Comments on: The Social Security Crater – Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Edition

By: Social Security: Quibbling over Semantics | POWIP

Social Security: Quibbling over Semantics | POWIP — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 13:39:19 +0000

[…] (this holds true for so many areas in politics. Education is a really obvious example.) 2. And the crisis is now (actually, it started last year), not when the fictional Trust Fund runs […]

By: Social Security: Quibbling over Semantics

Social Security: Quibbling over Semantics — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 13:38:39 +0000

[…] (this holds true for so many areas in politics. Education is a really obvious example.) 2. And the crisis is now (actually, it started last year), not when the fictional Trust Fund runs […]

By: Train wreck « Chockblock’s blog

Train wreck « Chockblock’s blog — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 01:07:38 +0000

[…] Change! Us proles will turn on the ‘wise and noble’ left before they can run the county into the ground. […]

By: steveegg

steveegg — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 21:47:45 +0000

In reply to Alan Gunn.

Point noted. I do believe I’ve made that point in prior posts as well (which is why I use the scare quotes), but it does bear repeating from time to time.

The only thing that allows the fiction of the “Trust” Funds to exist is the fact that the federal government has never defaulted on a loan. Of course, before now, the federal government hasn\’t gone on a peacetime borrow-and-spend binge like the one we’re on now.

If one paid any attention to what happened in Greece, or much of the Third World before then, there is only one possible outcome when there is runaway peacetime borrowing and spending. The only question is, who gets screwed first – Gen-X or China?

By: Alan Gunn

Alan Gunn — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 21:35:44 +0000

In reply to Indy.

The “trust fund” won’t run out of money because it has no money now, and never did. A debt the US owes to itself isn’t an asset, and all the “excess” social security taxes collected over the years have been spent already. This post therefore greatly understates the trouble that the system is in. It’s not going to go broke in a few years; it’s broke now, in the sense that its expenses exceed its revenues and will continue to do so unmtil the whole thing either gets fixed or collapses.

By: Tweets that mention No Runny Eggs » Blog Archive » The Social Security Crater – Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Edition -- Topsy.com

Sat, 03 Jul 2010 21:31:03 +0000

[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Jennifer, wisconsinBNN and others. wisconsinBNN said: No Runny Eggs: The Social Security Crater – Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Edition: Last week, I took a look at t… http://bit.ly/adgvCi […]

By: steveegg

steveegg — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 20:04:03 +0000

In reply to Andrewman. That is the only hope of either program being solvent. It wasn't a mistake that the Imperial German forerunner to Social Security set its retirement age several years beyond the life expectancy of the average German at the turn of the last century.

By: steveegg

steveegg — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 20:02:25 +0000

In reply to Indy. More likely both. The scary thing is that Medicare, though it is the smaller of the two major "Trust" Funds, represents the larger of the two unfunded liabilities (and that was before PlaceboCare was passed).

By: Indy

Indy — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 19:47:43 +0000

What it all really means is that, gradually, but with increasing rapidity, the $4.5 Trillion of “intergovernmental holdings” debt gets converted into the “debt help by the public” (currently at $8.6 Trillion).

You see some of the press like to report that the US Debt/GDP ratio is “only” 60%, as if the OASI amounts don’t count because it’s possible that the government could theoretically repudiate the whole system without technically “defaulting on debt”.

But these numbers put the lie to that story. Every Social Security cash deficit means the Treasury has to issue more new notes to the open market to fill the gap. In a few years, we’re either going to have significantly higher taxes, or we’ll be at over 100% Debt-to-GDP.

By: Dollie Martinez

Dollie Martinez — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 19:40:29 +0000

It’s more than spin, it’s how liberals do math …..

Liberals will try to convince you that the upcoming tax increases are not that bad. For example, if you are presently taxed at the 10% rate your new rate will be 15%. They will position this as a 5% increase which doesn’t seem too bad (15% to 20% is 5% right?).

Now look at it this way …. You make $100.00 and the government takes $10.00 (10%) versus you make $100.00 and the government takes $15.00 (15%). The government is now taking in 50% more from the 10% payers than they were previously ($15.00 – $10.00 = $5.00 …. $5.00 is 50% of $10.00 or 50% more tax!)

Not convinced? Pretend you got a pay raise ….. you were making $10.00 /hr. Now the boss is going to give you a $5.00 /hr raise. You got a 50% pay raise! Just like the government is about to get a 50% increase in tax revenue which you pay them!

The expiration of the Bush/2001 tax reduction is a HUGE TAX INCREASE.

Another of their mind bending analogies is that this is not a tax increase at all. They say they are simply allowing a tax reduction to expire, they aren’t raising your taxes. PLEEEEEEASE! The political term for this twisted logic is triangulation. I think a more accurate term would be manipulation.

This article spells out the tax increase in easy to understand language:

http://www.atr.org/six-months-untilbr-largest-tax-hikes-a5171

By: Andrewman

Andrewman — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 19:21:51 +0000

Save yourself all the trouble of this analysis. Its not the numbers, but the spin that matters.
Prez Sock Monkey will explain how rationing healthcare to seniors will shorten life expectancy….presto, SS problem solved!

By: neomom

neomom — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 18:54:26 +0000

Relax… It will all be fine! Just ask Joe. Paying taxes is patriotic and we have to spend more money to avoid going bankrupt. If you don’t agree, you are just a smartass.

By: Don L

Don L — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 18:45:49 +0000

Social Security out of money? we need to provide a stimulus to get more money to spend for it?t Try Onbamanomics – How about we double the SS payout -huh? Yeah, just think of it like those permanernt unemployment checks Pelosi says will create jobs. Now doesn’t it make sense?

By: Ladylala

Ladylala — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 18:44:11 +0000

we’re screwed