I actually just got my annual SS statement, and despite pretty much skiing from 25-32 and not making more than 10-20k a year during that time, I still have earned enough credits that the gov’t would provide a decent amount of money each month to my family if something were to happen to me. I would also get a good chunk of money per month if I became disabled right now. Every year those credits/benefits go up as I contribute more into the system. Now I’m not depending on it for retirement, but it sure is nice to know those securities are there for me now should I/or my family ever need them.

“No one has officially announced that Social Security will be cash-negative this year. But you can figure it out for yourself, as I did, by comparing two numbers in the recent federal budget update that the nonpartisan CBO issued last week.”

http://finance.yahoo.com/focus-retirement/article/108747/next-in-line-for-a-bailout-social-security

Personally, I could care less about social security for myself because I’m not depending on getting one dime from it when I retire. Unfortunately, a lot of people have been conditioned to think of it as a retirement fund and currently do rely on it heavily.

I’m not saying it will go under, but this is one of many reasons taxes are probably going to go way up soon. At least until conservatives get in power and start down down the long road to fixing all the damage the Democrats have done since they took over Congress in 2007.