Understanding the misunderstood
Horrors of horrors, the Social Security benefit for next year is only increasing 2.3% according to the Associated Press;
Come January, Social Security benefits for nearly 50 million Americans are going up 2.3 percent, the smallest increase in four years. It will mean an extra $24 per month in the average check, the government announced Wednesday.
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The cost of living adjustment means that the monthly benefit for the typical retired worker in 2008 will go from $1,055 currently to $1,079 next year.
And the fear mongers are out in force;
The 2.3 percent increase is the smallest since a 2.1 percent rise in 2004. It compares to an increase of 3.3 percent last year and a jump of 4.1 percent in 2006, which had been the biggest advance in 15 years.
The COLA is based on the change in consumer prices from the July-September quarter of this year compared to the same period last year. Benefit payments have been tied to inflation since 1975.
Advocacy groups for the elderly said that the small increase announced Wednesday underscored the need to revamp the cost-of-living adjustment to better reflect prices paid by retired people, including the money they spend on health care.
Um, folks, the Social Security benefit goes up with inflation. If inflation- the cost of the things you buy – only goes up 2.3%, that’s all you get. And guess what? If you got a 4% increase, that’s only $16 more a month. You and your advocacy groups will whine about that, too -Â I know I would if that was the only money I’d be getting. But Social Security isn’t the only thing you’re getting is it? You get breaks on heating fuel, you get food stamps, some states even give you property tax breaks.
And most important; Social Security isn’t intended to be your sole source of income. It’s a small amount that’s a guaranteed portion of your retirement income. So please don’t blame government if you don’t have enough to live on – hoping for an extra $40 instead of $23 every month. And please don’t tell people you were hoping for that $40 – as soon as you turn your back, they’re going to start laughing at you. I know I would.
A coalition named Divided We Fail has been pressing to get the presidential candidates of both parties to address issues regarding Social Security and affordable health care during the campaign.
“We want to get all of the candidates on the record and we want to let voters make up their own minds,” said Jim Dau, an official with AARP, an advocacy group for people 50 and older.
I wish they would go on record – and I wish they explain why they support whichever position they’ve taken. The only reason they won’t is because whichever position they take, they’ll lose voters on both sides.
Oh, here’s another piece of advice; stay away from AARP. There are better organizations and insurance companies that can give you better protection than AARP. AARP is nothing more than an insurance broker – they make money selling you higher cost protection. That’s why they want you dependent on Social Security.
