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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsCrazy Liberal Idea (a repost of an image that sank like a rock)
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It was crazy sure, but so worth it in the end! We can now cash SS in for bargaining chips
Got to think several moves ahead, thousands even. Now that we have a chessmaster worthy of the endgame , generations of Democratic planning will come to fruition in a Grand bargain where we start trading these assets in as bargaining chips to accomplish FDRs true plan, bipartisan austerity measures with only minor tax increases on billionaires!
We have enough bargaining chips so that even after a grand bargain, there will still be enough left to use to convince Republicans to support plans they came up with but won't pass because The President adopted them and proposed them back as compromise.
Who knows, since we will be starting with trillions in assets and we are taking it small slices at a time, we will have bargaining chips for maybe a dozen years before we have used up all the chips and that decoy SS program completely.
have to use this I think because there are many Conservative Dems posting here that think this is a good, sensible, very serious and courageous plan.
Buzz Clik
(38,437 posts)Please repost this about 1000 times more.
sabrina 1
(62,325 posts)right now for millions of Americans than this one.
Please keep doing your part by kicking the threads as you never know, some of our Elected Representatives might be reading, or most likely their staff which I know they do as I know a few of them, and this way they can see where the people who elected them stand on the issue of SS.
We can't get their attention apparently by calling, writing, emailing, signing petitions. They've been bombarded with correspondence on this and yet, our Democratic President doesn't seem to have heard the voices of the people.
This is what all Democrats in office need to know. IF and we don't know yet what they will do, but we do have some past experience with certain issues and it's not a good sign, IF they do anything in the way of supporting any cuts to SS, eg voting for any bill that includes the Chained CPI, we will work harder than we ever did to replace them with real Democrats. Because no Democrat worth the title would ever vote to cut SS. And that is the good thing about this, we will know for sure who is a Democrat and who is who belongs to the Third Way Party now attached to our party.
Buzz Clik
(38,437 posts)DU suffers from collective obsessive compulsive disorder and borders on groupthink and mass hysteria.
Embarrassing.
sabrina 1
(62,325 posts)just FYI and SS truly is, as everyone, even Eisenhower, always knew, the Third Rail of politics. The reason for that being it is probably one of the most popular and successful programs ever.
If it's not important to you, then you will not be happy here.
Buzz Clik
(38,437 posts)3..2..1 bye!
UnrepentantLiberal
(11,700 posts)Buzz Clik
(38,437 posts)You do realize that no action has been taken, and Boehner rejected Obama's offer. Again.
You that, right? And that the hundreds of threads dedicated to crying, sobbing, and condemning Obama are without merit or substance.
You DO realize that, right? RIGHT????!!!
JDPriestly
(57,936 posts)American seniors. It is the only source of income for many of us. The cuts to Social Security are unacceptable.
Americans work harder, longer hours than people in any developed country other than maybe Japan.
But we have to wait to retire and receive Social Security longer than workers in many if not most other developed countries.
And then, when we retire, our average benefit is just barely above the poverty line.
Cutting Social Security further by instituting the chained CPI will turn out to be futile. It will throw more and more seniors under the poverty line and require larger and larger subsidies from the general fund just to keep impoverished seniors breathing and sheltered.
This is a life or death issue. People will die if Social Security is cut. The chained CPI is not safe for seniors.
noiretextatique
(27,275 posts)is not grand or a bargain.
Hell Hath No Fury
(16,327 posts)noiretextatique
(27,275 posts)because i knew who we elected
Hell Hath No Fury
(16,327 posts)Not much of a real choice, no? He got me once, didn't get me a second time.
noiretextatique
(27,275 posts)both of them, right? not much difference, and i actually think hillary has more cajones.
Hell Hath No Fury
(16,327 posts)Just wouldn't trust her to fight for the right things.
Hell Hath No Fury
(16,327 posts)thinks it a good, sensible, very serious and courageous plan is 1) not a Democrat or 2) need to take their Fan Boy glasses off.
noiretextatique
(27,275 posts)joining our friend tinoire in guatemala.
Hell Hath No Fury
(16,327 posts)I'd heard she headed south, but Costa Rica. If you have any email contact info for her would love to get it. I have been researching dual citizenship with Sweden -- granddad was an immigrant and I would qualify. Problem for me is Sweden's totally shitty weather!
noiretextatique
(27,275 posts)sweden...sounds good. you can get used to the weather to avoid the continuing 3d chess game
Cleita
(75,480 posts)Summers are nice enough from what I understand.
sabrina 1
(62,325 posts)one and since its inception naturally, the greedy right has wanted to destroy it.
That legislation is one of the Democratic Party's proudest achievement.
We keep hearing about 'National Security'. We have spend trillions on defending our 'national security'.
What does it mean? I always thought that it meant saving American lives. I thought our Government actually cared about American lives.
Social Security is a National Security issue.
To a poor, elderly person, $30.00 a month can mean the difference between eating enough to survive and not eating enough.
Before SS people died because they could not afford to live.
Anyone who touches that fund doesn't care one bit about National Security. And I do not ever again want to hear them utter the words if they participate in taking one dime from the most vulnerable Americans.
forestpath
(3,102 posts)offer to terminate Social Security and Medicare completely in order to appease them?
Because he's already shown that he isn't concerned about the terrible hardships he will be causing vulnerable people.
It's all about pleasing Republicans for him. He trumpets "bipartisanship" every chance he gets, but he couldn't care less what Democrats want.
L0oniX
(31,493 posts)Maybe then he can join the GOP too.
Cleita
(75,480 posts)The letter I got back was nothing but weasel words and links to programs I could apply for if I was needy. He's made up his mind and isn't budging unless there is such an uproar from everyone that he can't ignore us anymore.
Cleita
(75,480 posts)My Administration continues to support older Americans encountering unfair treatment, financial hardship, or difficulty obtaining health care. The historic Affordable Care Act strengthens Medicare by not only preserving but also expanding benefits for Americans who depend on Medicare every day. The law has helped more than five million seniors and people with disabilities save an average of over $600 on prescription drugs in the donut hole in Medicare coverage. Additionally, in 2011, more than 32 million seniors received 1 or more free preventive services, including the new Annual Wellness Visit. To learn about help available through the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, visit www.CMS.gov.
The Affordable Care Act also helps prevent and eliminate elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation. Additionally, this law implements unprecedented measures to fight waste and fraud, and to improve the quality and outcomes of care for Medicare beneficiaries. It ends unwarranted subsidies to private insurance companies, and takes important steps to reduce unnecessary hospital admissions, improve patient safety, modernize payment systems, and streamline record-keeping. It also realigns incentives to reward medical providers for the value, not the volume, of their care. For resources and information on how to prevent, report, and stop Medicare fraud, visit www.StopMedicareFraud.gov. To learn more about the Affordable Care Act, please visit www.HealthCare.gov.
By protecting Social Security from risky privatization plans, we are preserving its solvency and maintaining it as a reliable income source for seniors. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act included an additional payment to supplement Social Security benefits for seniors struggling to make ends meet, and I have called on Congress to extend this relief again. Together, we will ensure all our citizensnot just a privileged fewcan retire with dignity and security.
Finally, as we work to keep Americas promises to senior citizens, we are helping make sure older Americans can continue to enrich communities across our Nation through service and community involvement. By expanding the Senior Corps and implementing the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, we are creating more opportunities for seniors to share their knowledge and experience with younger generations. For more information regarding service opportunities in your area, or to share your story of service, please visit www.Serve.gov.
To find assistance for senior citizens and their families, visit www.Eldercare.gov or call 1-800-677-1116. For help with Medicare, visit www.Medicare.gov or call 1-800-MEDICARE. Additional information and resources are available at www.USA.gov/Topics/Seniors.shtml. For assistance using internet resources, I encourage you to visit your local library or community center.
Thank you, again, for being in touch.
Sincerely,
Barack Obama
Note that I wrote nothing about the Affordable Care Act or privatizing Social Security. I was very specific about the chained CPI and putting SS on the table for a budget agreement, two points he ignored.
KoKo
(84,711 posts)...as if it wasn't read personally, but put in a pile with a bunch of others assuming that it was a criticism of AFA.
As you said your concerns about CPI and putting SS weren't addressed. And, the form letter itself tends to put forth the view that Seniors are a Needy Group collectively but they need to be aware that change is coming and he gives websites for them to find interest groups or get information about the changes.
How many Seniors on SS are whizes on the internet. But, he says help is available at the Public Library or Community Center. What if you live in a rural area where the Public Library is miles away.... And, Community Center? Unless you are in a good sized town or city that's probably not likely available. And if you can't drive and don't have relatives close by how are you supposed to get there?
I don't know...it was filled with information, but didn't address your questions and some of the information wouldn't be available to most folks over 70 years old who don't have computers.
Thanks for posting this.
Cleita
(75,480 posts)it. I'm articulate and respectful. I believe I deserved better.
99Forever
(14,524 posts)We all do, but quite clearly, we aren't going to get it from the current top dogs of the Democratic Party. They, also quite clearly, don't give a damn about us or the crisis (one they are complicit in creating) we're in. They are in the pocket of Wall Street, of that, there can be no doubt.
JDPriestly
(57,936 posts)Just wait.
It's Republicans we lose, Democrats we lose. The same corporations own both parties. We all know that, but it feels good to at least be able to complain about it to fellow DUers.
Cleita
(75,480 posts)right now while I type this.
Wounded Bear
(58,440 posts)WillyT
(72,631 posts)redstatebluegirl
(12,264 posts)so millionaires can have elevators for their cars!!! I do not understand how the President would think any cuts to SS was a good idea!