Who wants to just kill off Social Security? End it completely as a bad plan?

Question

If you are political, what does your party want and what do you want, what do you think is the mainstream opinion?
Let people invest for their own retirement - and if their investments go bad - too bad...personal responsibility , and all. Or shore it up and tweak it back into solvency?

My gg grandparents took in poor elderly back before SS - they were identified in the census as paupers. There were a LOT of households (usually clergy of small churches) keeping paupers in the area because financial panics had caused bank failures. IS THIS WHAT WE WANT TO GO BACK TO?

Answer 1

Personally, I'm happy to contribute to ensure that poor widows don't starve.

I believe that honoring our elders and ensuring a basic level of dignity for them is a good thing.

Apparently some disagree.

Answer 2

Ideally, we should just abolish social security. However, if we insist on keeping the system in place people should be allowed to opt out or to have their own private account. The numbers show that even if you have several "bad" years of investment with the private account you end up about $10 less a month than if we keep with the current system. I'd take those odds anyday over trusting the government to invest MY money.

Answer 3

You can't just end it. There are way to many people in this country that worked for decades only to retire and have this as their only source of income.

Now, today's workers have know for at least 10 years that SS is dying off. People planning to retire 20 to 30 years from now had better have a personal retirement plan because I don't feel SS will sill be around.

Lastly... I think the "privatization" of SS or giving the money back to the people and letting them make their own retirement plans is the best idea. If you are to stupid to save and plan for retirement, then you will just have to have your relatives support you in old age.

Answer 4

No sane politician would end social security aka government retirement.

What needs to happen is all who choose can opt out and take 2/3 of what they currently pay into it and invest it as they see fit. This will yield a double return than what currently exists and pay off the obligations already made. Whether we like it or not, the under 30 group will pay either way. If this is not done, taxes will be raised later on us to pay for the retirees.

Answer 5

I want a phased withdrawal from Social Security (S.S.). There are now people living on the S.S. check they receive. There are also people near retirement that have planned on that check being part of their retirement. I don't think it would be right to just end the hand out they have been getting/planning.

I would:

1) keep giving any one on S.S. their monthly allowance.
2) People not on S.S. but less then 10 years from qualifying, it get 80% of what was promised.
3) People more then 10 - 20 years get 50% of what was promised
4) People more then 20 years get nothing - start saving.
5) We get to start saving our own money immediately and we fund S.S. from the general tax fund - no separate S.S. tax.

I find it very arrogant from someone to determine that I don't know how to save, take my money from me, and give it back to me when they think I need it and in an amount they think I need.
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I read your additional details. The best way to help people, keep banks from failing is to have a strong economy. The more money the government takes the weaker our economy becomes. There are things we do have to spend money but social programs are not the right answer.

If people don't save, work hard, the best answer isn't to treat them like a child, take their money and save it for them, it is to teach them how the economy works. How debt. can help and hurt them, and how to plan for the retirement that they want. Not the retirement we think they need.

Answer 6

Social Security is SCAM. The money I'm paying into it today isn't being saved for when I retire! It's going STRAIGHT to the people collecting it! And when I retire in 30 years the working people 30 years from now will be paying for my social security benefits just as we are all doing today! Let working Americans KEEP their money and save for their OWN retirement. And if they don't then it's their own fault. It shouldn't be government's responsibility or the taxpayers responsibility to pay for everybody's retirement! And if you're worried about old sick people, that's what private charity is for.

Answer 7

People who think this way have obviously not been working and putting money into the system for thirty years (or more). Fine, end it all, but give us all of our money first and we will be happy to invest it. Social Security WAS our retirement plan. Ask your parents and grandparents what they think.

Answer 8

my quadriplegic brother relies heavily on SSDI to live. he is in college and will graduate and become a productive member of society. But unlike able bodied people, he cannot do a regular job for a paycheck, he will need an education to get a job. As far as using it for retirement, it was never intended to be a retiement plan, and people need to get over that. yes, invest in your own retirement, but SS needs to reamin intact

Answer 9

Look...SS is a great idea, but it should be privitized. That would be the same as securing your own retirement. However, if SS continues to go to illegal immigrants to pay for their children who are born here and become automatic citizens, it will obviously cease to exist. If that continues to be the case, we should not have to pay into SS, and we should begin investing on our own.

Answer 10

People on Social Security did invest in their retirement.

They pay deductions off thier cheques for all their working years.

So yah, just cut them off and spend all the money they have paid into the program, that sounds fair.