Lloyd Blankfein: You 99 percent mofos need to work longer and harder

[marmar]

from huffpost:



Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein urged Congress and President Barack Obama to cut Social Security, arguing that the program cannot "afford" to keep funding longer modern retirements. He left out that Social Security currently has a $2.7 trillion surplus and could strengthen its financial footing further by simply taxing more of the income of wealthy executives like Blankfein himself.

During an interview with CBS News' Scott Pelley on Monday, Blankfein said that entitlement programs including Social Security "have to be slowed down and contained."

"Social Security wasn't devised to be a system that supported you for a 30-year retirement after a 25-year career," Blankfein said. "So there will be things that, you know -- the retirement age has to be changed. Maybe some of the benefits have to be affected. Maybe some of the inflation adjustments have to be revised."

In fact, people do not receive full Social Security benefits until age 67, and the average worker receives those benefits for 16.1 years. Raising the retirement age would disproportionately hurt low-income workers, who tend to live shorter lives than wealthier workers. .......................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/20/fiscal-cliff-lloyd-blankfein-social-security_n_2166099.html

[brewens]

1. I remember one of the Japanese diplomats George H.W. Bush met with telling him

that your people expect too much or something like that. I think that was the same meeting of the famous pretzle choking incident. Yeah, right! I remember thinking at the time. We need to all work 70 hours a week for the privelege to live in a little box like you do to your guys!

Ever notice that any anecdote about a hard working class guy from a Republican always has them working 60 hours or more a week? It's never a guy putting in his forty hours, working hard and doing a good job to get ahead. That's not by accident.

[HiPointDem]

6. we work more than the japanese now.

[BeyondGeography]

2. 25-year career...that puts your employment start date at age 35 or 40

I'm sure Scott Pelley asked the obvious follow-up question. Yeah, sure.

[Honeycombe8]

3. Baby boomers do receive full benefits at age 65 or 66, depending.

I fall into the 66 crowd.

But I beg to differ with this jerk's representation that I expect funding for 30 years after a 25 yr "career."

I am 58. I've been working since my teens, so that's about 43 years. I've been working full time and consistently for about 35 to 38 years. By the time I qualify for benefits, that willl be over the 40 year mark. Where does that jerk get 25 years from? He must be thinking about himself.

I can say I want to work until age 70, but the truth is, it's not up to me. I could very well be fired or laid off at age 65. It is doubtful that anyone else would hire me.

IT'S NOT 100% UP TO US HOW LONG WE WORK. Employers don't WANT old employees, esp. if you have a physical job. It's that simple.

Why is anyone asking this jerk about this, anyway? It's none of his business, anymore than it's my business or your business when someone else retires. His opinion is no more important than mine.

I say NO! No to trying to make shoe salesmen work until they can't stand, anymore. I say NO! to making a ditch digger work until he falls down in the ditch. I say NO! to making a waitress continue doing that back breaking work for several more years, when she can't even afford the comfort shoes needed for that type of work. NO NO NO!

[hobbit709]

4. I wonder if he's ever done an honest day's work in his life?

his idea of working up a sweat is in thinking up new ways to screw the working class.

[Sekhmets Daughter]

5. 70% of those receiving SS benefits

begin collecting them at age 62. They take a reduced benefit in order to do so.

Ezra Klein was as outraged as he is capable of displaying while he hosted for O'Donnell last night. He pointed out what normal people already know, that not everyone has a desk job they love. That low income workers have not seen much of an increase in life expectancy...1 year as opposed to 6 years for those high end desk job types. Ezra advocates removing the cap on taxable income....

[Bonhomme Richard]

7. This is an insight to his casual conversations with friends..

They spout things like working 25 years and retiring for 30 and they all say Yeah, that's right.
The reality is that they hold the 99% in contempt. It makes them feel better about themselves and their "earned" lifestyle.
It's really no different than the conservative voting middle class that talks about the poor in the same way. The poor are leaches and, in some way, that makes them feel better about themselves.