Mixed View said:
I need arguments for and against Privitezed Social Security. What are the benifets and what are the weaknesses of this?
How about the fact that FDR, a Democrat and the man who started the whole thing, declared that Social Security was only supposed to be a SHORT-TERM program! He warned the country that such a program would become corrupt and be used as a pot of money politicians would raid! BOY, was he a genius! He said it was imperative for Americans to have control of their own money and to see to their own futures!
Here is another case for you. 60 Minutes did a story 2-3 years ago about an experiment the goverment started back in the 60s with a small town, I believe it was in Texas. The citizens of the town no longer were required to pay any Social Security, but the money they would have been paying was deposited into an Investment account/program of some type (which THEY chose) for them by the goverment. The accounts set up were set up in such a way that they could not touch them until around age 60. The money, unlike Social Security, would be theirs. If someone died, the whole amount was transfered into their spouse's account. When the individuals started getting of the age where they could colect, their accounts were analyzed.
Each one of these individual had more money and were receiving monthly allotments from their retirement accounts than the average American of the same age was receiving from Social Security...by a significant amount (I can not remeber how significant)! It was pretty substantial, though! Also, the individuals had the added benefit being that the money was theirs! If they dies, the money either went to a spouse or their surviving family members.
The goverment pretty much buried the story and no other person has ever been allowed to do the same since!
The fact is that FDR was right! Individuals need to be responsible for their own retirement plans! The Federal Govt could help set up direct deposits of money taken from their pay earmarked for S.S. to go directly into a safe program that draws more interest than the Federal Govt could give. They could also set the terms of the program where people could not touch the money until age 60/65, as was done with this town reported on 60 minutes. IT HAS BEEN DONE ALREADY!
The problem, however, is the very thing FDR himself warned us about! Social Security has become and is now a pot of money the Goverment collects from your pay check in your name and dips into it whenerver they want/need any money! They will be EXTREMELY unwilling to give that up. The best thing they like about the program is that when you die, your money - all that you have paid in for years, basically becomes the Federal Goverment's! Yeah, your survivcing spouse gets the higher of the two, but if she takes yours, she loses hers! So, you're still getting $crewed! FDR nailed it right on the head when he gave that warning years ago.
Kerry said before the 2000 elections that Social Security would fail in the future. Even President Clinton in his administration said it! All of a sudden, during the election, though, Kerry changed his tune and denied it. Leading economists will still tell you today that as the baby boomers and more and more people come of age, the strain of more people taking out than paying in will eventually collapse Social Security!
Pay now or pay later! There are plans out there that involve a 'weening' off of Social Security without any of those receiving it or about to from being forced to take any cuts in benefits. It will cost money, though, only to save that money and the future of our elderly Americans. As long as people - politicians - continue to consider it to be the '3rd Rail' and fail to do anything about it, all they are doing is riding the hoss until its heart explodes! In another way, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. Politicians are willing to ride Social Security as is, maintaining a program that is not in the best interest of the American people yet provides them with Milliuons and millions of 'mad money, until it dies/dries up/collapses!
For anyone who thinks I am nuts and seeks to discredit me and/or defend social security I have 1 simple way you can shut me up and prove that social security is a great program: Step up and volunteer to do this --
You and I are going to go to a bank of YOUR choosing and open up a JOINT Checking account. The rules for this account are as follows:
1. YOU deposit a percentage of your paycheck into the account EVERY paycheck!
2. YOU do NOT get to touch any of the money until you are 65. If I decide that number should be higher, I'll let you know.
3. I get to dip into it anytime I need some extra cash....oh, and I don't have to pay it backl!
4. If you die for any reason, the cash all goes to me, NOT your family!
Sounds like a great plan, right?! Well, that is what you are doing RIGHT NOW!
On one last note - the truly scary thing is that your Social Security program is being managed by guys like THIS:
I was flipping through the channels one night, and I come accross Kerry on a talk show. He said that if he was king, he would make it where no one has to pay any taxes! You could make all you wanted and spend all you made; HOWEVER,
when you died, EVERYTHING WOULD GO STRAIGHT TO THE FEDERAL GOVERMENT! :screwy :wow: