Here's the good news: There's time to implement small changes that can put Social Security in balance for the long term. Think of Social Security as a gigantic battleship that turns slowly: The sooner we start making adjustments, the smaller the required changes.

http://www.aarp.org/work/social-security/info-08-2011/protect-social-security.html

      (  RE--THE ABOVE---my own interpretation of the article  means  DC doesn't  dare take away benefits from the seniors now collecting or close-to.    They will instead  punish the younger folks not paying as much attention and paying into the system who will probably need SS even more than the current generation.  
 
Business Insider published the following not long ago....

61 percent of Americans "always or usually" live paycheck to paycheck,

• 36 percent of Americans say that they are unable to contribute anything to retirement savings.

• A staggering 43 percent of Americans have less than $10,000 saved up for retirement.

SO ---congress  will INCREASE the military budget and keep troops in Germany--and all over the world and keep the war going in Afghanistan beyond 10 years..... instead  will make CUTS  or in their kinder sounding words "ADJUSTMENTS"   to necessary  benefits for  Americans.    
Some of the young-people who are making a decent paycheck still have no guarantee they'll have a job tomorrow and still go along with the republican party 1%.   They have no CLUE that inflation eats up savings that was  accummulated maybe 20 --30 --or even 10 year ago by the time retirement comes along.    Our crisis is further exacerbated by the ones living in this bubble that it can never happen to me and as long as I'm getting mine....I don't care about anyone else.....everyone should rely on themselves.      But what happens to "anyone" else is a trickle-down effect to everyone else and we don't all have the same kind of good fortune and  happy-endings in life.    )