WHY WASN’T I INVITED?
WHY WASN’T I INVITED?
This week, in a closed meeting with African-Americans, Mr. Bush asserted that Social Security was a bad deal for their race, repeating his earlier claim that “African-American males die sooner than other males do, which means the system is inherently unfair to a certain group of people.”
January 28th, 2005 at 8:06 pm
How is that a lie?
January 28th, 2005 at 8:10 pm
You’re bad attitude. That’s why you weren’t invited.
January 28th, 2005 at 8:20 pm
That African-American males die sooner than other males has nothing to do with whether african-american males (i suppose he’s targeting them, nevermind the females) benefit from the social security system or whether they should support privatization.
January 28th, 2005 at 8:55 pm
why not? social security benefits aren’t eligible for inheritance while private funds are, so you are screwed especially if you die at a young age. your family has nothing to show for all of the taxes you paid.
January 28th, 2005 at 9:48 pm
it is not black men who die younger it is poor people (for the most part), and black people happen to be more poor than not.
though, their is the whole high blood pressure thing with black males.
January 28th, 2005 at 11:52 pm
wow, cube disagrees with president bush…Jessica, if you die at a young age, it’s unlikely you’ve paid very much taxes at all or that you would have a family — in any case the payroll tax you pay now ensures that our elderly have some semblance of a minimum standard of living. It may just because i had a good relationship with a grandparent but I would say that’s worth it even if i die before the young uns pay taxes to support me.
January 29th, 2005 at 12:44 am
“If you die at a young age, it’s unlikely you’ve paid very much taxes at all”
Uhhh, have you looked at your pay stub lately and seen how much is taken out for Social Security. And a lot or a little is irrelevant. It’s MY damn money that they’re taking out under the pretense of giving it back to me later, the lying bastards.
Oh, good catch on the you’re. Uh, I did that on purpose. I was testing you. You pass.
January 29th, 2005 at 5:45 pm
Dawn, you’re thinking ‘dying young’ to be like 30, when in fact it’s in the 60s. Of course they would have paid a lot into the system, of course they would have families. What the hell are you talking about?
January 29th, 2005 at 6:35 pm
You’re right, I was definitely thinking young to be 30 and family to be mom and dad. SS pays a death benefit to your spouse and kids regardless of how old you are when you die, so if that’s what jessica meant then, she’s completely wrong. And I ask you what the hell you’re talking about.
January 31st, 2005 at 1:38 pm
They should play the gender card. Social security certainly benefits women more than men.
You may not be aware but despite all your private contributions to healthcare, your government pays as much money again to support your health system (7.4pc GDP).
If you like to think of how your earnings grow over life and therefore how much tax you pay then:
Age 21-35 = you are paying off your state-paid-for education
35-55 = you are paying for the State’s contribution to your healthcare (7.4pc GDP), national defence, police, firefighters, coast guards, road constructions and all that other crap
55-65 = you are actually paying for your retirement and ‘interest’ on your lifetime’s accrued debts (your state paid-for education and that time you accidentally burnt down your house many years ago, resulting in a $50k exercise to prevent your whole street burning down) to your government.
Its like paying insurance. If you never claim then you lose out. If you paid privatised pensions
January 31st, 2005 at 1:38 pm
and you died at 65 you would still lose out. If you live to 110 then you will get back a lot more than you paid in.
February 1st, 2005 at 12:00 am
“It’s MY damn money that they’re taking out under the pretense of giving it back to me later, the lying bastards.”
It’s a tax. A tax designated so that old people don’t die of starvation on the streets. It’s not your money anymore, any more than the taxes I paid to fund the war in Iraq is my money anymore. You’re not getting that money back. I don’t know who you think promised that to you, but you’ll have to get over it.
Should you live to be over 65, aussuming the system still works, you’ll be getting some other poor bastard’s money. If you don’t, well, you benefit by not having to deal with all those dead old people in the streets.
November 30th, -0001 at 12:00 am
I am not a bad attitude mister copy editor.