Is Social security a Pyramid Scam?

Question

I heard it was even worse ... it lasts a life time and they hope you die before you collect it all or figure out how you've been screwed. Also it is manditory so even if you figure out its BS you can't opt out. The politicians get to spend the money on whatever and don't go to jail for this scheme because dead people can't complian. Can anyone prove this wrong???? Tell me it isn't so? If this is the case then why wouldn't Americans Privatize Social Security and invest in idividual accounts protected through self ownership and throw out any politician who would argue otherwise? People can't be that Stupid can they?

Answer 1

yes.

it should be privatized. keep the government out of my retirement savings. i can get a better return on my investment if i do it myself.

Answer 2

I think there are a lot of people who would not invest in private accounts for one reason or another, like needing the money to live day to day now, but the problem with Social Security really is that it is used as much to make politicians think they are caring for the country when they themselves are not a part of it. If we abolished civil service and combined that with Social security, stopped giving retirement to politicians after only 4 years of work and made them wait like everyone else to draw from that account, and invested the money paid into social security rather than using it for other reasons, there would be no problem with social security. If a retirement fund can make a profit from money paid into it and pay a retiree, why can't a government do the same thing, unless they are squandering the money on other things!!

Answer 3

Privatization has it's limitations, just ask those who had their retirement linked to Enron. Social Security is a program that has many features beyond retirement. It's a program to provide assistance to the widow and children of an individual, support for someone on disability, and to insure that someone who works will have a minimum level of financial support when they are no longer working after the age of retirement. The policy of the recent administrations is to use current Social Security payments to lower the deficit rather than to save this money. For this reason there is the prospect of a short fall in less than 50 years. With life expectancy growing longer, it means that more folks are drawing down the fund, and there will be fewer workers paying into it. One obvious fix would be to slowly raise the age of retirement, (they are doing this already), and another would be to remove the ceiling on paying into the fund, currently for earnings only to $90,000.00. Bush proposed this but it was turned down by House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert and Majority Leader Tom Delay, both Republicans.

Answer 4

Your thoughts are fine for the person who can afford to save every month, but what about the families that work for minimum wages and have children to take care of? Do you think that they will set up an IRA or buy food, clothing, etc? The only way that they will be able to have some security for their later years is if it is deducted from earnings before they get it.

Answer 5

I think original plans would have funded social security long ago, but we allowed government to change the dynamics of it with little protest, but the bigger problem my be that the federal reserve will not show a inventory sheet or a statement showing the amount of gold we have, this will determine what happens to social security. the dollars in our pockets may be worthless anyways.

Answer 6

good idea but not realistic, the S S system was to invest in the goverment and return at a later time but that lost reality a long time ago back many grandparent before.now that times change the S. S.doesnt change and that is why we are in debt no one office will change it, you cant change over night what has been developing for many many decades, hold on and brace you self it is not going to get better