WELCOME TO OPINIONS BASED
ON FACTS (OBOF)
&
THINGS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED (TYMHM)
YEAR THREE
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Name
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Published
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OVERVIEW
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OBOF & TYMHM
PART 14
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Dec
18, 2012
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OBOF & TYMHM
PART 15
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Jan. 02, 2013
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OBOF & TYMHM
PART 16
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Jan. 08, 2013
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OBOF & TYMHM PART
16 EXTRA
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Jan. 11, 2013
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IN THIS
ISSUE
1. Why this posting is important
2. What you need to know about Social Security.
3. Now here is the important part.
4. Debt ceiling & guns.
EXTRA
EXTRA
EXTRA
READ, ALL
ABOUT IT.
NEED YOUR
HELP IN
FEBRUARY.
WHY THIS
POSTING IS
IMPORTANT
By Floyd Bowman.
Publisher
"Opinions Based On Facts"
February is going to
be a very turbulent month and I don't mean the weather. President Obama has described it best. He has called out the GOP for obstructionist
tactics. This is really good. I wish you could hear it, instead of me
writing it, because his delivery is so good.
Anyway, here is what he had to say.
"They
have said no to just about every idea I propose, every policy I propose, even
ideas they have traditionally agreed with.
I, I, I'm not exaggerating, we would
have a situation where they would sponsor a bill and I would say OK, and then
they would say, Oh!, well if your OK with it, well then we must be against
it."
Even before February, there
are some very important nominations to be acted on, in the Senate. The GOP has already handed out bad talk on
all of them, except John Kerry
for Secretary of State. Also, it is now
reported that instead of having enough money till late in March, it is going to
be the middle of February when we would run out. SO, that means the problem of raising the
debt ceiling is going to come up much sooner than was thought.
When that occurs, the Republicans are going to really weight in heavy on
cutting the heck out of Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. It is feared that Social Security is going to
get hit hard by the Republicans, because they feel that this is a real good
chance to break it or get it into a privatized status. That would break it altogether.
This is the point when
the Tea Party Representatives, will go for radical budget reductions and cut
the deficit. THIS
IS GOING TO BE WHEN WE ALL NEED TO WRITE, CALL, OR BOTH, OUR MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES AND SENATORS. ABOVE ALL, WRITE OR CALL THE PRESIDENT. UNFORTUNATELY, RECENTLY, HE HAS BEEN SENDING
SIGNALS THAT HE IS WEAKENING AND MAY PUT SOCIAL SECURITY ON THE TABLE FOR
NEGOTIATIONS. WE NEED TO URGE HIM, STRONGLY, TO STICK TO HIS CONVICTIONS AND THAT
HE IS IN THE DRIVERS SEAT, AND WE PUT HIM THERE.
~~~
IMPORTANT BACKGROUND
ON
SOCIAL SECURITY.
The first
thing to know and remember about Social Security (SS) is that it does not add
to the deficit and never has. It has
always been, self-supporting and without question is the most successful
government program that has ever been produced.
No one can show otherwise.
As a matter of fact,
illegally, it has been a Piggy Bank for the General Revenue fund. You might say, "Well how can that be?" I will be happy to tell you the reason
Republicans are so against SS and how Presidents and Congresses have been able
to steal from the SS Trust Fund, or what I refer to as the SS Piggy Bank.
I believe that you
probably know that Social Security (SS) was started by President Franklin D.
Roosevelt in 1935. By 1983, then
President Ronald Reagan, realized that there was going to be a great increase
in SS recipients in the coming years, as a result of the Baby Boomer
Generation. That meant that the manner
in which Social Security was funded would not be sufficient, at that time.
He appointed a
Commission, headed by Allen Greenspan, to study the problem and come up with a
solution. Up to that time, workers paid,
through a payroll deduction, enough to cover the cost for SS recipients before
that time. The long and short of the
Commission study determined that the withholding should be increased, so that
the present day workers would not only provide the money for previous workers,
but an amount that would cover their SS, as well.
This was adopted and a
surplus began to accumulate. The surplus
was not to be used for anything, but SS and was to be held in a SS Trust
Fund. This went into effect in 1985 and
by 1987 a surplus had developed. At that
time, the General Revenue Fund was in trouble, so President Reagan, along with
his Congress, was the first to use the surplus, as though it were General
Revenue. From that point on, every
President and Congress since have used the SS Trust Fund money, as though it
was General Revenue, so as of now, the Federal Government owes the SS Trust
Fund $3.2 trillion, which is included in the National Debit.
The original Social
Security legislation provided that it would take an act of Congress to make any
changes in the program. As that surplus
money was taken from the SS Trust Fund it was replaced with Special Government
Bonds. These Bonds actually are nothing
more than an accounting measure, as they are not negotiable and have no
monetary value. The Government has
acknowledged that they owe this money, since they include it in the listing of
the National Debt. The only way that can
be changed is by an act of Congress. I
would think that if they ever tried to cancel that debt there would be a
tremendous uproar.
I believe this gives
you a good picture as to the status of Social Security. I just want to say one more thing. There is a retired Economist by the name of
Allen W. Smith Ph. D., who has spent the last 12 years trying to educate the
public, as to the actual status of Social Security. He has written three great books on the
subject plus many, many articles and appearances, on radio and television. It has only been through my association with
him, that I have become well versed about the subject. I owe him so much. Thank you Allen.
~~~
NOW, HERE IS
THE
IMPORTANT
PART!
We all need to get the names,
address, and telephone numbers, of our Representatives and Senators in Washington
In both, your writing and
calling, emphasize that SS does not and never has contributed to the
deficit. It has always been self-supporting. With the money the Federal Government owes
the SS Trust Fund, $3.2 trillion, which is acknowledged by being included in the National Debt, SS has
sufficient funds for full benefits through 2036.
SAMPLE LETTER:
The Honorable John Doe, Representative. Date
House of Representatives
Address
Washington, D. C. (zip code)
Dear Representative John Doe:
I write to draw your attention to my concerns relative to considering
the use of Social Security as one way to reduce the deficit. I want to point out that Social Security does
not now and never has contributed to the deficit. It has always been self-supporting. With the $3.2 trillion the Federal Government
owes the Social Security Trust Fund, which is included in the National Debt,
there are sufficient funds to provide full benefits to 2036.
I am, also, concerned about any reduction in benefits to Medicare and
Medicaid. I believe that there are other
ways to reduce the cost of Medicare than reducing benefits. To reduce Medicaid would place a tremendous
hardship on those who have to depend on it.
I, sincerely, ask you to find other ways to reduce the deficit. At the same time, I believe we should not be
worrying about reducing the deficit until our economy has recovered and
unemployment is down to 6%.
I thank you for your time and consideration of my concerns.
Sincerely,
~~~
Debt Ceiling and Guns: Using Presidential
Authority to the Fullest
Robert Reich
NationofChange
/ Op-Ed
Published Friday January 11, 2013
Anyone who thinks
congressional Republicans will roll over on the debt ceiling or gun control or
other pending hot-button issues hasn’t been paying attention.
But the President can use
certain tools that come with his office – responsibilities enshrined in the
Constitution and in his capacity as the nation’s chief law-enforcer — to
achieve some of his objectives.
On the debt ceiling, for
example, he might pay the nation’s creditors regardless of any vote on the debt
ceiling – based on the the Fourteenth Amendment’s explicit directive (in
Section 4) that “the validity of the public debt of the United States … shall
not be questioned.”
Or, rather than issue more
debt, the President might use a loophole in a law (31 USC, Section 5112)
allowing the Treasury to issue commemorative coins – minting a $1 trillion coin
and then depositing it with the Fed.
Both gambits would almost
certainly end up in the Supreme Court, but not before they’ve been used to pay
the nation’s bills. (It’s doubtful any federal court, including the Supremes,
would enjoin a President from protecting the full faith and credit of the United States
Or consider guns. As Vice
President Joe Biden said Wednesday, “there are executive orders, executive
action that can be taken” that don’t require congressional approval.
The President probably
needs new legislation to reinstate a ban on the sale of military-style assault
weapons, stop the sale of high-capacity ammunition clips, and require background
checks on all gun buyers.
But he has wide authority
to use gun laws already on the books as the basis for regulations or executive
orders strengthening gun enforcement.
There’s ample precedent.
After a mass school shooting in Stockton ,
California
To take another example,
the National Firearms Act of 1934 gives a president broad powers to oversee gun
dealers. By executive order, the President could tighten that oversight.
Under his law-enforcement
authority the President could also issue executive orders improving information
sharing among state and local law enforcement authorities about illegal gun
purchases, tracking gun buyers’ history of mental illness, and maintaining data
on gun sales for longer periods.
The Administration has
already issued a regulation designed to prevent sales of semi-automatic rifles
to Mexican drug cartels. It requires stores in states bordering Mexico
No doubt such executive
orders and regulations would be challenged in the federal courts (the
regulation on semi-automatic rifles is now in a federal appeals court that’s
expected to rule on its legality within the next few months).
But it’s a fair argument
that when the nation is jeopardized – whether in danger of defaulting on its
debts or succumbing to mass violence – a president is justified in using his
authority to the fullest.
The mere threat of taking
such actions – using the President’s executive authority to pay the nation’s bills
or broadly interpret gun laws already on the books – could be useful in pending
negotiations with congressional Republicans.
They have not shied away
from using whatever means available to them to get their way. The President
should not be reluctant to play hardball, either.
~~~
If, the good Lord is willing and the
creek don't rise, I'll talk with you again on Tuesday January 15, 2013.
God Bless All of You
&
God Bless The United States of America
Floyd
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