Thursday, December 8, 2011

Compounded Evil

Daily Press Victorville, Ca.

Re: “Health and Taxes”, Stan Brown, Daily Press opinion, December 8, 2011.

Stan Brown, what planet do you live on? Is everything a mere partisan squabble? Is it not time to look for the greater good for all Americans? The payroll tax cut has been tried and it failed to leverage new jobs. It only gave already working and thriving public sector workers’ a few extra dollars to spend at the expense of the governmentally abused private sector. The President wants fairness, well so does the private sector, the struggling blue collar underemployed and the unemployed.

The direct victim of these tax cuts are those of us who depend upon the Social Security system for our retirement and medical care. Did you know that the payroll tax, which we paid all of our working days, is supposed to fund this system? Of course you do but do you care? Social Security benefits are in trouble and can only get worse as we baby boomers retire. Medicare is broke, wasteful and at times dysfunctional. These systems, however, are the promise of politicians from both political parties, as a loyal Democrat you should be concerned about the viability of these systems.

Social Security and Medicare need reform but no Democrat, including the President, is stepping to the plate to suggest a fix. You glibly assign ulterior motives to the Republicans when looking in the mirror might prove useful. Instead, the President is playing Robin Hood in reverse, robbing from the poor and giving to the rich with this unfunded payroll tax cut.

Politicians from both parties have for decades pillaged the Social Security system. Now is the day of accountability, the day for politicians to begin to make amends for their thievery. Reform has to happen but asking the Social Security system to support the privileged is compounded evil.

G.Goslaw Victorville, Ca.