Social Security is vital to women, Democrats say (Seattle PI)

[icymist]

Friday, April 1, 2005

Social Security is vital to women, Democrats say
At forum, four senators assail president's plans

By GREGORY ROBERTS
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

President Bush's "radical" proposal to overhaul Social Security threatens a successful program that is especially important for women, four female Democratic U.S. senators said at a Seattle forum yesterday.

"Because we live longer, often we depend more on Social Security in retirement," Maria Cantwell of Washington state said. She was joined by the state's other senator, Patty Murray, and by Mary Landrieu of Louisiana and Barbara Mikulski of Maryland.

Women often earn less than men and may take time off from work to raise a family, so their Social Security benefits are less to begin with, Mikulski said. And many women work for smaller employers who don't provide pension plans, she said.

(More)
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/218426_social01.html

[Warpy]

1. Social security has always been a women's program

since when it was instituted (and even in a lot of cases today) when a man died, his pension would die with him, leaving his widow utterly destitute and forced to move in with any relative who would take her, if any would. It meant both independence and survival for widows of all ages.

I keep trying to explain social security to young dummies as mother in law insurance. If you keep paying your premiums and you don't let rich Repuglicans fuck it all up, your mother in law won't have to move in with you.

That seems to be one of the few ways to get through to some of them.

[rodeodance]

4. glad o see that the Dems are finally finding an angle to hang their hats

on. By this I mean, if they can make a big issue of this (which it is)--then maybe they can make some more visible headway. And how will Bush respond?? so, far he only mentions women when it comes to voting in the ME!!

[Triana]

2. GREAT Write-up about how SS Affects Women...

...and about how Gee Guhhhbya's about to REALLY mess it up for women. PASS IT ON!

_ _ _ _ _

Net | Feminism/Gender
Old Women in the Cold
by Ruth Rosen; The Nation; March 30, 2005

My 91-year-old friend Alice, like many elderly women, has outlived her modest savings. All that stands between her and destitution is the $800 check she receives from Social Security and small contributions from a handful of caring friends and relatives. She is not alone. The Institute for Women's Policy Research in Washington, DC, estimates that half the women over 65 would fall into poverty without Social Security income because 70 percent of Social Security beneficiaries over 85 are women. For one-third of all unmarried female seniors, Social Security is, in fact, their only source of income.

Worried that his privatization plan is in peril, George W. Bush has been touting its benefits to widows. But they regard his proposals with particular suspicion. Since women tend to live longer than men and spend fewer years in the workforce, they depend more heavily on Social Security during the last years of their lives. They therefore stand to lose the most if they don't have a guaranteed safety net when they are seniors.

But do women of all ages understand their stake in this debate? An army of economists and pundits have vigorously debunked the President's spurious claims that Social Security is in "crisis" and that its trust fund will go "bankrupt" in 2042. What they don't publicize, however, is that the President's plan for private accounts would deepen the crisis faced by vast numbers of elderly women.

...

http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=91&ItemID=7551

[central scrutinizer]

3. I can testify

my father died when I was 6 and my sister was 2. My mother had no real marketable skills and without social security survivors benefit, we would have been homeless. We lived in reduced circumstances, but always had a roof over our head and food on the table. plus, my mother was able to stay at home and raise us - sounds like family values, to me. under the Bushco "plan" we would have had nothing since a young worker wouldn't have paid enough into their "personal" account to last more than a couple of years: "thanks for playing, and we have a nice parting gift. let's have a big round of applause for this brave young family. let's hope they find a nice dry bridge to live under."

[lovuian]

5. Yep this is sometimes all that women have

Democrats need to blast Bush away with this

the joke is he is shooting himself in his own foot!!!