[ExI] Transhumanism and Politics

spike spike66 at att.net
Sun Jan 27 16:34:03 UTC 2008


 

> -----Original Message-----
> From: extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org 
> [mailto:extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org] On Behalf Of 
> Samantha Atkins
> Sent: Sunday, January 27, 2008 2:17 AM
> To: ExI chat list
> Subject: Re: [ExI] Transhumanism and Politics
> 
> 
> On Jan 23, 2008, at 1:55 AM, BillK wrote:
> 
> > On Jan 23, 2008 4:38 AM, spike wrote:
> >> Ja.  We don't have that in the states.  Social security 
> payments not 
> >> only are not means tested, it is illegal to change the 
> rules to make 
> >> it so.  It isn't a need-based safety net, but rather a 
> forced pension 
> >> fund.
> >>
> 
> Some pension fund.  The money is taken from me, largely 
> squandered, and some working sap (or several) have to make up 
> the difference.  I  
> get no interest on the money forcefully "saved" from/for me.  
>  And now  
> on top of this utterly contemptible situation you want to say 
> that if I somehow managed to not be totally impoverished at 
> retirement I deserve none of the money taken from me and my 
> employers for over four decades of toil and so thoroughly 
> squandered that only pennies on the  
> dollar remain?     Are you really saying that?...

Samantha, my comment was in response to BillK's explanation of the social
security system in England.  That one sounds to me like a need-based system,
which makes it welfare, which makes it something I will not accept.  In the
states, our social security is not need based, but rather a forced pension
fund that we know is actually a pyramid scheme that is near collapse.  I am
not defending social security in the states, and certainly not the one in
England, or any other need based social security system.  

In the states, if you pay attention, invest carefully and manage to stay
healthy and employed, retire wealthy, you still get your social security
checks, which might be substantial.  You have not the option to turn them
off, although one might simply not deposit their checks I suppose.  I
consider the money from social security MY MONEY, which I paid against my
will.

I don't think you and I disagree.  I have been expecting social security in
the states to eventually revert to a need-based system, which requires the
government to admit it has been robbing us for generations.  They aren't
there yet, but watch for it.  It will come in stages, rather than all at
once.  My very capitalist grandfather explained this to me when I was a
child in 1971.  He mapped it all out, starting with the declaration of a
maximum social security payback, regardless of how much one put in.


> 
> Now, I would be happy to give up any claim on social security 
> right this second if the government would stop extracting it 
> from my money  
> immediately...

It's too late for that, for both of us.  Social security is holding OUR
money, Samantha, and we want it, even if we cannot argue that we NEED it.
Need is irrelevant in this instance, we want our money.

spike




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