After a worldwide flu epidemic, a Depression and two World Wars, America needed a President to reassure them. FDR did just that, earning a ranking of the top five in all the historian polls. Programs like WPA were genius.

Soc Sec was a dream. FDR created an entitlement mentality. It was not supposed to be that way. What has it spawned ? A mentality. Look at the county where FDR had his Little White House (Meriwether, Georgia)--- you will find fifth generation welfare recipients.

American politicians do not have the stomach to solve the bigger problem let alone the secondary problem of Social Security. My parents do not need a social security check-- but they get one! I have told them that---"Well, we paid in !" It is a safety net, not an entitlement.

And the much, much bigger problem--- Medicare and Medicaid. That is a time bomb fixing to go off. Who do you think will pay the medical bills of all the current welfare recipients when they get old and sick ? Gonna be expensive !

Yep. SSI has become something it was never intended to be. But it did that decades ago, not recently.

And, it may suprise you, agree with tons of what you said.

But, with that said, it is what it is. It is a huge impact annually on income. Keeping that money away from other uses thus creating burdens on the wage earner.

And yep. Some really don't need it. But the majority does.

And I am in the majority. Not on welfare, not living badly, but never at the place where I could do the savings I so desparately wanted to do.

So, I am trapped by all to see that as my retirement pension.

Simple math for me. I paid in when it hurt to do so. Don't ask me not not collect when that when hurt to do so.

I can manage with what I have plus SSI to retire. Without it I cannot.

I have no intentions of throwing that money away I paid in. Nor what I paid into it for to receive.

But you are right. We have so many things totally screwed up. So many.