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| Senior citizens mall walking, courtesy of freerepublic.com |
In her article on Obama’s proposed budget for 2011, Jackie Calmes at the NY Times falls in line with a majority of her ignorant colleagues who repeatedly use the derogatory term “entitlement” to describe programs that benefit America’s seniors and the disabled.
So too, Calmes appears to be oblivious to the fact that Social Security is not a part of the federal budget; it is a self-sustaining program funded by high payroll taxes on Americans throughout their working years. Furthermore, hefty Medicare premiums are deducted from the monthly Social Security checks of even low income retirees.
In addition to the above, Calmes also seems unaware that the government has raided the Social Security trust fund, supposedly in a "lock box," to support its two costly wars and avoid taxing the wealthy and closing the loopholes for large corporations.
Typically, such spending has grown faster than inflation, but not nearly as fast as that for much bigger items whose costs are driving projections of a dangerously mounting debt — the military, the entitlement programs Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, and interest on that debt.
Again, I urge seniors to mobilize and sue the United States government for violating the law and robbing the Social Security trust fund of its revenue drawn from the paychecks of American workers.
I am soon 71 years old and paid from every dollar I ever earned into the payroll tax Social Security box. Through my life time of $46.00 a week until my retirement at 65, I heard the tale of federal politicians raiding and so-called never payback borrowing from the so-called lock box of Soc Sec, this removed from me all trust of party agenda politics. I have heard that even though politicians forced people on to the government health plan called Medicare in 1966, if the lock box had been truthfully locked from party agendas and so-called intitlements to obtain low income votes that the Social Security funds would have a multi trillion dollar surplus. I was considered mid to low income most of my life and I never excepted a free buck from any level of government.When I was without a job I refused a freeby check, I did meanial work part time and searched for a new perminent job in free hours until I convinced someone of my high standard of work quality. My last perminent job lasted 40 years. I was always 30 minutes early to work, not sitting waiting for the clock but busy getting prepared for my work for the day. The paycheck was of great value to me, but my quality of work was just as valuable to me. My wife and I paid our tithe and saved what we could faithfully and God blessed it and we built our 2600 sq new home for cash and retired debt free. My 40 year retirement income is less than Social Security but we are surviving because no debt, but knowing healthcare could wipe us out. Biggest thought is the small savings equal to a years wages we have left is worth no more than an American dollar. I once heard what the chemical worth of a human body is worth, today more than a American dollar. If not for tears that would be laughable. J Tom Smith. Wooster, AR.
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