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Hernando Today

Political Kabuki Dancing: The Beat Goes On

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 16, 2008

Re: "Warrior For Peace" by Frances Earl in the Aug. 14 edition of Hernando Today.

I'm going cherry pick some recitals in the article "Warrior For Peace" by Frances Earl. People on Social Security and pensions were cited as hurting financially.

That's true, but it's worth noting that in District 5 there are more than 375,000 working folks, who contribute financially to supporting retirees through their Social Security taxes. These folks take on extra jobs and work extra hours; most have worked through the hurting stage and are now bleeding.

The column cites Asia as a major lender to fund the war in Iraq. I would strenuously beg to differ, and would suggest that average working Americans, through their Social Security tax contributions, are the major source for funding the war, among other political financial cravings.

To make the reader aware, excess Social Security tax dollars are transferred to government's general revenue fund (main financial account), where it is spent on something (Iraq war) other than intended. For accounting purposes, when a dollar is removed it's replaced with an IOU of equal value showing up as an asset in name only, as it will have to be paid again.

In calendar year 2003 (the year the war began), $153 billion of new Social Security IOUs were created; in 2004, $156 billion; 2005, $172 billion; 2006, $189 billion; and last year, $190 billion in new IOUs were created. Over the lifetime of the Iraq war, that's $860 billion dollars in new IOUs, and it's not mentioned anywhere in this "Warrior For Peace" column. How can this candidate, or any other candidate be a warrior for anything, if they're willing to stand by and watch as their constituents are financially wounded in the name of Social Security?

The article goes on to mention economic challenges, credit card usage and families unable to get out of debt. I submit a major contributor has been the 1983 Social Security reform package that increased maximum Social Security taxes a whopping 256 percent over a 10-year period.

A 1980 retiree contributed an average of 5.15 percent in Social Security tax contributions over a working lifetime, and today's workers contribute 12.4 percent. In 2007, District 5 workers contributed about $1.5 billion in Social Security taxes.

That same year, deceitful accounting trickery involving the IOU for dollars swap, obligated District 5 workers to pay an additional $437 million in Social Security IOUs.

If Mr. Russell, or anyone of the current 435 one-armed bandits that make up this Congress are really fighters for the people, they will stop doing the political kabuki dance around the financial cancer eating away at their constituents.

That cancer is Social Security taxes. You may contact the author of this article at jg@americaretoday.com.

Jim Gries

Weeki Wachee

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