The IMF's latest advisories to help the US "live within its means" involves gutting Social Security, raising the gas tax (regressive tax) and gut the home mortgage tax deduction
Saw this on C-Span morning before yesterday.
http://www.c-span.org/...
Wow. So, the IMF is "concerned" about all those Baby Boomers that are going to start collecting Social Security pretty soon. Well, excuuuuse me, I paid in for YEARS, Reagan, Bush and Cheney stole it all, and now they don't want to pay it back. Therefore, I should just suck it up and accept massive cuts in my Social Security. Because for sure all us 50-somethings can just go out and get a JOB
They don't want us to work - we're too old and "overqualified" - translation - not subservient enough, know more than our bosses, been around too long, know our rights. They don't want us to work at ALL. They want us to DIE, and quit being a pain in the ass to them. And if you're younger, they don't want you either, if you share any of these traits with your (ahem) elders. Things like knowing your rights, knowing what you're worth, etc. I'll be happy to pay taxes till I die to pay for the younger generations' Social Security and Medicare, just like I did for my parents' generation. I just want a little of what I paid in, in the meantime.
My needs are not much. My mobile home is paid for, my lot rent is cheap, I don't have expensive habits. (Although I would like to have healthcare, but whatever the VA can't supply, I'm SOL for that).
But the big meme of the day is to pass off the Baby Boomers as a "burden" on society now. Well, I tell you what - you gut my SS and Medicare all right, but first you pay back every penny to me of all I paid in over the years.
http://www.smirkingchimp.com/...
Actually, I'm not surprised - Republicans and the Corporatists have hated Boomers for years, because we called them out on their crap in the Sixties (and granted, everything about the Sixties, and how a lot of people before Boomers paved the way for the Civil Rights Movement, and Boomers don't really deserve credit and they're a bunch of hypocritical hedonists - ahem - well, some of that is true). BUT - we're the ones taking the rap and the Corporatists hate us. For better or for worse we get the credit and also the rap for all the good and bad of the Sixties.
Sex, drugs and rock and roll - they always hated us for that, and still do. (Although considering all recent reports from the Republican Scandal front, I don't know why they should - they sure seem to have got a hell of a lot more of all three than any of us). But they also hated us for our political empowerment at the time - and now they hate us for our sheer numbers, which still constitute a bit of a voting bloc.
NOTE: for the record, this is NOT a GenXers or Millenials vs Boomers diary. This is a Corporatist vs the Rest of Us diary. They hate you young folks too, and will screw you in your turn, if they can.
We can stop them if we scream loud enough and make enough noise.
Progressives Rock!
Love, Rose