- Joined
- Apr 14, 2006
- Messages
- 23,059
I recall my first "paycheck" job, at McDonald's. It was 1975 and I was 16. I had my eye on some blue Adidas sneakers that I was going to buy with my first paycheck. I knew that it would be $28 dollars because I had worked 14 hours and made exactly $2 per hour, and that would be enough to buy my swanky new footwear.
As they handed me the envelope with my check in it, I could almost feel the new sneakers on my feet. You can imagine my shock when I opened it up and saw the total. Who are FITW and FICA and what did they ever do to deserve part of my money?? One of my older co-workers clued me in. I had some vague concept of income tax, but none at all of this odd thing called "social security". She said "that just extra tax. They give it to old people who don't have any money." I thought about my grandmother and decided that was okay by me.
I didn't give it another thought until I graduated from college in 1981. Then I read an article explaining how social security was actuarially unsound given changes in the number of workers and life expectancies. It made sense to me, and I also knew enough of life to realize that politicians would never, ever take the unpopular steps necessary to fix the problem. From that time forward to this day, I have never expected to get social security. My retirement plans have always assumed zero. And anyone who has been paying attention should not be surprised by the news post by the OP today.
Even if, as I expect, I never get a dime, I am still extraordinarily grateful to have lived my life here, in the most prosperous country ever known. I am healthy and happy and I have become wealthier than I ever thought possible. Not getting social security is a minor blip on the radar. If I think about it at all, I think about how social security allowed my grandmother, and now my parents, to spend their later years in some semblance of dignity. I don't mind paying for that.
As they handed me the envelope with my check in it, I could almost feel the new sneakers on my feet. You can imagine my shock when I opened it up and saw the total. Who are FITW and FICA and what did they ever do to deserve part of my money?? One of my older co-workers clued me in. I had some vague concept of income tax, but none at all of this odd thing called "social security". She said "that just extra tax. They give it to old people who don't have any money." I thought about my grandmother and decided that was okay by me.
I didn't give it another thought until I graduated from college in 1981. Then I read an article explaining how social security was actuarially unsound given changes in the number of workers and life expectancies. It made sense to me, and I also knew enough of life to realize that politicians would never, ever take the unpopular steps necessary to fix the problem. From that time forward to this day, I have never expected to get social security. My retirement plans have always assumed zero. And anyone who has been paying attention should not be surprised by the news post by the OP today.
Even if, as I expect, I never get a dime, I am still extraordinarily grateful to have lived my life here, in the most prosperous country ever known. I am healthy and happy and I have become wealthier than I ever thought possible. Not getting social security is a minor blip on the radar. If I think about it at all, I think about how social security allowed my grandmother, and now my parents, to spend their later years in some semblance of dignity. I don't mind paying for that.
