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Old 08-07-2011, 08:09 PM
 
3,504 posts, read 3,910,670 times
Reputation: 1357

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entitlement is a dirty word used by politicians to create further divisions among people.

i pay into social security my whole life. when i reach 65 or whatever the age is, i pull out what i paid in my whole life.

if i go to the bank and deposit money week after week, one would assume i have the right to pull that money out when i need it.

social security is more like insurance then anything else.

there is no such thing as an entitlement that you have to pay into your whole life to get.

an entitlement is something handed to you like food stamps or a 75,000 year job for a dropout(walker relative).
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Old 08-07-2011, 08:17 PM
 
2,974 posts, read 1,975,434 times
Reputation: 3337
Quote:
Originally Posted by tropolis View Post
entitlement is a dirty word used by politicians to create further divisions among people.

i pay into social security my whole life. when i reach 65 or whatever the age is, i pull out what i paid in my whole life.

if i go to the bank and deposit money week after week, one would assume i have the right to pull that money out when i need it.

social security is more like insurance then anything else.

there is no such thing as an entitlement that you have to pay into your whole life to get.

an entitlement is something handed to you like food stamps or a 75,000 year job for a dropout(walker relative).
...well, if you only were to get back exactly what you paid in, yes it wouldn't be an entitlement...just whip out that pesky calculator and you'll see, you get back way, way more than you put it...=...entitlement..
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Old 08-07-2011, 08:36 PM
 
9 posts, read 8,812 times
Reputation: 15
A person qualified for SS will receive benefits until they die - regardless of how much they put into it. However, if you die before retirement then you might not get anything and your heirs won't either.

The real problem with SS is that the system was originally designed when the average life expectancy was 67. Today it's in the late 70's. Also, originally there were16 workers paying into SS for every person receiving benefits. Today its about 3 paying into it for every person receiving benefits.

That being said, SS can be saved by raising the retirement age. Medicare/Medicaid are the real drivers of deficit problems from the entitlement side of the equation. For people who want to keep these benefits, it will be difficult to reduce healthcare costs in today's political environment. And, I do mean reduce costs - not cost shift from the govt to the individual.
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Old 08-07-2011, 08:38 PM
 
33,016 posts, read 27,350,624 times
Reputation: 9074
Quote:
Originally Posted by justus978 View Post
...well, if you only were to get back exactly what you paid in, yes it wouldn't be an entitlement...just whip out that pesky calculator and you'll see, you get back way, way more than you put it...=...entitlement..

Millions of Americans DON'T get back what they paid in. It depends on WHEN you paid in and when you collect - the first generation of workers to collect did indeed receive way more than they paid in, with the financial return declining over time. Boomers and Gen X would have been far better off in old age if their Social Security taxes had instead been invested privately.

And then if you die before you collect you lose all the money you paid in.
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Old 08-07-2011, 08:40 PM
 
33,016 posts, read 27,350,624 times
Reputation: 9074
Quote:
Originally Posted by Abella30 View Post
That being said, SS can be saved by raising the retirement age. Medicare/Medicaid are the real drivers of deficit problems from the entitlement side of the equation. For people who want to keep these benefits, it will be difficult to reduce healthcare costs in today's political environment. And, I do mean reduce costs - not cost shift from the govt to the individual.

Raising the retirement age increases the number of people who pay in for decades and die before collecting a dime.

In other words, raising the retirement age is highly regressive.

Which has never stopped conservatives.
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Old 08-07-2011, 08:44 PM
 
Location: South Jordan, Utah
8,182 posts, read 9,181,482 times
Reputation: 3632
Quote:
Originally Posted by tropolis View Post
entitlement is a dirty word used by politicians to create further divisions among people.

i pay into social security my whole life. when i reach 65 or whatever the age is, i pull out what i paid in my whole life.

if i go to the bank and deposit money week after week, one would assume i have the right to pull that money out when i need it.

social security is more like insurance then anything else.

there is no such thing as an entitlement that you have to pay into your whole life to get.

an entitlement is something handed to you like food stamps or a 75,000 year job for a dropout(walker relative).
My dad retired in 84, he got back every dollar he had ever paid in ALL taxes, in the first 5 years. H is still collecting BTW.
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Old 08-07-2011, 08:45 PM
 
Location: Hoboken
19,890 posts, read 18,709,276 times
Reputation: 3146
Quote:
Originally Posted by tropolis View Post
entitlement is a dirty word used by politicians to create further divisions among people.

i pay into social security my whole life. when i reach 65 or whatever the age is, i pull out what i paid in my whole life.

if i go to the bank and deposit money week after week, one would assume i have the right to pull that money out when i need it.

social security is more like insurance then anything else.

there is no such thing as an entitlement that you have to pay into your whole life to get.

an entitlement is something handed to you like food stamps or a 75,000 year job for a dropout(walker relative).
Because more is withdrawn than is contributed, if you live long enough (which many folks do).
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Old 08-07-2011, 08:47 PM
 
Location: Foot of the Rockies
90,316 posts, read 120,376,423 times
Reputation: 35920
Because SS is not means tested.

My FIL retired at age 65, lived to be 97. He started contributing in his late 20s; he always joked that he had gotten his money's worth and got more than he paid in. I believe he had retired by the time there was a separate Medicare tax (1983).
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Old 08-07-2011, 08:47 PM
 
Location: Hoboken
19,890 posts, read 18,709,276 times
Reputation: 3146
Quote:
Originally Posted by freemkt View Post
Raising the retirement age increases the number of people who pay in for decades and die before collecting a dime.

In other words, raising the retirement age is highly regressive.

Which has never stopped conservatives.
If that is you real concern you should be in factor of people setting up their own retirement accounts. You can do with it what you like and leave it to family when you die. The government has no business in the retirement insurance business.
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Old 08-07-2011, 08:59 PM
 
Location: Great Falls, Montana
4,002 posts, read 3,895,621 times
Reputation: 1398
Quote:
Originally Posted by justus978 View Post
...well, if you only were to get back exactly what you paid in, yes it wouldn't be an entitlement...just whip out that pesky calculator and you'll see, you get back way, way more than you put it...=...entitlement..
Oh, and lets not forget the guy, where the only thing wrong with him is, that he can't read .. 32 years old, collecting his little $500.00 a month check .. Imagine that ..

No Entitlements here .. Oh wait
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