@morbiuswilters said:
@bridget99 said:How did I squander it?
Because it's gone... Look, I'm not disputing that it was squandered, I'm disputing that you deserve it back. Consider that you act so put-upon at the thought of having to pay for that stupid shit, right? I mean, ultimately, you don't think you should have to pay for all the stuff that was bought when you were a taxpayer.
Good point... I, as a US taxpayer, basically am a part of the corporate body that wasted the money and incurred the IOUs. So I should have to participate in paying the IOUs back, as a taxpayer. But they should be paid back, and they should be used to fund Social Security payments. All of this is provided for by current law.
@morbiuswilters said:
So who are you suggesting should pay for it? People that weren't even alive?
No, I'm suggesting that the US federal budget be adjusted. We need to spend less on the military. We need to stop creating new entitlements until we've agreed on a plan for the current ones. And I do think we should basically pay for some of it via inflation. Is that shoving things off on future generations? I don't think so. I don't really care that my grandparents were able to buy gas for a nickel per gallon. Ultimately numbers are just arbitrary. What I want is for my kids not to grow up in a third world country.
@morbiuswilters said:
And even if you do think it's fair, it doesn't matter, it ain't gonna happen. My generation is ignorant, lazy, unscrupulous, always looking for the easy way out and always trying to find someone else to blame. Do you really think today's 20-somethings are going to say "Yeah, you know what I want to do? Work the rest of my life so some old dude can retire! I don't care if I never get to retire." HA. Ain't. Gonna. Happen. Here's what will happen: online nursing home fights. If you want your tin of dog food this week, you gotta fight another old dude to the death. And we'll broadcast it over the Internet to make money. (Think I'm kidding? Have you seen my generation?)
Anyone who works a real full-time job pays money into Social Security and gets statements of benefits from the Social Security Administration. We may reach the magical day when ruthless kids will just abscond with the Social Security trust fund once and for all, but I doubt it will happen while people are still paying into Social Security with every paycheck. And people actually do care if their parents are getting Social Security, too.
Social Security is a big deal to a lot of people... it may very well end up being funded indefinitely in its current form by way of a more inflationary monetary policy. I think that probably would be good.
And how old do you think I am? I think I'm younger than you think I am.
@morbiuswilters said:
As I've already pointed out, we default on debts all the time. What makes you think you're so special that anybody is going to pay you back? Besides, those were debts wrung up by your generation. Your time to do something about it was long ago.
You quoted some argument about the gold standard. I don't think the gold standard ever quite had the force of law you imagine... the US government used to print gold certificates, until they discovered they could just print Magic Paper, and (surprise, surprise) they started printing more Magic Paper and fewer gold certificates. That's just an example of a bank behaving as a rational actor.
@morbiuswilters said:
Do you think people should inherit their parents' credit cards and be forced to pay them off no matter what? Obviously that's insane and illegal.
One person dying does not invalidate any debt owed by the USA or by any other corporation... that would be pretty silly.
Legally, in your example, the inheritor and the entire USA are both persons. The USA is a corporate person, and an individual inheriting an estate is an individual person.