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Originally Posted by Warf Rat
THE INESCAPABLE POLITICAL TRUTH
Beginning sometime around 2008, and worsening further and further for the
next decade, Americans will see the following:
--Massive increases in Federal, State and local taxes.
--Substantial cuts made to their Social Security and Medicare.
--Substantial cuts made to their government pensions and retirement health
benefits.
--A bitter and volatile generational war pitting the "Greatest Generation"
of World War II paired with the "Baby Boomers" against "Generations X and
Y".
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While I disagree with your projected timetable, I certainly agree with a great deal of the above. (Thanks for posting it.)
1. I'm a boomer, and I don't see us being aligned with the "Greatest Generation." I see everyone else telling me that I'm not entitled to SS benefits, because I've been saving for my retirement. Two arguments will be that "I'm greedy," and "I don't need it," because there will be so many people who haven't saved jack shit for retirement, and they are entitled to my contributions. Of course, their lack of planning won't be THEIR fault.
I also make it a point to correct people who claim that Clinton "balanced the budget." I ask them why the national debt increased anyway. The answer, as I'm sure you know, is that the SS surplus was raided. You know, the one that Jimmy Carter promised us would keep SS solvent.
Not that the Republicans are any better about raiding it.
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So here are some of the numbers that the trustees and the CBO share with Congress that you might have never heard before. In trillions of dollars, here is the list of liabilities carried by the United States Government and local governments:
--$4.2 trillion of Federal borrowing
--$3.9 trillion of Federal and military pensions
--$30.0 trillion in Medicare benefits
--$12.7 trillion in Social Security benefits
--$0.2 trillion in misc. Federal obligations
--$2.0 trillion in State and local debt
The total of all these liabilities is 53 trillion dollars. I apologize in
advance for pointing out what may be obvious to some, but perhaps not
crystal clear to others. I want people to remember that the fact that
these are being referred to as "liabilities" is because they are in effect
debts owed by the government. These liabilities have not been funded in
any way, shape or form and will need to be repaid by taxpayers in the
future and that future is now only a few short years away.
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Scary, but true.
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here are two solutions that would render the problem fixed:
--They would have to immediately double all federal taxes beginning
immediately in the 2005 tax year and make these increases permanent. All
state and local taxes would also need to be increased by 20% immediately
in the 2005 tax year and made permanent also.
--Or they could simply reduce all Social Security, Medicare and government
pension payments immediately and permanently by 50%. The average Social
Security check would drop from the current $1,500 monthly to $750
immediately. A government military pension monthly payment would be
instantly cut from the current $1,782 to about $891. And Medicare
spending would be reduced from an average of $7,500 per person to $3,750
for senior citizens. Also, the Medicare prescription drug benefit plan
that passed last year will need to be cancelled.
Obviously the politicians could also blend the two solutions in whichever
way resolves the pending implosion of the situation.
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I think a precursor to these moves will be to print a shitload of money. If you can lock in a low-interest loan, you'd sure better do it soon.
Owning tangibles instead of cash or cash equivalents would be a good thing, too. The current real estate boom may be the first harbinger of what you describe.
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And before you go blaming this situation on George Bush or any of the
current crop of politicians, don't bother. This problem has been in
making for the past 60 years and no one has stepped up in any earnest way
during that timeframe to offer solutions. Of course, the current office
holders haven't done anything to make progress toward answers, but I
resist making any John Kerry type of blaming which would likely lay this
whole mess at the feet of Bush. Given that Kerry has spent almost 20
years in the U.S. Senate compared to Bush's three and half years, and has
voted for nothing but benefit increases for all these programs he would be
well advised to keep his mouth shut regarding this issue.
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Thank you. A saying I frequently use is that both parties are sending us to hell, but the Democrats would get us there much faster.
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So how did we end up in this horrible jam? Well, simply, the World War II
generation and Baby Boomers have granted themselves all sorts of wonderful
retirement benefits and have contributed very little toward financing
them; basically leaving the bill for their children and grandchildren. I
liken it to someone inviting you out for a wonderful meal, stuffing
themselves like gluttonous pigs and then sticking you with the check. One
can only figure there might end up being some lingering resentment and
anger as the government pins this tab on Generations X and Y who I would
suspect might be reluctant to pay for all this nonsense, and who could
blame them? This is where the generational warfare might begin sometime
no later than 2015 I figure.
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I differ with the above, because boomers are just
beginning to collect SS. I won't get it for another 17 years, at which time I'll be told either I don't need it, or it isn't there.
I assume you've seen the figures that when SS was begun, there were 15 workers for every recipient; now it's 5 to one, and in a few years, it will be 3 to 2.
That's why I consider FDR to be the worst thief in history. He instituted a system that robbed four or five generations (maybe a lot more) to coddle ONE generation.
It's also why I favor the Founding Fathers' idea of government, instead of the concept (which has never worked anywhere) of government handling everything.