I recently got into an discussion with some older relatives who are already collecting Social Security... Apparently they feel us younger generations should keep working hard and paying into the Social Security trust fund because on their honor, it will be there! Older people are constantly bragging about collecting Social Security, and how we should all be paying in so that one day we can sit around and be miserable collecting free money too! Truth be known, there wont be no money left for any of us, and this ploy to keep us younger people paying in is only an effort to ensure they don't run out! Pretty sad, don't you think?
The truth is, according to documentation I received from the Social Security office a few years back clearly states that, as of THIS YEAR Social Security will be paying out MORE than it collects in taxes! And by 2038 the trust fund will be EXHAUSTED and the payroll taxes collected will be enough to pay only about 73 percent of the benefits owed!
By 2038, I'll only be 63 years young! 7 years away from collecting Social Security benefits under the new plan to start making us younger generation wait until 72 to collect!
It's a fu@king joke folks! Yet older generations who are already collecting will encourage you to keep paying into something that most likely wont even be there for us, as clearly, as of THIS YEAR, it's already paying out more than it takes in! Now add in the explosion of people collecting disability for ridiculous things, and the Obama mentality that has been running wild for the past 7 years and it's clear to see where this is going!
I think it's high time to take the age restriction off on running for President! Because all these old people are just going to leave us broke, in debt and slaves to the rest of the world!
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What is to give light must endure burning -- Viktor Frankl
I dare say that your SS is similar ( in many areas ) to ours in Oz...What you may also wish to consider is this....
1 When you retire, you may have too much capitol to be able to collect SS...( We call it our Pension ).
2 This is based on how many houses, stocks, $$$ invested in a Super Annuation plan & total valued assets etc etc you may have...
3 This will force you to sell-off your capitol to survive...
4 After a while, when all your life's rewards have been plundered & sold-off for survival, you may then be able to collect some SS.
5 All of this moving backwards also means that your health-care-coverage will likely be reduced along that spiral-downwards too...
It's not easy, & every new government seems to have new & great ideas about all this, but they never seem to favor the people, who have to down-scale their standard of living.
Another thing to remember folks about what your ( US-of-A ) government announced about it's spending on SS, is that a great many people die by accident etc across the world, & should they not have filled-out or up-dated their LEGAL WILL, the government takes the lot ! So there's always plenty of BS in their forecasts LOL !
The only people who manage to survive at their regular standard of living, are the folks that have reached the threshold of capitol, where their "investments" returns provide a healthy week-to-week wage. You need around approx. 5-million dollars to get that safety net return, based on my very-loose calculations. This will loosely provide you with 1K per week to live on, or if you're married & share wages, about $500:00 per week for yourself....But this also means that you're excluded from the SS benefits like reduced medicinal costs, & other SS benefits. Though this changes government to government.
Cheers,
Rastus
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"Only an alert & knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial & military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods & goals, so that security & liberty may prosper together". Dwight D.Eisenhower.
Of course one could run a successful business and not retire providing they keep overhead next to nothing.
The whole health insurance thing here is pretty messed up. From what I understand they really stick it to you as you get older, almost to the point a majority of your SS goes to said insurance! Doesn't seem like much to look forward to. Maybe I better get into politics soon! Screw being a lawyer! The real benifits and power come in the political arena.
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What is to give light must endure burning -- Viktor Frankl
The 5-million is based on money in a bank earning a "little" interest, & after the government taxes the interest earned.... eg, 1-million-dollars earning 2% interest per-year is 20K...But Interest rates fluctuate, & you also want growth too, so I based the calculation on spending 15K, over 5-accounts, & after tax, which left 50K to spend. Maybe the only safe bet is to acquire houses & become a Land-Lord, but even they need repairs like fencing, plumbing, occasional painting & other stuff.
Even if you're young here in Oz, it's difficult to get SS...There's often a 12-week wait before your first payment, & lot's of anal-probing & paperwork to boot. The money you receive is not great, but they will pay most of your rent, & you get discounts on Medical expenses, Public Services, Car Registrations, & all you house-living-bills are subsidized ( say 1/2-ed ), so you actually survive reasonably well. Though I doubt an overseas holiday will ever be on the agenda, the only expense not helped with is the Dentist...Not sure why either...
In today's times however, they're making you "work for the dole"....This means that after 3 x fortnightly payments, you have to spent at least 4-days per fort-night giving yourself up for work....
Looked at another way, instead of offering people real jobs & real wages, they're using you as an excuse for slave-labor since you collect government benefits.....Fascist Dictatorship or what ? At least here in Oz that's what they do...This work used to be carried out by prisoners, that were near being ready for release after a stint in the can, to aid them in some-employment possibility in the future.
As for a political career SELLC, You'd do much better than most ! Regretfully, your not a Blue-Blood, Freemason, Bilderberger, Skull & Bonesman, or in any way related by direct blood-line to the Queen of England, so your chances of success are ill-fated before you've even started my friend. Even if like Trump, you had 7-Billion in assets & 250-million in spending-money, the "real string pullers" would only maybe let you waste your money & time...
Cheers,
Rastus
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"Only an alert & knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial & military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods & goals, so that security & liberty may prosper together". Dwight D.Eisenhower.
1. Social Security originally operated without any trust fund whatsoever. It simply had the current workers pay for current retirees of the time. The trust fund was added later to allow for the disproportionate number of baby boomers. The baby boomer generation by the way was the only generation asked to pay for it's parents generation AND help pay for their own future retirement benefits.
2. The Social Security trust fund was DESIGNED to be a temporary fund that would be depleted when the baby boomer generation dies off, at which point the system would go back to operating without a trust fund as it had originally. Granted, it is highly likely that several boomers will linger around and still be drawing benefits after the fund is depleted, which is why even with absolutely no changes to the system, it will still be able to pay us and our children and grandchildren .73 cents on the dollar. This means it will still be there for us, we will just get smaller checks than prior generations were given. Complaining about this to a baby boomer may not go over well since they have paid a higher percentage in to it than prior generations and generally feel a resulting sense of entitlement as a result.
3. While it is true that the federal government has borrowed money from the Social Security trust fund, they did not exchange an "I owe you" of dubious value for the loans. Instead the loans were made by the fund purchasing US Treasury bonds that can be redeemed at the treasury for cash, and are as good as cash because they too are backed by the full faith and credit of the American people. The US Treasury has NEVER failed to redeem one of its bonds, and never will because the consequences would be disasterous to all US currency.
4. While true that if the SS Administration tried to surprise the Treasury by cashing in all of their bonds tomorrow, the Treasury would surely run out of cash on hand before it could redeem all of them. It is also true that the Social Security administration communicates with the treasury to give them a heads up prior to redeeming large quantities of bonds. This allows the treasury to make sure they have the cash on hand to redeem them. A process that has already started a few years ago.
5. The US Treasury is funded by the US Congress through the laws they pass to collect taxes and assume foreign and domestic debt when necessary. Whereas the US Congress has absolute Constitutional authority to levy taxes and set the debt limit, the US treasury will never run out of money... Which is not to say that we won't assume large amounts of debt in the process of keeping the Treasury full should Congress decide to spend more than it taxes... The Iraq war comes to mind ;)
6. In the event of an absolute shit show of incompetence in Congress whereby they refuse to properly fund the Treasury (which has never happened). The US treasury does have the authority to mint coins... They could theoretically mint a 100 Trillion dollar coin and deposit it in its account. Granted doing so would cause noticable reduction in the value of our currency relative to the rest of the world, but the option does exist if necessary, and is actually preferable to defaulting on one of its bonds, which would be even worse for our currency. The authority to print paper money is actually held by the Federal Reserve, so it would have to be a coin if the Treasury wants to fund itself. A more likely solution would be the Federal Reserve buying Treasury bonds or Quantitave Easing to raise capital. I think we can all agree that having Congress be more balanced in their taxing and spending would be the far superior option though since the value of our currency increases relative to the rest of the world when Congress acts responsibly.
7. There is a cap on the amount of income subject to the Social Security tax, I believe around $119,000 per year. This means that those of us who make $119,000 per year or less are being taxed on 100% of our income, and those who are wealthy are only being taxed on a percentage of their income... If the only change made to the system was to raise the taxable income cap to say $160,000 per year, it would be able to pay 100% of all benefits forever and ever and give cost of living raises along the way too. I wonder where the 2 political parties stand on that idea ;)
8. Social Security isn't just for retirement, it is also disability insurance that protects people of all ages from starving to death in the event of a disability. Aproximately 15% of Social Security payments are actually disability payments. I for one am glad such insurance exists for all of us.
Now choke all of that down with some of Rick Snyder's Flint water boy.
-- Edited by PowerStroker on Thursday 21st of January 2016 10:44:50 PM
WoW... A $1 trillion dollar coin you say, huh PowerStroker!?
Is that coin made from ivory of a Unicorns horn? Talk about "fuzzy" math!
I think the letter from the Social Security Administration speaks for itself... And to the people who are responsible for it.
It's almost like Liberals have forgotten that the full faith and credit of the US Government is being put into question by the world. Something about some liberal spending more than ALL the Presidents before him to the tune of $21 trillion dollars by the time he is out of office, yet other point to a certain "credit downgrade" that has never before in the history of America happened.
Yeah, these things don't matter... China, Russia, Japan and the EU will be more than happy to accept that the treasury minted a $1 trillion dollar coin, only in looney liberal land does that kind of "fuzzy math" fly.
And FYI PowerStroker, it was the DEMOCRAT leaders of Flint who voted to switch from the Detroit water system 7 to 1, not the Governor. So eh, while people are sick and you guys keep using such Democrat shortcomings as a political football against a Republican who is ACTUALLY doing something about it, just know that all the lead based paint chips you ate as a child is having the same effect on you, only no one is going to give you any lawsuit pay-out for being a retard.
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What is to give light must endure burning -- Viktor Frankl
An interesting factoid you may find useful: When the markets crash badly and even gold stocks take a hit, investors all over the world flock to the safety of purchasing US Treasury bonds. The interest rate may not be very high, but there is nothing safer. Ask George H W Bush why he has invested so much in US Treasury bonds. Ask foreign countries why the world reserve currency is US Dollars. Ask Bin Laden why he had a stash of US currency in his Abbotabad compound next to his porn library. Granted you'll have to take a long walk off a short pier to ask him that. Let me know what he says.
As to what material the theoretical 100 Trillion dollar coin would be made from. It may as well be cardboard, because if it is minted by the US Treasury, it will have the value they designate it to have regardless of what material they use to make it. It will never come to that though. If Congress fails to fund the treasury through taxes, the Federal Reserve will step in to purchase bonds. They have done this before btw, and it does devalue our currency when they do. Sometimes it's better to raise taxes and keep the dollar strong by so doing.
-- Edited by PowerStroker on Sunday 24th of January 2016 01:09:21 AM
$100 trillion dollar coin? Man, I thought a $1 trillion dollar coin was bad enough, now you are telling me it would be a $100 trillion! That must be made of the same stuff Jack's bean stalk bean was! MAGIC!
I have no doubts that currency / money is nothing but a form of control, and that "government(s)" (see that as plural, not just ours), use it to keep this control in their hands. What is money? Control.
Be that as it may, while the US dollar is the worlds reserve currency - for good reason might I add, I don't feel that should be taken lightly, or for granted. It's like anything else with this administration, the hypocrisy! Take for example the climate change position that Obama's administration holds so dear, all the while jet-setting around the world, polluting more than anyone with funds for said idea being paid for by tax payers who are the very people who will be taxed under these new programs. Take for example Obamacare, that taxes / fines people who could not afford insurance to begin with, all the while none of our politicians who thought up this plan are using Obamacare exchanges, rather they have their own little thing going for healthcare. Take for example foreign aid, where Obama gives away billions at a time to nations who are known to hate the US and support terror, all the while we have veterans and low income people here in the US that are in essence living in 3rd world conditions! Obama gave Iran $1.5 billion, yet would only give the people of Flint Michigan $5 million to replace their deadly lead pipes that have been poisoning untold thousands for years! It's the hypocrisy of Democrats that see's this nation become weaker, putting other nations before our own.
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What is to give light must endure burning -- Viktor Frankl
The transportation of presidents has never been efficient regardless of party, that's just reality. If we made presidents walk everywhere it wouldn't solve the climate problem so we should concern ourselves with ideas that actually will, instead of seeking false things to get ourselves riled up about.
The money given to Iran was theirs to begin with plus interest, and is part of the agreement to stop their development of nuclear weapons. By so doing, we have saved ourselves potentially Trillions of dollars in war costs.
Think BIG picture Rex, learn to play chess instead of checkers. For someone from the Detroit area, I'd have expected more "street smarts."
With Iran's recent testing of ICBM's on the heels of this agreement, my street smarts tell me that sooner or later, we are going to war with Iran. Your "big picture" leaves out the fact that Iran is a state sponsor of terror, and that they pretty much want to wipe Israel off the map. The only thing this agreement does is ensure we go to war regardless who attacks who, and the fact that we could actually have to fight WITH Iran, against Israel due to this agreement is not only crazy, but it's wrong.
The Democrats, over the past 8 years have failed to see the "big picture". They are in essence a disease that infects this great nation that needs to be eradicated. Case in point, Hillary and Bill Clinton - here we have a corrupt husband and wife, the husband who is a former President who was "impeached" for perjury and the wife who is running for President while under multiple federal investigations ranging from misuse of email to transmit top secret information, to corruption in the family "Clinton Foundation", who by the way took all kinds of contributions from overseas donors. The simple fact that you would sit here and defend this kind of scum, and even suggest that we should elect such people to run this nation speaks volumes about your character.
As far as Obama goes, well he is just as bad.. Did you know that We Now Have a Muslim Government? ... John Brennan, current head of the CIA converted to Islam while stationed in Saudi Arabia. Obama's top adviser, Valerie Jarrett,~~is a Muslim who was born in Iran where her parents still live. Hillary Clinton's top adviser, Huma Abedin,~~is a Muslim, whose mother and brother are involved in the now outlawed Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. Assistant Secretary for Policy Development for Homeland Security, Arif Aikhan,~~is a Muslim. Homeland Security Advisor, Mohammed Elibiary,~~ is a Muslim. Obama adviser and founder of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, Salam al-Marayati,~~ is a Muslim. Obama's Sharia Czar, Imam Mohamed Magid, of the Islamic Society of North America~~ is a Muslim. Advisory Council on Faith-Based Neighbor-hood Partnerships, Eboo Patel,~~is a Muslim. And last but not least, our closet Muslim himself,~~ Barack Hussein Obama. It's questionable if Obama ever officially took the oath of office when he was sworn in. He didn't repeat the oath properly to defend our nation and our Constitution. Later the Democrats claimed he was given the oath againin private? CIA director John Brennan took his oath on a copy of the Constitution,~~not a Bible. Congressman, Keith Ellison took his oath on a copy ~~of the Qur'an. Congresswoman Michele Bachman was vilified and almost tarred and feathered by Democrats when she voiced her concern about Muslims taking over our government. Considering all these appointments, it would explain why Obama and his minions are systematically destroying our nation, supporting radical Muslim groups worldwide, opening our southern border, and turning a blind eye to the genocide being perpetrated on Christians all over Africa and the Middle East. The more damage Obama does, the more arrogant he's become! Our nation and our government has been infiltrated by people who want to destroy us. It WILL only get worse. Plus John Kerry's son in law is an Iranian Muslim. Had enough? I guess not, because PowerStroker is back at it.
And it's not like I have a problem with Muslim people, most I know are pretty open about the fact. But Obama, well he seems to be hiding something, but I am 100% positive that Trump will bring whatever that might be to light ASAP when he wins the election in 2016.
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What is to give light must endure burning -- Viktor Frankl
"The transportation of presidents has never been efficient regardless of party, that's just reality. If we made presidents walk everywhere it wouldn't solve the climate problem so we should concern ourselves with ideas that actually will, instead of seeking false things to get ourselves riled up about."
* The climate problem primarily stems from increased solar-activity from the sun...There's little that can be done here mate ! The ice-caps on outer-planets & their satellites are melting too, so it's not our cars...The Nuke problem of waste storage with 70-years of atomic use, & containment in 100-year-old-safe-only concrete containers should be the primary concerns NOW, regardless if Nukes are phased-out IMHO. ( Walking is good exercise LOL ) !
"The money given to Iran was theirs to begin with plus interest, and is part of the agreement to stop their development of nuclear weapons. By so doing, we have saved ourselves potentially Trillions of dollars in war costs".
* Not to mention countless lives, & even the planet !
"Think BIG picture Rex, learn to play chess instead of checkers. For someone from the Detroit area, I'd have expected more "street smarts."".
* Rex can answer this one LOL...But don't make the mistake of thinking his silly...Maybe he thinks it's better to fix the problems at home first, before fixing other peoples...
Rastus
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"Only an alert & knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial & military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods & goals, so that security & liberty may prosper together". Dwight D.Eisenhower.
Actually Rastus, I think the amount that was held amounted to $450 million, paid to us for weapons that for whatever reason were withheld - BACK IN 1979! The $1.5 Billion was supposedly "interest" on that $450 million. Never mind the fact said "statues of limitations" by any reasonable measure would have run out on such a debt, or the fact that Iran probably got taken over by some radicalized Muslim group after the deal was made, back in 1979 mind you, thus making the delivery of said weapons illegal and the return of said money would have been supporting terror.
But no, PowerStroker supports giving Iran $1.5 billion dollars, along with the $450 million, which we might as well call $2 billion dollars for all intents and purposes. To him the idea of paying $2 billion dollars ransom to Iran for a few dual citizen hostages they were holding (one of which chose to STAY in Iran) is a savings of trillions of dollars, rather than what it really was - which in my eyes amounted to Obama's direct sponsorship of terror. Since Obama dug up some old debt from 1979 and used it as an excuse to transfer to Iran the $2 billion, he was able to do an "end run" around congress who would have most certainly told Obama and Iran to get bent. He took it from an account that did not require congressional authorization. There is no way on gawds green earth that congress would have allowed this to happen and in no uncertain terms the Republicans were against any "deal" with Iran.
For the first time in a long time, I really feel like Democrats need to be held accountable for their stupidity as it pertains to how they vote. The way they live, counting on hand out's, or a lottery style payout come retirement is not only "fuzzy math" it's pretty much theft. I really feel they should all be deported to Mexico or Iran, or whatever country would take them.
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What is to give light must endure burning -- Viktor Frankl
Do they serve breakfast on Sunday morning mass? Do I need a prayer carpet, because if so I could bring my toilet rug. It's all I got in terms of a rug.
And if I bag my lunch, which would consist of a BLT, pork rinds and two mini shooters of Bourbon, should I bring enough to share with everyone?
Also, can I limit the amount of times I pray to the amount of times I use the bathroom? I must be honest in saying that my toilet faces South when I pee and North when I $hit.
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What is to give light must endure burning -- Viktor Frankl
Also, can I limit the amount of times I pray to the amount of times I use the bathroom? I must be honest in saying that my toilet faces South when I pee and North when I $hit.
At least you won't have to worry about running out of toilet paper...Just don't shake hand with them afterwards...Or if you do, wash your own hands with lots of antiseptic soap !
Rastus
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"Only an alert & knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial & military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods & goals, so that security & liberty may prosper together". Dwight D.Eisenhower.
