Why The Powers That Be Hate Social Security

slate.com — It's important to understand, if you want to understand the budget debate, that Important People absolutely despise Social Security. Social Security is special and especially despised because lots of important people care a lot about The Economy. The Economy consists of adding up all the economically valuable stuff that happens. All the goods and services and labor that are bought and sold. And with most government spending, you can make some kind of case that the spending boosts The Economy. It boosts The Economy because we need infrastructure or educated workers or healthy ones. Even something like Medicare does something for The Economy because it subsidizes medical training and research. The Economy wants you to spend money on things that can be plausibly described as "investments" that drive future prosperity. And mailing a check to your grandma doesn't fit the bill.

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