Category Archives: Social Security

I Would Like to Thank Obsessive Republicans for Saving Social Security From Obama

Posted on May 14, 2013 by

History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce. Then it winds up on TMZ. Or something. With whispers of impeachment in the air, things are starting to resemble the Clinton era a little bit. What many forgot (or never … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservatives, Fucking Morons, Social Security | 1 Comment

The Grand Bargain Betrayal: Obama Lied to Rank-and-File Democrats on a Core Issue

Posted on April 8, 2013 by

I’m not naive about politicians. They will typically attempt to have their cake and eat it too on most issues. They will make ‘committed non-committals’ to leave themselves to maneuver. But a cardinal rule of politics is that when you … Continue reading →

Posted in Democrats, Social Security | 3 Comments

A Judge Saved Us From Obama’s Policy Towards Plan B. Maybe One Can Do Something About His Assault on Plan C?

Posted on April 6, 2013 by

Probably not, but one can hope. To use a phrase. The good news is that a federal judge–a Republican appointee no less–overturned the Obama Administration’s craven and cowardly stance on Plan B, allowing emergency contraception to be sold over the … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservatives, Democrats, Social Security | 1 Comment

Why Abandoning the Platinum Coin Option Worries Me

Posted on January 14, 2013 by

If you haven’t heard, over the weekend, both the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department ruled out using the platinum coin option to work around the debt ceiling hostage taking by the Republicans. I hope I’m wrong, but I think … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservatives, Democrats, Social Security, We're Really Fucked | 2 Comments

What the Social Security Debate Is Really About

Posted on December 23, 2012 by

In the midst of all of the discussion involving debt ceilings, fiscal cliffs, and potential, minor long-term budgetary problems based on unrealistic assumptions, it’s worth remembering what this debate is really about. Mike Lux (boldface mine): When I was a … Continue reading →

Posted in Basic Human Decency, Social Security | 1 Comment

Note to Krugman: The Role of the Public Intellectual Is to Speak Truth to Power, Not to Apologize For Power’s Misuse

Posted on December 18, 2012 by

Like many who actually don’t think devil-take-the-hindmost is good public policy, I’m incredibly disappointed in this post by NY Times columnist and economist Paul Krugman. This is not hard. This is not “agonizing.” Quite simply, it is indecent. It should … Continue reading →

Posted in Democrats, Progressives, Social Security | 4 Comments

The Asymmetry of ‘Shared Sacrifice’: You Can’t Have Skin in the Game When You’ve Been Cut to the Bone

Posted on December 11, 2012 by

As all of our artificial fiscal crises reach full screech, you’ll be hearing a lot about ‘shared sacrifice’, the notion that we all have to pitch in and solve these (relatively) trivial problems. The problem is that some people have … Continue reading →

Posted in Basic Human Decency, I For One Welcome Our Austerity Overlords, Social Security | 1 Comment

The Propaganda of Sacrifice

Posted on November 24, 2012 by

Over the last few years, it has become fashionable for neo-liberals to blather on about ‘shared sacrifice’: the rich will have to pay a bit more in taxes, while the middle class and the impoverished will face cuts they simply … Continue reading →

Posted in Democrats, Social Security | 1 Comment

A Way to Keep Social Security ‘Solvent’

Posted on November 22, 2012 by

While the government could, at any time, decide to deficit spend to maintain full Social Security benefits in roughly twenty-five years, if CBO estimates are to believed (and they should be taken with a boulder of salt), Social Security will … Continue reading →

Posted in Democrats, I For One Welcome Our Austerity Overlords, Social Security | 2 Comments

Democrats Beware: Americans Hate Austerity Policies

Posted on November 14, 2012 by

George Zornick points us to this figure from a polling report by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research for Democracy Corps and the Campaign for America’s Future: What is going unsaid is that the Social Security fix is simple (albeit probably unnecessary … Continue reading →

Posted in Social Security, Taxes