It's a mistake to assume that Perry's "Ponzi Scheme" rhetoric turns off seniors

[Empowerer]

Barbara Blackman, a Republican from Seal Beach, said Perry’s tough stance on Social Security didn’t bother her.

“I’m 83 and have been getting Social Security for years and years and years,” she said. “I really think 65 is too young to get Social Security.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/mitt-romney-camp...

This kind of shameless "I got mine" hypocrisy could be more rampant among seniors than we think, meaning that Perry's attacks on Social Security may not be as unpopular or as damaging to him as they appear to be.

I wonder if Mrs. Blackman is willing to stop collecting Social Security or maybe donate her checks to charity since, by her own reckoning, she has gotten more than she deserves. Or is it only those who come after her who aren't entitled to receive Social Security payments at the age she first began collecting them?

[peace13]

1. Exactly! I see a cut off date at 83.

I wonder how that sounds to her?

[Peregrine Took]

4. +10

[SharonAnn]

23. Why did she start taking Social Security at 65, then. BTW, the current Socsec age is 66+

The current date for full retirement is more than 66 and is gradually being raised to 67.

[Zen Democrat]

2. This woman probably has a fortune and spends her SS checks on grooming her poodles.

[FrenchieCat]

3. It think she's saying this, cause she's getting hers.

Selfish and near sighted.

[Empowerer]

6. Exactly - and this attitude may be more prevalent than we think

among seniors who who won't be affected by the kind of "reforms" Perry will push. They might actually support him on this - as long as it's someone else who takes the cuts.

It's long past time to stop laughing at this guy. He could be dangerous - and formidable.

[Life Long Dem]

13. I doubt that there are many selfish seniors like her.

Who's laughing anyway.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

5. So, does she agree that it's a big "Ponzi scheme"?

Has it not been helping her "for years and years"? If she agrees with Perry that it's essentially a huge scam, does she plan to continue receiving money from it?

[vi5]

7. It's definitely a mistake...

My parents are a year or two away from eligibility and they are Democrats. But they've completely bought into the "OMG IT'S GOING BANKRUPT!!!!!!" hysteria. What makes it worse is that they actually believe that by supporting reform to Social Security that they are helping out my generation and their grandkids generation.

Of course thankfully we've got enough Democratic politicians and leaders who are pointing out over and over and over again, as loudly as they possibly can that it is not going bankrupt, it is self funded, and that even in a worst case scenario it would only be reduced benefits. It's great that we have that instead of Democrats who are feeding into the "We HAVE TO DO SOMETHING!!!!!" hysteria.

Oh wait. That's right. We don't have that. Never mind then.

[izquierdista]

8. WE HAVE TO DO SOMETHING!!

Yes, we have to take the Payroll Tax Earnings Cap, burn it, and erase all previous mention of it.

[hansberrym]

16. "in a worst case scenario it would only be reduced benefits"

When one can only pay a portion of what they owe, they are bankrupt!

SS will not stop sending out checks even in the worst scenario, but that doesn't mean that it isn't bankrupt.

People born 1970 and after are likely to get only 78 cents on the dollar for their entire retirement, this is not a good outcome. Unless the economy is booming in the 2030's, and laws are changed to allow SS to borrow from the general fund (seems fair to me since the general fund has borrowed from the SS fund for many years), the system will royally screw over whole generations and we can kiss the warm feelings most have for SS goodbye.


SS is still the third rail of American politics, but it will not remain so forever.

[vi5]

27. "but that doesn't mean that it isn't bankrupt"

No, when one can only pay a portion of what they owe, they are in debt. When one can pay nothing, they are bankrupt. Even the most dire of predictions doesn't call for bankruptcy and not being able to pay out benefits.

How many people have lost 22 cents to the dollar are more in stock investments or retirement portfolios?

Doing something like raising the cap on contributions would probably fill that gap quite nicely.

[DavidDvorkin]

9. I doubt if she's typical of seniors.

[sammytko]

17. It is typical. The older you get, the younger you think you are

and believe that you can still do things and would have been oh so full of vim and vigor when you were 65. You start thinking of them as youngsters. My 88 yr old mother sees 72 year olds a "young".

I'm 51 and see 40 somethings as "young". Would an 18 yr old say the same thing?

[DavidDvorkin]

18. I meant the "I've got mine" attitude

I'll be 68 in a month, and while it's true that 50-year-olds seem a lot younger to me now than they did 30 years ago, I also want to see the Social Security age lowered, not raised. I started taking SS a few months before I turned 65, and now I'm semi-retired, but I wish I could have made that switch 10 years earlier, and I don't want to see other people forced to push on wearily as I did.

I suspect that my attitude is more common among old people than the "I've got mine" one. At least, I hope it is.

[mopinko]

10. symptoms of dementia

seriously.

[Cosmocat]

11. The ENTIRE republican platform works against

the best interests of all but maybe .01 percent of the population, but people want to think THIS is going too far?

There are LOTS of union and school district and government employees who are die hard republicans. African Americans and minorities. Gays.

Sorry, I know BOATLOADS of Rs, some who who get SSI, Medicade, SS or some combination who scream how it should be eliminated.

Perry is loud, obnoxious and mean. That is all that matters to Rs at this point.

[saras]

12. If she won't give it back, she's a thief that deserves no further consideration...

[ClassWarrior]

14. As John Fugelsang said the other morning, people will RESPECT the fact that George W. Perry...

..."doubled down" on the "Social Security is a ponzi scheme" bullshit - even if they like Social Security. Because people like leaders who stand strong on their values. Remember:

1. What does a political candidate need to do to win voter confidence?
2. What are the traps that cause political candidates to lose credibility among the populace?

The short answer to the first question is that voters must identify with the candidate. Four things come together for this to happen. These things are values, connection, authenticity, and trust. The candidate must talk about values when discussing issues to consciously articulate the concerns that lead to political positions. The candidate must communicate values effectively to connect with people. This requires the speaker to always appear authentic so that they seem to believe what they say. A candidate who talks about values and connects with people in an authentic way will build trust, which encourages voters to select them over other candidates.

The second question can only be answered by understanding a few discoveries from the cognitive sciences about the human mind. It is not simply a matter of the policies a candidate supports. The merits of one policy over another will not win the hearts and minds of supporters who are looking for a leader that resonates with their hopes and protects them from their fears. No, what people look for in a leader is a moral connection...

(From framing guru George Lakoff...)

http://www.cognitivepolicyworks.com/resource-center/thinking-points/chapter-1-winning-and-losing

NGU.

[bigdarryl]

21. these media types are always trying to spin shit for the republicans

the shit has started already to try and make PArry look moderate with the help of the mainstream media just like they did in the 2000 election of Gore VS.Bush

[Cosmocat]

22. This goes x 2 for republicans ...

and the game right now is the republican primary.

he breaks the primary, it will VERY QUICKLY be spun the Rs and amplified by the "liberal media" that he at least has the guts to take SS on ...

[ibegurpard]

15. what a fucking pig

[quaker bill]

19. Less so for the guys that die at 67...

That is what they use actuarial tables for. A very tiny fraction of us might live to 110 and "make out like bandits". An unfortunately larger number of us will die before 65 and never see a dime. It is not fair! If we only knew everyone's "expiration date" in advance so each of us got 10 or 15 years of benefits... some would be eligible at 50 and others not until 90... unfortunately...

[mitchtv]

20. Seal Beach =Liesure world

a fairly expensive seniors only community by the beach. I'll bet she never waited tables

[golfguru]

24. I am on social security and I am prepared to

take whatever cut is necessary in monthly benefits to save it for our children and grand children. I can live on less money and not feel deprived.

There are no statics I have seen which show that
the more money you have, the more happy you are.
In fact the rich seem to have more mental problems.

[frazzled]

25. There will be no cuts in benefits

Jeezus, people. Let's get this straight. Nobody is talking about a cut in benefits. Not to current beneficiaries, and frankly, not to future ones. The most radical thing proposed is that the increases to benefits in the future may be indexed differently and thus the increases may grow slightly slower for a time. In fact, because it's in the future it probably will be changed sixty-five times by Congress.

Social Security is not in trouble. There is only a temporary swell of retiring baby boomers and fewer kids coming up to contribute into the pool. Whatever fix is needed is temporary, and like so many other temporary fixes, they get fixed a dozen times (witness the "doc fix" legislation that comes up every year to override existing law and pay doctors more for Medicare).

So chill. Don't listen to the sky-is-falling crowd around here.

[golfguru]

26. Oh, I am well aware of that none of the current proposals

are calling for a cut in those already on social
security. What I am trying to say is that if it
would help preserve social security for workers
in their 20's and 30's by me taking cut now, I will
go along with it.

It is a generally known fact that people are living
longer and the ratio of old people to young people
is increasing. Recently more money was paid out in
SS benefits than taken in taxes. SS has huge IOU's
from US Treasury, but UST is already $15 Trillion
in debt.

So we really have only 2 choices. Either extend
retirement age real soon or reform SS for younger
workers. Seniors should stop being selfish and take
small cuts now for the sake of younger people.

[frazzled]

28. You have a very rational and generous attitude

It's true that people living longer is a real issue. My father, who turns 95 in a few months, probably never thought he would be collecting Social Security for so long. He fortunately delayed starting it until his seventies, but it means he gets a higher benefit. We can't change the fact that people are living longer, and we can't change the fact that there will be fewer younger pay-ins in the next decade or two. It's true that something needs to be done. But from what I read, the fixes are not hard. SS should be alive and well for our kids in the future. It's the best thing that ever happened in this country.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

29. Just cut off social security for a woman of 83 named Barbara

[high density]

30. This is the typical Republican brain

Everybody is a leech on the system except me, and I deserve more.

[Zoeisright]

31. Oh yeah, the "Greatest Generation" is actually the "Greediest Generation".

The number of times I've heard "I want I want I want" from those who are 70 and above is mind-boggling.