Social Security – a Political Gift. Government Essay (200 Level Course)
In the depths of the Great Depression hundreds of thousands of senior citizens are unemployed, they have no retirement and no visual means of supporting themselves. During this era it had always fallen on children to support their parents. Now, however, the children have no jobs. The economy was dreadful. Politicians consulting economist realize that for every one elderly person not working
there were twelve adults not working that were working age. The economic became simple if every working person paid five cents each week to the government that the government could give decent retirement to every senior citizen and thus social security was born.
What followed social security was that one, politicians love to give gifts. It’s like buying a vote. Every year they increase social security benefits. Second, demographics changed. Now there are more people who get benefits than work. Now instead of five cents a week the government takes a little more than 6% of the working mans pay.
The demographics that helped social security at the beginning are now killing it. The problem comes when economist try to find a plan to save social security they find that each young working American will have to devote something like one-half of their current income. This makes the young slaves to the old. This will not work. All of the articles I read are very negative about the possibility of reform and what the politicians are really doing.