In 1935 FDR was able to sign legislation that brought Social Security into our nation getting us in line with industrialized nations of that time. Joe, let’s address the persistent attack on SS and shore it up in this time of economic peril. It is good economics and it is good politics. Let’s show the People what Progress means. Let’s show the troglodytes to fear Our successes.
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What I consider is this: I can live better with healthcare included in the cost of living in many other countries that the one I worked in most of my life even on my pitiful SS INCOME.
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This is big??? Do Warren’s plan-----$200 a month increase-----They the gov have been stealing from SS with bogus inflation numbers for years. We pay for healthcare from our first day of work----we don’t get that healthcare til we are 65------then they say after paying for 45 yrs into this healthcare you still don’t get full coverage??? What a scam.
Funny though —that was Hillary’s big campaign promise in 2016 —she would adjust SS for some widows??? WOW-------wonder why she lost???
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What other countries, can you please explain that?
Biden going big on an issue he’s fought against his whole career. Can’t wait to see his privatization plan for SS.
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. . . and now they want to make it worse with a hyper-inflationary $15/hour minimum wage that will raise prices through the roof. Fat Chance the Fat Cats will allow a corresponding increase in the benefits we theoretically paid for!
Well, at least I get enough to cover the food bill for my two dogs — better than nothing!
What “they” SHOULD DO is remove the “Cap” on FICA payments — that would fix Social Security as well as pay for Medicare for Almost All, everyone older than 40 or at least 45, when health problems start to show up. And while “they” are at it, since Korporations are now “people”, make them pay FICA taxes too – at the same rate as the rest of us!!
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What is see as quality may be totally different than what you feel you need to be comfortable. So no I can not explain.
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Ok thanks. I pretty much meant quality of life. I’ve considered the possiblility myself.
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The fact that Medicare, which is taken out of our Social Security checks, goes up more than the Social Security increase EVERY year impacts poorer seniors who never held a really good job (like me) much more than people whose checks are bigger. Because my check is so small, a larger portion of it goes to Medicare, so my Social Security payments NEVER go up.
I opted to start taking my Social Security payments at age 68 instead of 70 at which age I would have received a couple of hundred dollars more per month, because I thought they would go up every year…BUT THEY DON’T! I have talked to others whose checks are larger and they actually get an increase. This is totally unfair and should be rectified.
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If Biden has “opened a window” watch your fingers, chances are you’ll walk away with a finger or two missing.
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What makes any reasonable progressive think that a Senator that openly tried to gut Social Security FOUR time in the 1990s and early 2000s would now, as POTUS, be for greatly expanding and securing said program? You must be smokin’ some good sh*t man. Senator/President Credit Card is not anybody’s progressive.
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FDR was a corporatist and changed his tone and action once in the White House.
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I forget when pension plan funds were allowed start to investing in the speculation market.
All pension plans are now subject to fluctuation in capital markets.
Nothing is guaranteed.
Social Security is an allocation of funds in the yearly revenue stream of the US government.
The system of money is breaking down, and with no taxes being received from those who owe the most, this structure is already suspect.
We have been printing 80 billion a month to bolster up the inter banking needs since the 2008 crash. Without this, the dollar and the Euro would be worthless. We are now printing to keep the rest of the facade vertical. There is no building behind it. We have printed more in the past 12 months than we have in the past 50, or in the entire history of the dollar.
These “benefits” will vaporize as soon as the facade drops.
We are on our own.
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“However, they [another study] indicate significantly less reliance on Social Security than the CPS [USCensus] alone, which estimated that about 65 percent of seniors received at least half their income from Social Security, and that 36 percent received at least 90 percent.” This article linked to a report by CBPP, and the above quote comes from there. The official poverty threshold for one person, in 2020, was $12,760, or 1,063/month. Living in a small apartment in Des Moines, Iowa, about $500/month, leaves about another $500 for food, phone, medical, utilities, bus fare. And about 12.5% live that way below poverty line, and another 24% would if not for Social Security. We also need higher wages for nonsupervisory workers, wage income must rise. But Soc. Security must be improved. Sanders’ had a plan to increase payouts by about 10% to the poorest seniors.
He came from old money and wasn’t beholden to current donors like Joe is. Besides, what FDR did is widely credited with saving capitalism for the long run when it was truly threatened in an era when socialism and communism had not yet been tarred with the broadly negative brush they later were.
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China is much cheaper. Cheaper health care, cheaper food, cheaper clothes, cheaper cost of living. But you can’t get in until COVID lets up. And on a tourist visa you’ll need to live near a border cause they make you go in and out every two months.
Thank you for the information HelenB. If you don’t mind saying, what do you like most about living there? And how do they feel about Americans? I would probably not make such a big change at my age but it is something I like to consider.
All my life I have enjoyed meeting people from other countries. Even in elementary school, the teacher put immigrants next to me because I knew how to help them. My husband was foreign born and when he became disabled, I moved us to China to teach English. I am back in the US now due to COVID visa restrictions for foreigners in China.
I like small town China, friendlier, just like small town anywhere I guess(my last small town, half a million and I lived on the outskirts). Transportation in China by bus or taxi or metro takes you anywhere. I tried a different province every year for many years, all China was agreeable to me, but steer clear of the NW, Tibet, and Hong Kong, because they tend to have some troubles. Shopping is convenient, don’t need to drive.
Also, as far as ESL goes, China gives teachers the most leeway in managing their classrooms. Japan and S.Korea, lots of paperwork. Thailand, long hours.
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Very interesting to be able to do these things. When I was younger my family traveled quite a lot and it seemed easy enough but overtime it seems pretty challenging to me. How wonderful to have all those experiences. A good point too about Covid being a concern, even if vaccinated requires vigilance. Thank you very much.
Bottom line, I despise war. I just decided that the US didn’t make war with countries that speak English, so I would join the effort to help China learn English.
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