📋 AARP Brings Social Security Anniversary to Times Square (AARP Article/Advocacy)

[Winter2025VA]

FROM THE ARTICLE.

Social Security Goes Up in Lights as AARP Takes Over Times Square.

To celebrate the program’s 90th anniversary, AARP rolled through New York City with a clear message for U.S. lawmakers: Keep it strong, safe and solvent.

By Emily Paulin, AARP.

*** There are 2 comments on the AARP Website. Stop by to add yours. ***

Published August 15, 2025.

As the sun began its daily drop behind Manhattan’s skyline, a red double-decker bus rolled Thursday into the heart of Times Square, parking between two of the biggest and brightest billboards.

On those billboards, gold coins appeared to fall from the sky before landing in a shiny, larger-than-life piggy bank representing Social Security contributions. Meanwhile, from the upper deck of the bus, roughly 50 Social Security recipients wearing bright red shirts and waving sparkly red pom-poms chanted, “We earned it! We earned it!” as a crowd of onlookers stopped, smiled and waved.

USE LINK BELOW TO READ THE ARTICLE.

https://www.aarp.org/advocacy/social-security-anniversary-times-square.html

[GailL1]

Personally I would like for AARP to say where they have been on this issue of fixing the Social Security Trust Fund for the last 14 - 15 years.  EVERY YEAR since about 2010, the Social Security Trustees have issued a report on the financial health of the Trust Fund and the warning that changes need to be made ASAP so that everybody has a chance to prepare - I myself have posted these EVERY YEAR on this board.

It has been a BIG deal since 2010 when President Obama appointed his bipartisan  Social Security Commission and then it went NO WHERE because there was no push to fix the issue.  We were trying to fix a budget shortfall in 2011 and I think AARP was trying to put out some name fires - cause they evidently stepped into something at that time.

Maybe a refreshment of memory could fair well here - 2011 was a volatile time in politics if memory serves me.

POLITICO 06/21/2011 - AARP in damage-control mode 

NYT 06/17/2011 - AARP Is Open For Cuts to Social Security Benefits 

WashingtonPost 06/18 /2011 - AARP Says It Will Back Social Security Cuts to Ensure Solvency 

AARP seemed to have backed the last (2) changes to the Social Security system which created even MORE havoc in its finances.  (1)  The Social Security Fairness Act passed in 2024 (when a change in the formula would have been fairer) and (2) the addition of the extra senior tax deduction of $ 6000 in the BBBA passed just a month ago.  Both of these have and will reduce the Trust Fund balance even further.

So yes, I would like to know where the organization is standing at the present time - 

SPECIFICALLY - we have the numbers so take a look at them and let us know where you actually stand on this issue rather than just using it to gain membership - 

[Winter2025VA]

Thanks for stopping by Gail @GailL1 !!! I often wonder IF the folks who CAN fix this mess will be "needing" their Retirement Social Security. Seems they DONOT. There should have been a fix years ago. Nicole!

➡️[*** GAIL 

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@GailL1 wrote:

Personally I would like for AARP to say where they have been on this issue of fixing the Social Security Trust Fund for the last 14 - 15 years.  EVERY YEAR since about 2010, the Social Security Trustees have issued a report on the financial health of the Trust Fund and the warning that changes need to be made ASAP so that everybody has a chance to prepare - I myself have posted these EVERY YEAR on this board.

It has been a BIG deal since 2010 when President Obama appointed his bipartisan  Social Security Commission and then it went NO WHERE because there was no push to fix the issue.  We were trying to fix a budget shortfall in 2011 and I think AARP was trying to put out some name fires - cause they evidently stepped into something at that time.

Maybe a refreshment of memory could fair well here - 2011 was a volatile time in politics if memory serves me.

POLITICO 06/21/2011 - AARP in damage-control mode 

NYT 06/17/2011 - AARP Is Open For Cuts to Social Security Benefits 

WashingtonPost 06/18 /2011 - AARP Says It Will Back Social Security Cuts to Ensure Solvency 

AARP seemed to have backed the last (2) changes to the Social Security system which created even MORE havoc in its finances.  (1)  The Social Security Fairness Act passed in 2024 (when a change in the formula would have been fairer) and (2) the addition of the extra senior tax deduction of $ 6000 in the BBBA passed just a month ago.  Both of these have and will reduce the Trust Fund balance even further.

So yes, I would like to know where the organization is standing at the present time - 

SPECIFICALLY - we have the numbers so take a look at them and let us know where you actually stand on this issue rather than just using it to gain membership - 

---

[GailL1]

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@Winter2025VA wrote:

Thanks for stopping by Gail @GailL1 !!! I often wonder IF the folks who CAN fix this mess will be "needing" their Retirement Social Security. Seems they DONOT. There should have been a fix years ago. Nicole!

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The VAST majority of people who have earned income contribute to the Social Security program of Retirement, including Spousal, Survivors Benefits and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI).

The few that don’t are:

1.  some religious exemptions like the Amish

2.  some state government employees who get a pension benefit instead

3.  some clergy who are paid differently by their congregation

Now for everybody that does contribute to the programs covered under the Social Security system - do they all NEED it?  IDK - but since they did pay into the system, they do deserve it.  IMO

If we segregate the need from the deserving, it would not be an earned benefit program any longer but more of just another welfare program.

[Winter2025VA]

Gail @GailL1 , I was referring to the Government folks who can fix the issues with Social Security running out of money in 2034/35. I feel IF they needed it, they would have fixed it by now. Take care, Nicole!

➡️[*** GAIL 

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@GailL1 wrote:

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@Winter2025VA wrote:

Thanks for stopping by Gail @GailL1 !!! I often wonder IF the folks who CAN fix this mess will be "needing" their Retirement Social Security. Seems they DONOT. There should have been a fix years ago. Nicole!

---

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The VAST majority of people who have earned income contribute to the Social Security program of Retirement, including Spousal, Survivors Benefits and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI).

The few that don’t are:

1.  some religious exemptions like the Amish

2.  some state government employees who get a pension benefit instead

3.  some clergy who are paid differently by their congregation

Now for everybody that does contribute to the programs covered under the Social Security system - do they all NEED it?  IDK - but since they did pay into the system, they do deserve it.  IMO

If we segregate the need from the deserving, it would not be an earned benefit program any longer but more of just another welfare program.

---

[GailL1]

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@Winter2025VA wrote:

Gail @GailL1 , I was referring to the Government folks who can fix the issues with Social Security running out of money in 2034/35. I feel IF they needed it, they would have fixed it by now. Take care, Nicole!

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LOL - they might tell you that “NEED” is rather subjective when it comes to money issues or any issue.

[Winter2025VA]

Gail @GailL1 , you are missing my point again. And I had to look up SUBJECTIVE = per Google = influenced by or based on personal beliefs or feelings, rather than based on facts.

➡️[*** My comment was stating that IF the Government folks who "control" the fixing of Social Security NOT running out of funds needed their Social Security, it would have already been fixed. Has zero to do with the word SUBJECTIVE. Nicole!

➡️[*** GAIL said: LOL - they might tell you that “NEED” is rather subjective when it comes to money issues or any issue.

[GailL1]

GOOD GRIEF - what is a NEED if the person has a government pension, perhaps a retirement account, other savings and assets, IF their expenses, for whatever reason, are more than what they are receiving monthly from those other revenues?  They NEED more - right?

A subjective need is a personal need.  

I understand your meaning - you want them to do something about the situation - we all do but what they might have to do could be construed as going against some people and that in turn may cost them their job.  

Votes comes from people that are happy - fixing the Social Security Trust Fund may not make some people happy depending on the fix and all the fixes need to be on the table.

[Winter2025VA]

Anyone attended any of the AARP Social Security Events in YOUR STATE? 🤔

IF the one in Virginia had been when our state was COOL, maybe I would have. At age 67, I NO longer can deal with Summer.  🙄