OlDawg

Why should he offer something to a for-profit entity that’s already gouging the public, and rife with fraud, to help them maintain a profit margin?

How? The Administration has no input on services provided that go above those guaranteed under standard Medicare. All the extra bells and whistles most of these plans provide are based on their profit margins.

Medicare Advantage plans are privately run.

I gave it 2 days in the news cycle. Generous.

I think there’s quite a few people in that boat. It’s a mess.

Bush Jr. was the last POTUS I felt good about my vote. I didn’t agree with the war, as history has shown there’s no winner in a religious war. But, he was the last elected POTUS I voted for that I thought had some character. I voted for Romney (who wouldn’t have left us with the ACA, was very astute with financial matters, and also wasn’t the fool about Russia that Obama was), and Gary Johnson because of wanting to address the national debt and personal freedoms. I voted—but not for POTUS—the last elections. Couldn’t bring myself to pull the trigger for any candidate.

This is actually incorrect, and has been a fallacy for many, many years. Almost 60% of the American public (working and retired) participate in the Markets either through stocks, bonds, mutual funds, or other investment vehicles. [Hidden Content]

Pretty sure Robert Guillaume (RIP) was totally miffed he was selected to voice Rafiki in Disney’s The Lion King. One of my personal favorite actors Michael Clarke Duncan (RIP) (The Green Mile, Armageddon, Sin City, etc.) probably vehemently fought against portraying Attar in the Planet of the Apes franchise. How dare they portray monkeys and gorillas! Don’t we think this kind of ‘racism seeking’ has gone on long enough? I can pretty well promise you if you’re looking for it, you’ll find it. I have no idea what happened with this episode. Honestly, I never even saw, or watched the video. That’s how much it impacted my day. I’m sure there will be something new 2 days from now. This story probably has about that length of legs. Then, it will be on to the next catastrophe. I didn’t vote for any of the last 4 (Trump 2x) POTUS. I didn’t vote for any of them for a reason. Frankly, they were all crappy in my mind. I try my darndest to just look at policy. I’ve gotten to the point where I put more emphasis on local elections. I at least feel like my vote counts.

I would say—on the scale of things—calling someone a traitor, or a Nazi is a little higher on the defamation scale. Of course, what would I know? I’m just a bitter, small town hick, clinging to my guns & religion, who has no feelings because I don’t have any gay friends. Is this racist? I like Bruno. Haven’t found a song of his I didn’t like. Does that mean I’m racist complicit?

Alex, I’ll take what one Party/POTUS called the other over the last 17 years for $500 please.

A lot more important things going on. But, let me see if I've got this straight... Since 2009, POTUS for America have been: An ape for 8 years A Russian plant for 4 years An autopen for 4 years A Nazi--former Russian plant--for a second go-round They were all liars except for--possibly--the autopen, and we're not sure about it because it's not talking. Does that about cover it?

[Hidden Content]

Question: If already receiving, how close was your monthly benefit compared to the estimate provided by SSA? (If you don’t mind me asking a general question. If you want to answer, you can PM. If not, I understand.)

I worry about those on SS already who aren’t that tech savvy or aware. If someone gets ahold of all their info, emails them something created with AI that looks very authentic because it has all their data correct, and knows things only they think they should know, it could be very bad. Heck. They got me even though I was always careful. Like this, someone else poached the goat. Beginning to wonder if this had any effect on Musk’s leaving when he did. He didn’t cut near as much as promised, and some of his people misused our data? Hmmm… I was for the cutting. But, this isn’t good.

They’re not Trump. They’re not Trump. They’re not Trump. They’re not Trump. Ad nauseum… Thought I’d save her the time. 😁

One can hope they tell the people as soon as possible where we can make decisions about what we want to do to protect ourselves. But, I just get this nasty feeling someone would prefer to save it for an ‘October Surprise.’

As bad as it sounds, my wife and I have discussed her situation, and are debating taking hers early. With her Parkinson’s Plus, she’s already on borrowed time. I was trying to wait until at least 65. 2 more years. Actually, 1 year & 11 months.

They got mine from DoD database. Another government foo foo. I don’t use a debit card other than as a Pulse card at my Credit Union’s machines when I need cash for gas. Too direct a link to your bank account for me—with no protections like a credit card. Even then, very rarely. I go in half the time. Also gives me a chance to visit.

I’m trying to hold off as long as possible. I have a Social Security account & set one up for my wife as well when they stopped mailing the yearly benefits papers. But honestly, I haven’t checked it in a very long time until today. I just know no one wants to have to deal with identity theft.

I guess the Epstein files are more important… Did anyone even read the article in the first post of this thread? It says the Administration admitted in January 2026 that THE ENTIRE SOCIAL SECURITY DATABASE was uploaded to an unsecured cloud storage, and the government has no clue exactly how to even find out if it’s been hacked, disseminated elsewhere, or how to get it back!!! Anyone who has ever been issued a SSN has personal data involved. Even mother’s maiden names, addresses, emails, bank routing numbers, phone numbers, DOB’s, town of birth, race, gender…EVERYTHING the government has collected about you from the IRS or anywhere else. The government has acknowledged the loss of the information. They’re just not sure if it’s been hacked yet, and they can’t seem to get it all back. This should scare everyone. But whatever. Back to Epstein. 🤷‍♂️

I guess I should add that I only use Apple Pay for incidentals now as well. Both of my Credit Unions, and the one bank recommend it for security since no one ever sees your card number. If they don’t take Apple Pay—which is rare nowadays—I use the virtual card Capital One lets you set up with their cashback card. Between that, setting the freeze, and checking my home title online through the county every 6 months, I feel better protected, and I’m not paying for a service like Lifelock or similar. Recently completed a TODD for our house while my wife is still considered ‘competent’. So, no one can do anything with the house title without us voiding it first anyway. I’d get an immediate notice from the county if someone tried. Identity theft was a booger.

Same. Except I use the Capital One (1.5% back) strictly for all regular recurring bills like utilities, insurance, prescriptions, etc. I use the one from the Credit Union for incidentals. I write one check a month still because I just can’t get myself to trust the City for the water bill, and they want direct bank access. Everything is paid off every month.

We are similar. But, my identity was stolen from a DoD breach. Since I don't take out loans, and I only keep 2 cards (I use them for autopayment of bills where I can dispute & get cash back) it took me until I received collection notices to know I'd been had. I checked my credit reports yearly, and receive immediate notices for every charge on my cards via Capital One & my Credit Union. It didn't matter. The DoD breach affected millions of veterans, and included all the identifiers--and more--than even in this misuse of data. I should have titled the thread differently I guess, because this is a much bigger disclosure than just your SSN. If you don't use credit regularly--or at all--so you think yourself safe, I'd actually say you're probably the most at risk because you wouldn't normally think it's a big deal and shouldn't involve you. I thought the same. A freeze can be lifted in a matter of hours. Not days. I actually tested it when I first set ours up. It was unfrozen in less than an hour online. It's one of the few proactive things you can do to help protect yourself, and it's free. Anyway, each to their own. I posted for information purposes only. The article is from Dow Jones, Inc. and Morningstar. Can't impeach the sources.

You should read the article. It addresses your second paragraph. As far as the delay on a loan, I’m sure a banker prefers impulse loans to someone having more time to think. Ha!

Grew up poor as the dirt on the farm I grew up on. My folks' most used answer was, "We'll see." Obviously, I grew up to learn that was a nice way of saying NO. I've shopped at Aldi for years, and use every coupon--digital or otherwise--I can find anywhere else. On the rare occasions we eat out, it's at a place where they've emailed us a deal, or they have some type discount advertised. I guess it's ingrained in me. Not a bad lesson to have been taught. Used to joke I was Dave Ramsey before he became famous. lol