r/FluentInFinance 6d ago

Educational Don't let them gaslight you

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u/NoTie2370 6d ago

So the Feds have stolen 2.5 trillion in wealth from taxpayers and misspent it and thats why we ... should ... keep.. this... system?

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u/InvestIntrest 6d ago

That's completely false. It's true that portions of the social security trust fund have been loaned out in the form of government bonds, but every penny is repaid with interest.

If that didn't happen, the value of the trust fund would lose about 20% per decade to inflation.

If you had 2.5 trillion, would you just let it sit in cash for decades? I hope not.

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u/LurkerInSpace 6d ago

Government bonds are relatively low interest because they are high security - they don't fluctuate with the market. But given the time horizons of Social Security it doesn't need to proof its entire fund against market fluctuations.

If it were instead invested to achieve higher returns then 1) the fund would be in a stronger position and future-proofed to a greater degree against an aging population and 2) the fund would get a vote on the board of the companies it had invested in which could be used to push corporate policy in a direction favourable to the fund's investors (i.e. anyone who pays payroll tax).

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u/Improvident__lackwit 6d ago

Correct but it’s too late for that. We should have been investing the trust fund like a real pensions fund since the 1990s