Don’t Pick On Old People
By Joe Rector
The weather has been perfect this week. In fact, all over the country people have taken to the outside, even where the cold weather still has a tight hold on areas. Nothing seemed to stop people from leaving their homes to join others in protests. Sure, some of the topics of discontent were questionable. However, one topic has the support of a majority of Americans: Social Security.
We should all know that Social Security was the brainchild of President Roosevelt in 1935. Its purpose was to serve as a safety net for elderly citizens. Unlike so many other programs, this one was funded by deductions from employees’ paychecks and their employers.
Over the 90-year life of the program, Social Security has often been the only source of income for the poorest of our older citizens. As of February 2025, the average monthly income for social security recipients is $1,976. How difficult life must be for those whose income is that little. How does one pay rent, buy groceries, pay the utilities, and put gas in a car on that amount? The choice between medicine or food is a real-life decision for too many Americans.
As of February 2024, 67 million persons received Social Security benefits. Yes, most recipients are senior citizens. When the program was initiated, the life expectancy for Americans was 61.7 years. In 2025, the average life expectancy is 77.5 years. So, when the program began, many of the people died before ever drawing the first check. Now, the system pays seniors an average of 8-12 years.
Social Security deductions have been taken from workers’ paychecks each pay period. No one has a choice about paying the tax. The government takes that money and is supposed to make sure it is there for individuals when they reach retirement age. Unless those funds have been raided by the government, plenty of money should be available to pay those entitled.
Now, those in power want access to personal data held by the Social Security system. They claim massive amounts of fraud are occurring and that the agency is overstaffed. Plans to fire thousands of employees and to shut many offices are being plotted. The results will be inconveniences for the elderly who, oftentimes, are too frail or too remote to make journeys to offices to spend hours in line for assistance.
Social Security recipients have worked hard through most of their lives. Many have bravely served the country during times of war. Others have toiled for small paychecks that they, in some way, stretched to cover the bare necessities of life. Anyone, regardless of party affiliation or station in life, has no right to withhold the money that citizens contributed over a lifetime.
We all hope that the weather continues to improve so that the months ahead will be enjoyable. At the same time, Americans hope that some kind of common sense prevails so that Social Security checks continue to be mailed. Privatization might be a possibility for future recipients, but for us old codgers, the status quo is preferable. We are in the twilight of our lives, and we ask that you leave us alone for the few years we have left. That means that we receive the money which we are owed and that we have a fully functional agency to help those with questions. That’s the American way of handling things.
