The Editor:
This letter is in response to D. Brady Green’s letter to the editor in the April 13-19 issue of The Northern Light.
Social security works by taxing today’s income earners to pay for the last generation’s so-called benefits. It is compulsory, meaning that it does not permit the income earner to choose an alternative method of investment with 6.5 percent of the income removed from their pay. It is a regressive tax. An income earner making $35,000 pays the same in social security as an income earner making $350,000 (maximum taxable earnings in 2023 are $160,200).
What I will be paid in social security when I retire will not be money set aside in the past for that purpose, as with a typical investment. Rather I will be receiving money, paid at the time, from people younger than me, and likely making much less than I will at retirement. It is based on the premise that there will be sufficient income earners paying into the system to provide for my so-called benefit, a premise that does not coincide with reality.
People are living longer and having fewer children, meaning that there are fewer people paying into the system to pay for a disproportional increase in the number of recipients. That is why the social security trust fund is going broke. In any other context, Social Security would be called a Ponzi scheme.
I acknowledge that it will never go away as it will not be possible to undo 88 years of political indoctrination. There are ways of making it more feasible (see Sweden), but it will require educating the public and an organized and determined grassroots effort. If I had to recommend a single source of useful information regarding this issue, please read “Capitalism and Freedom,” by Milton Friedman, and keep an open mind.
Daniel Rudolph
Semiahmoo
(Ed. Note: The portion deducted for social security is 6.2 percent of income up to a maximum taxable earning of $160,200. Those earning over that would pay less, percentage-wise, the more they earn. Benefits are funded through a combination of payroll deductions, interest from the Social Security Trust Fund and taxes on social security benefits if the recipient’s income exceeds a certain level.)
The Editor:
The Alaska Packers Association (APA) Museum at Semiahmoo is a great treasure of local history about the fishing and cannery industry in Blaine with connections to Bristol Bay, Alaska. We are currently looking for volunteers who like to meet people from all walks of life and present them with the rich history of the APA canneries.
We work four-hour shifts one day a week or once a month or as often as you like. Training is provided, we are located at 9261 Semiahmoo Parkway, Blaine. We are currently open 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Stop by for a visit and/or to sign up for volunteering. We are looking forward to meeting you!
Bill Brooks
Blaine
The Editor:
Bellingham City Council just passed an ordinance that added “the threat of jail” as a “tool” for making the city safer. They have now criminalized being houseless. Incarcerating people for addictions and homelessness is not a solution and it will make no one safer. I also learned that the city is seeking to add another four officers to the police force.
I cannot say how disappointed I am that the people elected by citizens of our city and county cannot find resources to find another way. Imagine being awakened from your sleep by a person hefting 50 pounds of lethal force and threatened with jail if you don’t get up off your bed. Incarceration is an easy way to solve a “problem” without solving it and actually making the “problem” worse.
If there are resources to take these actions, there are resources for other types of interventions.
• Hire four new mental health or social workers instead of hiring four new police officers.
• Consult with the folks running homeless shelters for another way forward.
• Build more transitional tiny home communities such as Gardenview.
• Provide a space for an encampment and staff it with trash bins, toilets and helpers.
• Invite those upset business owners to join a conversation about alternatives.
We can do better for those who are in great need because of homelessness or addiction, for our local businesses, and for the folks who shop in and walk the streets of Bellingham. We certainly do not need to increase the numbers of incarcerated folks because local business wants them out of sight.
Ronna Loerch
Everson
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here