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Subject: Does the AARP hate America?
Nanheyangrouchuan    6/15/2011 1:16:00 PM
How can our legislators whittle down the entitlemens (not eliminate) and survive the electoral wrath of that most dreaded and greedy generation, the boomers?
 
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buzzard       6/16/2011 8:08:07 AM
While a lot of it is on the seniors being greedy, much of it is on politicians who have lied to them over the years on the nature of the programs in question. The blatant falsehood that Social Security (for example) is a form of retirement savings has been proffered since the program started, and politicians have always made that claim. However since its inception it has merely been a massive transfer program from the currently employed to the retired. Such a Ponzi scheme was destined to break eventually.
 
FDR(then, later, LBJ) sold the country a bill of goods, and we're stuck paying the cost now. He (they), of course is long dead and lauded for being a great president at this point. What a sorry sham.  In some ways I do hope the economy goes bust as a result of these two horrific programs, and then finally both FDR and LBJ will be seen for the unscrupulous con artists that they were.
 
 I understand the perspective of said seniors. They were scammed repeatedly and told they were 'investing' in their retirement. All the talk about a 'Social Security Lockbox' merely re-enforced that. Of course to top it all off you have current Democrats playing politics and using more lies to score points so they can try and get re-elected. They are pissing away the future to try and grab power in the now.
 
 If someone in power is telling you you don't have to give anything up, and all will be well, and then the MSM backs them up, what do you expect? Unless the Democrats show a shred of responsibility and own up to the fact that entitlements on the current course will break us, and no amount of taxation can change that, we are going to hit that iceberg.
 
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Nanheyangrouchuan       6/22/2011 6:06:50 PM
Social Security was intended to relieve the burden on low income families and local governments in supporting old people.  The poor houses could be very unpleasant depending on local conditions.  And SS has been proven to allow families to spend more on themselves, leading to economic expansion.
 
That being said, what was intended as basic subsistence for low income elderly turned into extra income for all retired people and was not pegged to inflation but the demands of elderly voters and later the AARP.  We all know how desperately old people need their luxury land yachts and sun belt getaways.  Medicare was also started under good intentions but now anyone can qualify for it.
 
And many a Republican president has shown little if any desire to cut back these programs.
 
These programs could be kept viable just by pegging the growth rate to inflation, cutting people off after a certain income and restricting eligibility to those who are actually retired.
 
 
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