Have you noticed the large number of CEOs going on TV to give their opinions on how to fix the debt?
Last week it was Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein who suggested raising the retirement age for Social Security and Medicare. AETNA CEO Mark Bertolini also argued for raising the retirement age and means-testing Social Security and Medicare benefits. In fact 71 CEOs have joined together as part of a "Fix the Debt" coalition to call for cuts to social safety net programs, instead of higher taxes on rich people like themselves. And, as the Institute for Policy Studies discovered, there's good reason why these CEOs want to target social safety nets like Social Security...it's because they don't need them. They're all sitting on massive retirement assets, averaging over $9 million each. Lloyd Blankfein himself has nearly $12 million in retirement assets. It's easy to call for cuts to Social Security when you know you won't need it. Yes, it's true we don't have an arrogant and effete royal family in America like they do in Britain. But the British Royal Family are paupers compared to America's billionaires - and they're now pushing to further cut retirement income and healthcare for working-class Americans, while sitting on hundreds of millions for themselves. Sometime soon, Americans will begin to revolt against this Reaganomics-created Billionaire/Republican Royalty!
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Social Security hasn't kept up with the times. When it was created, check out the average life expectancy compared to today. Examine the first recipient of Social Security, here's a spoiler, they got a hell of a lot more than they paid in! Check how Medicare and other gov't subsidized healthcare has a higher rate of inflation than non-subsidized healthcare. The billionaires aren't the problem. They pay more than their fair share, and the middle class does not. It's simple arithmetic folks.
ReplyDeleteha ha ha 9:30 you are a moron.
ReplyDeletethat is quite a simplified and uneducated explanation of math and economics. The 1% are the problem because they have no clue how the other 99% are surviving, but infact are the ones controlling congress and us. Congress and the likes are so detached from the norm they don't have a clue and they dont want to piss off their buddies in the 1%. The article is spot on. The rich make the rules to protect their assets, they could care less about anyone else.
To add to 9:30, social security was not designed to add children who have lost their parents and many other worthy causes. Instead of creating a revenue stream for people in need, such as cited above, they added millions to social security over time. They also stop collecting social security at $100k. Why? Why do I pay a full percentage, but wealthy people do not. Even if they just lifted that cap to $200k-roughly $7k more - it would go a long way to help.
ReplyDeleteSocial Security payroll deductions are capped at $100,000 or so because SS is not a welfare program. People who make $200,000 or $500,000 collect no more when they retire than people who make $100,000. If we remove the cap on payroll deductions it would be only fair to increase the payments to those who pay more.
ReplyDeleteThe riches are passed on from generation to generation as well as poverty. It would be nice for the rich to have to live on 12,000 $ per year, see if they would not cry for help as the poor are crying in our wealthy country.
ReplyDeleteBlame not the common man for asking for entitlements, blame the upper 2% for creating all this.
All I hear is how they want to screw the poor, they don't care. I say get rid of the whole bunch and get back to basics.
Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein needs to worry about his own company which in not doing so well, than to worry about a government program.
ReplyDeleteIt's the same ole crap. Threaten something the masses like and want, then they will agree quicker to another scam buy the pols.
How come we keep paying them when we don't get our monies worth?
How long would they last in the business world doing that?
It must work tho, they keep getting elected.