Originally Posted by
ppilot
Well, again, we disagree. The projections of CBO have used very conservative figures for economic growth and immigration. Also, as has been said before, a (very slight) raising of the age at which benefits are collected, as well as possibly raising the wage cap closes the gap for like, 50 years. And I'm sorry, we can't plan farther ahead than that. We really have no idea what things will be like in 50 years.
The programs have been altered many times over their history, there is no doubt they will have to be altered again in much larger ways and the time horizon is much closer than most people understand.
Think about this for just a minute:
"By 2030, about the midpoint of the baby boomer retirement years, the programs will require nearly half of all income tax dollars."
Add in other proposed spending and it is very easy to understand that all of our backs are going to be pressed against an unyielding economic hard place in the near future.
A complete lack of any figures to the contrary speaks volumes about the truth in this matter. It really doesn't matter how we feel about it, it all comes down to what we can afford.
The limits have already been exceeded by a very wide margin.