Social Security

If Social Security is your issue then you should be informed about what is really happening and not the media reporting the Democrats scare tactics in order to get people to vote for them. Just like no one is trying starve anyone, as I've heard some Democrats claim, there is NO ONE trying to take social security away from Seniors or anyone else. Anyone who says so or implies that is going to happen because Republicans are elected is a liar. Something MUST be done or the system will fail and then their will be no social security for anyone for sure.
I'm all for Social Security reform and allowing people to invest at least some of their money. I don't plan on it being around when I retire in 20+ years, especially if the politicians keep screwing around and do nothing about fixing the problems. If I had the money I was paying into Social Security and what my employer was matching (they are required to pay half the tax, so what you get taken out of your check is the other half) now and put that into my 401K along with what I currently contribute it would be about $500 a month. I'm sure I'd have enough to retire early if I could put that much in my plan.
If I only had the money that has been taken out of my pay and from my employers for SSI since I started working 25+ years ago and had invested it, I probably could have retired very comfortably by 50.
If you have a 401K or other plan at work you are an extreme fool if you are not contributing to it at least up to the employer match. I started doing that when I became employed by a corporation. Later playing with Quicken Turbo Tax it suggested if I put 14% instead of 5% in my 401K since it comes out of my check pre taxes would reduce my taxes enough that it made no difference in what I got to take home. Which to me is 100% WIN - WIN! Giving the government less and save more for retirement is definitely a great thing.
If you don't have a 401K or other employer sponsored plan then I highly recommend starting an IRA, maybe in addition to your employer's plan. I highly recommend you avoid individual stocks, even if they the company you work for. Look at what happened to the people who worked for Enron.. Invest them in good Solid mutual funds which have good long term track records. The sooner you start the more you can enjoy yourself when you retire.

Some links to get you started.

Dave Ramesy's Financial Peace

Financial Peace Baby Steps PDF

What Would Dave Do

IRA.COM

Provident Living Home

Provident Living Resource Management

Some facts about Social Security

This is from the Social Security Administration website
2006 Trustees Report Long-Term Financing Challenges Remain

http://www.ssa.gov/pressoffice/pr/trustee06-pr.htm

I haven't quoted the whole report but here are some of the scarry facts.

"The 2006 Social Security Trustees Report shows little change in the projected financial status of the Social Security program over last year. The Trustees Report projects that the Social Security Trust Funds will be exhausted in 2040 one year sooner than last year's projection. And, as they have done for more than a decade, the Trustees recommend that projected trust fund deficits be addressed in a timely way to allow for gradual changes and advance notice to workers.

In the 2006 Annual Report to Congress, the Trustees announced:

• The projected point at which tax revenues will fall below program costs comes in 2017 -- the same as the estimate in last year's report.
• The projected point at which the Trust Funds will be exhausted comes in 2040 -- one year earlier than the projection in last year's report.
• The projected actuarial deficit over the 75-year long-range period is 2.02 percent of taxable payroll -- up .09 percent from last year's report.
• Over the 75-year period, the Trust Funds require additional revenue equivalent to $4.6 trillion in today's dollars to pay all scheduled benefits. This unfunded obligation is $600 billion higher than the amount estimated last year."

"More than 150 Congressional Candidates Pledge to Reform Social Security

http://www.socialsecurity.org/

With the mid-term elections rapidly approaching, more than 150 candidates have signed a pledge being to "work toward a bipartisan solution to strengthen Social Security for the long-term by putting aside partisan politics and seeking common ground." The pledge is being circulated by For Our Grandchildren, a grassroots advocacy organization that has long supported Social Security reform, including personal accounts. Although the pledge itself does not mention any particular option for reforming the failing Social Security system, For Our grandchildren calls for reform based on five key principles: 1) We must guarantee the promised benefits for the current and nearly retired. 2) Workers should have the choice to put a portion of their payroll taxes into prudent diversified investments. 3) Workers should own their own accounts - not the government. 4) A government safety net should ensure a minimum retirement benefit. 5) There should be no payroll tax increase."

"It's Your Money

http://www.socialsecurity.org/toolkit/community.html

The debate over Social Security reform has generated many competing claims and confusing projections. But the most important issue is this: Will the current Social Security system provide our children and our grandchildren with a secure and comfortable retirement? Since the answer to that simple question is no, there's no denying the need for reform.

This booklet explains the state of the Social Security system today and describes how we can fix the flaws in its structure that, if left unchanged, will burden our children and grandchildren with unnecessary debt and taxes. The good news is that, with revisions to the Social Security system, we will be able to provide future generations with a program that actually accomplishes more successfully what the creators of the original Social Security program hoped to achieve real retirement security.
Full text of It's Your Money (PDF, 43 pp, 647 Kb)
For a list of candidates who have signed the pledge, click here."

This page goes to a long list of links to websites of organizations supporting Social Security reform.
http://www.socialsecurity.org/toolkit/links.html


A few facts from the White house site on Social Security reform

http://www.whitehouse.gov/infocus/social-security/

"President Bush has discussed the importance of Social Security and the need to fix the Social Security system for future generations of Americans. The President has assured Americans that he will not change the Social Security system in any way for those born before 1950.

• Social Security was one of the great moral successes of the 20th century by providing a critical foundation of income for retired and disabled workers.
• For one-third of Americans over 65, Social Security benefits constitute 90% of their total income

Background on Presidential Action

• Social Security is sound for today's seniors and for those nearing retirement, but it needs to be fixed for younger workers our children and grandchildren.
The government has made promises it cannot afford to pay for with the current pay-as-you-go system.
• In 1950, there were 16 workers to support every one beneficiary of Social Security.
• Today, there are only 3.3 workers supporting every Social Security beneficiary.
• In 2008 just three short years from now baby boomers will begin to retire. And over the next few decades, people will be living longer and benefits are scheduled to increase dramatically. By the time today s youngest workers turn 65, there will only be 2 workers supporting each beneficiary.
  • Under the current system, today's 30-year-old worker will face a 27% benefit cut when he or she reaches normal retirement age."

Wikipeda on the Social Security Debate

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_Security_debate_%28United_States%29