This particular blog entry is made in response to a specific comment
made by an individual on Huffington Post who uses the pseudo name of ‘Anonymous
enigma’ and was something that I personally just could not refuse a
rebuttal. The comment as it was
presented on the Huffington Post is provided below in its’ entirety…
[quote] “Look, we are completely missing the point.
The American public has been bamboozled. The argument is always about those so
called "welfare people." We need to look more closely at who these so
called welfare people are. We need to look more closely at the, "middle
class," self-employed that appear to be using our tax dollars to subsidize
their "retirement" plans. Of course they still want to maintain their
"middle class lifestyle," i.e. expensive homes; two luxury vehicles
in the garage etc. Let's face it SSI and SSA pay's all their medical bills so
what do they care!!! We need to look more closely at these people that are
hiding assets in bank safe deposits and claiming questionable injuries that make
them eligible for SSI or SSA”
It appears to have become a cottage
industry that we the tax payers are on the hook for. These are the same people
arguing for less government and against so called "Obama care."
Let's face it if you are getting a "free ride," you can afford to
belong to these radical groups...at tax payer expense.”[end quote]
As I read the above comment I could see that there are a few of
valid points, however the complete generalization of individuals who are
receiving Social Security or Supplement Security Income over shadows them in my
opinion. Granted here on Huffington Post
we are limited to the length of our posts and therefore our ability to fully
address an issue.
My personal position on this issue is that drug testing for
the expressed purpose of approval or denial of government benefits is in fact a
violation of privacy no matter how you look at it. On the other hand, I do support the option of
indefinite suspension of benefits if it should be discovered [through routine non-targeted means] that they are a
user of illicit drugs.
I do not support the targeting of any ‘group’ in this
issue. With that being said I do not
count employees as a ‘group’ because employers have every right to take
whatever measures available to them to insure that they are doing what is
necessary to provide a safe working environment for all employees.
I find the comment… “We
need to look more closely at who these so called welfare people are. We need to
look more closely at the, "middle class," self-employed that appear
to be using our tax dollars to subsidize their "retirement" plans.”
… to be of particular interest with reference to this subject, at least based
on my own definition of ‘welfare people’.
They exist in every community, those individuals who are of
both sound mind and body who ‘leach’ off the graces of a civilized
society. They are those who have nothing
that prohibits them from seeking gainful employment beyond the reasoning that
exists within their own minds. These are
people who make no effort to utilize certain benefits as the temporary assistance
for which they are meant. Welfare people
are those who make the conscious choice to do nothing that would better their
lives even when these opportunities are presented to them.
It must be recognized that although individuals can receive certain
benefits from each one, the Welfare Department and the Social Security
Administration are two very different entities.
Eligibility for one does not always guarantee eligibility for the other,
although they can when necessary supplement one another. Neither does it exist that there is a need
for both of these benefits by the same individual.
Within my own community there are individuals who are
currently collecting Social Security benefits due to a medically verified
physical deficiency that they have suffered from since their youth or even from
birth. Unfortunately situations such as
this can be devastating to these individuals as they get older because they
have not accumulated the required units [a specific time frame of employment]
in order to be eligible for benefits that can even remotely be considered as above the
state poverty level.
Contrary to popular belief there is no across the board scale
that provides uniform benefits to all Social Security recipients. Individual monthly benefits for Social
Security are determined by the total earnings that individual has accumulated
throughout their lives. Many individuals
who were born with physical limitations or those who have suffered some form of
industrial, on the job, or an automobile accident early in their lives find
themselves severely handicapped in the sense that through no fault of their own
they may be forced to struggle for the rest of their lives to live in a state
of poverty simply because their employment career was cut short.
One example within my own community is an elderly lady that
was born with a blood iron deficiency that has required weekly visits to a physician’s
office throughout her entire life in order to receive lifesaving
treatments. Her condition has resulted
in the fact that she was never able to secure gainful employment that would
have provided her more than the minimum of benefits. As a result of this her monthly Supplement Security Income benefits are only $550.00 which is supplemented through a meager
$200.00 a month in Food Stamps. Yes, she is also on Medicare at the monthly
cost that is in excess of $100.00 per month and paid out of her own pocket as
this is not free, contrary to popular opinion.
There is also required co-pay with Medicare participants for prescriptions
and certain physician’s and hospital visits.
Medicare benefits are not uniform and in some cases must be supplemented
with additional and costly medical insurance. Additionally,
many of these people live as ‘shut ins’ because they cannot afford a vehicle
due to the costs associated with ownership such as maintenance, insurance
and the rising cost of fuel.
Fortunately for her and so many others like her, this
community has various organizations that have regularly scheduled ‘free food’
programs that can also supplement their nutritional needs. There are also a number of organizations that
provide free cooked meals on a regularly scheduled basis and have volunteers
that will provide transportation to the location for much needed socialization
in an effort to combat the growing problem of depression and suicide among these recipients. There are also groups that organize seasonal
assistance programs such as providing these individuals with warm coats, hats, scarfs and gloves
for the winter months. Also, like most
states there are additional state funded agencies that provide financial assistance with
heating bills during the winter months.
The reference to… "middle
class," self-employed that appear to be using our tax dollars to subsidize
their "retirement" plans.”…when viewed in the context that it was
presented, it makes absolutely no sense to me.
Again, perhaps it is my own perception of these individuals that colors
my opinion. Reading that statement I am
reminded of my husband and others like him, who have worked all their lives and
paid into these programs, paid their taxes and yet are deprived of substantial
benefits for themselves when they are needed.
During the majority of his lifetime my husband was a
self-employed roofer, an occupation that was either feast or famine depending
on the time year, location and the economy.
I continued to work because there
were at times long periods where there was no income from his self-employment
and the bill collectors were not sympathetic.
My husband was a meticulous records keeper and regularly filed his
quarterly taxes, which many times resulted in pulling funds from our savings to
cover them and hope we got enough back at the end of the year when we filed income
taxes to make up for what we took out of the savings.
Roofing is a hard and laborious profession that is financially
ruthless on individual contractors. It can and often does take a serious physical
toll on the human body. Regardless of
the fact that he could no longer continue in the profession that he had known
all his life, my husband was not considered to be disabled and could not be
considered for Social Security Disability.
Unfortunately due to the various ‘famine’ periods throughout his
self-employment his entitlement through the Social Security Retirement was
barely above poverty level. Unable to
financially survive based on the minimum allowed by Social Security, he continued
as a self-employed individual by diverting from a profession that he could no
longer physically perform to mowing lawns.
This choice obviously only provided a seasonal income that was thankfully
below the maximum allowable per year and still be eligible for Supplemental Security
Income which is separate from Social Security and not based on work history or
Social Security taxes. So my question
regarding the statement provided by this particular Huffington Post commentator
is simple…”What about the taxes he [my husband] paid into the program?”
Again, I am struck with yet another level of ignorance as
demonstrated by the following statement…”Of
course they still want to maintain their "middle class lifestyle," i. e.
expensive homes; two luxury vehicles in the garage etc. Let's face it SSI and
SSA pay's all their medical bills so what do they care!!!” Where it is written that the self-employed
are all members of the middle class? Better yet, where is it that every middle class family has an expensive home and
two luxury vehicles in a garage? I don’t
know any and we were considered to be middle class!
We lived in a moderate home that was valued at approximately
$60,000.00 at the time he was a self-employed roofer. I drove, shall we say a functioning Dodge
Omni that I picked up second hand out of the newspaper because we could not
afford a car payment of any kind much less for a luxury car. He drove a Ford Ranger Pickup that was purchased
the same way for the same reason. By the
way, both vehicles sat outside in the driveway 365 days a year regardless of the weather. Incidentally, my husband has since passed
away and I no longer live in that ‘moderate’ home but rather in a $34,000.00 mobile
home dated 1974 and I drive a $600.00 GEO Tracker that a friend found for me. I bought it because I like that style of vehicle and I just didn't want to make car payments
The last sentence in this ‘interesting’ perspective has
already been addressed in the example provided of the elderly woman in my
community. I do not know where people
get the foolish notion that Social Security Retirement or Supplemental Security
Income pays all of the medical bills. Anyone who watches television has seen the various commercials talking about Medicare and Medicaid, all of which constantly state that these programs 'help' with medical bills. At no time do they ever state that these programs pay all of the medical bills. As
I pointed out earlier, there are certain medical costs that are not covered by
either of these benefits. Individuals
who are covered by Medicare are not getting it for free! They pay for it just like any other
insurance.
Yet again the flagrant display of ignorance continues with
yet another statement…”We need to look
more closely at these people that are hiding assets in bank safe deposits and
claiming questionable injuries that make them eligible for ssi or ssa.” First of all there is no asset that can be
hidden in a bank safe deposit box that would even be close to any substantial
benefit that would disqualify an individual for eligibility for Social Security
(SSA).
First of all, this commentator continually lumps SSI and SSA
together as if they are the same, which they are not. The Social Security Administration is only responsible
for three areas, retirement, disability and survivor benefits, which are funded
through Social Security Taxes.
Supplemental Security Income is not so clearly defined and provides an
income that is intended to supplement earned income for those who are not of
retirement age or who are blind or disabled to the point that they cannot work
and is funded from the general revenue fund and not social security taxes.
Individuals who have worked all their lives and paid into
the Social Security Program are NOT penalized by the government by being told
that they cannot possess or even stockpile whatever assets they can throughout
their lives. To believe such a thing is
hogwash! Even those individuals who are
eligible for Social Security Disability (SSD) are not penalized provided they
have accrued the required number of units for eligibility for Social Security
Retirement.
In this instance I will use myself as the example. I am collecting Social Security Disability
and the only form of penalization is in reality a technicality. I call it a technicality because there is no
way that I can physically violate this restriction. I am permitted to earn up to but not to
exceed the amount of $499.00 a month in addition to my Social Security
Disability Benefits. Why? Because at the time that I became disabled, I
had already exceeded the required number of units that would have qualified me
for Social Security Retirement Benefits when I reached the age of 65, so I
filed for disability because I am only 53 years old and cannot sit around and
wait until I turn 65 in order to begin collecting Social Security Retirement
benefits.
I was injured in a work related accident in 1995 which was
followed by a number of surgeries, thousands of visits to various therapy
sessions and pain management clinics. It
was finally determined by not only my primary care physician but nearly all of
those associated with my recovery that my ‘condition’ is not correctable and
therefore I was [finally] considered to be disabled.
I did not begin to collect my benefits until September of 2009, fourteen
years after I was injured. Contrary to
popular belief the greater majority of those individuals who are collecting government
benefits as a direct result of a physical limitation have gone through years of
paperwork and bureaucratic red tape in order to get those benefits.
One of the statements that I can agree with regarding the statements
provided by this particular commentator is that yes, there are a large number
of individuals who have filed for benefits based on ‘questionable’
injuries. However, based on what I
myself went through and what I have witnessed a few others having gone through,
the approval rates of these ‘questionable’ injuries are seriously decreasing. This is largely due to the fact that as I
stated previously Supplemental Security Income is not as clearly defined as are
those claims associated with the Social Security Administration and some of
these SSI claims are paid from State Revenues verses Federal Revenue. States are beginning to take a closer look at
many of these claimants, even those that have been collecting these benefits
for years by reinstating the requirement for regularly scheduled
re-evaluations.
I have a few friends who spent a large portion of their
working lives bouncing from job to job or working various different part time
jobs that paid only minimum wage. They
are unfortunately unable to enjoy the same benefits as I do simply because of
the fact that the amount received is based on the amount that was earned
throughout their lives verses mine. Because
of decisions made early in life, my friends unfortunately find themselves
living within a very restrictive set of rules.
They are not allowed to own their home, they cannot own more than one
vehicle and that vehicle cannot exceed a specific cash value and if they are
not the head of a household they cannot earn any form of additional income which includes
the sale of any item.
Beyond the fact that this particular commentator has
continually combined the Social Security Administration and the Supplemental
Security Income Programs together as if they are one in the same, they have
also lumped these together with Welfare Programs which are not federal at all
but are state run programs. The simple
fact that someone is collecting some form of SSA or SSI does not always
automatically qualify them for any welfare program. Qualifications for welfare are based entirely
on the household income, resources and assets, which will in most cases,
disqualify recipients of Social Security Retirement and Social Security
Disability for welfare benefits. My disability benefits exceed the monthly income that would allow me to participate in any welfare program even if I were interested in do so.
I have earned the right to live as a retired individual
albeit much earlier than I had originally intended for myself. Once it is paid off, I will own my home. I currently own a vehicle but am looking for
a small truck because there are times when I need one. I have various other assets that I have
bought and paid for over the years that no one has the right to take away from
me or force me to relinquish. I have
planned for the future in regards to those I care about in the form of
purchasing ‘whole’ life insurance so that no one is stuck with the
responsibility of any debts that may exist when my time comes. Although I have already pretty much paid for
my own funeral, I have also bought and paid for additional ‘whole’ life insurance
strictly for the purpose of making sure that I just in case I missed something
there will be funds to cover anything related to the funeral expenses. None of which by the way is kept in a safety
deposit box at the bank, rather in a fireproof safe in my house.
Drawing to a conclusion here, I would like to address the
fact that this individual has clearly demonstrated to me that they have absolutely no
factual knowledge of how any of the programs they mention operate. I thoroughly enjoy being a part of the
Huffington Post community and while I read a number of articles on a daily
basis, I am very particular in regards to those I choose to comment on and even
more so when it comes to commenting on something another individual has
posted. This is because I refuse to
enter into a back and forth debate with individuals who [by their comments]
have done little to no research on the subject matter for which they are
speaking. Every single rebuttal post
that I make on the Huffington Post is also posted here on my blog where I have
the ability to elaborate on the subject and to also provide references for
those who may be interested in understanding the issue at hand.
Finally, for those individuals who are actually concerned about government over spending as it concerning those recipients of Social Security
Retirement or Supplemental Security Income please feel free to research the
fact that in 2008 the Social Security Administration paid out approximately $40.3
million dollars in benefits to deceased individuals, even though they have
already entered them into the Master Death Records. They continue to send out monthly checks even
though surviving family members have continually contacted them and reported
their family member as being deceased.
During the audit conducted on the Social Security program in
2008, the following disturbing findings were made public. The fact that the Social Security
Administration had been paying out benefits to nearly 2,000 recipients for not
just months but for years! These errors
have cost tax payers nearly $7 million dollars and will continue to cost the tax
payer year after year. In addition to
paying deceased individuals, the review also revealed that the Social Security
Administration over paid out about $313 million to approximately 89,300
beneficiaries and improperly paid about $7.3 million to 11,912
non-beneficiaries.
Please visit the following sites if you or you know someone
who may be eligible for Social Security, Social Security Disability or
Supplemental Security Income:
Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
Retirement Benefits
Social Security – The Red Book – Our Social Security
Programs
