The wealth transfer meme, as the GOP applies it to social programs is also part of an effort to shift attention away from our huge, bloated military budget.
Could not agree more. Moreover, the wealth transfer argument missed the major points. Social security is a small, but difficult, tweak away from much more long term solvency than is presently the case. We've talked a lot about it here. That raising the income limits for payments into the system, or eliminating them, would do the trick. And that's not transfer from young to old but, largely, for wealthy to middle on down to poor.
As for medicare, everything I've read suggests the problem is health care costs. We need programs to curb those. And most of us have agreed that's a problem that a single payer system would address very nicely. That also is transfer of wealth but, if the tax is based on income, it's richer to not so rich and poor.
I think the degree to which the tax system has been used, flagrantly, since Reagan came to power, to favor the wealthy, is the real story here. Not the old versus young conflict.
Everyone, if fortune prevails, will get old. Not so for wealthy. |
