January 17th, 2007

Congress is up to its usual tricks. This time though, the target is freedom of speech. Senate Bill 1 is a large package of ethics reform, but inside they snuck in what is known as Section 220.  Section 220 would effectively muzzle the anonymous free speech rights of Americans by requiring onerous regulation of grassroots activities by organizations such as S4.

This effort is being led by those in Congress who want to do whatever they can to limit grassroots participation in the political process. We, here at S4, encourage everyone to contact their Senators and  Representatives and encourage them to oppose any continued effort to muzzle free speech.

January 16th, 2007

From Robert Samuelson:

"As someone born in late 1945, I say this to the 76 million or so subsequent baby boomers and particularly to Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, our generation's leading politicians: Shame on us. We are trying to rob our children and grandchildren, putting the country's future at risk in the process. On one of the great issues of our time, the social and economic costs of our retirement, we have adopted a policy of selfish silence."

January 13th, 2007

WILLisms is in its 67th week of Social Security reform information. Here's an excerpt from yesterday's post, "Two Percent Is Bigger Than It Sounds":

Social Security will eat away 2% more of America's GDP [in 2030] than it does today. That's not two percent of the Federal Budget, but America's entire GDP. 6.2% of 13 trillion (roughly the current size of the American economy) is $806 billion. That's serious money. That's the entire budget of several large governmental agencies, combined.

January 12th, 2007

Can Congress and the Bush Administration compromise on Social Security reform without raising taxes?  The Free Enterprise Fund and National Taxpayers Union are sponsoring a forum on the topic, so join the staff of Students for Saving Social Security next Tuesday and find out if reform without tax increases is in our future. 

    Tuesday, January 16, 2007, 2:00pm - 4:00pm
    121 Cannon House Office Building

Congressman Patrick McHenry (R, NC-10) will be the guest speaker at the forum, and the panel will be moderated by Mallory Factor, Chairman of the Free Enterprise Fund.  The forum's panelists will include John Berthoud, President of the National Taxpayers Union; Peter Ferrara, Senior Fellow with the Free Enterprise Fund; Tom Giovanetti, President of the Institute for Policy Innovation; Stephen Moore, an Editorial Board Member for the Wall Street Journal; and Grover Norquist, President of Americans for Tax Reform.

For more information or to RSVP, please contact Todd Schorle at Free Enterprise Fund (202-421-9693) or Pete Sapp and Sam Batkins at the National Taxpayers Union (703-683-5700).

A good cartoon by Rep. Penny's son about Social Security and the new Congress.

 "After people get their first statement that there is money in a Social Security account that they own, then we're going to have the political pressure we need to continue to grow those accounts." 

U.S. Senator Jim DeMint

We all can acknowledge -- that sucks!!  And this is why one of our organization's favorite phrases is "DON'T GET SCREWED!!"

I don't know about you, but 84k to ME is a SIGNIFICANT amount of money.  I mean, seriously, think about it.  A vacation to the Maldives like the infamous TomKat honeymoon.  Or an ultra luxurious car or better yet, two years of our highly expensive college education!

Eighty-four thousand dollars is A LOT of money, no matter what you envision buying with it.  The fact remains, it is unfair that our generation is forced to give that much of our tax dollars to a government program that is failing. What is even MORE unfair is that, as of yet, Congress as a whole refuses to address the problems facing Social Security!
Just last month, Senator Smith (R-Oregon) sent a letter to the editor to an Oregon-based monthly magazine stating, "There is no doubt about it, Social Security needs improvement." But obviously, the urgency in the issue is not felt by the Senator because not only did he have no suggestions for fixing it (other than saying personal accounts were NOT the right way) but he implied it will take years of debate and deliberation to come to a solution.

This is unacceptable.  Every year that goes by without reform is costing us billions - adding to that 84k each of us will pay into the system, yet never get back.  The fact that our very own senators think it's ok to put off addressing the problem is, quite frankly, appalling.  And that's why we need students everywhere to tell their elected officials WHAT’S UP.  The NEWS FLASH should be: Senators -- get your act together and start looking out for the interests of our generation!!

Written by Evan Dent

The Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania's Factcheck.org has given one of the prominent opponents of reform -- or disbelievers in the truth about Social Security -- Americans United, an award.   They recognized Americans United's Hot Dog ad for their "No Calorie Award," as the ad made the ridiculous claim that George Bush was going to take half of Grandma's hot dog.    This is what the non-partisan group said about the ad: "This 15-second ad from a liberal group funded by labor unions takes the cake (so to speak) for lack of substance." 

This is the same group formerly known as Americans United to Save Social Security that had a rigged Social Security Reform Calculator on their website.  Factcheck.org called it a "artful bit of automated misinformation."

Young Americans and old Americans alike need real debate -- not rhetoric and not scare attacks.  We need debate that is full of substance, not the typical relish of groups like Americans United. 

January 11th, 2007