Social security is dying should we wait to replace it or do it now?

Social Security is not dying.

We spent trillions on Iraq and TARP (both under Bush). I think we can swing taking care of our parents. A cruise missile is about 1 million. My moms SSI is $850 per month. I think we can swing SSI if we raise taxes in the top ten percent.

I see a beneficial renaissance of social security in the US. Solidarity is the key for successful modern societies.

This is a speech by former comptroller of the United States, David Walker. As comptroller, he’d know more about the Social Security issue than probably most of us Flutherers. ;)

It’s a long speech, though, so no one here is going to read it. I’ll point out the highlight: If we continue the way we’re going, the Government isn’t going to have money for anything but Social Security and interest on the Federal debt. The system is broken and needs fixed.

Solidarity with fellow americans is key to stay strong as a nation. It’s funny how christian people are in spirit but not in action. It breaks me when I hear Chicago school semantics from normal working people. I hope there is a hell. Then Milton Friedman get his.

Social Security is the system that the people who are on it now grew up in expectation of. Have paid into all of their working lives.

Those wanting to “fix it” are those with other agendas. Imagine if the move toward privatization had passed then where would the system be when the market collapsed?

Social Security?? What security? Sounds like false advertising from the get-go.

Social security is not dying. That’s a myth from people who want to “privatize” (AKA eliminate) a successful popular program. If they had succeeded in the last administration, the savings of tens of millions of people would have evaporated, like the $11 trillion destroyed between 2007 and 2009.

Instead, we have Social Security trust fund which is projected to cover the baby-boom debits for the next 40 years. We have forty years to adjust the system.

The most likely solution is raising the cap. Income beyond $106,800 has no Social Security tax. If you make less than that, 100% of your income is taxed for SS. If you make $427,000, only 25% is SS taxed.

@Marina – I agree, they paid into it, and that money went to the people who received SS at the time. Now we are paying into it, and the money is going to baby-boomers that are starting to retire. That works just fine, as long as there are more payers-in than there are takers-out. I don’t know about you, but I’m in my late 30s and will be “expecting” social security when I retire in about 30 years, but the next generation of payers-in is smaller. I don’t think there will be enough of a base to support my generation’s retirement.

The Boomers paid in all their lives and get it now. I will pay in all my life, and probably not get anything. I don’t think the solution is to privatize it, so that is not my agenda. (Besides, if we privatize Social Security and make it more like a 401k, we’ll still have people asking questions like this.) It just won’t keep working if we keep doing the same thing. The budget it will demand is out of control.

@laureth Exactally! You hit the nail on the head when you say there are more people who will be drawing out of it than putting money into it. Simple math and physics, anything where the contents goes out faster than it goes in empties eventually. You don’t wait for your tank to run dry before thinking about what to do or adding gas. Why wait until there are too few workers to support the newly retired before doing something? Figure out something now so when that time comes it will be in place ready to go.