Our live's are about to change.

[Rainman48314]

calm down

Jocko

Neither YOU or ANYONE paid into SSI (Supplemental Security Income). We all paid FICA, most of which goes for Social Security Benefits. These are TWO separate programs. I posted a complete summary in post #43. Hope you feel better now.

[jocko]

sorry about that. Most people do call it social securtiy, should I feel better now??? I was talking about retirement benefits that most pay into ..

[Willieboy]

You should feel better Jocko. If you paid into Social Security for at least forty quarters, you are entitled to receive benefits, and it is not welfare.

[ltxi]

I knew what you meant. It was the SSI acronym that tripped everyone up.

As to your friend's whining about no COLA for two years...I suspect there was no complaint about the "accidental" 5.8% increase three years ago as well as not noticing that the cost of living as COLA defined has been flat or decreased for the past two years. Also, as required by law the base Medicare premiums couldn't increase despite the rise in healthcare costs. Don't suppose he noticed that, either.

[jocko]

how about 40 years.. my wife is still working and paying. I have since corrected my error of SSI to SS. hope that helps alittle to those whou coldnt see where I was coming from.sorry about that..

[jocko]

u never rmention the things that u don't want people to hear. I guess I can't say he is a whiner, but he brings it up alot mostly in a joking manner. Hell I didn't notice what u just posted either. I accept what I get and be thankful there is some left for me to get...

[aray]

If you paid into Social Security for at least forty quarters, you are entitled to receive benefits, and it is not welfare.

Well ... it depends upon your definition of "welfare".

Most Social Security recipients get back far more in payments than they sent in in taxes. So by that definition you could call it welfare.

Ah, some say, but the money was invested, and we're just getting the interest. Sadly, no it wasn't. It is a direct payout program.

Making it worse, there isn't even really a Social Security Trust Fund. The Feds "stole" it all to fund the general budget. All SS really consists of is one big IOU.

And last, but certainly not least, the way it is structured is exactly like one big Ponzi scheme. It is mathematically guaranteed to fail. The Feds can and/or have pushed off the failure date several times, by: raising taxes, bringing in new workers previously exempt, raising the retirement age, etc. But doomed it is.

If IBM, or Ford, or any company ran their pension schemes the way the Federal Government runs Social Security, the CFO would be thrown into jail. It would be illegal. And rightly so.

[jocko]

i guess u can quarter up a pie anyway u want and call it what u want,,, but it is still a pie

My son who is 23 pays into it and no doubt he has a good chance of never seeing it when he retires and probably it wil lbe at age 68+ to. and ur basicalay right, it is a big Ponzi scheme only the government is Madoff..

[Tilos]

Rainman:
I'll defer to the politicians on what means testing is today, however it may "mean" something else in the future, as it's a moving target.

Just some more double speak to make more people ineligable for SS.
They are always looking for a way to tweek Roth IRAs and squeeze some taxes out of them, it's only a matter of time.
YMMV, Tilos

[O'Dell]

+1 to Willieboy
And the almost 45% of americans that pay NO income tax will be supporting/voting for the "tax the evil rich" party.
Tilos

The latest government figures indicate that the % has topped 50%. Let's hope that they are as unmotivated to vote as they are to work.

[O'Dell]

Well ... it depends upon your definition of "welfare".

Most Social Security recipients get back far more in payments than they sent in in taxes. So by that definition you could call it welfare.

Ah, some say, but the money was invested, and we're just getting the interest. Sadly, no it wasn't. It is a direct payout program.

Making it worse, there isn't even really a Social Security Trust Fund. The Feds "stole" it all to fund the general budget. All SS really consists of is one big IOU.

And last, but certainly not least, the way it is structured is exactly like one big Ponzi scheme. It is mathematically guaranteed to fail. The Feds can and/or have pushed off the failure date several times, by: raising taxes, bringing in new workers previously exempt, raising the retirement age, etc. But doomed it is.

If IBM, or Ford, or any company ran their pension schemes the way the Federal Government runs Social Security, the CFO would be thrown into jail. It would be illegal. And rightly so.

Unfortunate, but true. The SS System would be illegal in all fifty states if attempted by a private fund. But let's look at it from another angle. I have been paying into the "fund" since I was about 16. If all that money had been invested in an index fund, I would be a millionaire several times over.

[O'Dell]

That ticket won't win it. There has to be something better.

Romney/Bachman ?

I would love the ticket, but Newt is too easy to demagogue. Cain on the other hand is clean as a whistle. The only thing he doesn't have right now is name recognition. But think back, how many people knew of Obama 18 months before the election in 2008. He was a newly elected junior Senator that never really did anything but get elected, and even that was under a big cloud.

I think we need to see what happens in the early primaries. Cain could easily do well and get the recognition he needs. I also don't think we've heard the last of Huckabee either.

BTW, Newt is suppose to announce this Wednesday, and officially be the first Republican to throw his hat in the ring.

[Rainman48314]

sorry about that. Most people do call it social securtiy, should I feel better now??? I was talking about retirement benefits that most pay into ..

Yes, you should feel better because I believe you will collect Social Security and if you live a number of years into retirement, you will get back all your deposits, your employers deposits and a couple of extra bucks. May you never need SSI, it would mean living on very little money. For people on it, its usually their sole source of income.

I hope you aren't offended by my correction, but its hard to have a discussion if we confuse VASTLY different programs. Kinda like when Medicaid and Medicare get confused...or Kahr and car.

If I get ambitious, I just might calculate how long I need to live past 65 to get back the $99,000 I paid into SS, and of course, the $99,000 my various Employers paid in as well. Those are figures from the last annual statement I got from the SS Admin.

[Rainman48314]

Looking ahead

I would love the ticket, but Newt is too easy to demagogue. Cain on the other hand is clean as a whistle. The only thing he doesn't have right now is name recognition. But think back, how many people knew of Obama 18 months before the election in 2008. He was a newly elected junior Senator that never really did anything but get elected, and even that was under a big cloud.

I think we need to see what happens in the early primaries. Cain could easily do well and get the recognition he needs. I also don't think we've heard the last of Huckabee either.

BTW, Newt is suppose to announce this Wednesday, and officially be the first Republican to throw his hat in the ring.

I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm actually looking forward to the Primaries. Not only does the GOP need to come up with a good and electable candidate, someone has to give that candidate about $1B to campaign on a level field with Obama.

[Rainman48314]

Did the math

Yes, you should feel better because I believe you will collect Social Security and if you live a number of years into retirement, you will get back all your deposits, your employers deposits and a couple of extra bucks. May you never need SSI, it would mean living on very little money. For people on it, its usually their sole source of income.

I hope you aren't offended by my correction, but its hard to have a discussion if we confuse VASTLY different programs. Kinda like when Medicaid and Medicare get confused...or Kahr and car.

If I get ambitious, I just might calculate how long I need to live past 65 to get back the $99,000 I paid into SS, and of course, the $99,000 my various Employers paid in as well. Those are figures from the last annual statement I got from the SS Admin.

I'm 61 now, by age 62 I will have $100,000 plus Employer match of $100,000 into the SS Retirement system. I would collect $1697 per month from Age 62 to death. To recoup "my" $200,000, I need to live 9.82 years (or 71), thereafter, with male life expectancy of under 79, I am hypothetically using investment earnings for another 8 years. This also leaves out any COLA adjustments from 62-79. Your thoughts?