A message from PEF Retirees President Steve Muscarella
Help fight off new attacks on Social Security
Every
organization has a dynamic that dictates whether it grows and improves, or
remains static and declines.The PEF Retirees Executive Board has found assembling activists from all the chapters in the state helps PEF Retirees to continually improve. We have held our Summer Leadership Conferences the past four years. This year, we traveled to Utica.
Members share their ideas and initiatives that have helped their chapters grow.
We discuss what activities make our meetings interesting and meaningful, and how best to communicate with our members. And chapter officers are trained on their duties and responsibilities.
This year, PEF’s health program analyst, Deborah Stayman, discussed how new federal legislation may affect our state health insurance. We also received some excellent political insights from Ryan Delgado, a political organizer and lobbyist for PEF.
These conferences allow us to pause and assess the effectiveness of our activities, renew our convictions and our spirits.
This renewal and re-energizing is essential because the work is never done. Ironically, a few days before our conference, a USA Today article predicted future Social Security funding shortfalls.
Now, President Obama has appointed an 18-member “Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform” that claims we must modify entitlement programs such as Social Security Medicaid and Medicare.
Commission Co-chair Alan Simpson, a former senator from Wyoming, has characterized us as “greedy geezers” for fighting to preserve our benefits.
It should be evident: with only half of all Americans having access to retirement plans, and the median retirement account balance at $70,000, we cannot afford to eliminate Social Security.
Actually, Social Security has a $2.6 trillion surplus, and should remain healthy for years to come with just minor fiscal tweaking.
Unfounded claims and reports Social Security is failing are dangerous. They are meant to be a self-fulfilling prophesy that can reduce our country to only the very rich and the very poor.
We need a devoted core of talented and committed seniors, who know the truth and will not submit to these scare tactics. Call (800) 342-4306 ext. 227; volunteer.