DFA wants your Social Security stories.....here are some touching ones.

[madfloridian]

From Tom Hughes, executive director. I thought of this when I saw the post on the bankruptcy bill, and I remembered how heartless this bunch of right wingers really is. Here is just one of the stories.

http://www.blogforamerica.com/archives/006046.html

Collect Social Security stories in your community
Since I asked the DFA community to share their Social Security stories just 24 hours ago, we've received thousands of moving personal stories. It's these stories--not numbers and statistics--that will change public opinion and help America realize how much we need Social Security.

Here are just a few of the stories that we have received:

My father was a public transit mechanic and union member, and my mother worked as an administrative assistant. Shortly after my father retired and my parents began planning how they were going to spend their retirement years, my father was diagnosed with brain cancer. My mother quit her job and struggled to care for him until he died a short time later. The expenses of caring for him, coupled with the severe downturn in the market, and thus, the value of their modest retirement investments, left my mother in the situation where she will very likely be highly dependent on Social Security (as well as Medicare) for her comfort, dignity, and survival once she retires. One of the reasons why I continue to support Chairman Dean, DFA, and San Francisco for Democracy is my desire to protect Social Security for people like my mother. That is what government is supposed to do!
—Leon
San Francisco, CA

I was laid off from my job one month after 9/11. The company I worked for produced dry chlorine bleach and could no longer compete against the low priced Chinese import. I had osteoarthritis in both knees, which required me to have a "first" floor job, or one in a building which had an elevator. I had both knees replaced, but never quite recovered enough to get around very well. I kept going for interviews, although here in WV they were few and far between at that time. I always got the same response -- "you are over-qualified for this job." I had been a computer programmer for over 20 years. I finally applied for Social Security Disability in the fall of 2003. I was granted total disability benefits, back-dated to August 2002. If it were not for this Social Security Disability program, I would have no income or medical coverage. I just turned 60 years old this month (February 2005) and our President is determined to destroy this country even further by dismantling our Social Security benefits. My husband lost his job to China, also, and was forced to take early retirement. We are now living on 36.6% of our former income. It would be even less if I were not receiving Social Security Disability.
—Allegra
Charleston, WV