"The first truth is that the liberty of a democracy is not safe if the people tolerate the growth of private power to a point where it becomes stronger than their democratic state itself. That, in its essence, is fascism — ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. ”
— Franklin D. Roosevelt
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Strengthen Social Security, Don't Cut It
hat tip to Digby. Remember, if you're told that Social Security is in danger, the person telling you this is either mistaken, or LYING. Don't let Wall Street get their hands on your money!
I agree that for the present, SS is not in danger. That assessment, however, does not include Medicare which has already begun to take in less money than it expends. Knucklehead's unfunded persecription drug benefit, of course, did nothing to help the already existing problem--a policy I believe he and Karl the Amoral instituted to expedite the bankruptcy of the system, a notion I of course cannot prove, but it strikes me as indicative of their mutual cynicism--but the issue of underfunding still remains. In short order nonetheless, as LWC knows, something will have to be done to address Medicare, SS and entitlements in general in order to prevent national bankruptcy and/or hyperinflation. Raising taxes on the undefined "rich," however, will not in itself solve the problems that our national dependence on government largesse has created. We are seeing indications this year alone as to the consequences of that mentality. Spain is bankrupt, Greece is bankrupt, Great Britain is having to raise taxes and cut expenditures and God knows how France, Germany and the other European Union members are making it at the moment. It is simply not possible to maintain the present level of tax levels and public expenditures without becoming so indebted to the Chinese or other not-so-friendly entities that they can make demands upon how we function as a society with us having no recourse short of social chaos (see V FOR VENDETTA as one proto-type of response and THE ROAD as another). SS, in the Cracker's terms, may not be "in trouble" for the moment if one believes that trillions of dollars in government IOU's during an era of trillion dollar yearly deficits constitutes real cash money; within a decade, however, that lack of trouble will become all too real if something is not done in the next four or five years.
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I agree that for the present, SS is not in danger. That assessment, however, does not include Medicare which has already begun to take in less money than it expends. Knucklehead's unfunded persecription drug benefit, of course, did nothing to help the already existing problem--a policy I believe he and Karl the Amoral instituted to expedite the bankruptcy of the system, a notion I of course cannot prove, but it strikes me as indicative of their mutual cynicism--but the issue of underfunding still remains.
In short order nonetheless, as LWC knows, something will have to be done to address Medicare, SS and entitlements in general in order to prevent national bankruptcy and/or hyperinflation. Raising taxes on the undefined "rich," however, will not in itself solve the problems that our national dependence on government largesse has created. We are seeing indications this year alone as to the consequences of that mentality. Spain is bankrupt, Greece is bankrupt, Great Britain is having to raise taxes and cut expenditures and God knows how France, Germany and the other European Union members are making it at the moment. It is simply not possible to maintain the present level of tax levels and public expenditures without becoming so indebted to the Chinese or other not-so-friendly entities that they can make demands upon how we function as a society with us having no recourse short of social chaos (see V FOR VENDETTA as one proto-type of response and THE ROAD as another).
SS, in the Cracker's terms, may not be "in trouble" for the moment if one believes that trillions of dollars in government IOU's during an era of trillion dollar yearly deficits constitutes real cash money; within a decade, however, that lack of trouble will become all too real if something is not done in the next four or five years.
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