HispanicVista Columnists

Us vs Them

By Raoul Lowery Contreras

            A decade ago, I wrote an article pointing out that the coming Social Security catastrophe would seriously damage the earning power of America’s new Hispanic workforce. I wrote that the Hispanic population would rebel against having their taxes raised by 100-to-300 percent in order to maintain a country club life style for the retired Anglo population.

           The publisher of my newspaper objected to my "us versus them" article and insisted I drop the subject. Luckily for the American body politic that publisher no longer publishes a daily newspaper. If still so employed he would probably continue to bury the story of the generation.

           Social Security is in the tank as far as the average Hispanic is concerned. Certainly this writer is not affected as I am collecting Social Security and that amount will only change upward during my remaining years. The problem comes for those under 45 and a huge percentage of that age group is Hispanic.

          The American Anglo and Black population now has an average age approaching 46 and the Hispanic average age is 20 years younger, 26 years of age, according to the Census Bureau. Fact: Baby Boomers (those born after 1946) are beginning to retire in the immediate future and the Social Security Administration will increase its monthly check writing by leaps and bounds as the taxed work force that pays the money for those checks gets smaller.

           What we are faced with is a system that started with many people paying into the system (16) and only a few receiving a monthly check. Most people died before they were eligible to collect for more than a year or two. Now we are entering a decade in which fewer than three workers will pay into the system where zillions collect monthly checks who also live well into their Seventies and Eighties.

           In other words, we are in deep trouble. We are the future check receivers because there won’t be enough money to make the checks good and we are the Hispanic population of 50-60 million younger Hispanics who will fill so many job slots throughout the country. We are those under 45 today who will be stuck with the bills.

           We are in trouble and that’s the truth. One would not know it, however, if one pays attention to leading Democratic politicians and officeholders. They accuse the President of wanting to eliminate Social Security and to throw seniors into more poverty because so many depend only on "meager" Social Security checks for their entire living.

          Facts, however, torpedo demagogic Democrats. Poverty among seniors is the lowest of all groups in the country. Seniors own most of the wealth in America. Most seniors that own their own homes own them free and clear. Lastly, since when has the President proposed to shave, limit or even change benefits for anyone at any age that doesn’t choose to slightly change their forced contributions to the Social Security system?

          In fact, the only changes proposed by the President are to allow younger workers to choose to redirect part of their forced employment taxes away from a phantom "trust fund" to a personal account like their 401(k) accounts that so many have in their workplaces. These accounts follow them from job to job and are their own property. They are directed by the owner from an approved list of potential investments, most of which earn more than the so-called "interest" earned currently by Social Security funds.

          The Democrats call this a "scheme" and imply that such change is proposed only to fatten Wall Street wallets, to throw seniors into poverty and to steal money from the hard-working poor. Concurrently, they even refuse to admit there is a problem in their 70-year-old Social Security baby.

          They claim it is the most popular government program ever. I disagree, I think the most popular government program ever was highlighted by Ronald Reagan’s words: "Mr. Gorbechov, tear down this wall!" That program (or policy) affected all the billions in this world, not just a few over 62(like me) collecting monthly checks. Those checks never saved the lives of soldiers, sailors and Marines, but the wall coming down has.

          President Bush deserves credit for bringing the looming issue of Social Security to the public discourse and for proposing change that will benefit future retirees.

          Democrats deserve to be criticized for: (A) Being blind, for living in the past like the seniors they cater to but who voted mostly for President Bush. (B) For targeting future American Hispanic workers for tax increases that will make them a slave class working to support retirees. (C) For representing themselves as supporters of the Hispanic community when, in fact, they are preventing the younger Hispanic from profiting from a growing American economy they are working in and towards.

          Hispanics have a choice, looking forward to being tax slave, or being a true working American with a future life full of opportunity. Democrats favor the former. I favor the latter.

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Contreras’ newest book THE ILLEGAL ALIEN: A DAGGER INTO THE HEART OF AMERICA?? (Floricanto Press) is available at www.amazon.com and www.floricantopress.com