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DO YOU HAVE THE GUTS TO END SOCIAL SECURITY?

Posted by THE SCANDIMERICAN on Thursday, May 15, 2008 3:32:19 PM

The only presidential candidate this year who has called himself a libertarian is Ron Paul. Not a bad guy, on the contrary. A truth sayer in many ways, with a good record in Congress.

There was only one problem. In the last debate where he said loud and clear that he wants to "save" Social Security.

So much for Ron Paul's fortitude as a libertarian. There is no bigger, more intrusive government program than Social Security. and there is no more fraudulent government program than Social Security. It takes money from 25-year-olds today without even a moderately credible promise to give them something in return. Everyone with a political IQ above a San Francisco liberal knows that Social Security is heading for de facto bankruptcy like Titanic steaming toward the iceberg.

So why does Ron Paul think it should be saved?

Because he cannot envision an America without Social Security. And if he can't do it, then who can?

I can. And so can you. It just takes a little bit of Klingon courage.

The one question that conservatives and libertarians keep asking is "but how - HOW, darn it - can we get rid of this big liberal welfare state??" And then they go back to playing defense while the left scores touchdown after touchdown.

The nasty thing about Social Security is that if you want to get rid of it, you'll have to sever the financial ties between those who are retired today and on those who are working today. And you can't just do that. The Federal government has been dumb enough to promise people gold-plated retirement in a system that is inherently unsustainable. The more dependent we grow on that system, the more cowardly our elected officials duck and hide and pretend that the system is going to last forever. And the more that happens the more courage it will take for someone to stand up and say "This Emperor has no clothes - oh, and by the way, he's broke, too!".

Who has that courage?

I do. We political Klingons do not fear a fierce political battle. We welcome a good argument, and we look forward to a campaign to return America to the realms of common sense, small government and big freedom. We know what needs to be done, and we are ready to stand up and take the lead.

The key to winning the battle over Social Security is to present a credible plan for how the Federal government can fulfill its promises toward all those who have faithfully relied on Social Security for retirement - while at the same time allow the rest of us to build our personal retirement savings. Since the Federal government cannot break its promises without diastrous consequences, we must begin our reform with securing the obligations to those who have already earned points for retirement. (That's what you do - you earn points. The cash that the government steals from you every month is not the cash you will see in the future. All you get is an IOU worth about as much as "one share" in Milo Minderbinder's Syndicate.) Therefore, any plan that puts an end to Social Security will have to make sure that we the working generation pay current retirement obligations AND start saving up for our own.

That's a tall order. But it can be done. Details coming up. Stay tuned.

Ka'plah!

Tags: social security

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WHAT ARE YOU ALL WAITING FOR??

Posted by THE SCANDIMERICAN on Thursday, May 15, 2008 1:48:28 AM

The background noise in this election is deafening. Never before have so many people had so little to say about so many things. And yet, they blabber. On and on and on. No wonder it's "politics as usual" across the board. No wonder there is nothing new in this election cycle.

Nobody is talking about the real issues. The really, really big, real issues. The boring, grueling, unsexy issues.

Social security.

Uh, oh. Just lost nine out of ten readers. Yep. It's not a hip issue. Yawn factor off the Richter scale.

Why social security when there's Jeremiah Wright?

The sad fact is that most younglings in this country know pretty darn well they're not going to get any social security. During the years I taught economics at a small pot-infested liberal arts college, I asked my students every semester if they thought they would get social security when they retired. The unanimous answer was a big, rumbling NO, PROFESSOR.

Hello? This is one of the biggest scams in our time. The government - dudes, listen! - the government is grabbing more than 12 percent of your earnings and spending it on something that you will never, ever even see the tail lights of. Twelve percent! Do you have any idea what you could do with that money?? If you're fresh outta college and land a $30K job, those 12 percent are $300 every month that you: a) don't get to keep, and: b) won't get back.

OK, so what's $300? Well, for starters, it is the difference between having three room mates in a cramped apartment in Sunnyside, Queens, and one room mate in cool Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Or split it over four weekends and see how much more you can do on nights out with friends. You can keep your MasterCard holstered for most of the night and avoid those calls to Mom for emergency cash.

Or put it in the bank, ferchrissake. In just one year you have a nice down payment on a Scion tC.

This is what big government is about. It makes a very real, tangible difference in your everyday life. But nobody talks about that. Nobody talks about how your daily life is affected by the do-gooders in Washington.

And since nobody else is talking about it, I will. I have very little patience with politics. Patience is for humans. We freedom-loving Klingons prefer action. Political action. Theory that becomes political reality. Political reality that changes people's lives, that puts those $300 back in your checking account every month.

And how - exactly how - do we do that?

Stay tuned.