In my youth, the concepts of respecting and listening to my elders was drilled into my head, and I practice them to this day. My older brother recommends restaurants; my mother-in-law tells me where to shop; and my grandfather advises me on such things as ceiling fans.
I'm 35 and raising a young family. I have been curiously watching the government's struggles to handle our financial business and attempt to cut programs. Social Security and Medicare are always unfairly atop the list. As much as the elderly rely on these, I hear many complaints the average Social Security payout of $14,760 is unmanageable and Medicare leads to inadequate doctor care and unreasonable waits.
Would my brother tell me to eat at a substandard restaurant in the hope the food would get better? Would my mother-in-law send me to a store to buy overpriced, second-rate goods? Would my grandfather tell me to buy a cheap fan and expect me to replace it every few years?
Obviously, the answers are no.
Yet, our "elders" in government want us to continue to support these programs that are lacking in their return on investment.
A new Congress with grand ideas will not fix this. The solution: We each individually need to focus on becoming independent and self-sufficient. The more we depend on these fractured programs, the more bureaucratic they become.
We are, of course, obligated to pay into these. But, as we age, we need to stop the cycle of dependence. Only then may our kids have a less overreaching government.
JOEL ABDUL
Cohoes