AARP slammed for not fighting Social Security cuts

AARP, the powerful lobby for older Americans, was hammered Friday by fellow activists for refusing to oppose any and all cuts to Social Security benefits, a position the group says it has long held as a way to extend the life of the massive retirement and disability program.

The group, which has 37 million Americans as members, adamantly opposes cutting Social Security benefits to help reduce the federal budget deficit, said David Certner, the organization’s director of legislative policy. But for years AARP has acknowledged that cuts to future benefits may be necessary to improve the program’s finances, he said.

“Our policy for decades has always been that we basically support a package that would include revenue enhancements and benefit adjustments to get Social Security to long-term solvency,” Certner said. “That has been our policy stated over and over again for, I mean, literally it has to be two decades, now.”

Link

Finally, slight signs of fiscal sanity. Entitlement programs must be cutback(if not eliminated) or we can never get back in the black. Our children and theirs will be doomed to a sea of red ink. I honestly don't understand how seniors can look themselves in the mirror knowing what they are doing to their grand and greatgrand children. Now, before the liberals get started, I am in full agreement with ending foreign and corporate aid programs. I am all for closing most, if not all, foreign bases. I am in full support with ending all of the wars. BUT entitlement programs need to be cut also.

You're kidding, right?
Obviously haven't lived yet to see your senior years.
Its now okay to steal from our seniors?
We can give billions to corporations who seem to squander it and lavish their execs, but we'll cut funding to senior citizens ?

I think this issue is really about priorities. Yes, we need to stop all the wars, corporate and foreign aid, and wasteful spending in general.....but I think we have a moral obligation to take care of those in need, including the elderly.

It's not an issue about whether we can afford it. If we cut wasteful spending, wars etc, we could easily afford to help our older generations without a second glance at the final cost.

This entire argument in my opinion about taking away welfare from the young and SS for the old simply shows that those of us in the middle are willing to say: "I've got mine, so screw everyone else."

So I respectfully disagree and maintain the stance that this is just one step further down the road to more violations against basic human rights and needs. We need to realize that it's not always about ourselves.

AARP is a sham.

They didn't fight ObamaCare either... as they were promised a big part of the pie.

Nothing more but an elder Liberal agenda pusher.

Originally posted by sheepslayer247
I think this issue is really about priorities. Yes, we need to stop all the wars, corporate and foreign aid, and wasteful spending in general.....but I think we have a moral obligation to take care of those in need, including the elderly.

I agree with this statement. WE need to take care of those in need, no the government.

WE have abdicated all responsibility, from raising our children, the handicapped, the elderly, to the government.

WE need to start taking care of our own. Not passing the buck, passing the blame, passing the responsibility.

reply to post by sonofliberty1776


what backstabbers...

i used to be a member... one of the 47 million subscribers... back when it was $12 year membership

see whats new:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
How to Join AARP
It's Easy
Anyone 50 or over can get all the great benefits of membership in AARP for only $16 a year.

assets.aarp.org... QJOIN




yeah... just like fat cats... they increase their fee to $16. yr from $12 yr but they think that they are now
entitled' to get the increased rates from many Social Security recipients that have had their COLAs trashcanned for the last 2 years.... (some of the Bush+Obama 'Austerity' measures foisted on the elderly & disabled with only a feeble Lobby voice with ARP..... they sit back & think ...'i got mine,
let them eat cake' )


lets see 47 million times $16.00....i say they too are self appointed aristocracy that need to visit the guillotine



as for senior 'entitlement' what BS... the SS system is , or rather is a self fiunding program...
there is something like $2 Trillion in IOUs that the Congress & General Fund has 'borrowed' from the SSA...

now ... with the job force seemingly downsized forever, (so the corporations/financiers can siphon the excess prices for products in the form of profits that is distributed among the upper level execuitives)...
the revenue stream of a full workforce economy has been derailed by the globalists...
for the reason(s) opined above


thank you

reply to post by sonofliberty1776


"I honestly don't understand how seniors can look themselves in the mirror knowing what they are doing to their grand and greatgrand children."

I give you credit for writing something that has the impact of a slap upside the head, one does not encounter that very often.

Idiot that I am, I think those who contribute should reap what the sowed. Pay in, pay out. Perhaps that would balance the scales a little. Since I was a teen (whew! a long time ago) I've heard about SS money being given to immigrants that never donated a dollar. My eldest sisters first husband, their family came from Yugoslavia many years ago. The grandfather was here a short time and his friends had guided him through the system. He collected $$$ from SS until he passed away. Never contributed a cent.

Mismanagement of this country and its programs courtesy of the Washington DC Clown Car Brigade is the problem. As usual.

As far as grand-children, who's kidding who? Retirement is a fleeting thing of the past. Most wageslaves are going to have to work to the day they are either dead or simply unable, and may God help them if that should happen.

The quicker the politicians in DC have their heads severed and mounted atop tall poles the quicker we can try to mend what little is left of America.

Originally posted by LargeFries
reply to post by sonofliberty1776

 

"I honestly don't understand how seniors can look themselves in the mirror knowing what they are doing to their grand and greatgrand children."

I give you credit for writing something that has the impact of a slap upside the head, one does not encounter that very often.

Sometimes a rude wake up call is the only way to get someone's attention.

Idiot that I am, I think those who contribute should reap what the sowed. Pay in, pay out. Perhaps that would balance the scales a little.

Sorry, but SS does not work that way. SS is a ponzi scheme. What you pay now supports someone else. Like most ponzi schemes, we have a problem now because we have too few new payers into the system. This is why all ponzi schemes are illegal and considered fraud. Yet, because it is government run, SS is a ponzi that is supposed to work. I am sorry, but like kings of old trying to control incoming tides, certain things cannot be controlled by humans. Ponzi schemes ALWAYS fail.

Since I was a teen (whew! a long time ago) I've heard about SS money being given to immigrants that never donated a dollar. My eldest sisters first husband, their family came from Yugoslavia many years ago. The grandfather was here a short time and his friends had guided him through the system. He collected $$$ from SS until he passed away. Never contributed a cent.

That is an entirely different thread.

Mismanagement of this country and its programs courtesy of the Washington DC Clown Car Brigade is the problem. As usual.

Agreed, but yet another different thread. My whole problem with this system is that it is government run. The government should not be involved in anything like this, it is beyond the scope of their responsibilities imo.

As far as grand-children, who's kidding who? Retirement is a fleeting thing of the past. Most wageslaves are going to have to work to the day they are either dead or simply unable, and may God help them if that should happen.

Again, yet another entire thread. I blame the disintegration of the family. Family, church and community should be handling this issue imo, not government.

The quicker the politicians in DC have their heads severed and mounted atop tall poles the quicker we can try to mend what little is left of America.

Yet another entire thread. I will not disagree with you though.

reply to post by sonofliberty1776


Horse Manure, We as American Citizens have PAID into this system for decades with no opt out option.
This has been a good ,and can still be a fantastic system .
The TRUTH is that both parties alike have dipped their hand in the cookie jar for years. Instead of the
interest due The Citizens of The United States of America, and the generations to follow, they have left
a bunch of worthless I.O.U. reciepts. Now , like a bunch of foreign traitors, they are trying to welch on
their debt. What astounds me, is that some of you want to bend over and take it.

This is an excellent thread, I will be back to debate any subversiveness and subterfuge.
Personally I have put over $100,000 into this system over time. With coumpound interest, that is
a substantial amount of hard earned dollars. Now, they want to incrementally increase the retirement age
so that I will DIE before they have to pay me what I have earned. That is a form of taxation without representation.
Furthermore, I have family members who have fought ,were wounded, and some died in The Civil War, The Spanish War, World War 1, World War 2, The Korean War, Vietnam, Iraq 1, Iraq 2, and more so that I and YOU can be proud of our freedoms as American Citizens.

So lets get this straight, Congress gets the best healthcare,pension,raises, and other benefits that money can
buy at American Citizen Taxpayer expense, but they want to raise the bar on The American Citizens so that
you will DIE before you can claim what is not only rightfully yours, but what you have paid into all your working
lives without recourse. So that is what they swore an oath to?

clerk.house.gov...

www.senate.gov...

So Help Me God

It's great to see the new generation, those who know nothing before Reagan, take the helm.

Everything is a God D ponzie scheme.

INSURANCE IS A PONZIE SCHEME. Where is your endless attack on insurance?

I can't believe that many of you HAVE THE NERVE to state this kind of garbage each day when the wealthiest of this country is hoarding all the money.

They don't want to pay any of the deficits, they just want average americans to foot the bill for THEIR MISTAKES.

Some of you need to start questioning your line of thinking.

The wealthy will end up not paying for our wars...WE WILL. The wealthy will end up not paying for their tax breaks...but WE WILL.

reply to post by LargeFries


Hey large fries,,, your kidding right?

Before you ask me if I would like cheese with that, why don't you do some research on the

"Appropriations Commitee" ,Social Security borrowing,and the like.

Don't do it for me, do it for yourself and your living ancestors who have paid a chunk of every paycheck

for their whole lives into this. Why don't you calculate the compound interest at lets say a conservative

4% just for argument. By the way, if you become disabled or a parapalegic tomorrow, without this system,
whose gonna pay for your Corn Flakes for breakfast? S A V V Y ?

Originally posted by David9176
It's great to see the new generation, those who know nothing before Reagan, take the helm.

Everything is a God D ponzie scheme.

INSURANCE IS A PONZIE SCHEME. Where is your endless attack on insurance?

LOL. I HATE insurance, especially automobile insurance which is just licensed extortion imo. HOWEVER, with insurance I can opt out(except the gott verdamt car insurance). I can choose my own path. SS gives me no such option.

I can't believe that many of you HAVE THE NERVE to state this kind of garbage each day when the wealthiest of this country is hoarding all the money.

What does that have to do with this? Not saying it is not an issue, but I do not see what it has to do with the topic at hand?

They don't want to pay any of the deficits, they just want average americans to foot the bill for THEIR MISTAKES.

Agreed. So what are YOU doing about it?

Some of you need to start questioning your line of thinking.

The wealthy will end up not paying for our wars...WE WILL. The wealthy will end up not paying for their tax breaks...but WE WILL.

Agreed. So what are YOU doing about it?

I would gladly pay more taxes to take care of this nations elderly. Instead of enriching the war machine and the contractors in blood that profit from death.

costofwar.com...

Attacking the elderly and their efforts, and contributions to this country is treason and should be treated as such.

reply to post by David9176


Hey Robin Hood, I hear you. I guess your good friar and little john are too busy eating microwave
burritos and dancing with the stars.

What a shame. Well when the juice goes out, be sure to lock the door on those maggots.

reply to post by Wildmanimal


Social Security needs to be means tested, period. Sorry that someone has paid into it their entire lives, but if they are well off and afford a quality lifestyle at some predetermined level, say 3x the poverty level than they should not receive SS. Yes folks paid into the system and yes they are getting something out of it. What they are getting out of it is a system that will ensure that those who can not afford to retire in a reasonable fashion are not living on the streets or in tent cities.

Why should someone who has benefited from the liberty of this society and is now 65 with a couple of homes and a few million in investment assets be receiving an entitlement? Means test it at $1M of net worth, but means test it. Do we really need to be sending Clint Eastwood a check each month? How about Sandy Weil who for decades the king of Wall Street and worth close to if not more than $1bn? Should we be sending him a check each month?

On to the bankers. OK, lets take the model of if you paid in you take out. Lets take Dick Fuld who ran Lehman Brothers into the ground and in the process collected some $400M in compensation. Regardless of whether or not you want to put him in jail, when he gets out you want to send him an entitlement.

My father is in his eightys. He served in the military and then worked for the government for 30 years and has a nice pension. He takes his social security check each month and sticks it in the bank and gives a lot of it to charity. He does not need it and will tell you he does not need it. What he'll tell you is that he needed it until he found out that he did not need it, in other words got to a retirement age and did the math.

The elderly lobby needs to get reasonable about reforming these programs. If you have never paid in you should get nothing, period and if you have a networth over a certain amount (with the exclusion of your primary residence) but including all other real estate assets, you should not receive a benefit either.

The same should be the case with Medicare

Originally posted by ItsEvolutionBaby
You're kidding, right?
Obviously haven't lived yet to see your senior years.
Its now okay to steal from our seniors?

I overlooked this post the first time around, sorry about that.

I am in my mid 40s. I am staring down the barrel and I see a bleak future for all of us. I seriously doubt that I will ever be able to "retire". SS is bankrupt. Face it, accept it and get past it. We cannot fix the past. We can still change the future. Right now, the nation's coffers are empty. Changes must be made. Sacrifices must be made. Entitlement programs need to be cut, or ended.
I am not stealing from seniors. That has already been done by your beloved politicians. The money is gone. Worthless Tbills are all that remain. Accept it and move on. We have to start from where we are now.

We can give billions to corporations who seem to squander it and lavish their execs, but we'll cut funding to senior citizens ?

Did you read my opening post? I already agreed that that needs to be cut and done away with. I completely oppose all those bailouts and corporate welfare among many other things.

Listen to you guys, as you fight each other, and the rich boys are laughing at you!

The old method of divide and conquer is playing out before our eyes as we bicker amongst each other FOR THE SCRAPS THAT THEY LET US HAVE!

Cut the meager social security and Medicare payments and the scraps and crumbs the rich through down to us, as we fight like cats and dogs for those scraps, and some here have the unmitigated gall to advocate that THEY CUT THE SCRAPS the give us!

YOU PEOPLE MAKE ME SICK!!!!!!!!!!!!!

People are already living like dogs and you want to cut them, as the rich banksters go around like Kings AND WE HARDLY CAN EAT AND PEOPLE WANT TO CUT THAT!

They are paying CEO’S 10 20 30 million A YEAR. Do you think they deserve that?
They are raising the defense budget BUT WANT TO STARVE CHILDREN AND OLD PEOPLE!
You think that’s right!

WAKE THE HELL UP!

Originally posted by whaaa
I would gladly pay more taxes to take care of this nations elderly. Instead of enriching the war machine and the contractors in blood that profit from death.

costofwar.com...

Attacking the elderly and their efforts, and contributions to this country is treason and should be treated as such.

That is your option, are you sending Uncle Sam that money by check or money order? I oppose entitlement programs as they are beyond the purview of the federal governments powers which are enumerated in the Constitution. I also oppose socialism in general, and I know that you think my belief in personal freedom/responsibility makes me an evil person. If you want to give your money, do it. Just don't "volunteer me" to hand over my money to a corrupt government for socialistic redistribution.

reply to post by dolphinfan


That is some level headed thinking Dolphin. I think that this method may be an integral part of not only
saving the Social Security System, but for Americans to collectively agree what it was actually created
for. Which was not to be a supplementary ,additional income plan, or retirement plan,but a fail safe net.

It was put into place to prevent any American Citizen from falling into the cracks of destitution.

I truly believe that was the failure of the new (Obama Care Health Plan) or maybe not? I do not even
know what's in the package, and neither did Congress when they voted on it.
But the retraction of "The Government Option" really is troublesome. But that is a whole different topic .
Your ideas are valid, but where do you draw the line on the income cut off point? 100k for individuals,etc.?

Back to my point though, who is to say the full retirement age of 67 is not reasonable?
What if one was to develope terminal illness at 66, but could not access benefits until they are 70?
Or 75 for that matter, hell next thing you know it will be 82. My point is this, and this is the fundamental,
Social Security should not be an issue in The United States of America. The Compound interest alone should
be over and above the liabilities in the magnatude of TRILLIONS. Yet it has been raided, and filled with I.O.U.'s
So again, I repeat, they want to Welch on their debt to The American Citizens and raise the retirement age.
Why don't we just vote to take away Congresses Heath Care Plan, Raise their Retirement Age to 70, and
seize their pension plan until they are Hmmm lets say 75. How about those apples. Oh Yeah, no Dental plan,
Eyecare, Depends,or Viagra either. Don't even think about the 400.00 haircuts or condoms expenses either.
See how this works?

reply to post by Wildmanimal

Why don't we just vote to take away Congresses Heath Care Plan, Raise their Retirement Age to 70, and seize their pension plan until they are Hmmm lets say 75. How about those apples. Oh Yeah, no Dental plan, Eyecare, Depends,or Viagra either. Don't even think about the 400.00 haircuts or condoms expenses either.

I have a better plan. How about they provide their own insurance(not taxpayer funded), and they get paid the average wage for their state(senators) or their districts(representatives). This will help them empathize with their constituents and understand the issues that concern them. It would make them better representatives of the "people".