I recently read a lament about how the poor illegal immigrants are working to pay for someone else's retirement and, later, a news item about the fact that we are on the verge of siging an agreement that would allow these same immigrants to draw benefits based on their earnings under the Social Security numbers that they have stolen from honest American workers. It might be beneficial to analyze the working of the Social Security System and the ramifications and the consequences of these violations of "the law as she is written".
First, when an employer withholds Social Security contributions from the paycheck of an employee, that deduction is reported to the SSA in detail. When a taxpayer files an income tax report, the income as listed on the W2 form is compared by the IRS with the amounts reported to the SSA. If there is a large discrepancy, as there would be if more than one person were paying in under that number, the legal worker would be held to account for the difference. At best, the citizen taxpayer will have to pay income tax on the total amount; at worst they could be liable for criminal charges for under-reporting income in an attempt to avoid the taxation. In either event. the person to whom the number has been issued will be subject to un-earned punishment as the result of the malfeasance of someone else..
According to those whose sympathies are with the illegal workers, citizens will be entitled to greater benefits than they have earned in retirement payments, a matter which the new "agreement" would correct by allowing more than one person to collect benefits on a single account. However, anyone with a touch of common sense would realize that it would be impossible to determine what contributions were submitted on behalf of which worker, making an impossible tangle pleasing only those who oppose Social Security as a matter of principle.
When discussing the fact that estimates place the number of illegal immigrants in the United States today as high as twenty million, give or take a few million "anchor babies" who theoretically prevent the deportation of their parents, the problem has ballooned beyond belief. The only answers to the problem that we have seen put forth to handle the problem are either fencing and arming the border or passing some "comprehensive" plan like the one that was enacted in the 'seventies, which did absolutely nothing to control the influx of undocumented migrants. In fact, the lack of enforcement of even this toothless measure has magnified the problem as Mexican citizens rush across our border in order to be here when the next "amnesty" is enacted.
Legal purists tell us that, merely by sneaking across the border or by using phony Social Secruity numbers for identification, these people have committed crimes that should make them ineligible for legal immigration. However, it may be possible to look past that to find a sastisfactory solution of some sort. It would seem that there is no substitute for first securing the borders to prevent the entry of more Mexican citizens and then to bring the situation within the United States under control. All undocumented migrants must be registered and assigned numbers, possibly Social Security numbers if that program is approved and work visas issued for those who are employed. After that, the individuals would be governed by the other laws regarding supervision of foreign workers. In the event of a conviction for a felony, (such as identity theft), deportation would be appropriate. Those who apply for American citizenship should be heard in order with the same requirements as any other immigrant rather than any "automatic" or expedited and preferential route.
This problem of Mexican nationals flooding across our souther border, importing with their culture their gangs and their illegal drugs. imposing on the expensive welfare system that has been painfully built up for the security of American citizens and committing crimes against our lawful residents, is a problem of extreme urgency. It is only because of the laxity of enforcement oif a thirty-year-old law that the situation has reached such critical mass. Now it is dividing the people, over-taxing our law enforcement, and threatening to destroy the institutions of our government. As the foreign nationals parade in our streets, demanding the vote, it has become a cancer on our very democratic structure and the problem must be dealt with now!
While I am as guilty as any of having a "bleeding heart" for the poor and the unfortunate, it seems that condoning the crimes against American citizens in stealing Social Security identification and exposing their righful owners to possible criminal penalties as the result is going a bit too far. And then to complain that, by doing so, they are required unfairly to contribute to the "retirement" of another is going a bit too far. Whatever solution is found to this "invasion" by foreign workers, it must be done soon and done efficiently. Failure to do so will cause further deterioration of the wages and workplace conditions of the American workers and the hastening of the collapse of our entire economic system. Whatever is to be done must be done at once rather than the dithering and political maneuvering that we have seen in recent years. To borrow from Larry, the Cable Guy, "Gidderdone!"
The author is a very "with-it" old lady who aspires to bring a bit of truth, justice, and commom sense to a nation that has lost touch with its humanity in the search for societal "perfection".
"While I am as guilty as any of having a "bleeding heart" for the poor and the unfortunate, it seems that condoning the crimes against American citizens in stealing Social Security identification and exposing their righful owners to possible criminal penalties as the result is going a bit too far."
I know how you feel. I feel that way, too, about America's persecution of the Indigenous peoples of this continent. I can't condone them. Not the Sand Creek Massacre, not the land theft from Mexico by Polk, not the incarceration of children at Hutto "Residential Center."
But specifically on your topic, I lean more in this direction.
Enjoy your days! And dont' worry. There's enough food to go around and resources, too. If only certain people weren't bent on hoarding them all for a certain class.
by
Nezua (40 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 92 comments)
on Sunday, January 7, 2007 at 12:45:42 PM
".....First, when an employer withholds Social Security contributions from the paycheck of an employee, that deduction is reported to the SSA in detail. When a taxpayer files an income tax report, the income as listed on the W2 form is compared by the IRS with the amounts reported to the SSA......"
".....However, anyone with a touch of common sense would realize that it would be impossible to determine what contributions were submitted on behalf of which worker....."
Since every employer has to send those forms in, the precise amounts earned at each place of employment are available. Two people might have the same Social Security number, but they are not holding the same job with the same employer and working the exact same hours. And even if the Social Security numbers are identical, the addresses and phone numbers will be different so that their employer can contact them. There's also the fact that both people working with a single Social Security number are each using their own names so that they can cash their paychecks.
Therefore there would be no difficulty in determining which of two people with the same Social Security number earned how much, when, and where.
The rest of your article, IMHO, is just as illogical, poorly thought out, and incorrect.
Good try at passing yourself off as a liberal, but in order to do that successfully, you can't espouse regressive or ignorant points of view.
by
Mark E. Smith (20 articles, 26 quicklinks, 63 diaries, 763 comments)
on Sunday, January 7, 2007 at 12:46:50 PM
I don't "pass myself off" as anything! My aim is to dispense common sense and, if your common sense tells you that the IRS is going to go through all the quarterly reports that are filed by employers to be sure that the correct person is credited with each withholding, you are wrong! When auditing takes place, it is the obvious suspect that takes the rap. If there is a choice between prosecuting a solid American citizen who has lived in the same place for fifty years or chasing a "wetback" back and fiorth across the border, who do you think they're going to nail?
Maybe you should "think this out a bit more". If someone steals your watch, your credit card, or your money, are you simply going to feel sorry for the poor boob that never had a chance or are you going to get mad as hell and nail his hide to your barn door? I thought so.
by
Mary Pitt (60 articles, 0 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 159 comments)
on Sunday, January 7, 2007 at 1:08:43 PM
I was audited once. No problem when there's supporting paperwork. As mymarkx pointed out, in your hypothetical case there would be no difficulty in establishing the facts. The paper trail would clear the innocent.
As for the larger immigration issue, I think the "invasion" rhetoric you share with Pat Buchanan is overwrought. US policies cause Mexican economic dislocations; some of the dislocated come here. Seems natural and understandable. Consider it part of the cost of our agricultural subsidies. If this form of immigration has an actual net cost, that is. There are conflicting studies, of course -- but there's a sufficient basis to argue that the USA nets out ok from this.
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Bill Peltz (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 2 comments)
on Sunday, January 7, 2007 at 6:26:06 PM
Absolutely! The contractor who replaces his $15-an-hour electricians with those migrants who will gladly do the job for slightly more than minimum wage will "luck out" on it. The slaughter houses that hire at minimum wage for $20-an-hour staff will "luck out" on it. The homeowner who hires a nanny or a yard man with a few dollors "under the table" will "luck out". But the poor schmick who finds himself flipping burgers and can't send his kids to school are not "lucking out". It all depends on one's perspective, doesn't it?
by
Mary Pitt (60 articles, 0 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 159 comments)
on Sunday, January 7, 2007 at 7:19:23 PM
Its great to read an article from someone who has a functioning brain. Political correctness has destroyed the brain cells of many well educated people in the U.S. What needs to be done to solve the illegal immigration crisis is go after the employers with stiff fines,jail time and revocation of business license and or assets.
Illegal immigration has become rampant because Washington has allowed business to operate outside the law by closing their eyes to illegal hirings.Just about everything Washington has accomplished in the past fifteen years has been strictly for corporate benefit.
If some idiot complains that this country actually belongs to Mexico I say let them liquidate their assets and hand them over to a surviving American Indian
by
Gary Denson (2 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 193 comments)
on Sunday, January 7, 2007 at 9:36:34 PM
Everybody says that we should decide issues on their own merit but, when the chips are down, they all want us to tow the party line. Our Constitution clearly states that the rights and privileges therein are for the benefit of lawful American citizens "in order to form a more perfect union". Those who expect to come here and violate our laws while claiming our rights and privileges simply fail to understand the reasons for our laws and, failing to understand, attempt to bend them to their own purposes. For cryin' out loud, isn't it bad enough that we have an administration that is already doing that without importing foreign help? It's well past time to get back to government of the people, the lawful citizens of our nation.
by
Mary Pitt (60 articles, 0 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 159 comments)
on Sunday, January 7, 2007 at 10:09:13 PM
Couldn't agree more with the comments from "gdenson".
No wall, no matter how high, will stop illegal immigration if the incentive to steal into this country remains. Exploitation of illegals is why enforcement hasn't been adequately funded. Politicians obey their coporate sponsors to continue this cheap labor pool.
Congress needs to clarify the meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment that presently is perceived to allow anchor babies. 380,000 children are born in the United States every year to illegal-alien mothers, according to U.S. Census data. We need to end "birthright" for illegals.
I'm really fed up these self-proclaimed liberals that say it's ok for someone to access our education, healthcare and social safety-net programs without paying for it. That's not being liberal, that's being stupid.
In the Northern VA suburbs, our schools now have between 40 - 60% non-english speaking children costing thousands per child, per year in extra education funds. Homes are overcrowded with several families sending their children to our schools while only paying the real estate taxes of one family. Hospital emergency rooms are filled with illegals seeking healthcare they never intend to pay for. The word is out, we're offering a free ride. Something has to give. A overall lowering of our standard of living, wage scales, education and healthcare is upon us.
The time is now to begin enforcing the laws, raising the minimum wage to a living wage and penalize those that would hire illegal aliens.
Immigrants need to come through the front door lawfully or be sent home. To allow the status quo is a slap in the face to all immigrants that follow our laws and contribute to this nation.
by
Heretic616 (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 7 comments)
on Sunday, January 7, 2007 at 10:51:52 PM
....that when undocumented workers take the hardest, lowest-paying jobs, some people scream about keeping them out.
But when a CEO outsources 20,000 or 30,000 high-paying jobs, I've never heard anybody scream to keep the damned CEOs out, or revoke their citizenship because they're destroying our economy. Most of them get multi-million dollar salaries, and neither they nor their corporations pay any taxes. So why aren't the so-called "patriots" standing with their guns outside of corporate headquarters, instead of along the border?
Why get all worked up about immigrants who might, at the most, take one or two jobs each, but not about CEOs who can outsource thousands of jobs at a time?
Why get worked up about immigrants lowering wages by a few dollars, when corporations have lowered wages by a lot more than that so as to be able to pay their CEOs multi-million-dollar salaries?
Take a look at the long list of corporations who have persuaded unions and workers to accept cuts in pay and benefits, and then turned around and used the money for CEO salaries instead of repaying their workers for their sacrifices.
When you grow up in a hierarchical society, it is natural to pick on those below you in the pecking order, who are more vulnerable, than to challenge those above you with their boots on your neck. But it will never solve your problems.
by
Mark E. Smith (20 articles, 26 quicklinks, 63 diaries, 763 comments)
on Monday, January 8, 2007 at 12:48:16 AM
Citizens who dont support illegal immigration do not blame the problem on the poor illegals they all realize that C.E.O's and a currupt administration are to blame. Thats why many are suggesting fines and jail time for the corporate executives that exploit them for profit at the taxpayers expense. And if you have ever read a newspaper in the last ten years you would find that millions of Americans are outraged at the outsourcing of Americas better paying union jobs. And as for your statement about armed volunteers looking for C.E.O's, well that situation may develop someday.
by
Gary Denson (2 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 193 comments)
on Monday, January 8, 2007 at 7:55:55 PM
My purse was stolen from my room in a assisted living situation. It was found 3 weeks later in the mud of a building complex less than 50 feet from the building where I live. Only one item was missing. My social security card! When I called that department, I was told that very likely 150 people had my Soc. Sec. Number. According to them, these people steal them and sell them for enormous sums!
Make no doubt, the Bush Crime Ring is smirking and chortling in delight!
We have one leader, one only, leading the fight to stop it. He's running for President again and he needs your support: everyone's. He is the only one in congress who grow up poor, very poor. Dennis quit school and went to work at age 10 to help feed 6 little sisters. Dennis Kucinich is the only poor man's friend in Congress. He is also the only one who says, thinks and lives the Golden Rule. He is struggling for a Department of Peace. With him as President, we have a chance. If you possibly can, organize a party and ask each to donate $10 or 5 even one, anything for his campaign. Emily Horswill
by
emily horswill (5 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 56 comments)
on Monday, January 8, 2007 at 2:22:22 AM
How interesting that these two notes were consecutive! They are connected, you know. The runaway CEO rip-offs are definitely connected to a slave-labor situation. That is what happens when the controlling philosophy is one of unbridled profits and loyalty only to the bottom line, and nothing will control either of those problems other than a Congress wthat will stand up for the people.
I, too, am a great admirer of Dennid Kucinich and if he, or someone of like mind, were to lead the nation, it would turn around so fast that we would all be dizzy! The question, then, is whether we have evolved sufficiently for "the masses" to be willing to make the necessary sacrifices to restore the nation that our Founders dreamed of, or whether the spirit of personal power and aggrandizement has become so entrenched that every voter will continue to concentrate on that tiny little issue that could affect their personal "bottom line".
by
Mary Pitt (60 articles, 0 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 159 comments)
on Monday, January 8, 2007 at 8:06:24 AM
I could be flip and say that they have broken everything else, why not Social Security, but that would be off-topic. Yes, you might be able to take the miniscule amount of money that is taken from your paycheck and invest it to become super-rich, but the odds are that you would not. Life is too full of unknown emergencies that could leave you destitute just during the vulnerable time of life that Social Security is designed to proveide for your needs.
First, if anybody were to calculate the amounts that have been "borrowed" by Congress for other expenses, plus interest, and place it in an honest-to-God trust fund, you would find that there is money a-plenty. If not, a simple adjustment that would raise the cap above which no contributions are required would provide enough to sustain the program through the life span of the Boomers.
Social Security has been an adequate and life-saving safety net through all these many years and can continue indefinitely if left alone except for adjustments for inflation. The people who are screaming about its demise are only engaging in wishful thinking based on their own greed and political philosophy, but the rest of us must be alert for "tinkering" of any kind that would threaten its continuation.
by
Mary Pitt (60 articles, 0 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 159 comments)
on Monday, January 8, 2007 at 5:53:02 PM
As a recently widowed woman who worked only sporadically during my adult life, thanks to the "mommy track", I can state unequivocally that Social Security is indeed a "safety net" without which I could not live and is, indeed, the bulk of my income. As such, it keeps the utilities on, food on my table, and clothing on my back without my becoming a burden on my yuppie kids, who are constantly strapped with the expenses of their own families. In short, I don't have to burden or beg and can live my life as I choose in my own home, and this without having to turn to any welfare program, a very desireable state for the elderly. Would you remove that protection from your own parents for the sake of a bit more ready cash? I really hope not.
In fact, the young are the ones who are targeted with the misinformation about the fiscal state of Social Security so that you will give up the prospect of ever benefitting form it yourselves and so concur in the plans to end it. Don't buy into it! It's all propaganda.
by
Mary Pitt (60 articles, 0 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 159 comments)
on Monday, January 8, 2007 at 6:35:03 PM
