Why Social Security Is Bad

Our nation ensures social welfare through Social Security. However, the United States cannot ensure the welfare of its own welfare system. To save Social Security, Americans in general do not favor an increase in the payroll tax, a cut in benefits or an increase in the retirement age. Furthermore, Americans are relying upon Social Security as their sole source of income at increasingly alarming rates. Social Security is intended to supplement retiree income, not account for 100% of it. Through elimination of the potential options, that leaves one necessary action: invest the Social Security trust fund in the stock market.

Many pros and cons arise with this option of Social Security reform. With other options the government takes the risk, but with privatization it is a personal risk. When account holders reach retirement they are able to withdraw from the account and use the money as they see fit. Government does not control the amount or what the account holders use the money for, leaving recipients with the choice to spend as much of the money as they wish and as quickly as they want. With no control over the usage of savings, this defeats the purpose of Social Security as a “safety net”. The biggest downfall to this reform is the transition period. Not only would the transition be a high cost, but those that are closest to retirement could be left with smaller savings in their private account. If young workers create private accounts then they are not supporting current retirees, and they are not receiving what they should be (Mitchell 2011). Another concern is that not all recipients will end up with a fair amount of earnings in their account. Such

Social security was created in response to the persuasive poverty during the great depression. It began when the social security act was signed by the FDR on Aug 14, 1935 but taxes for it were not collected until January 1937. Although its goal was to provide retired citizens with funds to survive it was ultimately a long-term shortfall. The plan for social security as it stands today would only last until 2033. This is due to demographic pressures and a week economy as of late. Without any modifications, social security will certainly not be around for the future generations.

Those who think that privatizing social security will benefit the citizens who receive it are very wrong. The reason that they think that it will affect social security is because by creating private accounts, it will cause the separate interest rates for the individual person to go up or down depending on the person. This of course is unnecessary because the way it is set up right now, the individuals are receiving benefits that work for the certain situation that the person is in. Many retired citizens are not in financial crisis because of this setup, because there is nothing that is wrong with it. In the last couple of decades social security has completely transformed the way that elderly citizens in our country live their lives. According to Mortimer Zuckerman “roughly two thirds of people over 65 and older depend on social security for at least half their income, and roughly 20 percent rely on it for all their income.” These are pretty promising numbers regarding the way that the American seniors are spending their

It’s a matter of either losing all that you have worked for and live in poverty when retired or allowing your hard earned dollars to grow and have a secure comfortable retirement. I believe that Social Security is a doomed Government Program and that Privatization of Social Security would allow for a more secure retirement plan for all Americans. Social Security was first created to help aging Americans in their senior years so they would not end up in poverty. Social Security was signed in as law on August 14, 1935 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt and was fully operating by 1940 (SSA). Originally a retirement program, but Social Security now includes survivor benefits, disability benefits and Medicare and all together is the largest

People are living forever. This is not true in a literal sense but the average life expectancy for people in developed countries has skyrocketed over the last 100 years. There are many great benefits of an increased life expectancy that people are able to enjoy in modern society. However, with increased life expectancy comes a greater toll on some government provided services. Social Security is a retirement plan for senior citizens that started in 1935 and lately has been a controversial topic in United States politics. The United States Social security program should be privatized because of its current financial instability and the increased positive benefits to its recipients.

It’s a matter of either losing all that you have worked for and live in poverty when retired or allowing your hard earned dollars to grow and have a secure comfortable retirement. I believe that Social Security is a doomed Government Program and that Privatization of Social Security would allow for a more secure retirement plan for all Americans. Social Security was first created to help aging Americans in their senior years so they would not end up in poverty. Social Security was signed in as law on August 14, 1935 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt and was fully operating by 1940. Originally a retirement program, but Social Security now includes survivor benefits, disability benefits and Medicare and all together is the largest

Established by the federal government in 1935, the social security system is currently one of the most costly items in the federal budget. The purpose of the system is to provide for Federal old-age benefits, and to enable social insurance and public assistance. The proposal of moving to an entirely new system would give the people living in the United States their own individual authority of controlling their own investments. If social security does not become privatized; the system itself will turn unsustainable, the retired and disabled will not fully receive their earnings; and the people of the United States will continue to have no control over their investments.

Firstly, opponents of Social Security privatization worry there are many risks involved. They worry about risks associated with investing in the stock market.They believe this because investors are not able to accurately predict what the market will do next. According to a researcher at the Cato Institute, a research organization on public policy, Michael Tanner, states there have been many big drops in the stock market over the years. Nobody is certain what it will do next (1). The market could be up one day and down the next like a rollercoaster at an amusement park. Many people do not want to privatize Social Security because investing in the stock market involves many risks, especially if all the money invested is intended to last throughout retirement years. There is no guarantee any money will be made. Many people also have the chance of losing large sums of money. People are FRIGHTENED (sad) they could lose their safety net and have no money left. Some people also believe it could be risky to involve the government with the stock market. A database that specializes in business, political, and government debates believes, if the government were to become involved with the stock market it would “undermine basic free market principle and impair the economy” (“Social Security Reform” 1). Some people are afraid the government would become too involved and control what is PRESUMED (believed) to be a free market. It could corrupt the stock

Liebman (2012) researched the correlation between employment and social security benefit, to further asses individual’s perception of social security system and how it is developed. His research focused on 3 reasons:

In 2015, $895 billion dollars was spent on social security. The problem is the working people provide social security for the retired. Since people are living longer, there is not enough money from the people who are currently working to provide for retired individuals. I believe the best way to solve this problem is by changing social security. I think everyone should be required to have a social security account that they put a certain percentage of their paycheck into each year. The account should be secured and the government should not allow the individual to receive the money from the account until they reach a certain age. This procedure would ensure that everyone would have money for retirement and the government would only have to safely store the money, not provide the money to the individuals. If the individual dies before retirement, the money should be used to pay for any debt the person owes or go to a designated person as suggested in the deceased person’s

     There is much-heated debate on the issues of Social Security today. The Social Security system is the largest government program of income distribution in the United States. People are concerned that they won't see a dime of what they worked so hard to contribute into the Social Security system for so many years. Social Security provides benefits to about forty-three million Americans. Not only to retired workers, but also to their spouses and dependents of the workers who die prematurely. It also provides benefits to disabled workers and their dependents. Social Security appears to most people like a simple retirement saving’s account. After all, you generally

The problem with Social Security trust fund is that at the present time there is more credit in the trust fund than is required for payment of Social Security benefits. “By 2027 revenue coming into the trust fund will fall below the level of being paid out, and by 2040 the trust fund will be depleted (Quadagno, 2014).”Meaning there will be not enough money from payroll taxes to pay all the benefits that are promised to citizens. This puts everyone who is going to enter retirement in jeopardy. Even though everyone has a right to deserve benefits in retirement I feel more people should take control over their own funds.

Many people have many different views about the federal government and its role in our economy. Some people feel that the government should have very little control over the state, while some believe the federal government is fine and acts as a security blanket. Americans love the idea of knowing they are “safe;” safe physically, mentally, and financially. A man named Robert Kiyosaki once said, “When President George W. Bush attempted to reform Social Security, that proposal was more unpopular with Americans than the Iraq War. People love their entitlements.” No matter what a person’s views are about the role of the federal government, a numerous amount of people will still be interested in collecting Social Security when they reach the age of retirement. There is much controversy about this act, and many times people have tried to reform it but it somehow always fell short.

Planning for retirement should not be based on Social Security alone, but rather by saving portions of personal earned wages and putting finances into long-term investments. Depending on Social Security as the only income after retiring is an unsafe and undependable way to prepare for retirement. People who contribute to Social Security are mandatorily putting money into the Social Security Reserve; this money is used for older generations that will file for these benefits before the younger people working, in the early 21 century, ever receive a chance. Money controlled by other’s hands will never be a guarantee for a secure future, yet money saved by an individual to put toward personal goals will reward greatly. By taking the time to