Posted by laramiebob on 2/8/2023 8:19:00 AM (view original):
I won't bite on the UBI issue. In essence I agree with Dahs. The concept of paying folks to do nothing but exist is abhorrent but the economic future as laid out by Dahs would not seem to offer many alternatives.
BUT, I will weigh on on our Social Security retirement system.
It's broken.
But an easy fix.
Why do rich folks get OUT of paying the Social Security TAX on their incomes at a certain level.
We less well off folks pay on 100% of our income, yet folks who earn MORE get to STOP paying in EVERY year once they reach a set income level.
The Social Security fund is projected to go bust because it's paying out MORE than it takes in.
Seems to be only two fixes.
1. Means test it!! That means rich folks won't get out what they (potentially) paid in. That makes it a tough sell and prolly not workable.
2. Make the wealthy pay MORE in by requiring they pay on ALL their paychecks not just the 1st half of whatever % they actually pay in.
Some folks are finished paying IN to Social Security EACH year come June or July. Meaning the pay no Social Security taxes on 50% of their yearly income. That extra money would balance the Social Security system in a heartbeat!!
The rich get WAY too many tax advantages! And in our retirement scheme, THEY got a HUGE perk! It pays to have influence within the political system!
I believe THAT should be fixed BEFORE we tackle some sort of UBI.
I believe that there is a cap/limit on how much gets taxed is due to the fact thst there is a limit on how much you can get on the other end/collect. In theory, you are getting your own money back.....in theory.
I agree they should at least raise the limit/floor/cap on the ss tax. Lifting it completely seems like a thing that would never happen. But, It would put more money into the fund. And keep the cap or adjust it (when you reach the limit/max contribution you would only get/collect 50 cents on the dollar back at a certain point.)
It's a tough sell. It's easy to say hey, you, successful rich guy, keep paying more and get less in return.
But, it would benefit the older generation, and in turn us, when we get there, to have the better-off people fund a little more, and get a little less back. Better for society as well I would imagine. Keeps/Raises the standard of living for all
But, again, thats a tough sell to the 1%'s (more like 10%'s with oasdi tax).