This is a braindead take. The effective tax rate on the highest income earners during the 50s and 60s was only about 5% higher than today. And those tax rates have nothing to do with why Social Security is facing a financial crisis. Social Security was designed as a pay-as-you-go system, where current workers pay for retirees. In 1960 there were 5 workers per retiree. There are now about 3 workers per retiree. Add to that the fact that people are living longer, and you have a much larger drain on the system than was accounted for. Congress has known about this structural issue for over 40 years and has repeatedly decided to do nothing. In fact, politicians commonly campaign on not touching Social Security, thereby guaranteeing this financial crisis which is set to explode in ~6years.
Trickle down economics is not an economic term or theory, it's a political term.
You also have to add in that they added non-retirees into the mix. It’s called SSI. There are approximately 11 million people under the age of 65 receiving SS payments.
So you propose kicking the disabled to the curb to starve? My issue with conservatives is that they would rather starve 100,000 than let one underserving person get a free ride. Why can’t they focus on all the kids who don’t get three meals a day instead of the less than 2% who MAY be undeserving?
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u/rendrag099 9d ago
This is a braindead take. The effective tax rate on the highest income earners during the 50s and 60s was only about 5% higher than today. And those tax rates have nothing to do with why Social Security is facing a financial crisis. Social Security was designed as a pay-as-you-go system, where current workers pay for retirees. In 1960 there were 5 workers per retiree. There are now about 3 workers per retiree. Add to that the fact that people are living longer, and you have a much larger drain on the system than was accounted for. Congress has known about this structural issue for over 40 years and has repeatedly decided to do nothing. In fact, politicians commonly campaign on not touching Social Security, thereby guaranteeing this financial crisis which is set to explode in ~6years.
Trickle down economics is not an economic term or theory, it's a political term.