The problem is that social security was supposed to function like an annuity. It wasn’t a handout and wasn’t meant as welfare. It was supposed to function like an investment that you paid into. Unfortunately, Congress spent the money that was to have sustained the coffers of the annuity, and now we’re going bankrupt.
It’s a bit like investing in Enron or another rotten corporation, only there’s no choice, no diversifying of investments, and no real oversight over the federal government.
That's how it's been sold to us over the decades but the fact is that it's never been structured like an annuity. From the beginning, Peter payed for Paul's retirement.
“...It’s a bit like investing in Enron or another rotten corporation,..”
OMG!
I worked for Portland General Company, bought by Enron. They changed out all the stocks in our employee 401Ks to Enron stock. When Enron went bankrupt, employees lost their pensions. One poor soul lost over a millions dollars just before he was due to retire.
Your comments took my breath away.
That's a part of the big lie.
Social security was never intended to function like an annuity. It was a welfare scheme when it was instituted, and it is a welfare scheme today. The taxes that you pay that supposedly for 'social security' are just another tax levied by the national feral government. I laugh when people talk about getting anything "back out" of social security, like the money paid in was any different than the taxes that have paid all the other types of welfare over the years.