if one pays even the slightest attention to how the government manages money as a whole, is pure and utter lunacy.

 

[KG92]

What about Medicare? If someone makes 150k a year for 30 yrs they'll pay 130,500 into the bucket. How many hip and knee replacements should they get? When do we cut off cancer treatments?

If someone invested 130,500 themselves over 30 years, they’d have enough money for private medical insurance for the rest of their life and then some.

Why do so many assume that the government is the only thing that can take care of them?

A government big and powerful enough to provide everything to you is also big and powerful enough to take it all away.

 

[406dn]

At the 11th hour, Uncle Sam will shore up social security. It won't happen much sooner, because no one likes making tough choices before they absolutely have to.

I think it is a political reality that each side will have to share some pain to come up with a fix. So, it will be some mix of tax increases, and benefit cuts. The cuts will be either pushing the retirement age back some, and or less generous benefit.

 

[Desk Pop]

We are just going to have to disagree.

That’s just not how capitalism works, and that mentality is what has lead to the ballooning US gini index.

Fundamentally I believe in the American middleclass and for it to survive capitalism needs guardrails.

I think it about respect.

If you respect someone, you expect something of them. Pushing people to the side and saying, "were just gonna pick up your tab for life because you're too stupid or poor to figure this out," is disrespectful.

You'd be surprised what humans are capable of when you expect something out of them instead of giving them everyone else's money.

What if the "guardrails" for society were given privately and voluntarily? There are plenty of people who already give to private charities more than they pay for SS tax.

 

[buckbull]

Strange. Anyone notice the 53% of folks answered to remove the upper limit. We had 53% of hunttalk members claim they were millionaires in the other poll.

Social security is like insurance, some people will draw more than they ever put in while others will not.

 

[Straight Arrow]

During discussions such as this, it amuses me that so many government haters completely forget Civics 101 and seem to think "big government" is this monster that merely appeared from the jungle. This poll and the many comments here are actually something worth submitting to our elected officials in the Capitol, the Congress which enacted Social Security and is to be the body which "fixes" its obvious problems. Government responsible for any changes to Social Security is comprised of those individuals elected to do the job and who "should" consider such polls as this one, as well as letters, emails, phone calls, and other expressions from constituents and reputable groups. "Government haters" are as responsible as anyone for placing them in office, with the authority to do something constructive in resolving this and other issues. Will they do their jobs? Welllll ..... that's another issue!

 

[Desk Pop]

I don't think the solution to "fixing" an ineffective, abused and insolvent government program is to keep throwing it more and more money.

 

[BuzzH]

Strange. Anyone notice the 53% of folks answered to remove the upper limit. We had 53% of hunttalk members claim they were millionaires in the other poll.

Social security is like insurance, some people will draw more than they ever put in while others will not.

If a person is making over 168,000 a year, why would they give a chit if they continue paying more into SS?

I never did have a problem with paying my share of taxes.

 

[BuzzH]

I don't think the solution to "fixing" an ineffective, abused and insolvent government program is to keep throwing it more and more money.

Its not an ineffective program.

 

[Derek44]

Food for thought, I’m definitely for self accountability, and wish more of society felt the same. However, they don’t, and if we were to just uproot a program designed to “help” keep our elder generation out of poverty, no matter what the cause of it is, it would cost tax payers way more in the end. Once they were all impoverished because of their poor decisions, the tax payer is going to have no choice but to COMPLETELY take care of them. Serious question to those that say eliminate it. Are you going to be ok with the ever growing population of “bad decision makers” or those that “don’t know there’s consequences” sleeping on your lawn when they are belly up broke and homeless? Are you going to spearhead a charity to house and feed these folks? That’s not how society works, whether you agree with it or not, it’s not how society is ever going to work. I know myself, I would way rather take a chance on getting less return in my investment in SS and have to help some that may get a way better return than me, than just take the baseline out from under them and then find ways to either completely fund the aftermath, or just watch them all die on all the good decision makers doorsteps.

 

[cgasner1]

Getting ss fixed will be a nice warm up for ht for when we take on mfwp to try and get deer season fixed. It’s probably a easier sell anyways

 

[Desk Pop]

Its not an ineffective program.

In my job alone I've seen case after case after case of SSI benefits being paid to parents for disabilities of their children that don't exist.

 

[Derek44]

In my job alone I've seen case after case after case of SSI benefits being paid to parents for disabilities of their children that don't exist.

SSI and SS are two completely separate programs funded from different sources.

 

[SAJ-99]

In my job alone I've seen case after case after case of SSI benefits being paid to parents for disabilities of their children that don't exist.

How do I report fraud in the Social Security, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Medicare programs?

 

[Desk Pop]

SSI and SS are two completely separate programs funded from different sources.

Social Security administers SSI benefits. When I send my portion of an application, it goes to the Social Security Administration.

And that isn't an argument even if it was true.

 

[Desk Pop]

How do I report fraud in the Social Security, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Medicare programs?

So, is writing on the application that the school's Multi Disciplinary Team, that includes a psychologist, found no adverse effect of a disability, or no disability at all not enough? It goes directly to the Social Security Administration.

Should I include the tidbit that in a class of 30 students, probably 10-20 could easily get their kid an outside diagnosis of ADD or ADHD and if they keep allowing parents to get checks for something that common maybe it isn't a good use of taxpayer money?

 

[Desk Pop]

Its not an ineffective program.

I guess it is as effective as throwing hundred dollar bills of taxpayer money off of a highrise in New York City knowing that at least a portion of the people snatching up the Benjamins need them.

If that's the definition of effective...

 

[Derek44]

Social Security administers SSI benefits. When I send my portion of an application, it goes to the Social Security Administration.

And that isn't an argument even if it was true.

Are we discussing SS benefits or SSI benefits? I thought this was a social security retirement discussion. My bad I guess for not reading the room.

And I still hold firm that the benefits distributed for SSI are not coming out of the moneys held for SS out of anyone’s check