“Put Social
Security on the table – clearly and irrevocably. Protecting retiree benefits is
the left’s political equivalent of the right’s “no new taxes” pledge.
Congressional Republicans are abandoning their untenable position. Now it is
time for President Obama and congressional Democrats to do the same. As long as
they don’t, they aren’t bargaining in good faith, or in the national interest.”
-Robert Samuelson, 3-Dec-12 (Link)
Yeah, there is a better chance of Obama signing the repeal of Obamacare than for that to happen.
ReplyDeleteThe average person puts $114,000 into Medicare and takes $355,000 out. Yeah, they sure as hell better put it on the table.
ReplyDeleteSocial security and other entitlement programs must be strongly means-tested, so there is no longer the massive waste on welfare for the well-off and wealthy. Curiously, but in keeping with a lot of other policies, the Democrats here strongly defend handouts to the rich, while the Republicans oppose them.
ReplyDeleteWill: It's all a slush fund anyway, mixed with the rest of the treasury.
There is an argument to be made that Medicare and Social Security are not entitlements but earned benefits. Look at your paycheck - you will have deductions for both.
ReplyDeleteThus, the argument may be that they are badly designed in that we pay too little and get too much for those benefits and someone is making up the difference by paying higher taxes. It is a fair point. However, we all contribute to those programs and should have the right to ask for those benefits when we need them. Otherwise, we should not pay these specific taxes and then we could call these benefits "entitlements".
http://bullshitmountain.blogspot.com/2012/12/an-argument-against-seeking-fiscal-fix.html