Social Security Email debunking.

[bhunt70]

this is floating around...what can I do to debunk it?

>
>
> SOCIAL SECURITY:
>
> When Franklin Roosevelt, a Democrat, introduced the Social Security
> (FICA)
> Program. He promised:
>
> 1.) That participation in the Program would be completely voluntary.
>
> 2.) That the participants would only have to pay 1% of the first $1,400
> of
> their annual incomes into the Program.
>
> 3.) That the money the participants elected to put into the Program
> would be
> deductible from their income tax each year.
>
> 4.) That the participants' money went into the independent "Trust Fund,"
> rather than into the General operating fund, and therefore, would only
> be
> used to fund the Social Security Retirement Program - and no other
> Government program.
>
> 5.) That the annuity payments to the retirees would never be taxed as
> income.
>
> Since many of us have paid into FICA for years and are now receiving a
> Social Security check every month -- and then finding that we are
> getting
> taxed on 85% of the money we paid to the Federal government to "put
> away,"
> you may be interested in the following:
> Q: Which Political Party took Social Security from the independent
> "Trust
> Fund" and put it into the General Fund so that Congress could spend it?
> A: It was Lyndon Johnson and the Democratically-controlled House and
> Senate.
>
> Q: Which Political Party eliminated the income tax deduction for Social
> Security (FICA) withholding?
> A: The Democratic Party.
> Q: Which Political Party started taxing Social Security annuities?
> A: The Democratic Party, with Al Gore casting the "tie-breaking"
> deciding
> vote as President of the Senate, while he was Vice President of the U.S.
>
> Q: Which Political Party decided to start giving annuity payments to
> immigrants?
> A: That's right! Jimmy Carter and the Democratic Party. Immigrants moved
> into this country, and at age 65, began to receive SSI Social Security
> payments! The Democratic Party gave these payments to them, even though
> they
> never paid a dime into it!
> Then, after doing all this lying and thieving and violation of the
> original
> contract (FICA), the Democrats turn around and tell you that the
> Republicans
> want to take your Social Security away!
>
> And the worst part about it is, uninformed citizens believe it!
>
> Perhaps we are asking the wrong questions during this 2004 election
> year!
>
> If enough people receive this, maybe a seed of awareness will be planted
> and
> maybe good changes will evolve.
>
> How many people can YOU send this to?
> Please keep this going, it needs to be heard!
> God Bless America
>

[Caution]

1. point the idiot who sent you this crap to Snopes

http://www.snopes.com/cgi-bin/news/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=3;t=000003

[SheilaT]

2. Whenever you get any kind of

crap like this, that you know is false but seems to be logical, always go to snopes.

For some reason I can't get the link to the actual page doing the debunking to work, but go to www.snopes.com and then type in "social security" in the search box, and the first page that pops up should be the correct one.

Unfortunately, it's a bit clunky and boring in how they do it.

However, the very first statement, that FDR said the program would be voluntary, is an out and out lie. It was never intended to be voluntary. But it has been expanded to cover more people over the years. Originally federal employees were not part of the social security system, although I think they are now.

[UdoKier]

3. As for his gripe that the witholding is over 1%...

I believe that the last, and biggest increase in SS tax was passed by none other than Saint Reagan himself, doubling the employee contribution to 7%. I might add that Greenspan and company at the time promised that this would make SS solvent for good. Now Greenspan claims that benefits will need to be cut and he supports privatization. Before I would ever support such a measure, I would insist that the government pay social security back the interest for what it's borrowed from the trust fund over the years.

That is OUR money that WE contributed. It is not a "handout". I'm sick of the right acting like it is one.

[shoelace414]

4. Privitization?

We can already contrubute money pre-tax to a retirment account, it's called a 401k and 403b and after your paycheck you can do with with an IRA. thw only thing you can't do, that the republicans want you to be able to do is defund social security.

[MildyCC]

5. Not EVERYONE can contribute to a 401K, 403b

or an IRA. That 6.5% is a large chunk for MANY people.

[shoelace414]

8. only people with earned income can contrubute to an IRA

[tjwash]

7. Repugs don't want to defund SS.

They want to pillage it, and stick it in their bank accounts. That's what the whole privatization deal is.

[wishlist]

6. Reagan and his Greenspan Commission were behind more SS taxes

It was under Reagan's administration that the most drastic changes in Social Security were set into place including the increases in the withholding contribution and federal taxation of benefits and a gradual reduction of benefits. These changes were made through overwhelming bipartisan congressional support. But of course the Bush ads just talk about Kerry voting for it and don't bother to mention that Reagan and Greenspan strongly approved and proposed these measures to shore up Social Security trust funds.

The allegations about Jimmy Carter are totally false also. Illegal aliens have never been eligible for SSI welfare benefits. The SSI program began under the Nixon Administration, not Carter. Only citizens (and some legal residents such as refugees) can draw SSI which is not Social Security and is not paid through the trust funds, only from general tax revenues.

Most of the email consists of outright lies.