ShortInSeattle
Full time employment: Posting here.
- Joined
- Jan 5, 2012
- Messages
- 518
BigE said:Every day I see healthy appearing person "scamming" the disability system. 40 yr olds with normal spines claiming back pain. Don't know just how pervasive this is (ie, don't have hard data on this), but it would appear that the nation of "food stamps" is also a nation of "I can't work, give me a monthly check" for my fibromyalgia". Please refrain from hate-mail, I know there are plenty of people who justifiably need SSDI, but those who don't are robbing the social security system (read: stealing from seniors).
I think this situation is a tough one to assess. We can't see into someone's heart (and medical history) to pass judgement, but on the other hand many of us can think of people we've met who are living off the government unnecessarily.
I have a young relative who gets several hundred a month because he has a parent on disability. He has a working parent too (doesn't need the money) and spends most of the cash on snowboarding and X-box games. Some goes to a college fund.
A friend's brother couldn't hold down a job because he wouldn't wake up on time and had poor hygiene. His disability attorney had him take jobs to "prove he'd get fired" while they appealed to SSI. He was eventually approved, the lawyer took a big bite of the cash, and now he spends almost all of his time playing online videogames. He'd like to get a part time job and see if he can re-enter the workforce, but doesn't want to risk his benefits which include medications.
I don't think of either of these young men as "robbing the system" but it does seem to me that we're not making the best use of our tax dollars.