Daily Topics - Wednesday March 14th, 2012
Catch The Thom Hartmann Program LIVE at our new time, 3-6pm Eastern!
Hour One: Why does Goldman Sachs think you're a muppet?
Hour Two: Why shouldn't 25 year olds get social security too? Peter Ferrara, Carleson Center for Public Policy
Hour Three: If we regulate prescription drugs why not regulate all Wall Street derivatives / Plus, Occupy Homes-MN
Comments
Have you considered that you are being 'bombed' by callers who don't understand the concept of civil discourse?
You need to remind these SS critics every time they claim that the SS trust fund - 100% invested in Treasury bills - is not there, nonexistent, then The Entire National Debt - also 100% Treasury Bills - is just as nonexistent. If they are right, that is GREAT NEWS because then there IS NO NATIONAL DEBT! We are free and clear!
Thom, every time you have Peter Ferrara from the Carleson Center for Public Policy as a guest, I come very close to turning the radio off. His lack of ability to engage in civil discourse is beyond what any of your other guests even come close to.
I truly wish you would scratch him from your list of guests. He apparently thinks that you owe him ten minutes to give a speech when you have him on and he makes the most absurd claims that I've ever heard.
Back during Bush's world tour to privatize SS, I went to my local congressman's town hall on the subject. The person heading the meeting was from the treasury department and he was peppered with questions about SS and its solvency. He explained, just as you always try to explain to Mr Ferrara, that the SS trust fund is invested in bonds and yes, that bond money has been used for other purposes but the good news is that the bonds are collecting interest and that interest further increases the balance of the SS trust fund. The bad news, of course, is that the trust fund is counted towards our national debt. But since we owe the money to our own citizens who were the source of the money in the first place, it's not so bad.
Also, as I told the meeting that day - I already have a private, government sponsored savings account. It is called a 401k and I lost the better part of that investment twice in the last two decades.
Now I'm retired and I'm living partially off annuities purchased from the 401k and although I had invested the maximimum that I could in that program over the years, the amount I get from that investment is half of what I collect from SS.
Who was that man? He sounded like a twelve year boy. And someone who just talks and runs over people. I just took my widow's benefits this past month. I waited 10 years to make sure I got the full amount. It will make an enormous change in my life. I lost my job two years ago and it's been a struggle but things are improving. This will be a foundation that will keep me going many years.
To me, SSI is a woman's issue. I wish so much that it was framed that way. That little man will die long before many women in his life do. It's just a fact of life. So attacks on SSI is an attack on mothers, sisters and widows. Along with the attacks on our health, the loss of SSI in any tweaking will put us right there with women in Afghanistan.
Hi Thom - Just finished listening to yesterday's podcasts, and I have the name of someone who committed politically motivated voter fraud for you!
James O'Keefe
Do I win? :-)
Thom's Blog Is On the Move
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What have Republicans brought us?
I can name a few:
Gloom
Despair
Agony
Deep Dark Depression
Excessive Misery
Just to name a few. =)