Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I may be the only person in the world who truly does not mind paying SS to go toward elderly people's retirement years. I really do feel that the sight of an old person bagging groceries at Ralph's because he needs to eat is terrible. Good God, even if you haven't been the highest-paying citizen throughout your lifetime don't you at least earn the right to be old and uncomfortable on your own time, for your last few years? That's just the way I feel about the elderly. I do believe there should be a cutoff time when people don't have to work (or at least not work as hard).
So I don't mind paying it. Not to elderly fellow Dems, not to elderly Pubs, not to elderly anybody.
Now as to whether the favor will be returned to me...I don't know. But I don't feel this vindictive need to hold back on today's elderly just because I may not get my "just desserts" out of it. Life can be cruel, and it may end up being cruel to me if there is no SS left for me when I'm old. But since I can't truly predict that, what good would it do to be ticked about all of it today?
That may sound simplistic and airheaded but I do feel this way. I hate to see old people who are worried, uncomfortable, miserable...good lord, just make their last years at least a little easier...you know? Let them have fun, get up late, do what they feel like a little; they don't have so very many years left.
ETA: As for me, I have an IRA and I HOPE it will grow enough over time that I can at least semi-retire by the time I'm 65-70-ish, but again, we really never do know until we get there. The best laid plans and all that. Don't judge people who "haven't saved" for retirement--you don't know what their circumstances were and whether they may have actually tried for years to save up. You truly don't know.
Wow! You sound so Christian! And all this time I thought you were an elitist, terrorist-supporting, Muslim-loving Democrat. That is just so weird....
Not to nitpick, but people receiving SSI receive Medicaid. Medicare is for people over 62. Children whose parents receive welfare also receive Medicaid, I think, but their parents do not, unless they're receiving SSI or SSDI.
I stand corrected! There are some people under 62 on Medicare. It's been a while since I worked for a medicare home health agency, so I don't remember the particulars, but they're out there.
Social Security works similar to a regular pension or disability program. Remember those? When companies actually CARED about their employees and put money into a pension plan and disability insurance for them? The only difference is that SS is a mandatory worker/employee split for contributions and it's controlled by the feds. So, no, it isn't socialism. You have to work for 40 quarters to be eligible and you had to have worked within five years of applying.
I beg to differ with those who claim that everyone and their mother can get Social Security Disability. It's VERY difficult to do so. I had no problem but, hell's bells, I did everything I could to keep working, retrained, changed jobs, duties, and hours, until it got to the point where I couldn't even walk or leave the house without assistance. I managed to work in some capacity for 15 years after I got sick but when I had to leave employment and apply for SSD, I had and continue to have a team of specialists managing my 14 Lupus-related diagnoses. That's what it takes to be approved for SSD. But, most people in my Lupus support group have to fight tooth and nail for SSD, probably because they applied just a little bit too early. It is NOT EASY.
For every person faking a disability, there are likely 10 truly disabled people who are fighting for 2-3 years to receive benefits. And they have no choice but to fight -- they are too sick to work even part-time. The fakers make it that much more difficult for them. Instead of gossiping or speculating about fakers, do us all a favor and REPORT THEM!
I honestly don't think it's going to go bust anytime soon. Yes, the demographics have changed since the '50s and '60s BUT we also have higher wages and two-income households now. Social Security paid half-benefits for the spouses of workers, whether they worked or not, and most wives didn't work full-time jobs outside of the home 50 years ago. Nowadays, most women work and folks are working longer than they did in previous generations so there are more contributions.
SS taxes taken out of your pacheck is used to pay current retirees. It is not being saved up for you. It is a form of wealth redistribution (today's workers paying for the benefits of the non-workers). So we delude ourselves by calling Social Security anything other than a manifestation of socialism. Yet many Republicans (who presumably are anti-socialist) have no qualms cashing their SS checks. So to attack Obama for being a socialist while cashing in your SS checks is the height of hypocrisy.
Yes but you missed the point, you have to pay into it to get it, which means it does not fit the typical ideal of socialism. SS is not a hand out and it is not wealth distribution. It is like unemployment, if you don't pay into it you don't get it. Welfare IS a hand out because that IS the government taking care of you. SS is not.
So you'll agree not to take your Medicare when you turn 62 and you'll pick up the tab for your elderly parents' medical care?
Actually I will not have to because my husbands company continues to cover us and I would pick up the tab for my parents because that is what children are suppose to do. My parents raised me, put me through school, paid for all I needed so YES it is the least I can do for them.
It is exactly socialism. Socialism is not a handout, it is the government running the program. So Social Security is a nationalized (socialistic) insurance program that pays out a stipend based on years of premiums that are collected in the form of employee/employer taxes. If I paid taxes for the govt to provide state run health insurance, it is not a hand out, it is a state vs private program, but we still pay, we just remove the profit level, so all your premiums go to the running of the program and healthcare, investors do not get to skim off the top.
Actually I will not have to because my husbands company continues to cover us and I would pick up the tab for my parents because that is what children are suppose to do. My parents raised me, put me through school, paid for all I needed so YES it is the least I can do for them.
If your parents are healthy, you will be paying in the range of 20000 a year for their basic coverage. If they are not, you will be paying out of pocket for their care because you will not be able to get them covered. I hope you are a multimillionaire. Also, most private insurance after 65 will expect you to get your medicare benefit as part of their continuing to cover you.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I really do feel that the sight of an old person bagging groceries at Ralph's because he needs to eat is terrible. Good God, even if you haven't been the highest-paying citizen throughout your lifetime don't you at least earn the right to be old and uncomfortable on your own time, for your last few years? That's just the way I feel about the elderly. I do believe there should be a cutoff time when people don't have to work (or at least not work as hard).
