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Recession Hits Social Security, Medicare
Scary projections from the government: The Great Recession has wiped out the financial underpinnings of the Medicare and Social Security programs. According to the official yearly appraisal of the two giant entitlement programs, Medicare’s trust fund is now projected to run out of money in 2017, two years earlier than projected a year ago; Social Security will be insolvent in 2037, a full four years earlier than last year’s estimate. It’s far worse news than during the weaker recession earlier this decade, which hardly dented the trust funds that support the programs, and the report shows that fewer workers are paying into both systems.
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flyoverland
What's the problem? Just soak the rich.
squiggy
He will. Just wait. Hang on to your wallet!
rapierwits
well at least we didn't follow the privatization plan, right? Now how about we fix education so our young'uns get those good-paying jobs and pay lots of taxes just in time for my retirement?
flyoverland
Yes, those high paying imaginary green jobs.
rapierwits
Actually, I was thinking healthcare, education, the military, corps of engineers. You know, the ggrowth industries. But I like your attempted two-bird sarcasm.
hardrain
They wouldn't be imaginary if the "conservative" yahoos hadn't obstructed development for the protection of their big oil benefactors for decades.
squiggy
They wouldn't be imaginary if they were real and viable. The laws of physics and nature prevent most of them the liberal yahoos scared of nuclear energy are preventing the rest!
Utaneus
There are lots of REAL jobs in "green" industry. But unfortunately not all of the emerging, more environmentally sound, industries are completely viable yet. But that's to be expected, industries don't change overnight, and these things take time. However, that doesn't mean that there's not money or jobs in the nascent green industries.
dixie-chik
The only reason anyone is even talking about cutting benefits and privatizing these programs is that the right has managed to convince the public that Social Security is on its last legs.
For more than two decades they have spread stories about the baby boomers bankrupting the system and multitrillion-dollar debts left to our children and grandchildren. In reality the program can pay all scheduled benefits long past the boomers' retirement. According to the Social Security trustees report, it can pay full benefits through the year 2042 with no changes whatsoever. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office puts the date at 2052. And even after those dates, Social Security will always be able to pay a higher benefit (adjusted for inflation) than what retirees receive today. Those scary multitrillion-dollar debts translate into a deficit equal to 0.7 percent of future income--presented in very precise form in the Social Security trustees report for those who care to look.
squiggy
Thanks for the data! This is a set up to push for socialized medicine and nothing more. Something needs to be done but Obama is ramping up entitlements and doesn't have the money to pay for them. Go figure!
indieinva
Please enlighten us on what your definition of "socialized medicine" is and how President Obama's current proposal fits your definition.
connie47
indieinva,
You won't get facts out of squiggy, just rehashes of other people's sound bites. Red meat, no substance.
sickandtired
The govt. won't fix this & doesn't give a damn because it is not THEIR retirement & benefits! They don't have to worry about being taken care of in their latter years. And as we all know very well, our govt. sure doesn't care about how you (the every day American) has to live.... they don't think our lives are their problem.
BuckTurgidson
Are you not from America or did you vote Republican? Because this is government of, by and for the people. Hold those monkeys who represent you to the fire because they aren't going to do the right thing by accident. They are going to follow the easy money their lobbyists hand them because they don't go to your bbq, they go to cocktail parties with Tina Brown and the other rich and useless media freaks and politicos, and that's who they listen to unless you send them a list of demands.
flyoverland
I can't wait to see all the coal powered windmill factories pop up in China.
squiggy
With a Made in China sticker to remind you of third world air quality. I can hear it now, "be grateful for your windmill, those little Ethiopian children don't have any windmills at all!"
Ritarita
Oh fly-
It's just
A landscape of
Misery and cynicism
Stretching to the horizon
Sigh.
Plantagenet
Its time for Obama and the Congress to start using some of the trillion dollars they've already collected in taxes and put in the Social Security Trust Fund that they keep under the bed in a secret lock box.
Plantagenet
What? Me worry?
With Obama in charge of social security?
No worries mate, just tax the rich
No one will care if the republicans bitch!
mskitee
Had the government held the money in trust for each American and not used it for a slush fund all these years--it might be worth talking about. Obama has already taken our social security and used it for children and low-income pregnant women's medical and dental care (not necessarily Americans either) in the Schip bill.
dixie-chik
Funny. Here I thought Paulson and Bernanke threw it at banksters between October and January 20.
flyoverland
Ri,
But, for some reason you love me anyway.
Thank you.
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