Those huge delays in Social Security processing, Are they?

It doesn't seem that processing times are extraordinarily long such that there is a systemic problem (there is a problem but this is not it). A few thoughts on this:

1 - This article at SSA indicates "You can apply for retirement benefits up to 4 months before you want to start receiving your benefits." https://www.ssa.gov/faqs/en/questions/KA-01891.html, So, no point in applying sooner, you'll just be waiting longer.

2 - I have read, and been told by SSA representatives over the phone, that while they may begin processing upon receipt of the application, it may not be completed until closer to the month that the benefit is to begin. So, you apply in January for benefits to begin in April (with first payment in May) you may see no activity on your application until sometime even in April. I have no documentation of this scheduling but it's what SSA rep's told me once or twice, so this is anecdotal. (And this was the case for me.)

3 - Per the SSA itself, "Percentage of people receiving benefits on time or within 2 weeks of applying" ranges around 80% to 85%. That quoted phrase is a bit to unpack. I see two different interpretations, (1) two groups of people, one who receive their benefits within 2 weeks of applying, and another group who receive their benefits "on time" per their application's elected age. Another interpretation, (2) one group of people, those who receive their benefits within two weeks of their application's elected age. Either way, the percentage is very high. See https://www.ssa.gov/ssa-performance/processing-time-benefits

I understand the anguish people go through while waiting for their retirement benefit; I went through this myself 3 years ago. I kept a status/contact log in a spreadsheet, recording all the times I checked My Social Security or called for something. My log shows a very "frustrating" period of time. My own application could have been affected by the fact I was no longer resident in the US when I applied (US Citizen but a resident of Canada), this can impose additional investigations, requiring more time.

I believe the biggest mistake that the SSA makes is with lack of accurate feedback on the page where you check your application status. Perhaps the current method has changed; when I applied I could log in to check the progress (I don't recall if this was in My Social Security or another place) and there were 3 stages, 1, 2, 3, Bingo! And at that time a message indicated "A representative in [Baltimore, Maryland for my case] started reviewing your application on February 8, 2022. For most people, this review takes 2 to 4 weeks." Maybe that time period was accurate, although I doubt it, this was in the middle of the pandemic. Systems all over were hung up, I'm sure SSA's were too.

The SSA should tweak that message dialog so as to temper peoples' expectations (I know this frustrated feeling well!). The simple three steps could be replaced, maybe with a dial clock-type showing the progress. Or progress bars. And to be more circumspect with the expected duration they put on the message (if they still do this). Maybe they could just show that they expect to have approval completed during your retirement month from your application...so many (myself included) may expect approval to "just proceed" right away and then when it's time they'll get their benefit.

My suggestion is that applicants chill out, relax. It's gonna take some time. In MOST cases there won't be any problems with your application. Which is to say that in some few cases, yes, there may be some hang ups. That earlier SSA article states "Each year, we typically sign up over 6 million new customers for the Retirement, Survivor, and Medicare programs. We're committed to ensuring that our customers get their payments or coverage promptly." 6 Million, that's a lot. And consider their stated goal. To me this is reassuring.

Good luck!