Now that we face the problem, we have to decide what to do about it. The Democrats feel we should tax the rich. That sounds good, they have lots of money. Income is taxed for Social Security at a certain percentage based on income and there is currently a ceiling where income is no longer taxed. They propose to raise that limit so they can get more income, as well as raising taxes on income in general. The problem with raising the limit lies in the fact that very few make over the limit and those that do don’t make much over the limit. The amount raised would not be anywhere near enough to stabilize the fund. In addition, they want to raise benefits for Seniors which will further strain the fund, causing it to run out of funds even earlier than if nothing is done. While it sounds like they have good ideas to help, they are very short-sighted and the ideas only look good on paper. In fact, they will do more damage than good. It would result in the fund running out sooner than if nothing was done and hurt all those who depend on it. Republicans, on the other hand, are proposing to raise the age of retirement. That will hinder plans for those planning to retire at age 65, however many are healthy and could easily work another ten to twenty years, and it would not have to be very long. The last time they raised the age limit, they only raised it two years to age 67, but it bought us a lot more time because the most retirees are around age 65. The older people get, the more die so the number of retirees in the population declines as age increases. There are a lot of people aged 65 in the population but very few reach the age of 90 or 100. The result would be a lot more people working and fewer drawing benefits and the age increase would be so small, most people would not notice it. It would extend the fund and continue helping those who depend on it. For those who are not able to continue working until the new retirement age, there is Social Security Disability which helps those who are currently not able to work until retirement age, so no one would really be hurt by it.
Senior Citizens-B
The biggest change was that Democrats saw the growing fund as a source of funds to develop new programs. The fund was growing rapidly because a lot of workers were paying in and very few were drawing on it, and they only drew on it a short time. Democrats felt that the surplus funds could be used to fund other programs. Therefore they looted the Social Security fund to develop other Social services. As a result, the money was no longer drawing interest and was in fact not available for future payments. As a result, the sole source of income for the fund was the payments received from those who were currently working. That was not a problem since a large number of baby boomers were working and jobs were plentiful so there was plenty being paid in to cover the expenses of those few who were retired and drawing benefits. However, they were very short-sighted. Like many liberal thinkers, they judged things by appearances and did not consider other changes that were occurring. The baby boomers were going to get older and as they did, they would eventually retire. At the same time, the prosperity had led many women to go to work and as a result, they had fewer babies because having children would hinder their ability to work. The result has been a large growth in the number retiring, and going from paying into the fund to drawing out of the fund, with very few children to grow up and replace them in the workforce. Previously, most people worked as long as possible and didn’t retire until they were no longer able to work. Most could not accumulate much in savings resulting in poor nutrition, nothing to occupy their time, and poor health care. As a result, most did not live long after retirement. The prosperity brought better nutrition and more health care enabling workers to reach retirement in much better health. With Social Security to provide a basic income, many Seniors now retire around age 62-65 when they are still healthy and with Medicare to provide decent health care, many live a long time after retirement. If they had not raided the fund and it had been allowed to gather interest, it might not have been a problem for a long time, however, as it is, the problem is facing us much sooner then it would have otherwise, so the Democrats have created the problem they are now warning us about.
Senior Citizens-A
President Biden and leading Democrats are accusing Republicans of trying to destroy Social Security. That is important because Senior Citizens are making up an increasing portion of the population, particularly those of voting age. It is also important because Social Security makes up a large portion of the income for a large number of Seniors. If it fails, then a large portion of the population will be impoverished. Liberal politicians and the media have increasingly been pushing the narrative that Social Security will run out of money. Such scare tactics are designed to scare Seniors into voting in Democrats to save their income. However, allowing fear to drive people to rash decisions is not helpful. We need to look at the facts to help us make rational decisions. Social Security was designed to be a savings plan to help Seniors in their old age. It would involve taking out money from their employment during their working years and investing it so they would have an adequate income during their retirement years. That was smart thinking. However, since then, society has changed and politicians have changed the program. Those changes have created the problems we have today. In the beginning, Seniors died shortly after retiring or were helped in other ways, either by their family, or by retirement homes and nursing homes. It was also felt that workers would also save toward their retirement to supplement their Social Security. At that time, Seniors made up a very small portion of the population and received help for a short time. In contrast, the majority of the population was of working age and were paying into the fund. As a result, the fund grew rapidly. That money was invested and drawing income which further fueled the growth of that fund. As designed, it looked like the fund would be adequately funded for the foreseeable future. However changes have occurred that threaten the fund.
Eighth Sunday of Pentecost-July 7
Personal witness-The most effective way to reach those outside the church is through the personal witness of members. As members fellowship and interact with other believers, their lives are changed and they grow into the likeness of Christ and become the witness God desires. As members are changed, those around them will notice the difference and desire that kind of life. Unfortunately few church members today grow spiritually because the churches have drifted away from Christ and have become little more than social clubs. Members may attend church together for years and never get to know those around them. There is no close interaction of members with spiritual leaders to enable them to grow spiritually through watching spiritual leaders in action. There needs to be active mentoring of new members by those who are spiritually mature. Unfortunately, many church leaders are chosen for their business ability, not their spiritual maturity, so they do not provide good spiritual role models to follow. Up until the middle of the last century, the church was often the center of the community. It held Vacation Bible Schools, church dinners, and concerts where many in the community attended. However, few outside the church attend church activities today. If the church is to reach the lost, it must go where they are. In addition, church members must be trained to reach out to those around them and establish contacts that will enable them to recognize needs and respond to them. The early church attracted new members when unbelievers saw the love they had for each other and those around them, however the church today has isolated itself and does not provide opportunities for unbelievers to see that love.
Politics-AB-AU
Hillary Clinton used her own private server as Secretary of State to avoid scrutiny, a clear violation of law. When exposed, she destroyed the computer, phones, and laptops to prevent them being used as evidence against her, but she has never been held accountable. The FBI began investigating Donald Trump knowing that the evidence they used to get permission to investigate him was fake, and it was leaked to the press to discredit Trump so Hillary could win. Fortunately it failed and Donald Trump won. When it came out that the Clinton Foundation produced the fake evidence, they were not investigated, and the Democrat controlled House continued to investigate Trump to discredit him and prevent him from getting a second term. They then impeached him in spite of evidence that he was innocent. On Jan 6, 2020, Trump ordered his followers to go home and urged Congress to call out the National Guard to help the capital police but Nancy Pelosi refused their help. Yet they impeached Trump again for encouraging his followers to riot when clear video evidence proved otherwise. When a laptop was found with incriminating evidence against Hunter Biden, the FBI claimed it was fake news and a number of FBI staff attested to the lie. When it became clear that the story was true, no attempt was made to prosecute Hunter Biden. The FBI raided Trump’s Florida residence and seized sensitive government documents even though as President he was legally allowed to possess them and they were in a secure place. The Justice Dept then proceeded to publicly trumpet his supposed guilt. When it was found that President Biden had such documents from when he was a Senator and when he was Vice-president, which was illegal for him to possess and they were laying around his garage where anyone could access them, they felt it was not worth prosecuting him. I think we are seeing a clear pattern here where politicians and unelected government agencies are acting to interfere with the election process through a media campaign to discredit their opponents and protect their friends and that is eroding public confidence in our government. Those responsible need to be prosecuted but it is apparent that they won’t be by the current administration.
Politics-AB-AT
Planned Parenthood is planning on spending $40 million on Joe Biden and Democrats who in turn push additional tax funding for Planned Parenthood. Democrats recently demanded a conservative Supreme Court justice recluse himself from a case on abortion because his wife spoke out against abortion (even though the judge himself has not spoken out about the issue) but they don’t recluse themselves from votes on new funding for abortion when they support Planned Parenthood with taxpayer dollars and Planned Parenthood supports their election campaigns. That is a clear conflict of interest. If Planned Parenthood has that much money to support election campaigns, it doesn’t need additional taxpayer dollars. It is time to stop the flow of taxpayer dollars to support abortion. We need to elect representatives that are not being supported by Planned Parenthood.
Reaching the Lost-study course
Pentecost is a time when the church concentrates on reaching those who have never heard the Gospel. This course covers the importance of reaching the lost and how to do it more effectively.
https://www.udemy.com/course/reaching-the-lost/?referralCode=C3321C81997D9A26B163
Seventh Sunday of Pentecost-June 30
Fishers of Men-Christ told His disciples, if they would follow Him, He would make them fishers of men. His admonition was not only for the disciples, but for all who would follow Him. The pastor has very few contacts outside the church, so he has little opportunity to draw people into the church. However, the members are in constant contact with unbelievers at work, at school, as they shop, and as they interact with their neighbors who have no contact with a church. If they are actively seeking God’s will for them, their lives will be changed and will differ drastically from those who still walk in the ways of the world. As those around us see the change that takes place in us, and how we differ from unbelievers, they will be led to seek the source of that difference. It will open an opportunity for members to invite them to church and show them the source that can make a difference in their life. The church is not a fortress to protect us from the world but a haven of rest in the daily fight. It is like a ship in the midst of a sea of drowning people and we are called to lead those struggling in the water to the ship. There are people dying all around you and you may be the only one available to lead them to safety and eternal life.
Sanctity of Life-3-C
While Roe vs Wade said the courts could not protect the baby, it said nothing about the mother. Now that Roe vs Wase is abolished, liberal politicians are fighting any attempt to protect the life of both the mother, and the child, even though they are both living beings and subject to the court’s protection. Now abortionists are pushing to allow babies born alive to be killed if they aren’t wanted. Where previously, abortionists claimed a baby wasn’t a person until it took its first breath, even though it had a heartbeat and brain activity, now they are violating their own rule and saying the baby isn’t safe, even after it is born. Apparently nothing will satisfy their thirst for blood until, like Hitler, they eliminate every unwanted person from the face of the earth. This is just in the United States. In Europe, they openly push for killing the sick, the crippled, the elderly, the mentally ill, and even unwanted children. They are also pushing for helping those who don’t want to live, to kill themselves, even though they may be healthy. This is where the United States is headed if we don’t vote out those who are pushing this agenda.