I can't believe that asshole is going after Survivor Benefits!!!

[LynneSin]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060208/ap_on_go_co/social_security

You want to know why I absolutely despise Reagan - Survivor Benefits. These are payments made by Social Security to the children who have lost a parent. Every month each surviving child under the age of 18 is entitled to $255 (and that hasn't changed since I was getting it), money that goes to help take care of that child now that there is one less parent to take care of them.

That money was a lifesaver for my brother and I who lost our father back in the early 80s. My mother was a stay-at-home mom with very few skills outside of the home environment (but she was awesome in the home) so that money was a lifesaver to help my brother (he was in college) and myself to make it through while my mother was able to get herself together and find other sources of income to help take care of the family. My brother was fortunate enough to get the money throughout college, but Reagan (may his soul be rotting in the deepest depths of hell) made the first cuts that would take the money away once you turned 18. I had two friends that dropped out of High School their senior years in order and enroll at the local community college in order to keep the money coming through college. Hell my mother considered enrolling me in college and I was only in 10th grade (intellectually they figured I could do it but emotionally they figured it would screw me up even more).

So now, how does Bush want to help out us kids who have lost a parent when we're young: MORE CUTS!!! Hell, they haven't raised the amount since like FOREVER but let's poor more salt into the wounds of those of us who are suffering by taking away more money. Especially now when the cost of living is skyrocketing and you practically need two incomes in order to live paycheck-to-paycheck. Worst - they want to tie-in the money to your status in school. If you drop-out you lose the money.

So what the hell are we paying Social Security for? I mean, my father paid for it for years and obviously he never got a cent of it because he died in his 40s so shouldn't that money go to his survivors in the form of a $255/month check?

God I hope that when Bush dies he rots in the same fiery parts of hell as Reagan. And I hope the democrats fight him on this one. If anything that money should be increased

:rant:

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

1. When Bush dies,

he'll have to face your father and my father in law, who also died in his 40s, and other deceased parents, not to mention the tens of thousands who have died in this illegal war. Personally, I think that would be enough for him to try and run to the gates of hell and scream to be let in.

[Katherine Brengle]

2. Heartless, soulless chimpy bastard... rots in hell...

"God I hope that when Bush dies he rots in the same fiery parts of hell as Reagan. And I hope the democrats fight him on this one. If anything that money should be increased."

Amen. Survivor benefits are one of the most important parts of the Social Security program (as far as I am concerned).

Only a heartless, soulless chimpy bastard would even consider trying to take them away.

[napi21]

3. Is it $255/mo. benefits to survovors, or the $255 death benefit

that Shrub is cutting? Or is it both?

I thought it was the death benefit, which is certainly bad enough! For God sake, $255 is pocket change to the Feds!

[LynneSin]

8. I stand corrected but he's going after both

The $255 is burial assistances which lets face it, barily covers the cost. But from the article:

WASHINGTON - If President Bush gets his way, the venerable $255 Social Security death benefit will fade into history. And 16- and 17-year-old high school dropouts will lose their monthly survivor payments.

[wtmusic]

4. 1 month of the Iraq war pays for ten years of survivor benefits

shhh...don't say anything.

:grr:

[zanne]

5. Survivor benefits got me and my brother through college.

It didn't pay all the tuition, of course, but it paid a large chunk of it. It was my only chance to go to college. The new Republican motto: "You're on your own".

[IndyOp]

22. The new Republican motto: "You're in the military" - That is what this is

about. This and the cuts in college tuition - will drive 17-24 year-olds into the military in droves.

:grr:

[CornField]

6. Curiousity question

I was born to older parents. They both entered retirement before my closest brother and I graduated from high school. As such, Social Security benefits were increased for our family (the same $255 per child as outlined in the post above).

Does anyone know if this type of benefit is still being done?

As a child who benefitted from those payments, I can tell you there was no way my parents could have supported a family of four on their Social Security benefits alone. (We barely made ends meet with the children checks and my father and mother working as much as they could without jeapardizing their SS benefits)

[LiberalEsto]

7. I thought it was to be cut for school dropouts

But that's still evil.
What if a kid dropped out to take care of an ailing parent? It's been known to happen.
Ripping off parentless kids in order to give permanent tax breaks to millionairs, is a hell of a sleazy way to run a country.

[LynneSin]

12. It's cuts to burial assistances and a tie-in to your standing in school

Reagan already ruined a generation of us with the cuts he made that made it more challenging for those of us trying to go to college (I was one of the first people affected by that). I don't want to judge why someone may or may not be able to stay in school but the money should stay til their 18th birthday.

[SillyGoose]

21. I agree. The kid still lives at home and needs care. There may be

various reasons why a kid drops out of school, but he or she still needs to eat. Its especially cruel to target people who depend on survivor's benefits. They are already having to adjust to a loss of income and to make it that much tougher is just plain wrong.


:grr:

[raccoon]

16. What if the kid dropped out due to illness/injury (such as

a car accident)? Would he/she be cut off anyway?

[LynneSin]

17. In the Bush Regime - if you're not a prole working for the system

then they don't get a flying hoot about you!

[Hubert Flottz]

24. It's called right wing "MORALITY" and the preachers all were for

all of this! They stood up in churches ALL OVER THE COUNTRY and told their flock to go vote for Bush! I'll bet the Devil was laughing his ass off at the damned FOOLS! I know Bush and KKKarl were. And the preachers are still too proud to admit, how badly they were duped!

Why on Earth would anyone go and listen to the words of fools like that, on Sunday? I don't understand! Put your faith in rats like Pat and Jerry and if there is a Hell you're sure to find out. Starving kids is a sin, I'd guess! You MUST bring them into the world, so the GOP can starve them to death!

[kurth]

9. Estimated "cost savings" over TEN years = $3.4 billion. Meanwhile,

Bush to seek $120 billion MORE for Iraq THIS YEAR.

[underpants]

15. ~$163,000 a minute

http://costofwar.com/wrappedindex.html

http://nationalpriorities.org/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=182

[Stephanie]

10. Perfect example of the cruel, heartless George Bush

Just sent this to a friend who lost her husband last year and has a son in jr. high. this would really, really hurt her.

[kurth]

14. Yep, the compassionate conservative selfish asshole

[silverlib]

11. Isn't this the one-time death payoff

survivor benefits are different and based on the income of the parent that died. They are talking about stopping this benefit for children not attending school.

The death benefit is a measly one time 255 bucks that was originally intended to help with funeral expenses.

This is just the first move - hang on.

[LynneSin]

13. Like I said - I'm corrected

but tieing the monthly payments into your status in school is just wrong. With the NCLB program, there are many schools almost encouraging kids to drop out in order to keep their numbers high enough. Now if a kid drops out and maybe for reasons that have nothing to do with just being bored with school, the that kid is screwed

[MissWaverly]

18. he's after every cent he can carve out

I was watching a show on illegal immigrants, it talked about how they have paid into the
social security system using fake ids, and how GWB is planning to suck that up, it's at least a billion. Since the tax system is fueled by the middle class and the working poor,
I am waiting for the day he says no tax refunds for those making under $200,000. He also
has put in social security privatization in this years budget. The American people have
said a zillion times, we don't want this and he keeps on once again ignoring those
he is supposed to serve.

[happydreams]

19. Bush is a psycopath. He enjoys inflicting pain on those less fortunate.

Everything he has done points at his feudalistic aspirations.

[unblock]

20. BUSH STEALS FROM ORPHANS TO PAY FOR DICK CHENEY'S TAX CUT

[Hissyspit]

30. Also: BUSH STEALS FROM ORPHANS TO PAY FOR $1/2 TRILLION IRAQ WAR

to get non-existant WMDs.

[AndyA]

23. Proof of how screwed up priorities are

This is so typical. All I hope is that for every person hurt by this, it's one more Democratic vote in November!

Remember what the Bush Administration has done to you, Americans...and vote accordingly!

Hey, that could be the new Democratic catch phrase!

[stepnw1f]

25. The Bush Family Should Have their personal Wealth Yanked from Them

I'm serious...

[LynneSin]

29. I think the money that my father paid into Social Security

should not go for anyone but his own family. Same for anyone else who lost a father or mother while they were still a kid!

[LittleClarkie]

26. Damn Democrats

What did you want anyway, a HANDOUT?!

(I actually had someone say that to me for having a Kerry button on. Charming, no?)

[raccoon]

27. Oh, don't you know, it's OK for THEM to get handouts but

if anybody else gets any sort of assistance--they're just lazy so-and-sos who don't want to work.

[Ilsa]

28. Why doesn't he make it age ten and they have to be on the honor roll?

Wouldn't that provide more incentive? :sarcasm: Or require that they pre-enroll in a trade school. Or start a new army for 15-17 year olds so we can have endless cannon fodder patrolling whichever nation PNAC decides to invade next.