Social Security and Medicare are Issues for the Young

I'm an old guy. As an old guy I have time to sit back and look around a bit. After I look around a bit I usually write a few lines about what I see. It is not based on vast analysis or the statements of the leading minds of our time. It's mostly just me running off at the keyboard.

What I'm seeing now is that the government generally picks on the people who aren't paying attention. Like most people who have to make a decision, they take the path of least resistance. If they know that what they have to do is going to hurt some people, they want to choose people who will not notice it until it is too late, and people who generally do not vote in large numbers. People between the ages of eighteen and thirty-five are prime candidates for this tactic.

I mention human nature now and then in my articles. It is perfectly natural for the younger adults to ignore the wrangling in politics. They have enough to do getting through school, trying to find a job and starting a career, looking for love in all the wrong places, and, if love is found, starting their own families. They are focused on getting noticed in work, and finding a good baby sitter. The larger issues in life haven't crashed down on them yet.

OK, my young friends, here's the problem. There are major issues out there that will have an impact in your life before you know it. I will mention one and then give you the reason why you are always the target. Of course, you probably don't have the time or the interest to read this type of article so I hope an older relative or friend reads it and passes the thought on to you.

The country has a major debt problem and we are not getting out of it until we all feel a bit of the pain. The pain is already there for many people in the form of lost jobs, but there is more coming. In order to bring down the debt everything needs to be on the table, including social security and medicare. There are some that are ready to make deep cuts to these programs. I won't rail against their motives here, I've done that in plenty of other articles. If they get their way, what they plan won't be done to my generation. Us old folks are paying attention and we will scream bloody murder, that's an old person's term, if they try to cut our benefits. I'm sure the changes with affect the next generation. So you young people are probably saying, “That's too bad but we'll be used to the changes and ready for them when we retire.” The problem is that the changes may affect your parents. Cuts will not be just some across the board reduction in benefits, they will be more subtle than that. There will be adjustments in what is eligible under the medicare rules. Maybe things for in home care such as wheelchairs, stair lifts, hospital beds, and oxygen systems will no longer be covered. This doesn't sound like a big deal until you have to pay for them. At the same time maybe your parents will not be eligible for social security until they are sixty-five or older and maybe the benefit will be reduced. What this all boils down to is, unless you're hard hearted, you are likely going to have to shoulder more of the burden of your parent's elderly care. So, my twenty something and thirty something friends, I suggest you pay attention to what's going on or be blind sided when you're forty something or fifty something.

Now as to the reason why you are always the target. It is simple really, you don't vote. Voting is generally left up to the older generations unless something happens to make politics entertaining. If there is a clear issue that is presented in an entertaining fashion on the news then some young people will show up at the polls. Something like voting for the first African/American president was historic and fun to do, but now that's so yesterday. If you continue your trend of not voting, the government will continue to make you their target. A handful of people marching around and making noise does not have the impact of a generation marching to the voting booth. Get out there and register, know the issues and vote before it's too late.