Tuesday, January 12, 2010

the social security myth--not a state myth but a myth none-the-less...

Running for the State Legislature has been an eye opening experience.  There is a shocking lack of engagement.  Five or six times I've gotten the  "did you win" question from people i've spoken with the next time I see them.  
 
Not knowing when elections are held is a sure fire sign that our civic engagement is sub par.
 
I also get a lot of blank stares when I ask questions about issues facing us at the State level.  For instance the state used part of the Obama stimulus to fill last years budget hole.  This year the state will need to replace over 1 billion in federal stimulus funds through revenue growth or more cuts--which means more cuts...
 
Anyways I asked someone recently about their opinions about cuts, his priorities in terms of services or programs that should/shouldn't be cut--as well as his opinion about ways that the state could raise taxes to increase revenue.
 
I like talking through these kinds of issues one to one because I get a feel for where people stand on many different issues and what their priorities are.  Government is after all just a euphemism for the will of the people--at least in states privileged enough to have a functioning representational government.
 
So I get a question about social security in response--that he thought the state should keep it from going bankrupt.  I explained that this wasn't a state service and that the federal government was responsible for administering that program.  I also explained how the idea that social security is going to go bankrupt any time soon is absurd.
 
The Congressional Budget Office says that the government bonds in the trust fund and the ongoing tax revenue will pay all Social Security benefits through the year 2044--thats not exactly tomorrow.  In fact I'd guess that its in better health now, than when Reagan formed the Greenspan Commission.  The tax increases that Reagan signed into law--yes Reagan increased taxes!--created the social security trust fund specifically for the demographic bulge, known as the baby boom.
 
I followed up by providing him links to places he could learn more on this issue and gave him one of my question sheets that I've been handing out to people so that they can write down so short answers to help me learn more about their questions and concerns.
 
The problem with talking heads is that a 2 minutes segment on tv does not give time to factcheck or follow up.  Not that the "reporters" on Fox or CNN would actually do their job--but even if they did they wouldn't have time to do it right!  And the problem with our political process--spin with no substance, voters with no engagement, questions left unasked... yeah...
 
This is why I truly enjoy discussing with people their questions and concerns.  Many have followed up with other questions and it has given me an opportunity to learn from them and with them.  Too often representation is abstract.  Face time, feed back, and engagement are vital to quality government...
 
So the social security myth is over for at least one more voter.  Has nothing to do with my race or the state--but it was enjoyable to
talk with a voter who wanted to find out answers regarding government that he didn't have the answer to.

Posted via email from Jim Nichols

No comments:

Post a Comment