Generational theft by the baby boomers
I love my parents but goddamn I'm angry at their generation. The boomers were a generation that lived through unprecedented economic growth, a generation that was educated because education was viewed as a public investment, that prospered like no group ever has in the history of the World. But it wasn't enough, when it came time to continue the investment in the next generation not only did they refuse to foot the bill, they actually ran the credit card into the red and now expects to retire and have their children support them.
How so? Almost a third of the American debt (16 trillion) is actually owed to the Social Security Trust Fund and federal pension systems.
Basically, they saved all that money for retirement (like responsible people) then in the last couple of decades before they retired they cut taxes so hard that the country went into the red, ran their own pension fund dry to do it, then right when they're on the cusp of retiring they dump that debt onto their children's generation and expect full pensions and support.
And the generation they're dumping it on is their children's generation which has already had to bury itself in debt just to educate itself because the boomers also cut funding to education. And they lecture us about responsibility? At every turn they have shirked responsibility and kicked the can down the road. You think there's a controversy over global warming because people disagree with the science? Fuck no, it's because if they accepted it as true they'd actually have to take some goddamn responsibility for their actions and fix the mess they've created.
So, Generation Y, you are now going to have to carry your parents' generation's debt, your own debt that you incurred educating yourself, and somewhere you'll also have to find the money to raise your own goddamn children all the while dealing with a runaway greenhouse effect that could have been easily avoided if an entire generation hadn't been so goddamn self-absorbed and irresponsible.
How so? Almost a third of the American debt (16 trillion) is actually owed to the Social Security Trust Fund and federal pension systems.
Basically, they saved all that money for retirement (like responsible people) then in the last couple of decades before they retired they cut taxes so hard that the country went into the red, ran their own pension fund dry to do it, then right when they're on the cusp of retiring they dump that debt onto their children's generation and expect full pensions and support.
And the generation they're dumping it on is their children's generation which has already had to bury itself in debt just to educate itself because the boomers also cut funding to education. And they lecture us about responsibility? At every turn they have shirked responsibility and kicked the can down the road. You think there's a controversy over global warming because people disagree with the science? Fuck no, it's because if they accepted it as true they'd actually have to take some goddamn responsibility for their actions and fix the mess they've created.
So, Generation Y, you are now going to have to carry your parents' generation's debt, your own debt that you incurred educating yourself, and somewhere you'll also have to find the money to raise your own goddamn children all the while dealing with a runaway greenhouse effect that could have been easily avoided if an entire generation hadn't been so goddamn self-absorbed and irresponsible.
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Everyone is guilty of poor judgement at some point in their life, and hindsight is 20/20.
An entire generation cannot bear responsibility for all the problems you state. There are too many different people that you are painting with a very broad brush here.
An entire generation cannot bear responsibility for all the problems you state. There are too many different people that you are painting with a very broad brush here.
Yes, let's declare war on an entire generation of people. That's going to make everything a lot better. Let's use old people as an excuse for the source of our nation's woes.
"Every rose has it's thorns"
You are using them as a scapegoat. Regardless of who they voted for, the gov has been running its own show for quite a while now. Blaming a singular generation for the crooks on the hill is naive. The entire system is based on debt and borrowing, what good can come from it?
Aaaah generations.
I don't know much about those things, but this made me think of a quote by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry:
"We do not inherit the world from our ancestors. We borrow it from our children."
I don't know much about those things, but this made me think of a quote by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry:
"We do not inherit the world from our ancestors. We borrow it from our children."
That's a good one, my other favourite is "A nation grows great when old men plant trees in whose shade they known they shall never sit."
However you neglect to mention that a number of that debt was due to the issue of inflation.
it is because of inflation that the money put into the system over the baby boomer lifetime was unable to pay for their social security later on.
it is because of inflation that the government funnels current social security money paid now into current retiree's pensions.
this has little to do with cutting taxes. it is the improper handling and usage of funds as well as inflation that led to the situation now.
Note: I do disagree with cutting taxes but I do understand that it is a temporary measure of stimulating the economy. I do agree that they should not have cut funding for education and research (most notable in medical and space sectors)
it is because of inflation that the money put into the system over the baby boomer lifetime was unable to pay for their social security later on.
it is because of inflation that the government funnels current social security money paid now into current retiree's pensions.
this has little to do with cutting taxes. it is the improper handling and usage of funds as well as inflation that led to the situation now.
Note: I do disagree with cutting taxes but I do understand that it is a temporary measure of stimulating the economy. I do agree that they should not have cut funding for education and research (most notable in medical and space sectors)
However you neglect to mention that a number of that debt was due to the issue of inflation.
it is because of inflation that the money put into the system over the baby boomer lifetime was unable to pay for their social security later on.
it is because of inflation that the government funnels current social security money paid now into current retiree's pensions.
this has little to do with cutting taxes. it is the improper handling and usage of funds as well as inflation that led to the situation now.
Note: I do disagree with cutting taxes but I do understand that it is a temporary measure of stimulating the economy. I do agree that they should not have cut funding for education and research (most notable in medical and space sectors)
it is because of inflation that the money put into the system over the baby boomer lifetime was unable to pay for their social security later on.
it is because of inflation that the government funnels current social security money paid now into current retiree's pensions.
this has little to do with cutting taxes. it is the improper handling and usage of funds as well as inflation that led to the situation now.
Note: I do disagree with cutting taxes but I do understand that it is a temporary measure of stimulating the economy. I do agree that they should not have cut funding for education and research (most notable in medical and space sectors)
However you neglect to mention that a number of that debt was due to the issue of inflation.
it is because of inflation that the money put into the system over the baby boomer lifetime was unable to pay for their social security later on.
it is because of inflation that the government funnels current social security money paid now into current retiree's pensions.
this has little to do with cutting taxes. it is the improper handling and usage of funds as well as inflation that led to the situation now.
Note: I do disagree with cutting taxes but I do understand that it is a temporary measure of stimulating the economy. I do agree that they should not have cut funding for education and research (most notable in medical and space sectors)
it is because of inflation that the money put into the system over the baby boomer lifetime was unable to pay for their social security later on.
it is because of inflation that the government funnels current social security money paid now into current retiree's pensions.
this has little to do with cutting taxes. it is the improper handling and usage of funds as well as inflation that led to the situation now.
Note: I do disagree with cutting taxes but I do understand that it is a temporary measure of stimulating the economy. I do agree that they should not have cut funding for education and research (most notable in medical and space sectors)
However you neglect to mention that a number of that debt was due to the issue of inflation.
it is because of inflation that the money put into the system over the baby boomer lifetime was unable to pay for their social security later on.
it is because of inflation that the government funnels current social security money paid now into current retiree's pensions.
this has little to do with cutting taxes. it is the improper handling and usage of funds as well as inflation that led to the situation now.
Note: I do disagree with cutting taxes but I do understand that it is a temporary measure of stimulating the economy. I do agree that they should not have cut funding for education and research (most notable in medical and space sectors)
it is because of inflation that the money put into the system over the baby boomer lifetime was unable to pay for their social security later on.
it is because of inflation that the government funnels current social security money paid now into current retiree's pensions.
this has little to do with cutting taxes. it is the improper handling and usage of funds as well as inflation that led to the situation now.
Note: I do disagree with cutting taxes but I do understand that it is a temporary measure of stimulating the economy. I do agree that they should not have cut funding for education and research (most notable in medical and space sectors)
Inflation is only a problem for your savings if it exceeds the amount of interest paid on your savings. The money may be worth 2% less per year, but because of interest you now have 3% more of it as long as you don't spend it.
this is correct. Inflation grew too dramaticly for the interest gained by funds placed in social security resulting in negative interest. this is why the U.S government is pulling money from individuals currently working in an attempt to pay off this debt to the currently retired.
I am trying to point out that the mass retirement as well as politcal behavior baby boomers is not the main cause, they are just 'a' cause.
I appologize if my usage of words appear somewhat angry I do not intend them to be such.
haha. the internet is not a particuly good medium for debates, I much prefer them to be face to face.
I am trying to point out that the mass retirement as well as politcal behavior baby boomers is not the main cause, they are just 'a' cause.
I appologize if my usage of words appear somewhat angry I do not intend them to be such.
haha. the internet is not a particuly good medium for debates, I much prefer them to be face to face.
The net isn't perfect for debates, true, but it is useful because you can take your time to think and if necessary research. For instance I tried to find a graph of interest rates vs inflation but sadly couldn't find one (if you have one it would be good to see), however generally speaking interest rates generally stay slightly above the level of inflation. The problem here isn't that the money is still there but but been reduced in value; the problem is that it has been spent. It's gone.
You're right that the mass retirement isn't the only problem, but it combined with decades of short-sightedness and greed in combination have formed a major one and will end up weighing down our ability to take action on a lot of problems in the future.
You're right that the mass retirement isn't the only problem, but it combined with decades of short-sightedness and greed in combination have formed a major one and will end up weighing down our ability to take action on a lot of problems in the future.
i was about to just shit another comment post but then i read your post and see that it's pretty much the truth and not some usual mindless rant or lame post. fuck what are you trying to do to me?
I'm in your heeeeead!
Thanks to Australia's compulsory superannuation the average aussie will retire but continue to recieve 2/3 of their income and at noones expense but their own. Those who earned a high income or payed more than the required 9% will recieve a bigger superannuation stream than those who didn't earn alot, some of these people may need a pension to supplement their super but it still takes a massive strain off the social security system. Only those who barely worked and already leeched off the system will recieve only the pension, and if they want a shitty amount of money they can barely feed themselves I have no complaints.
You are absolutely and totally wrong and using baby boomers for a scapegoat.
It is the global nationalist world economic expansion that has indirectly caused most of the deficit problems we are currently facing.
All the outsourcing of jobs to foreign countries in the race to the bottom is the problem.
We are now in a situation where total imports have exceeded exports since the mid 1970's.
This is draining the wealth of this country and transferring it to foreign countries that are experiencing economic growth and prosperity. We need to get back to producing more of what we consume instead of importing everything from foreign countries thinking we are saving a couple of bucks. The social costs do not appear on the price tag of all those imported goods like your little cell phones, I phones, I pads, entertainment systems, computers, clothing, household appliances, home improvement goods, and automobiles.
In reality the post World War II generation was the most prosperous and upward mobile of any generation in the USA. Back in the 1940's, 1950's, and 1960's we did not have such tremendous deficits in trade, since most people working in the USA were producing the goods and services that Americans consumed. This lead to lower unemployment and higher income levels that fueled economic growth. Such growth added to the government tax revenue receipts since less people were on social services, instead they were earning income that was taxable, helping to keep government spending lower than the tax revenue they were taking in.
Social Security is something everyone pays into and is entitled to upon retirement regulations for receiving this benefit. If you have paid thousands into this system you deserve to get your earned money back just as if you were saving for retirement in a savings account.
It is the global nationalist world economic expansion that has indirectly caused most of the deficit problems we are currently facing.
All the outsourcing of jobs to foreign countries in the race to the bottom is the problem.
We are now in a situation where total imports have exceeded exports since the mid 1970's.
This is draining the wealth of this country and transferring it to foreign countries that are experiencing economic growth and prosperity. We need to get back to producing more of what we consume instead of importing everything from foreign countries thinking we are saving a couple of bucks. The social costs do not appear on the price tag of all those imported goods like your little cell phones, I phones, I pads, entertainment systems, computers, clothing, household appliances, home improvement goods, and automobiles.
In reality the post World War II generation was the most prosperous and upward mobile of any generation in the USA. Back in the 1940's, 1950's, and 1960's we did not have such tremendous deficits in trade, since most people working in the USA were producing the goods and services that Americans consumed. This lead to lower unemployment and higher income levels that fueled economic growth. Such growth added to the government tax revenue receipts since less people were on social services, instead they were earning income that was taxable, helping to keep government spending lower than the tax revenue they were taking in.
Social Security is something everyone pays into and is entitled to upon retirement regulations for receiving this benefit. If you have paid thousands into this system you deserve to get your earned money back just as if you were saving for retirement in a savings account.
You're describing a state of affairs that did not happen by accident. Everything that happened was the result of choices by elected officials. And those decisions were the result of short sighted greed and an unwillingness to think about those that would come after them.
Except that all the trends you mention correlate exactly with the Baby Boomers' growth in economic and political influence. Who is the "we" who drove these changes, if not them?
Social Security is not, and never has been, some kind of retirement savings scheme.
Social Security is not, and never has been, some kind of retirement savings scheme.
You're right...FUCK YOU DAD!
I don't feel I can really add to this conversation because I know little about politics or economics, but as someone who is hoping for universality this year in the UK, its very scary to think that until recently, university courses only costed 5000 pounds per year for most, but now almost everyone has shot that up to 9000 pounds a year. And that's not including interest which i'll have to eventually pay back. And the money needed to actually, you know, eat and stuff at uni. o_0
The thought of paying so much is terrifying. The fact that this is for education which is much needed by everybody and they charge so much.... Yikes...
The thought of paying so much is terrifying. The fact that this is for education which is much needed by everybody and they charge so much.... Yikes...
Don't forget that up until the eighties univresity education in the UK was state funded. That was taken away by the same older generation that relied on it to get ahead. Then there was the selling offf of almost all the public housing stock which has caused the problems with spiralling private rents and anyone under thirty not being able to afford to buy a home.
Welcome to human nature.