Social Security Debacle

[nissangirl74]

It is no secret that the nation's retirement fund is in peril. In 2016 Social Security will start paying out more than it is bringing in. By 2037, the funds will be exhausted. **How ironic is it that I will turn 63 in 2037?**

This January, Social Security recipients will NOT receive a cost of living raise, the first time that has happened since 1975. Critics say this is justifiable because recipients received a 5.8 percent increase in January, energy costs are down, and consumer costs are down. (Avg. payout is $1153 per month.) Are we supposed to ignore the fact that health care costs are rising, prescription costs are rising, and the number of people on Social Security with exceptional medical needs is rising? With over 50 million people collecting Social Security at the moment, I don't see how we can in good conscience turn a blind eye.

Andrew Biggs, a resident scholar at a Washington think tank, made the following comment..."Congress has to be able to tell people they are not getting everything they want." I don't think members of Congress would have a hard time doing that. I would, however, like to see them justify the fact that they gave themselves each an annual increase of $93,000 in petty cash. ($93K x 535 members=$49,775,000!) That's over 6 years worth of average social securities earnings allocated in one year. Anyone want to help me count the ways that money could be better spent?

http://ktar.com/index.php?nid=519&sid=1202678

[audtatious]

Anyone who is NOT investing and saving for their future retirement is stupid. Too many people lead life by spending what they have as they feel comfortable thinking the Gov is going to support them after retirement. Having no cap on SS (you can't get out more than you pay in) is a major issue as is the Gov spending the money on other initiatives.

[nissangirl74]

I was headed down the same road. When I quit my job and moved to AZ, I was able to get mine out, thank goodness. My rate of return for 2008 was -27.3%!!

[WDRacing]

The cost of inflation is going to increase drastically here very soon especially if the Cap and Trade BS goes through in full swing. Not only will these people not receive a COLA increase, but they'll be paying more in utility bills and at the grocery store.

Awesomeness at it's best. Lets raise taxes and give everyone free health care and ignore the people that stormed the beaches of Normandy. Makes me sick...

No wonder the older folks don't trust UH. They're already getting bent over by the millions.

[smockers83]

The inflation gauge for SS is the CPI. If that doesn't go up, there's no raise. Now, prescriptions may be getting more expensive, however those are the newest and best ones, usually. There are generics out there that are just as great that cost significantly less. You can generics, for what, $4 at Wal-mart now? That brings down the inflation on prescriptions significantly.

SS really isn't a major problem. It's not the inflows that are the problem, it's the control of outflows. The biggest problems are Medicare.

Plus, health care costs aren't "covered" by SS, so health care costs really don't play a factor at all in determining how much to raise SS.

In reality, we have seen deflation in some areas such as energy prices compared to 2008.

If you try and play the market and time it by pulling and putting your money back in, you're going to be far worse off than just leaving it in there. Don't try to time the market without expert advice, you'll only make your financial situation worse. The stock market, in many people's eyes, works exactly the opposite any other market does. If stocks go down, people want to sell sell sell. If prices go down on 72" plasmas, people want to buy buy buy. You really should have been investing more or just reallocating funds to propel your portfolio during the recovery.