You will find that it is not that simple, Grasshoppa. Many other things beyond your control can affect your fortune and your success. I have an old friend who was making 90K in pharmaceutical sales before a car accident left her unable to work. Social security disability is the only thing keeping her off the street today. It could happen to you.
Social Security has no direct effect on the debt. By the time you are 88, SS may begin using small amounts of borrowed money. But in 27 years, they will have had time to adjust the system using some of Supa's schemes. You will have SS throughout your life. So stop worrying. But I hope you've got a lot more than SS to count on.
Well, that leaves me with a choice. Either I can live in fear, and worry about all the unfortunate things that could possibly happen to me and that the only way to ease that fear is to always have 6.2% of my paycheck taken from me so that I don't end up living in a cardboard box when I retire. Or I can rely on myself and my fiscally responsible decision making to get to where I want to go. I don't need the government to protect my future, I can do that all by myself.
Nice article here: » Social Security Going Broke Faster than Expected - Big Government I also like this comment because I think most rely on CBO too much:
True CBO makes projections on the letter of the law. It assumes things will be taxed, funded, and cut according to what a particular bill says. As a practicle example the 1099 swindle from Obamacare is going to be repealed before it goes into effect in 2012. That means Congress has to find an additional 2 billion a year to make Obamacare revenue neutral.
You can do both. Social Security eligibility and fiscal responsibility are not mutually exclusive. You might invest that 6.2 percent in an IRA, but probably not when you're living on a low salary. I've been there. I put off serious savings until I was in my 30's because I needed all of my paycheck to live my lifestyle. My IRA has done well, but all of the risk is on me. Your social security deduction comes with guaranteed benefits when you really need them and all of the risk is on social security.
