[quote=FighterHayabusa;685726]I don't really find it that hard to see the Social Security Administration as being a separate entity that in and of itself is not the perpetrator of the wrongs you thrust on it. Your problem is actually with government spending the extra money collected by the SSA and failing to prepare for the day when they can't spend it anymore.
So again, why would you pick on Social Security instead of any of the other things we ran a deficit for since the surplus idea was concocted?
I'm not sure what you're upset about or what exactly you're trying to defend. . .
Many of us aren't happy with the SS for a few reasons and the way government is run generally.
Gripes with SS:
It's little more than a legal ponzi scheme. The money (forcibly) taken from most employees is NOT "theirs" to be invested and then returned to them with interest at a later date. This is why the "trust fund" will be completly depleted in less than 20 years. That is, unless the ponzi pyramid is pumped up via more taxation from those currently working to pay for those who no longer are.
Many of us would like the FREEDOM to invest our OWN money in ways WE see fit. We neither need nor want the government to be our mommy.
Like anyone else who has worked for a government agency in any mid-level or higher capacity for any length of time, I'm acutely aware of the omnipresent waste and inefficiency in government. Fraud, waste and abuse are everywhere. It's the nature of the beast. Trying to get rid of it is like trying to keep every weed out of your lawn or trying to lose that last 5 lbs after age 40. Not impossible, but dam* near so.
SS is just ONE example of how the federal government does a LOUSY job managing the myriad social programs that directly impact the lives of its citizens.
As our history has shown time and again, all the government's good intentions and promises to learn from the mistakes of the past are nothing more than wishful thinking. To paraphrase Friedman, people just don't spend other people's money wisely and they never will.
In my opinion we would be much better off in the long-run if we would reverse the trend of relying more and more on government and rely more on ourselves. Yes, it would be painful for many, but it would be well worth it for all of us in the end. The government should get out of the social welfare business and stick to what it can (marginally) do right - roads, public safety, defense*, etc.
*not a slam in any way, shape or form on the men and women that serve in the rank and file of our armed forces. Been there, done that myself for over 20 years. If you were ever in the military you know what I'm talking about.