“Either tax rates rise or generosity falls”
I vote for falling generosity.
Nothing wrong with generosity.
So long as it remains an individual, voluntary, personal initiative.
Good luck on that one. We have 10,000 people retiring every day until 2030. We are an ageing society. Medicare and SS will consume more and more of the federal budget. 40% of all Medicare expenditures come from the General Fund.
In 1950 there were 16 workers for every retiree; today it is less than 3; and by 2030 there will be two workers for every retiree. Medicare has been running in the red since 2008 and SS since 2010. These are both pay as you go programs with today's workers paying for today's retirees.
I can imagine civil unrest if the politicians decided to cut entitlement benefits or such programs as Medicaid (80 million recipients) or food stamps (47 million). The Dems are promising free college, Medicare for all, and a $15 per hour minimum wage. Entitlements and other mandatories plus our debt servicing costs account for two thirds of the federal budget now. And those numbers will grow as our population ages. We are in deep sh*t.