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“Not a Dime.” The Young’s Pessimism on Social Security Explained
Selena Maranjian notes the bleak view the young have toward politics and Social Security. Studies have documented it for over a decade. According to the Nationwide Retirement Institute 2023 Social Security Survey, when shown the statement, “I will not get a dime of the Social Security benefits I have earned,” 24% of respondents agreed with it. About 7% agreed strongly, and 17% were somewhat in agreement. The pessimism increased with younger people. Maranjian notes there are grounds for pessimism, as the program does face insolvency in 2034 due to changing demographics. She also says that pessimism could be a catalyst for reforming and shoring up the Social Security program for the long haul. Entire article here.
As an example of the leading thoughts on reforming Social Security, the Association of Mature American Citizens (AMAC, Inc.) believes Social Security must be preserved and modernized. This can be achieved without tax increases by slight modifications to cost of living adjustments and payments to high income beneficiaries plus gradually increasing the full (but not early) retirement age. AMAC Action, AMAC’s advocacy arm, supports an increase in the threshold where benefits are taxed and then indexing for inflation, and calls for eliminating the reduction in people’s benefits for those choosing to work before full retirement age. AMAC is resolute in its mission that Social Security be preserved for current and successive generations and has gotten the attention of lawmakers in D.C., meeting with many congressional offices and staff over the past decade.