Essay Social Security

Submitted By Studentgirl03
Words: 959
Pages: 4

Many Americans today seek out to have the newest technology for almost everything these days, but what if you had an almost 80 year old I Phone that was in okay condition but you knew you really needed to upgrade. That is the same issue we have with Social Security, it was developed almost 78 years ago in 1935. With the promise of being a safety net for aging Americans, people with disabilities and a death benefit. Social Security wages are taken in the form of taxes by the government, and in turn are used to fund the program, the government creates the guideline on how much each individual will receive and it is set up essentially as a pay-as-you go system in which each generation of workers supports, the preceding generation’s retirees. How can an almost 80 year old system be sustainable without a major change? The answer is that Social Security system is not sustainable without some type of reform; this is why Americans should protect their investment by considering privatization of Social Security taxes.
One of most signification reasons to consider a private investment, is due to the growing aging population becoming greater than the working class it threatens the reserve money available to pay Social Security benefits. It is now estimated that by the year 2037 Social Security funding will not be able to draw from a reserve of funds any longer. This would mean that the level of those working must be greater than those who are receiving benefits under the system. Many strategists such as Reznik and Shoffner suggest that “Americans are living longer and are having fewer children. Together these factors result in the aging of the U.S. population and a subsequent strain on the Social Security system.” Since you cannot force women to have children, people to work, or stop people from aging then you need a different solution. Many people think we can just place a magic fix in place but today you find that the unemployment rates are at an all-time high, and families who have been reduced to one income households. In 2010 the Social Security Act was put into place which raised the rate of funds each individual was receiving, and has also included that individuals are entitled to receive funds that they have paid into Social Security. These benefits however are not assured by law and the federal government has no legal obligation to pay retirees. Recently the Secretary Treasure of the U.S. has admitted to the faults within the Social Security system and that benefits are not secured.
Many individuals such as Anrig would have you believe that other forms for establishing your funds is more of a risk than the government by saying “…if Social Security is converted to a system of private accounts, younger generations will be the one who bear the costs of transforming the program.” What type of risk are you taking by managing your own funds, as Ostaszewski confirms that “Rather than allowing the government to control investments, we should give true power to the people, allowing individually owned and privately managed investment accounts similar to Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs), and 401(k) and 403(b) plans.” This would ultimately take our funds that are not secured and place them into accounts that we are able to manage independently of the government’s unsecure and failing system. Removing the necessity of the federal government to provide retirement benefits reduces the risk for each American, and allows freedom to be restored. When you place your money into a retirement fund you expect a certain return, as Tamny points out, “…a true retirement plan would show dollars saved and dollars invested, up years and down years, all in individual accounts with our names on them. Social