Biden's Administration Paying Contractors Not To Work

[Subduction Zone]

Nah...it won't fail.
We don't need more population for it.
They have options....
- Raise taxes.
- Cut benefits by means testing.

Either of those would be a rather significant revamping of the system. It was sold to the US population with the idea that one would get one's money back Quite a few people would object to means testing.

 

[Revoltingest]

Either of those would be a rather significant revamping of the system. It was sold to the US population with the idea that one would get one's money back Quite a few people would object to means testing.

Sumthin's gotta give.
Solving the problem by increasing the population
is the worst & least sustainable idea.

 

[Subduction Zone]

Sumthin's gotta give.
Solving the problem by increasing the population
is the worst & least sustainable idea.

Yep. sooner or later it needs to be redone.

 

[Revoltingest]

Yep. sooner or later it needs to be redone.

I favor just rolling the payroll & self employment
taxes into the income tax. It's simpler & progressive.
Social Security is not a trust fund. Let's dump that
ridiculous fiction.

 

[Subduction Zone]

I favor just rolling the payroll & self employment
taxes into the income tax. It's simpler & progressive.
Social Security is not a trust fund. Let's dump that
ridiculous fiction.

But I heard the money was in a lockbox


On another note I tried to explain the concept of leveraging debt to another poster. Using the example of housing prices. If housing prices are rising faster than the combination of the inflation rate and the cost of a loan it makes sense to go into debt (that is assuming that we never see a pop of the housing price bubble) It was a simpler analogy and he still could not get it. One thing that aided US growth was leveraging the debt. Lately I think that they went a bit overboard

 

[esmith]

I lose either way.
But fortunately for all, I've no say in which tack they'll take.

Do you think any of us peons do?

 

[Kooky]

mean testing yes, raise taxes no. Same for Medicare

Yea, we can't have a government paying for its maintenance. How else would the Republicans in the US Congress be able to grandstand for their audience without constant re-negotiating of debt ceilings, after all!

 

[Revoltingest]

But I heard the money was in a lockbox

It's a box filled with IOUs.
Government gets the money, spends most on recipients, &
spends the rest on other things. But it replaces this overage
with "investment" in securities that it itself creates.
https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/110614/how-social-security-trust-fund-invested.asp

If a private company treated trust fund money this way,
its management would be in prison for fraud.

On another note I tried to explain the concept of leveraging debt to another poster. Using the example of housing prices. If housing prices are rising faster than the combination of the inflation rate and the cost of a loan it makes sense to go into debt (that is assuming that we never see a pop of the housing price bubble) It was a simpler analogy and he still could not get it. One thing that aided US growth was leveraging the debt. Lately I think that they went a bit overboard

Also, federal monetary policy intentionally expands the money
supply faster than economic growth. This causes inflation,
which deflates currency value, thereby lowering federal debt
in real value.
This is also why capital gains taxes are often confiscatory, ie,
we're taxed on the additional less valuable dollars required for
the same economic value of the sold asset.
This is also why liberals oppose (generally) indexing capital
gains to inflation, ie, wealthy people have capital gains, &
they'll benefit from fairness.

 

[Revoltingest]

Do you think any of us peons do?

I thought Biden called you daily for advice?

 

[esmith]

I thought Biden called you daily for advice?

Only once, guess he didn't like what I had to say.

 

[Subduction Zone]

It's a box filled with IOUs.
Government gets the money, spends most on recipients, &
spends the rest on other things. But it replaces this overage
with "investment" in securities that it itself creates.
https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/110614/how-social-security-trust-fund-invested.asp

If a private company treated trust fund money this way,
its management would be in prison for fraud.

Also, federal monetary policy intentionally expands the money
supply faster than economic growth. This causes inflation,
which deflates currency value, thereby lowering federal debt
in real value.
This is also why capital gains taxes are often confiscatory, ie,
we're taxed on the additional less valuable dollars required for
the same economic value of the sold asset.
This is also why liberals oppose (generally) indexing capital
gains to inflation, ie, wealthy people have capital gains, &
they'll benefit from fairness.

.Yep, the only difference between the SS system and a Ponzi scheme is how long it takes to fail. And I have said for some time that inflation is a hidden tax.

 

[Revoltingest]

.Yep, the only difference between the SS system and a Ponzi scheme is how long it takes to fail. And I have said for some time that inflation is a hidden tax.

Ponzi schemes don't have fed guv backing though.
SS won't ever fail....it can get creaky...but it won't fail
as long as there are printing presses.