Government fleeces us well into old age

Let’s talk about the “golden years.”

First, when we begin our working life, we are taxed until we can collect Social Security or retire. Some apply, as I did, when they’re 62 years old because who knows what will happen in the years to come or whether there will be any Social Security benefits – something we’ve earned throughout our working years.

Second, health insurance. Prices are absolutely ridiculously high.

I worked non-stop for 46 years and received my first Social Security check in November. I now have to pay 7 percent tax on the gross amount of my Social Security – which equals 25 percent of my total Social Security income, all of which should be mine.

Then health insurance rises from $54.37 for both my husband and me, to $408 for me alone. Why do they take my husband’s income when we are talking about what I’ve earned?

A friend tells me another friend and his wife have gotten a divorce – but everything between them remains the same just to get their health insurance cost lowered and to actually be able to pay bills and not live from paycheck to paycheck, not to mention trying to put something away. At this point, that sounds like a pretty good idea.

The golden years are not all they are cracked up to be. Health declines, endless forms and hassles, ridiculous time spent on the phone (I’ve been on hold for more than an hour and a half), and the stress, all of which is unimaginable.

You do everything you are taught and supposed to do, and the government still screws with you. What do they do with all the money? Evidently, they don’t know because if they did, the U.S. wouldn’t be trillions of dollars in debt.

We pay for individuals in prison so they can have three meals a day and a bed – which others don’t get. We have to give our money to countries overseas. Why? The list goes on and on.

Bottom line: This is wrong. I believe the government should be the ones held responsible.

This story was originally published January 18, 2017 at 9:58 PM with the headline "Government fleeces us well into old age."