I know that one of the biggest entitlements out there is Social Security and that the system is in trouble. I was curious about whether or not people who were either on it or close to it would be willing to make a sacrifice to help keep the system solvent. As an RVer I frequent a number of RV Forums. So I chose a large RV forum for an answer to my curious question. My logic was that most of the people on that forum would be either on Social Security or close to it and most of them would tend to be better off than many older Americans. After all, many on that forum have spent over $100,000 on their toys, so it should be an interesting sample. So the question I posed was "Would you be willing to sacrifice part of your benefits to help save the system?" There were a total of 525 posts to the thread and there were four people that would be willing to help save the system out of the 525 posts. So the bottom line is that most of the people who responded would rather see the entire system die than to make any individual sacrifices. Is it any wonder that, as a nation, we are in deep trouble! I must admit that I was flabergasted by the results of my little question. Apparently most Americans are so caught up in their own "entitlements" that they don't care if noone gets a thing and the entire system dies. I find that be a very sad commentary on our society.
It would be interesting to get feedback from a couple of different income demographics and see if the results are the same. I am assuming (yes I am aware of the pitfalls of doing that) that those in an RV lifestyle (especially retired) would be in a middle to upper income bracket either currently or previous to retirement.
That's the reason I posted it on that particular forum. I thought that it might be a place where people might be more willing to bend to save the entire system. That wasn't the case at all. I know part of it is probably the reality that once someone is retired there is a very finite amount of money coming in and that amount is not going to go up at all. For most retirees that reality is pretty scary and perhaps that is the reason for their reaction. My concern is that entitlements are like drugs and many people are so addicted to them that they can't get off.
About to ramble on if it makes no sense sorry... Social security is not an entitlement it’s a program that people have been forced to put money into with the promise of a check every month when they retire. The government has raped and pillaged it for years I am 41 and fully aware it will not be there when I retire that why I dump a boat load into 401k so I won’t have to depend on the government...taking less won’t fix it the government will find more ways to spend the extra money and Fuck everyone. Better yet send a message to all of these blowhards of both parties and never re-elect them to a second term and cut there pension and use that money to help fund social security…
Bob, I agree that the government forced us into SS, but it really is an entitlement program. The first person to ever receive a month Social Security check was a lady in Vermont named Ida Mae Fuller. She had paid in $27.50 into the system and by the time she died she had drawn out $123,000. Those on the lower end of the spectrum will draw out way more than they ever paid in.
I have paid in the maximum all my work life and if I die one month after I retire that money is all gone. Whereas, my 401k amount will be there in total if I die one month after I retire. I wish I had a choice, as my 401k has been a much better retirement rate of return and it remains in my estate. If we were each responsible for our self there would be a lot less need for social security and the lower income could continue to get their welfare checks and would not need social security. Also why do government employees get the choice to have PERA pensions and those of us who fund it have to pay into their fund and social security? Just my two cents worth.
Actually, since 1984, federal employees are subject to Social Security. Now Congress is a totally different story. If you do the calculations for someone who paid the maximum into SS for the last 35 years, they will exhaust all their own contributions in less than five years and theirs and their employers contributions in less than 10 years. Considering most Americans will live to 80 or more, that doesn't bode well for the system.
