December 7, 2011
®l* Jlnrtlanò CObseruer
Page 7
O pinion
Social Security is a Woman’s Issue
Benefit critical
for those
who need it
M erle B aisden
Som e conservative p o liti
cians want to get rid o f Social
Security as we know it. They
call it a bad idea, a handout that
lessens self-reliance, a giant
Ponzi schem e. These politi
cians aren't ju st m isguided,
they're wrong, and maybe they
don't know how critical Social
S e c u r ity is fo r A m e ric a n
w om en.
Social Security is a woman's
issue because m ore w om en
by
than men rely on it.
Talking to some women at the
Hillsboro and Forest Grove Se
nior Centers about Social Secu
rity recently, I heard these com
ments: "A life saver, Necessary
for my livelihood, Allows me to
stay in my home, I couldn't pay
my bills without it, and A founda
tion for working middle-class
folks' retirement."
These wom en spent most of
their em ployable years raising
children. Som e thought be
cause th eir husbands m ade
good m oney they'd be well
taken care o f in retirem ent.
Bankruptcy, but divorce and
health problem s changed their
circu m stan ces co n siderably,
and they are im m ensely grate
ful for their Social Security
checks.
G iven that women, on aver
age, still do not make as much
m oney as men, and will prob
ably continue to outlive men,
today’s working women will
have the same need for Social
Security in their retirem ent as
our current retirees.
Charged to find ways to reduce
the federal deficit, Congress defi
nitely should not include an attack
on Social Security.
Social Security did not cause
the deficit; it is funded by con
tributions made by em ployees
and em ployers. These contri
butions are paid out im m edi
ately, m ostly to current retir
ees. The rest of the m oney
goes to the U .S. T reasury,
where it is spent on other items.
The Treasury sends the Social
Security Administration an IOU
called a "special issue" bond in
return for this money.
Money for Social Security
should not be re-directed, and this
process is a threat to the future
solvency of Social Security.
A nother threat is the two
percent reduction in the pay
roll contributions to Social Se
curity for the year 2011, as an
a tte m p t to s tim u la te th e
econom y. This "holiday" de
prived the fund of $ 120 billion.
It should not be renew ed or
spread to em ployers.
P resently, Social Security
will fully fund benefits until
2037. It is not broke. But this
valuable safety net for the eld
erly, the disabled and children
needs to be strengthened and
preserved.
Please tell Congress you want
Social Security to be there for
those who need it. People who
care only for themselves will be
trying to tear it down, being very
vocal about their ideas. We can
not let them prevail.
M erle Baisden is treasurer
o f the A m erican A ssociation
of
U n iv e r s ity
W om en,
H ills b o r o - F o r e s t
G ro v e
b ra n c h .
Save College Aid for the Disadvantaged
Some colleges
are misusing
funds
J udge G reg M athis
O ftentim es it seem s
th a t th o se w ho n eed
som ething the least are
the most likely to receive it.
Indeed, three asset m anagers
from Connecticut recently won
a $254 million lottery drawing.
It ju st d oesn’t seem fair.
M ore unjust and more seri
ous is the recent announce
ment that colleges and univer
sities are giving $5.3 billion in
aid to students who, according
to the fed eral g o v ern m en t,
don't need financial help.
A ccording to study from the
C o lle g e B o a rd , A m e ric a n
schools are using 20-percent
o f the total federal financial
aid pot to woo high-achieving
by
students who also have high
earning parents who could eas
ily pay the tuition
them selves. In ad
dition, these same
families also receive
an additional $4 bil
lion in federal tuition
tax credits.
C ollege costs are
rising, and the am ount of stu
dent aid available to low -in
com e students has declined in
the last decade. To learn that
these much needed federal fi
nancial aid dollars are going to
students from fam ilies earning
more than $ 100,000 per year is
disheartening.
That same m oney could be
used to help send more low-
income students to college, giv
ing a broader range of people
access to higher education.
C ertainly, universities have
the rig h t to co m p ete for the
best stu d en ts, but they should
|Jorthntb (DhserUvr
Established 1970
USPS 959-680
4747 NE Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Portland, OR 97211
Charles H. Washington
E d ito r -M ich a e l L e ig h to n
D istribution M anager : M a rk W ashington
C reative D irector : P a u l N e u fe ld t
E ditok - in -C hief , P ublisher :
P ostmaster : Send address changes to Portland Observer,
P 0 Box3 1 3 7 , Portland, OR9 7 2 0 8
not be allow ed to use g o v right some of the wrongs and ju stic e . H is life sto ry o f a
ern m en t funds to lure high- that everyone has a chance.
street youth who rose fro m
incom e stu d en ts to th eir p ri
Ju d g e G reg M a th is is a j a i l to ju d g e has p ro v id e d
v a te u n i v e r s i t i e s . T h e s e longtim e advocate fo r equal hope to m illions.
sc h o o ls hav e e n d o w m e n ts
they could tap into for these
p u rp o ses, or they could also
call on th e ir d istin g u ish e d
alum ni for assistan ce.
O ur young people, rich or
poor, are our nation's most pre
cious resource. We m ust work
to ensure they have the tools
they need to finish school and
to go out into society and be
com e productive citizens.
That said, we must also re
alize that society does not al
w ay s b e n e fit the n e e d ie s t
am ong us. It is our duty to do
what we can to level the play
Portland:
(503) 244-2080
ing field as much as possible.
M aking sure federal finan
Hillsoboro: (503) 244-2081
cial aid dollars are used for
Facsimile:
(503) 244-2084
low -incom e students and low-
incom e students only will go a
Email:
Sweeney@PDXLawyer.com
long way in making sure we
THE LAW OFFICES OF
Patrick John Sweeney, P.C.
Patrick John Sweeney
Attorney at Law
1549 SE Ladd
Portland, Oregon
The Portland Observer welcomes freelance submissions. Manuscripts and photographs should
be clearly labeled and will be returned if accompanied by a self addressed envelope. All created
design display ads become the sole property of the newspaper and cannot be used in other
publications or personal usage without the written consent of the general manager, unless the
client has purchased the composition of such ad. © 2008 THE PORTLAND OBSERVER. ALL
RIGHTS RESERVED, REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART WITHOUT PERMISSION
IS PROHIBITED. The Portland Observer-Oregon's Oldest Multicultural Publication-is a
member of the National Newspaper Association-Founded in 1885. and The National Advertis
ing Representative Amalgamated Publishers, Inc, New York, NY, and The West Coast Black
Publishers Association
C A LL 5 0 3 -2 8 8 -0 0 3 3
F A X 503-2 8 8 -0 0 1 5
newsQportlandobserver. com
ads@Dortlandobserver. com
suhscription@portlamlobserver.com
Advertise
with diversity /'//
7110 Portland
Observer
Call 503-288-0033
ads@portiindobserfer.com