SSDI is a whole 'nother can of worms.

It's become a corporate welfare scheme for long term disability insurance/pensions.  50% of my "privately paid" disability pension is funded by SSDI.  

I do not know which is more delirious, your "free trade" fantasies, or your make believe world where taxation and government do not exist and financial "magic carpet rides" are the norm.

Only one thing is certain, the government can never take away your Libertarian delusions.

Do you feel like those stimulus plans are more important and more efficient than giving new starting families their 15.3% percent in wages back?

You're literally pitching a fit at me for saying I think you should be allowed to keep more of your own money.   For saying that YOU and not the government are a better steward of your own earnings.  

That is what you're calling a delirious "free trade" fantasy.  

Do you have a framed picture of Franklin D. Roosevelt on your wall or something?  

How do you feel about socialized medicine?   Should we get you a picture of Obama to hang next to your Roosevelt portrait?

Hold up men always think it will go better for them than it usually does.

I think history is our best example.

For example, Germany was the first to introduce Soc Sec.  (1889)

Afterwards, they were defeated in WW1 and suffered another total defeat along with Soviet occupation after WW2.

Yet, despite these "rough spots", the concept of Social Security still exists over there.

I wonder how  "investments", made by some silly "investment calculator" would have fared over the same time frame in Germany. You can examine Russia, Japan, China, along with many, many other countries and see  similar, complete, financial wipeouts.

Yea, a 15% FICA tax on your paycheck is a hell of a lot of tax to pay.

What to do?

How about you start a business and don't draw much salary. Instead, use the excess cash flow from the business to acquire depreciable assets which appreciate in value (hint: RE and airplanes...among many).

I've never heard that strategy advocated by Libertarian, "magic carpet ride", think tanks.

I'm 34. If every penny that has been taken from me at this point had instead been put into an index fund since I was 18, I imagine I'd be well on my way to to super early retirement and permanent financial security. But nope, government knows best

Oh, it’s something you pay into, but what you can receive isn’t limited by those payments.

"Social security is great because Germany does it and they got stomped in two world wars."

lol, ok boomer

Please do. I will hang it right below Hong Xiuquan's. Lol.

Rest easy. The government, which you so detest and fear, cannot take your dreams away.

That is the job of reality.

What 90 year track record are you taking about. The one where the national debt exceeds $27 trillion? The one where beneficiaries are paid via holding a gun to taxpayers heads?  Sure, my retirement would look rosy with those opportunities.

Why don't you run your "investment calculator" over the same time frame, in the same country, and get back to us.

The FICA tax was enacted in 1935.

My bad, its only been on the books for 85 years.

As for the debt, I would like to see an audit/appraisal of the assets of the US government.

From 1935 to now?  In the USA?   You're absolutely better off having invested that same amount taken out of your paycheck into something barebones conservative like an index fund.   "The stock market" has averaged an annual return of over 9% for far longer than that.  

The average taxpayer is never going to even get the principle back in SS payout.  Much less an increase of any amount.

https://www.capitalgroup.com/individual/planning/tools/investment-calculator-results.htm

$750 per month for 30 years with $0 initial, invested every month as if it were taxes taken out of a paycheck.  Making 9% on average with profits reinvested back into the same historically average index fund.

That comes to $270k invested and a total final value of $1.285 million

You're sidestepping my points and aligning me incorrectly with "investment calculator" and "Libertarian magic carpet rides", whatever the hell that means.

Historical precedent, widespread adoption, or even overwhelming public approval for social security at its inception does not address the chronic concerns over its fiscal solvency and shrinking worker base to draw that 15% FICA tax to pay for a burgeoning retirement class.  This has been a long time problem for every country that has implemented it.  The party will come to a bitter end when you are unable to borrow enough to pay the shortfalls and your only options are to limit, reduce, or deny benefits to the working generation left standing (bad) or hyper-inflate your currency to appear solvent (really, really bad).

Third option is if extraterrestrials descend into Washington willing to regularly buy something worthless from us for huge profits that we then direct into SSA's balance books, but I'm trying to be sensible here.

You missed the other historical option. Slashing our long term security by gradually gutting the military.  Just like every other nation with a massive government directed social safety net has.

Good point.  I guess the notion of our government cutting back on one area of spending to pay for overages in another area seemed more farfetched than the idea of ETs bailing us out.

Personal attacks and trolling