Rock the Vote raises a voice in the Bay Area
[Editors note: The following note describes work by Kemble K. Pope, Rock the Vote’s street team coordinator for the Western U.S. Kemble joined three town hall forums yesterday with members of Congress in the Bay Area to talk about the future of Social Security. Get involved: sign up on our volunteer page.]
Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) was so excited about the enthusiastic crowd joining Rock the Vote rep Kemble Pope to chant, "There is no crisis!,” that she asked them to yell it out two more times. Speaking to overflow crowds, Rep. Woolsey was flanked by Rock The Vote and AARP to tell her constituents why it is important for ALL Americans, young and old alike, to protect Social Security from privatization.
The Marin Independent Journal reported: "Repeat after me, 'There is no crisis,'" said Kemble Pope of Rock the Vote, a nonpartisan political action group for young people. "It's just a scare tactic so we will give up what's rightfully ours - a secure future."
Kemble was pleased to see Rep. Woolsey pledge numerous times to protect and strengthen Social Security for young people and to help defeat any attempt at dismantling the country's most popular and successful program. Taking the offensive, Rep Woolsey agreed with Rock The Vote's stance that private investment is absolutely necessary, but only in addition to the safety net of Social Security. Citing the need for our country to respect savings, not debt, the Congresswoman also floated her idea of a progressive program wherein the federal government would match additional retirement investments for all wage earners in addition to Social Security. Mad props to Rep. Lynn Woolsey for Rockin' the Vote every day!
Why should young people care about Social Security? It embodies the promise of an America that values human interest over wealth. Social Security is the promise to protect our grandparents from the ravages of poverty. Social Security is the promise to assist the survivors of American workers: widows, widowers, and children. Social Security is the promise to assist disabled Americans. Social Security is part of the social contract that our grandparents and great-grandparents pledged that after a lifetime of work all American families deserve the dignity of a roof over their head and food on their table.
- Kemble Pope, Rock the Vote Western Regional Coordinator
Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) was so excited about the enthusiastic crowd joining Rock the Vote rep Kemble Pope to chant, "There is no crisis!,” that she asked them to yell it out two more times. Speaking to overflow crowds, Rep. Woolsey was flanked by Rock The Vote and AARP to tell her constituents why it is important for ALL Americans, young and old alike, to protect Social Security from privatization.
The Marin Independent Journal reported: "Repeat after me, 'There is no crisis,'" said Kemble Pope of Rock the Vote, a nonpartisan political action group for young people. "It's just a scare tactic so we will give up what's rightfully ours - a secure future."
Kemble was pleased to see Rep. Woolsey pledge numerous times to protect and strengthen Social Security for young people and to help defeat any attempt at dismantling the country's most popular and successful program. Taking the offensive, Rep Woolsey agreed with Rock The Vote's stance that private investment is absolutely necessary, but only in addition to the safety net of Social Security. Citing the need for our country to respect savings, not debt, the Congresswoman also floated her idea of a progressive program wherein the federal government would match additional retirement investments for all wage earners in addition to Social Security. Mad props to Rep. Lynn Woolsey for Rockin' the Vote every day!
Why should young people care about Social Security? It embodies the promise of an America that values human interest over wealth. Social Security is the promise to protect our grandparents from the ravages of poverty. Social Security is the promise to assist the survivors of American workers: widows, widowers, and children. Social Security is the promise to assist disabled Americans. Social Security is part of the social contract that our grandparents and great-grandparents pledged that after a lifetime of work all American families deserve the dignity of a roof over their head and food on their table.
- Kemble Pope, Rock the Vote Western Regional Coordinator
posted by Hans Riemer at 5:37 PM
4 Comments:
Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) was so excited about the enthusiastic crowd joining Rock the Vote rep Kemble Pope to chant, "There is no crisis!,” that she asked them to yell it out two more times. I am sorry to see Rock the Vote joining Congressional Democrats in their strategy of collectively planting their heads in the ground and pretending that there is not problem. This country faces a real demographic problem with regard to Social Security and Medicare, and pretending it doesn't exist serves nobody's interests.
Those who lead chants of "There is no crisis!" do so on the basis of statistics that claim that we face no problems until 2042, 2050, or 2053, depending upon whose figures you use. Unfortunately, it doesn't matter whose figures you use, because they are all meaningless.
The truth is that, according to the Social Security Trustees, Social Security will begin paying out more in benefits than it receives in taxes in 2018, just 13 years from now. Don't worry, they will tell you, we will have a huge trust fund that has been built up over the years that can be used to pay benefits--$5.7 trillion dollars worth. What they won't tell you is that all $5.7 trillion has been "invested" in special-issue government bonds, and the money spent by the US Treasury. These bonds are solemn promises, our friends tell us, "backed by the full faith and credit of the United States." True. But when they are redeemed, the United States has to get the money to repay the debt from somewhere: massive tax increases, massive spending cuts in other programs, massive borrowing, or Social Security benefit cuts.
If they were being honest, Rock the Vote and Representative Woolsey would acknowledge the problems facing Social Security and take a seat at the negotiating table to find a solution for these problems, rather than selling the economic future of this country down the river for short-term political gains.
I only started working a few years ago and once Social Security takes 6 percent of my paycheck and taxes my empolyer another 6 percent for hiring me, there's not a whole lot left over for me to save for my own employment. So here I am, trying to pay off my student loans, trying to save a little money to get a place of my own, trying to save some money so I can get married and maybe one day have a family, and trying to build a nest egg of my own for when me and my wife retire. And I've got the Greediest Generation baby boomers in front of me who paid a very low Social Security tax for most of their lives -- they already jacked up the tax once and want to do it some more so they can get all sorts of benefits that they didn't pay for. So I'm going to be paying something like 15 percent to the Greediest Generation and have way less to take care of myself and my family. So repeat after me: THERE IS A FREAKIN' CRISIS if you're younger than the Greediest Generation.
Crisis (definition) An unstable condition, as in political, social, or economic affairs, involving an impending abrupt or decisive change.
Mr. Goldberg - Politicians screaming crisis about SS, in true Iraq WMD form, allows them to shove down some "solution" created in the boardrooms of Big Business. I think the point here is that we can't have a rational and thoughtful discussion about this issue if we're being told that we must do something immediately.
Read carefully and notice that there is talk in this posting of the need to strengthen Social Security. Your financial statements mask the fact that any talk of not honoring US Government bonds bespeaks a much larger problem: never before has the United States Congress defaulted on a bond.
Rock the Vote and the opponents of privatisation are protecting the long term interests of the American worker from irresponsible government spending and the greed of corporations.
You people are communists.
The worst case of ingnorance and mindlessness I have ever seen. It's not even funny how out of touch you are. Good luck surviving the next decade with the attitude you all have. How about thinking for the future. We young people need to stand up against the communist propaganda and not accept it! WAKE UP. The AARP is taking money from us and give it to the GIVE ME generation. How about if we can decide where our money goes to? AARP is like the IRS. Thye are etitled to our money but cannot promise that we will have any of it back by time we retire. Privatiztion is the way to go. Rock the vote for PRIVATE SOCIAL SECURITY!!!!!!!! Who do they think they can fool? Communist bastards(AARP). Don't let them take your hard earned money away.
Peace out.
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