I don't see what's bad about making the retirement age 70

[WorldWatcher]

anyhow... I never said that the age of retirement should always andforever be 70. I am just saying that it is not the end of the world 2 change the retirement age, at least for some workers... and that people who continue to work after retirement (you missed this point completely) live longer.

My Social Security has already been effectively cut 3 times in my working career.

How many more cuts?

WW

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

I like how you throw the work "assistance" in there to imply that military retirement is a government handout.

News Flash: Military retirement is an earned benefit, not "assistance".

WW

Never said it was a handout.
Facts are facts....it's still assistance.

 

[JohnDB]

If I had been able to put both parts of the money the Gubbermint has taken for SS and bought just index funds like the DJI or S&P 500 or whatever....I would be a multi millionaire by now after 40 years of paying....(sometimes two full time jobs at a time)

As it is the $1800/mo that will be taxed again as income is crap. It's robbing the honest people and giving it to someone who has lived by being a leech on societ's buttocks their whole life. (Namely politicians buying votes).

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

well, what if someone wants to retire at age 25? but doesn't have enough $$?

so it seems your point here is rather a change of topic/?

Thats their problem.
It's really a simple concept,you work until you can afford to retire.

 

[WorldWatcher]

Never said it was a handout.
Facts are facts....it's still assistance.

Assistance is unearned, it's an earned benefit.

WW

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

Assistance is unearned, it's an earned benefit.

WW

No it's not.

 

[WorldWatcher]

No it's not.

Well actually it is. Military retirement is something earned over a 20 - 30 year career.

WW

 

[ABikerSailor]

Never said it was a handout.
Facts are facts....it's still assistance.

Military retirement isn't assistance as you assert. It is an earned benefit that you are told about when you enlist (and it's actually spelled out in your enlistment contract what your retirement rate will be), as well as is reiterated and told to you by the career counselors who want you to reenlist and the "lifers" who decided to make it a career. And, it's a pretty good benefit for serving, but it's not easy to get. You have to remain eligible for service, as well as for reenlistment, you have to make certain ranks by certain points in your career, and you have to keep your nose relatively clean, as failing to do all of those will result in you being sent home and told that your service is no longer required. Do less than the 20 years or more that is REQUIRED, and you go home with nothing, unless you are medically retired.

There's also putting up with the crappy hours, less than admirable pay (military people don't make as much as you think), the deployments as required by your service branch, as well as the forced moves at the end of each tour. Yes, you can request to remain in the same area you have been at, but it's rare that it gets granted, and that is only if you are in a job that is needed there, as well as whatever the needs are of the service you are in. Some command all the way across the country might need your specialty, so even if there is a billet in your area, you still get shipped off to the command that needs you.

It's an EARNED benefit, not "assistance".

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

Military retirement isn't assistance as you assert. It is an earned benefit that you are told about when you enlist (and it's actually spelled out in your enlistment contract what your retirement rate will be), as well as is reiterated and told to you by the career counselors who want you to reenlist and the "lifers" who decided to make it a career. And, it's a pretty good benefit for serving, but it's not easy to get. You have to remain eligible for service, as well as for reenlistment, you have to make certain ranks by certain points in your career, and you have to keep your nose relatively clean, as failing to do all of those will result in you being sent home and told that your service is no longer required. Do less than the 20 years or more that is REQUIRED, and you go home with nothing, unless you are medically retired.

There's also putting up with the crappy hours, less than admirable pay (military people don't make as much as you think), the deployments as required by your service branch, as well as the forced moves at the end of each tour. Yes, you can request to remain in the same area you have been at, but it's rare that it gets granted, and that is only if you are in a job that is needed there, as well as whatever the needs are of the service you are in. Some command all the way across the country might need your specialty, so even if there is a billet in your area, you still get shipped off to the command that needs you.

It's an EARNED benefit, not "assistance".

Again....I never said it wasn't earned.

 

[JohnDB]

Military retirement isn't assistance as you assert. It is an earned benefit that you are told about when you enlist (and it's actually spelled out in your enlistment contract what your retirement rate will be), as well as is reiterated and told to you by the career counselors who want you to reenlist and the "lifers" who decided to make it a career. And, it's a pretty good benefit for serving, but it's not easy to get. You have to remain eligible for service, as well as for reenlistment, you have to make certain ranks by certain points in your career, and you have to keep your nose relatively clean, as failing to do all of those will result in you being sent home and told that your service is no longer required. Do less than the 20 years or more that is REQUIRED, and you go home with nothing, unless you are medically retired.

There's also putting up with the crappy hours, less than admirable pay (military people don't make as much as you think), the deployments as required by your service branch, as well as the forced moves at the end of each tour. Yes, you can request to remain in the same area you have been at, but it's rare that it gets granted, and that is only if you are in a job that is needed there, as well as whatever the needs are of the service you are in. Some command all the way across the country might need your specialty, so even if there is a billet in your area, you still get shipped off to the command that needs you.

It's an EARNED benefit, not "assistance".

Social Security is an earned benefit. Even though there's no signed contract they do take the money from you AND your employer at the point of a gun FOR RETIREMENT BENEFITS. There are requirements for receiving benefits such as 40 calendar quarters paid in.
Meaning specific performance is required for benefits. Everyone that works has an account and records of earnings.

It never has been assistance...it's retirement benefits.

Medicare is another retirement benefit insurance program that we pay into.

If it was just taxes...then erase the accounts and payments and just say it's taxes. But you will get rode out on a rail in EVERY western nation that does something similar.

 

[ABikerSailor]

Again....I never said it wasn't earned.

Explain then how a military retirement is "assistance".

 

[Remodeling Maidiac]

We are living longer.. and those who work after 65 live longer anyway...

Try doing my job till 70. I'm 55 and it takes a serious toll on me now.
Not all of us have pansie cubical/retail jobs

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

Explain then how a military retirement is "assistance".

I guess benefit would be a better word.

 

[WorldWatcher]

I guess benefit would be a better word.

Agreed.

Thank you.

WW

 

[Augustine_]

No you arent, Life expectancy is dropping

^ communist

 

[Manonthestreet]

^ communist

Just the facts,,,,,,,

 

[ABikerSailor]

I guess benefit would be a better word.

I'll accept the word benefit, as I've called my retirement a benefit that I've worked for many times. If a person serves honorably for over 20 years, the benefit of doing so is that they get to retire from the military, with all that entails.

But no......................I would never call it "assistance".

 

[JohnDB]

I'll accept the word benefit, as I've called my retirement a benefit that I've worked for many times. If a person serves honorably for over 20 years, the benefit of doing so is that they get to retire from the military, with all that entails.

But no......................I would never call it "assistance".

And some promises need to be kept....not in words only but in deeds.

Sometimes the VA is really ineffective...wait times and poor resources and crummy staff.
It's had to be overhauled several times after entering states of disrepair.
Which should be a warning to us about Social Security.

Several Unions locals have voted every officer of the local pay raises but then immediately cut pensions to retirees who lost their voting rights at the previous meeting. (Which is super crummy and why I pulled my money out as soon as I could)

If you vote to remove benefits from seniors you are really removing them from yourself. Get a clue....just because it looks like a good idea on the surface doesn't mean that it won't have catastrophic results. The last time they cut SSI benefits poverty and homelessness increased rapidly and exponentially as did drug abuse and crime. They are related even though not directly. Indirect causes are hard to see and figure out.