I understand what you're saying but I don't believe that's going to happen. I think SS will be "rescued" by whichever party will benefit the most when the actual "crisis" occurs.

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"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways - Chardonnay in one hand - chocolate in the other - body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming "WOO HOO, What a Ride!"

Yes, I have disability coverage as well. I also have savings, can draw from retirement, and am perfectly willing to do whatever work I can do even if disabled. There is no disability I can have short of a coma that will keep me from being productive. Show me and example of someone getting screwed and I will show you where they went wrong.

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http://www.fairtax.org

Elminate all taxes on income and replace with a national sales tax.

Except there is no eventual rescue. At some point the services will be unsustainable. Our entire GDP will be given over to entitlements. At that point, there is no point in working, and GDP goes down making it worse.

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http://www.fairtax.org

Elminate all taxes on income and replace with a national sales tax.

In other words, Social Security = "Pension plans" and the USA = "General Motors."

Same exact concept.

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While there is certainly some merit to the "How stupid can you be to trust your life to a politician, or worse, a group of them?" line of arguement, any realistic plan should include a similar level of benefits for retirees and near-retirees. There's just too much societal and economic fallout to cut and run.

Great metaphor!

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Today's forecast: Government corruption.

Tomorrow's forecast: 100% chance of more 'politics as usual'

Maybe it's finally time to vote Libertarian

Yeah, that 2% GDP hit is really going to wipe things out.

I'm 55, old enough to know better, young enough not to care......

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“ The subjects of every state ought to contribute towards the support of the government, as nearly as possible, in proportion to their respective abilities; that is, in proportion to the revenue which they respectively enjoy under the protection of the state.”

Adam Smith , The Wealth of Nations 1776

"We have always known that heedless self-interest was bad morals; we know now that it is bad economics"
FDR's second Inaugural Address

OK. I guess you all have convinced me. I'm on the cusp of the babyboomer generation, so I will get my piece of the SS pie. No reform means any younger generations can just suck it up and deal with it...or not.

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I am an American. That's the way most of us put it, just matter of factly. They are plain words, those four: you could write them on your thumbnail, or sweep them clear across this bright autumn sky. But remember too, that they are more than just words. They are a way of life. So whenever you speak them; speak them firmly, speak them proudly, speak them gratefully. I am an American. ...a tradition

I disagree. I do not see any harm in eliminating benefits to those who dont need them. Immediately cease payouts to those who have the saving to retire, pay only what is neccesary for those who have previously paid into the system, and stop collecting payroll taxes, and pay any remaining benefits out of general revenue, until the program is done. For those of us who have paid in, itll be a lesson in why the govt can not do anything right.

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http://www.fairtax.org

Elminate all taxes on income and replace with a national sales tax.

You aren't making sense, when will entitlements be equal to the entire GDP?

Face the facts, Social Security is an immensely popular program that is an unquestionable success. True, there are ideological reasons to oppose it, but that only brings the validity of the ideology into question.

When Thomas Paine proposed an inheritance tax to fund a 10 pound a year payment to every citizen over the age of 50, it was a pretty radical idea. But in the centuries since then we've seen that public pensions work.
And while there was a movement to privatize public pension plans a few decades ago, the experience in those countries that succumbed to this ideological excess has only reinforced the fact that the US Social Security system is the most successful pension plan in the world.

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“ The subjects of every state ought to contribute towards the support of the government, as nearly as possible, in proportion to their respective abilities; that is, in proportion to the revenue which they respectively enjoy under the protection of the state.”

Adam Smith , The Wealth of Nations 1776

"We have always known that heedless self-interest was bad morals; we know now that it is bad economics"
FDR's second Inaugural Address

That explains why we agree on this subject!!!!

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"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways - Chardonnay in one hand - chocolate in the other - body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming "WOO HOO, What a Ride!"

But you are addressing the ideological argument, and that's fine as there are a wide variety of views, but there is the fact of pending insolvency that is being ignored. Without reform, that is a fact. But, as I stated, I will still get my piece of the pie.

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I am an American. That's the way most of us put it, just matter of factly. They are plain words, those four: you could write them on your thumbnail, or sweep them clear across this bright autumn sky. But remember too, that they are more than just words. They are a way of life. So whenever you speak them; speak them firmly, speak them proudly, speak them gratefully. I am an American. ...a tradition

You are so right on the money here.
As more people retire, social security becomes the number one issue of a huge block of voters, and neither political party can succeed by shunning this block of voters. So both parties will cater to this block of voters.

I remember when Reagan was president and inflation fell below the trigger point for the Social Security COLA. Reagan proposed legislation to give the Social Security recipients an increase in benefits anyway, because they had grown to expect regular increases, and that legislation breezed through congress with support from both parties.

Now if the conservative god Reagan finds it politically expedient to raise SS benefits gratuitously, who's going to cut those benefits?

__________________
“ The subjects of every state ought to contribute towards the support of the government, as nearly as possible, in proportion to their respective abilities; that is, in proportion to the revenue which they respectively enjoy under the protection of the state.”

Adam Smith , The Wealth of Nations 1776

"We have always known that heedless self-interest was bad morals; we know now that it is bad economics"
FDR's second Inaugural Address

Please cite a reputable source for this assertion of "impending insolvency".

I've already posted a very credible source (Social Security Trustees Report) that shows quite the contrary.

Everyone has 20-20 hindsight, the real trick is seeing what someone is doing wrong before they do it.
For people with 401K plans that bought bought Microsoft, the system works fine, for those that bought Enron or Tyco or Digital Equipment or Wang or Schlitz the system didn't work.
For people that took a job at the plant and joined the Union in 1955, they got regular raises, a nice pension and good benefits, for someone who did the same thing in 1980, they find themselves without a job or benefits or a marketable skill and living in an economically depressed area.
In a system where people have a choice, most people will make the wrong choice, that's reality. Everybody can't be a winner.
But if the losers suffer too greatly, they can always kill the winners and take the prizes by force, so there has to be balance enough so that most people are happy enough to follow the rules.

__________________
“ The subjects of every state ought to contribute towards the support of the government, as nearly as possible, in proportion to their respective abilities; that is, in proportion to the revenue which they respectively enjoy under the protection of the state.”

Adam Smith , The Wealth of Nations 1776

"We have always known that heedless self-interest was bad morals; we know now that it is bad economics"
FDR's second Inaugural Address