http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/socialsecurity/ en-us Tue, 5 Jan 2010 21:30:03 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421678/posts Sources say the gunman is 66-year-old Johnny Lee Wicks. He was apparently angry about a reduction in his social security benefits when he stormed into the Lloyd George Federal Courthouse and opened fire.Wicks filed a lawsuit against the Social Security Administration in early 2008. In a handwritten complaint, he said discrimination had followed him from California to Nevada. Wicks wrote this about one California agent, "Doesn't try to hide the way he feels about black people so he reduced my benefits." Las Vegas Now http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2421678/posts#comment Tue, 5 Jan 2010 21:30:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413809/posts When the trustees of Social Security and Medicare recently reported on the economic outlook for these programs, the news coverage was universally glum. The recession had made everything worse. Social Security, Medicare face insolvency sooner, headlined The Wall Street Journal. Actually, these reports were good news. Better would have been Social Security, Medicare risk bankruptcy in 2010. It's increasingly obvious that Congress and the president (regardless of which party is in power) will deal with the political stink bomb of an aging society only if forced. And the most plausible means of compulsion would be for Social Security and Medicare... NEWSWEEK http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413809/posts#comment Wed, 23 Dec 2009 16:44:48 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2409258/posts Trust funds that support Medicare and Social Security have eroded due to the recession and will run out of money earlier than expected, government officials say. Medicare, the government health care program for seniors, is projected to run out of money in 2017, two years earlier than previously predicted, according to the 2009 annual report by program trustees. Social Security, the government assistance program for seniors and the disabled, is projected to become insolvent by 2037, four years earlier than trustees predicted a year ago. Denver Business Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2409258/posts#comment Thu, 17 Dec 2009 02:38:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404953/posts Martin Gross, Social Scientist and NY Times best-selling author, calls Obama, Congress, and mainstream media "masters of deceit" with no restraints and no conscience. "There is no responsible group in America taking care of the middle class." Gross reports what he was told when, on several occasions, he personally called the Bureau of Public Debt to question Obama's fuzzy accounting regarding the deficit. Video at site Newsmax http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404953/posts#comment Thu, 10 Dec 2009 23:17:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2403832/posts Data recently made public by the Social Security Administration confirm that in October, 2009, the program reached a grim milestone: six consecutive months of operating cash deficits. This is the first time Social Security has faced this situation over the entire time period, dating back through 1987, for which SSA posts the monthly data online. From May through October inclusive, Social Security’s outgoing payments have exceeded incoming program revenue, generated mostly by the payroll tax (with a smaller amount coming in via the taxation of benefits). When a cash-deficit situation develops during a period that the program is still technically... e21 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2403832/posts#comment Wed, 9 Dec 2009 17:38:08 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2403628/posts Congress has, in their beneficence, decided that there will be no cost of living raise in 2010 for social security recipients. Congress and the Senate on the other hand will receive a $4,700.00 cost of living allowance or whatever you want to call it in 2010. The really dastardly part of it is that they have it fixed so that it is automatic and they, claiming plausible deniability, can say I didn’t vote for it. A lot of people have been crying for relief from these parasites for a long time and the numbers are growing daily. This is just... Canada Free Press http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2403628/posts#comment Wed, 9 Dec 2009 13:23:45 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2403085/posts Tea Party Support and the Social Security Institute Tell GOP Senate: “Stop Putting Your Christmas Vacation Ahead of Our Country” Posted : Tue, 08 Dec 2009 18:14:19 GMT Tea Party Support ( http://teapartysupport.com ) and the Social Security Institute ( http://socialsecurityinstitute.com ) joined forces yesterday to blast out a million-and-a-half email messages asking people to demand that Republican Senators stop assisting Harry Reid to ram ObamaCare and the Reid health bill through the Senate by year’s end. The email campaign has generated more than 25,000 letters and emails to Capitol Hill so far. Tea Party Support President Matthew Perdue... earthtimes http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2403085/posts#comment Tue, 8 Dec 2009 19:48:59 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2403000/posts U.S. Social Security Will Go Bankrupt In 2010 Economics / US Debt Dec 08, 2009 - 03:16 AM By: Gary North For the third time in my life, the Social Security System will go belly-up. The first time was in 1977 – well, almost. To head off the bust, Jimmy Carter got Congress to pass a major FICA tax increase – sorry, "contribution" increase – in order to save Social Security. The rate would be hiked in phases from 2% to 6.15% (times two: employee and employer). He promised: "Now this legislation will guarantee that from 1980 to the year... The Market Oracle http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2403000/posts#comment Tue, 8 Dec 2009 18:18:57 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2396751/posts The Federal Government admits to over $12 Trillion dollars in debt. In reality, its obligations are multiples of that number. The unfunded promises from Social Security and Medicare total around $100 trillion. To properly fund the forecasted future deficits in Social Security and Medicare, $100 trillion would have to be put in the fund today. Without this infusion, this liability grows exponentially. Next year, for example, it will be $4 - 5 trillion higher! The Government has promised benefits that they cannot possibly honor. The total net worth of the entire country (the country's total assets less liabilities) is slightly... The American Thinker Blog http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2396751/posts#comment Mon, 30 Nov 2009 11:40:34 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2393812/posts The Congress of the United States of America is consigning you, your children, and your children's progeny to slavery. Maybe it's the Scottish strain in my DNA, but I've been concerned about the national debt since before it breached the $1 trillion mark. That was way back in 1982. So it's heartening to see folks finally getting concerned about this issue. Debt matters. From the installation of America's first government in 1789, it took 193 years to rack up that initial 13-digit debt. To put such an ungodly bar tab in context, here are some key debt benchmarks. Each benchmark... American Thinker http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2393812/posts#comment Tue, 24 Nov 2009 23:14:35 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2391252/posts Small Business Tax & Toil By: Larry Walker, Jr. I have been contemplating all the blood, sweat, and tears shed by Small Business owners like me. Having been in business for the past 9 years, I have come to the realization that: I am paying a hell of a lot in Taxes (and government mandated fees), and I am feeling mighty under appreciated. The Federal Government, under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, chose to give a Social Security tax cut, the Making Work Pay Credit, to workers making under $75,000 per year. That's all well and... Natural Born Conservative http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2391252/posts#comment Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:16:31 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2378659/posts All young Americans need to wake up and pay attention. You are being sold out by the federal government. Your future will be bleak indeed if you do not heed my warning. You are being sold down the river on so many fronts that I cannot list them all in this short article, but I will attempt to give you a small glimpse of what your future holds if you do not stand up. You need to get informed NOW. You need to speak up and let your voices be heard....or become a working slave to support the federal addiction... The Dallas Examiner http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2378659/posts#comment Wed, 4 Nov 2009 21:59:25 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2377153/posts Government Statistics And Lies Politics / Market Manipulation Nov 02, 2009 - 11:14 AM By: Dr_Ron_Paul There has been a lot of talk in Washington recently about senior citizens, mostly about how various healthcare reform models would help or hurt them. But there is another critical issue that has quietly devastated seniors financially over the last few decades. It concerns how the cost of living is calculated. How does the administration justify not giving a cost of living increase to Social Security recipients this year? According to the official Consumer Price Index calculation, life has gotten cheaper for the first... The Market Oracle http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2377153/posts#comment Tue, 3 Nov 2009 04:33:53 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-rlc/2376766/posts There has been a lot of talk in Washington recently about senior citizens, mostly about how various healthcare reform models would help or hurt them. But there is another critical issue that has quietly devastated seniors financially over the last few decades. It concerns how the cost of living is calculated. How does the administration justify not giving a cost of living increase to Social Security recipients this year? According to the official Consumer Price Index calculation, life has gotten cheaper for the first time in decades. If the government can show statistically that the cost of living has gone... U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, 14th District http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-rlc/2376766/posts#comment Mon, 2 Nov 2009 19:39:23 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2373245/posts The current debate over Social Security reform is reminiscent of the discussions that occurred in Galveston County, Texas, in 1980, when county workers were offered a retirement alternative to Social Security: At the time they reacted with keen interest and some knee-jerk fear of the unknown. But after 24 years, folks here can say unequivocally that when Galveston County pulled out of the Social Security system in 1981, we were on the road to providing our workers with a better deal than Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal. The Problem with Social Security. Social Security is a pay-as-you-go system under which taxes... NCPA http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2373245/posts#comment Wed, 28 Oct 2009 23:00:18 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2371267/posts Proving my contention that broken, ineffective, and bankrupt government programs leads to more broken, ineffective, and bankrupt government programs, the Treasury Department has reported that America faces a $43 trillion unfunded obligation in Social Security and Medicare benefits with 77 million retiring baby boomers and rising health care costs. THE FREEDOM POST http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2371267/posts#comment Mon, 26 Oct 2009 18:30:58 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2367378/posts As far as I can tell, the goal of the AARP — formerly known as the American Association of Retired Persons — is to enslave all those of working age. Once enslaved, workers will support retirees in the style to which the AARP feels they are entitled. This would be good for the AARP because its real business is selling products to older people by direct mail, and the more income older people have, the better it is for the AARP. Too bad about everyone else. universal press syndicaate http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2367378/posts#comment Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:16:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2366583/posts It's hard to instill confidence in the U.S. economy when Washington keeps finding new and creative ways to spend money it doesn't have. Take President Obama's proposal to send additional $250 checks to Social Security recipients - on top of the $250 checks they already received as part of the president's $787 billion economic stimulus package. Because seniors don't need a cost-of-living increase, the president wants to give them a bonus. Don't even try to follow the logic. You can't find it. Last week, the Obama administration said that for the first time since automatic Social Security cost-of-living increases were... San Francisco Chronicle http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2366583/posts#comment Tue, 20 Oct 2009 14:49:31 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2365126/posts On August 24, 2009 I wrote a commentary titled, "COLA Freeze for Social Security Recipients: Part of an Obama Ruse to Keep Senior Voting Bloc?". I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so. Barack Obama has proposed Congress approve a one-time $250 payment to seniors and handicapped ... RFFM.org http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2365126/posts#comment Sun, 18 Oct 2009 15:00:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2363050/posts You. Have. Got. To. Be. Kidding. Me: President Obama on Wednesday attempted to preempt the announcement that Social Security recipients will not get an increase in their benefit checks for the first time in three decades, encouraging Congress to provide a one-time payment of $250 to help seniors and disabled Americans weather the recession. “One-time payment” my foot. Reminder: There is no such thing as a temporary government entitlement. Obama endorsed the idea, which is expected to cost at least $13 billion, as the administration gropes for ways to sustain an apparent economic rebound without the kind of massive spending... michellemalkin.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2363050/posts#comment Thu, 15 Oct 2009 14:39:15 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2362991/posts WASHINGTON – The Social Security Administration makes it official Thursday: There will be no cost of living increase for Social Security recipients next year, the first year without one since automatic adjustments were adopted in 1975. The announcement comes as President Barack Obama and key members of Congress call for a second round of $250 payments to more than 50 million seniors, veterans, retired railroad workers and people with disabilities. The payments would be equal to about a 2 percent increase for the average Social Security recipient. The cost: $13 billion. Obama called on Congress Wednesday to approve the payments,... CaribbeanBusinessPR.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2362991/posts#comment Thu, 15 Oct 2009 13:18:17 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2354919/posts If you watch C-Span for a while, you’re sure to hear a politician or pundit criticizing some idea by comparing it to “rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.” It’s a vivid illustration of the short-sightedness and futility of so much of what Washington does superficially to improve failed programs. In Washington today, however, we are witnessing an unprecedented extension of the Titanic analogy: Both parties and both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue are focused on rearranging our deck chairs while there is still time to steer around the iceberg, if only someone would grab the wheel... THE FREEDOM POST http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2354919/posts#comment Mon, 5 Oct 2009 01:48:31 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2354145/posts The government option? Government controlled co-op? Beware of fluffy, cutsie-pie nice sounding 1,500 page bill amendments attached in the dead of night. Government sucess stories: Social Security Medicare Medicaid The Veterans Administration Above are four government run healthcare systems well run, well administered and loved by doctors and hospitals. After four successes like the ones listed above, let’s let them have government take over one more program and control all private doctors and private insurance. After all, they’ll base the new system on their previous successes. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2354145/posts#comment Sat, 3 Oct 2009 15:47:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2352690/posts A pensioner from western Sweden may have received the smallest benefit payment ever paid out by the country’s social insurance agency (Försäkringskassan). Ängelholm resident Gunnel Johansson receives a whopping 50 öre (7 cents) every month in support payments for low-income seniors (äldreförsörjningsstöd), the Helsingborgs Dagblad (HD) newspaper reports. According to a description on the agency’s website, the payments are meant to guarantee the elderly “a reasonable standard of living even if you have a low pension or no pension at all”. The payment is so small that Försäkringskassan has taken the unusual step of paying Johansson every other month. She... www.thelocal.se http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2352690/posts#comment Thu, 1 Oct 2009 18:34:44 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2352181/posts No, what I am writing now is not satire, but a report I saw two days ago – which is still relevant as long you don’t have your own retirement account – was indeed funny. The AP report of Monday September 27, reads as follows: “Big job losses and a spike in early retirement claims from laid-off seniors will force Social Security to pay out more in benefits than it collects in taxes the next two years… The deficits — $10 billion in 2010 and $9 billion in 2011 — won’t affect payments to retirees because Social Security has accumulated... yossigestetner.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2352181/posts#comment Thu, 1 Oct 2009 03:04:41 GMT