The real big fires are caused by lightning strikes but then you have all the random lunatics setting fires, like you said. It sure isn't "climate change". I don't think liberal Canada would ever get rid of their environment/development protections for their forests. They want to leave them untouched because they're eco-nuts.

I was really surprised to hear that many people do not have air conditioning in Europe. Its over a hundred degrees during their heatwaves. A lot of people can't handle heat like that. Its awful that the government controls whether you can have air conditioning in your home or not. That's a miserable way to live. Why the Europeans tolerate it I don't know.

Its the climate change scam that justifies whatever they want to do.

Obviously, Social Security can be legal if Trump says so. That is all you need.

If you define legal as "don't make promises that can't possibly be kept", then Social Security is an obvious Ponzi.

No, a Ponzi scheme cannot be made legal because the structure itself is a form of fraud. By definition, it involves paying early investors with money raised from new investors rather than from legitimate profits or actual business operations. Because this requires inherent deception, it violates securities and consumer protection laws.

It will NEVER be fixed. My brain did a "Ctrl Alt Del" when I read your last line - Even though its a Ponzi scheme it works and can be made solvent.

I take the tack that SS is a Ponzi scheme that I am a fortunate accidental benefactor of, and I am inadvertently screwing current workers who will never see a similar return on their labor.

And you say that I hate Trump. Sure, say whatever. "Hate" is a way to dismiss someone as irrational. I've had family members gaslight me with that logic.

I don't hate Trump. I really wish he would turn back into pre-election Trump. He's doubled down. 100% oligarch tyrant now.

There's nothing for me to grab onto in any of your points that's worth disputing.

The idea they are pushing is that wildfires are happening more often and are worse because of "climate change". The reality is that there are eco-nuts and random lunatics setting fires intentionally (usually mentioned in the aftermath but downplayed) and old systems of wildfire spotters have been shut down and governments just aren't trying to actually put them out anymore.

I'm sure that there are also other motivations... like wildfire-affected land being easier to strip of environmental/development protections and repurposed/sold/developed, the unburned forest areas adjacent to the burned-out areas suddenly being legally eligible for logging or something.

It's the same in Europe. When a normal non-apocalyptic heatwave hits, their media and authorities tell them it's the hottest heatwave ever and also "No, you cannot have air conditioning!" and also use bureaucratic-expert paperwork schemes invented a few decades ago to automatically collect death data and then inferring and link normal deaths to the heat somehow (similar to what happened with "covid death" tallies during the scamdemic) ... to drive people into a sort of near-hysteria.

It's all about creating the illusion of a grand, global external crisis to make people fearful and malleable and provide a pretext for huge societal changes that non-miserable, non-fearful people would reject.

The rain cleared out a lot of the smoke, but not all of it. I hope Canada tries to put out the fires soon because it would suck to have a summer with smoky air.

Its unacceptable that Canada isn't taking care of it NOW. They're poisoning the air we all breathe. I was outside for a little while yesterday and my eyes still burn today.

I thought Lindsey Graham was a good senator in other ways, but he was too pro-war. He went to Ukraine ten times during their war with Russia. Zelensky said Graham was a strong supporter of the war. I'd say he focused on Ukraine too much when he should've been focused on other US issues.

I think he is a loss for us in the Senate, however. If anyone could've gotten the Save Act passed it was him.

Our generation is much demonized by the younger generation no matter what we do. We're convenient to blame. Its not our fault if they can't make it in life. They can make their life whatever they want if they try. When they get older, they'll understand more how the system works. Its a safety net.

FSK said it best

"The whole point of Social Security is using current taxes to pay current benefits, leaving a huge future liability. It's a political football that can never be undone, because people who paid into Social Security their whole lives will be annoyed if there's a default. Instead, there will be a partial default, either by inflation making the benefit worth less, or higher taxes on current workers."

Even though its a Ponzi scheme it works and can be made solvent.

The ONE thing that protects your and my benefits is political imperative. Social security is a hot potato that nobody will touch. If something happens in the system to force change, the politics may matter less than something else.

Ever hear the phrase "force majeur"? Contracts are breached all the time because money runs out. Read FSK's comments, he 100% nailed it.

Social Security also pays for people with disabilities. I don't know if that is also included in the 1/3 figure, but that would be costly. With retirees, they only live so long. Some people don't even make it to 66, so the government wouldn't have to pay them anything.

Suppose there is $100B or whatever in the Social Security trust fund. All that happens is it causes deflation, or there is inflation elsewhere that goes unnoticed.

A government cannot have a surplus or deficit in its own money. If government runs a deficit, that's inflationary. If government runs a surplus, that's deflationary.

If Social Security is collecting more in taxes than benefits paid, that is deflationary. If Social Security is paying out more than collected taxes, that is inflationary.

The whole point of Social Security is using current taxes to pay current benefits, leaving a huge future liability. It's a political football that can never be undone, because people who paid into Social Security their whole lives will be annoyed if there's a default. Instead, there will be a partial default, either by inflation making the benefit worth less, or higher taxes on current workers.

Any private insurance/pension fund that was run the same as Social Security would be shut down by regulators for being insolvent.

I agree with that completely.

They're still too expensive to support with the current numbers given the national debt. Inflation has made both very costly to support.

Q: "what are social security and medicare's portion of the US budget in 2026?"

A:

In the 2026 federal budget, Social Security accounts for approximately 23% of total federal spending, making it the largest single government program. Medicare makes up about 14% of the budget. Together, these two programs represent more than one-third of the entire $7 trillion federal outlay.

1/3 of the federal budget to support retirees.

Other Welfare programs outside of that are a different story. They are freebies to people that never paid into the system.

I'm truly thankful for SS and Medicare. I don't think I could afford to live without it because I'm older and past my working years. If I never had to pay into SS and Medicare and could have saved that money and invested it myself, it wouldn't have been enough because I'm far from a savvy investor.

The home prices are elevated because there isn't enough inventory and its been that way for years. Its because of illegal immigration. They buy houses and have to live somewhere. Trump is working on it but its not an easy problem to fix.

No. Social Security operates on a pay-as-you-go system, meaning taxes collected from current workers are immediately used to pay benefits to current retirees and other beneficiaries. While FICA payroll taxes are the primary revenue source, payments are also funded by taxing the benefits of higher-income recipients and the interest earned on accumulated trust fund reserves

(from Fidelity)

Therefore the lion's share of Social Security payments are paid with current wage earner's taxes.

Therefore, ENTITLEMENT. My payments are funded on the back of today's wage earners. Which I have always accepted. The government plans on continual inflation to fund things.

Then: "Does the recipient's past fica taxes plus his medicare deduction from social security entirely fund current medical benefits?"

No. A recipient’s past FICA taxes and Medicare deductions do not entirely fund their current medical benefits. Medicare operates primarily as a pay-as-you-go system. The taxes paid by today's active workforce pay for the benefits of current retirees.Furthermore, FICA taxes and Social Security deductions are not the only sources of funding for the program. The broader Medicare Financial Status involves several other funding streams:General Federal Revenues: General tax revenue (income taxes and other federal funds) covers a massive portion of Medicare costs—typically around 40-75% depending on the specific part of the program.Beneficiary Premiums: Enrollees pay monthly premiums (like for Medicare Part B and Part D) which cover a significant share of outpatient and prescription drug costs.Social Security Benefit Taxes: A portion of the income taxes that high-earning seniors pay on their Social Security benefits is directed into the Medicare trust funds.Interest & Other Sources: The Medicare trust funds also earn interest on investments and collect taxes from high-earning individuals.

Jo, this stuff is mostly ENTITLEMENT. You're wrong, it's not all earned. You and I BARELY paid for most of what we draw today, and what we draw today wouldn't be meaningful without subsidies.

Others are helping pay our way. JUST. LIKE. Welfare.

If I received what I paid myself into FICA over the years as an investment stream it would be a few hundred a month, tops.

Home prices I agree. We are in the same boat. The $ that Zillow reports on our house is purely theoretical because we would have to replace it with something.

But most people feel financially more well off when their home equity rises. And Trump wants inflation. He's quoted that way, and he won't fix it.

Socialist programs are "free" taxpayer dollars from the government, like SNAP and other welfare programs like that. You don't specifically fund them like you do with Medicare and SS, so its different. These programs are loaded with fraud to. A lot of illegals are living off our tax dollars.

The problem with the houses going up in value is they're really not worth those inflated prices. I'm older than you. I'd like to move to a different house, but even with cash from selling my existing house, I might need to get a mortgage to afford even a small house like the one I have already. Competition in the housing market is fierce. My neighbor just sold his house for $50k over asking price. I've never seen a housing market quite like this one.

We need entitlement programs for people that earn them and the truly needy, but not for freeloaders and fraudsters. We have so many illegals in this country and they all are very well-versed in how to game our many welfare systems. At least now its all being exposed and shut down. You're entitled to your benefits because you've paid into them, specifically, your entire working life.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/yG051uYOhRk