March 31, 2025 • 51 mins
The Trump Administration’s plan to slash roughly 12% of the Social Security Administration staff raise concerns about how the cuts could hurt customer service and access to benefits. Will Social Security be around when you retire?
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
D Y.
Speaker 2 (00:03):
I'm bas Boston Radio.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
All right, we have one caller hanging over from last hour.
I want to talk about soci security. We will talk
tomorrow night with Jim Roosevelt, attorney James Roosevelt, who is
a fixture here in New England, and he, of course
is the well you may not know that he's a
grandson of Franklin, Ellen and Roosevelt. So if you want
to keep this conversation going, fine, If not, we're going
(00:27):
to move on right after Jack down on the cave.
Hi Jack, Thanks for.
Speaker 4 (00:30):
Calling in, Hey Dan.
Speaker 5 (00:33):
Over the years, I have sensed that the argument against
Social Security by the financial gurus call him if you will, yes,
was that if everyone's had put their Social Security contributions
(00:53):
into an indexed fund or some type of a managed
correct market, you'd be much better off than you are
today waiting for that check to come in the mail.
That's correct, which is yeah. And so in light of that,
(01:13):
I want to bring up a Treasury Secretary John Snow
under the Bush administration GW he brought out an idea
I thought deserved immense focus, and that was that for
every child born in the United States, that the government
(01:39):
would put two thousand dollars per year into that individual's
account up until the age of eighteen and would stop,
and that economic little fund would grow as our economy
grows and prospers over the decades, and that at the
(02:00):
time that that individual would retire, let's say at sixty five,
that fund would be worth over a million dollars using
past historical performances. That's correct, And I think what we're
really looking at here, I think is the lack of
(02:21):
financial literacy. You know, Dan, the financial markets and the
machine that we all serve and live under is so
complex and so sophisticated that the financial literacy to be
able to navigate one's life through this world that we're
living in. It really needs to be addressed. And we
(02:45):
need to everyone needs a crash course on what's happening.
And you know, we're all sort of living under the
age old economic models of the past, but obviously we're
entering a new economic era. The crypto financial inventiveness that's
going on, I think that needs to be looked at,
(03:05):
and I think the young people coming up are definitely
going to be looking at that. So I just to
kind of encapsulate my argument is that the entire financial model,
top to bottom, beginning to end. A DIZA needs to
be rehashed and reconfigured for the future, or we are
(03:31):
going to end up in a dystopian future that you
brought that you brought them with one of your earlier guests,
and I am glad that you do that. I find
very few people are even remotely aware of what the
future of work money when we when Elon I, I've
got a pdf. I'll try to send you. Uh it
(03:54):
just recently came out, but Elon is it's a compilation
of about intelligent AI driven robotics. Oh and so by
twenty forty, Elon Musk estimates we're going to have ten
billion robots that are all connected with AI and their
dexterity their abilities.
Speaker 3 (04:16):
Well, again, that's what kind of takes me down another
path here, Jack, and I appreciate that obviously things are changing,
but I want to go back to your point. I
want to go back to your original point, and that
is that for many, many years, people said, hey, give
people the option put their money in a private account,
and they'll do better in a private account, put in
(04:38):
some sort of IRA money fund or something like that.
But the problem is if you opt if you had
these people opt out of the system, and if those
markets crashed at some point the government said, well, how
are we going to take care of those people? So look,
all of us who have worked, let me finish jack
(04:59):
if you don't mind. All of us who have worked
a long time have put hundreds of thousands of dollars,
hundreds of thousands of dollars into Social Security and have
put a lot of money also, not quite as much.
I'm looking at my numbers right now, about half a
couple of hundred thousand dollars in Medicare. So I've paid
(05:21):
a lot of Social Security taxes in Medicare taxes. It's
going to take me some time to recoup that money.
But you know, it's it's kind of part of the
social contract. And I wished I had an opportunity to
have probably invested my own money personally from the age
of twenty one when I started to earn money, or
(05:42):
age of twenty two or twenty three when I really
started to earn money. But that option wasn't there. And
that's the system we have. Now. Let's see if they
can clean it up, Let's see if they can make
it more effective. More efficient, and in terms of the
whole question about twelve billion, twelve million robots or whatever,
I'm not even sure I want to be around for that,
be honest. I mean really, I remember. I'm old enough
(06:10):
to remember the Jetsons, one of the cartoons from the sixties,
and they had people driving to work in flying cars,
and they were people futurists at the time said, well,
by the nineteen nineties, we won't have to drive on roads.
We'll have cars that fly through the air. Didn't quite happen.
You know, I believe it when I say.
Speaker 5 (06:30):
It, It is happening.
Speaker 6 (06:34):
You can.
Speaker 5 (06:34):
They have drones powerful enough to lift a person and
take them where they want to go. Check it out.
It's they happen.
Speaker 4 (06:41):
It's now, and there's so much.
Speaker 3 (06:43):
Well, when they start lifting people in drones and flying them,
you know, communing distances, let's say from the Cape to Boston,
and they are doing that, let me know. Okay, Oh,
they're having trouble figuring out how they get a drone
to carry a package that wastes five pounds, never mind
someone that weighs one hundred and fifty or one hundred
(07:04):
and eighty or two hundred pounds. Uh, never I've driven
in one of those those of driverless cars. I was
in San Francisco in January and my daughter insisted that
she and her husband and I get in the car.
I had a ball. I kept asking them. I played
the role of the dumb dumb old guy said where's
the driver? And you know, my daughter said, Dad, we're
(07:27):
in a car without a driver. I said, really, really,
you know, it was no big deal. It was no
big deal. I could see that. But when we have
a three hundred thousand non driverless cars, I should say
on the road in the major American cities, let's see
how that works out.
Speaker 5 (07:45):
It'll work out better. Actually, because they're all being community still,
all be in touch with it.
Speaker 3 (07:50):
We just we just had we just had a plane
and a helicopter collide going into Reagan Airport in sixty eight.
Sixty seven people are dead as a result. I have
a lot of this stuff that you do. Okay, that's
all you might be right.
Speaker 5 (08:04):
I've looked at that a lot, and a I would
have totally picked that up. A I would have been
on that in me instantly. Never would have happened if
they But here we have human controllers trying with their
eyes to see the blinking lights of this plane in
that plane and looking through you know, okay, I would
have would.
Speaker 4 (08:25):
Have been on.
Speaker 3 (08:26):
I don't think those I don't think they will looking
through binoculars at at nine o'clock at night. Right.
Speaker 5 (08:31):
Well, I'm just.
Speaker 3 (08:32):
If they should have they should have been they should
have had night scopes if they were. But look whatever,
ye Jack, Jack, I gotta go. I gotta look at you.
Held all a long time and I've given you eight minutes.
I gotta keep rolling here because if they don't, I'm
going to get fired and then I'll they'll have a
robot who will replace me as a talk show host.
Speaker 7 (08:53):
And the robot will say we will be back in
a couple of minutes.
Speaker 3 (08:59):
After the brief messages. If you get more, okay, begs Jack,
fact to you soon, good night. I will stick with this.
I got san Die, Connecticut, Nancy and Peabody. I'll be
more than happy to take this at the bottom of
the hour, maybe a little longer. I do have one
other topic I need to get to tonight, and I
promise I will no later than eleven o'clock. We'll be
(09:20):
back on Nightside right after.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
This it's Night Side with Boston's News Radio.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
By the way, not every executive order that Donald Trump
has signed I want to criticize. He signed one today
with Kid Rock in the Oval Office and the protecting
Fans from exploitative ticket scalping and reforming the US Live
Entertainment ticketing Industry. Trump signed the directive in the Oval
(09:50):
Office with singer Kid Rock standing next to him in
a patriotic American flag themed outfit. Kid Rock said ticket
scalpers use of bots to buy large numbers of tickets
at face value and then selling them for a profit
is a big problem in the industry. I want the
fans to have fair ticket prices, Kid Rock said, adding
that legislation was eventually needed to cap ticket prices. The
(10:14):
ordered direct's Treasury Secretary Scott Bessett and US Attorney General
Pambondi to ensure that ticket scalpers are in full compliance
with the tax Collecting Internal Revenue Service and other applicable law.
A White House fact sheet said. It also orders the
Federal Trade Commission to work with the US Attorney to
ensure the competition laws are appropriately enforced in the concert
(10:36):
and entertainment industry. According to a fact sheet. The Justice
Department and dozens of state attorneys general sued Live Nation
Entertainment and its ticket scalping unit ticketmax Master last year
for allegedly monopolizing markets across the live concert industry in
ways that hurts artists and fans Inuary. In January, US
(10:58):
senators and saled Live Nation Entertainment lack of transparency and
inability to block bought purchases of tickets, and a hearing
call there for a major fiasco involving ticket sales for
a tailor Swift concert tour. Anyway, Ticketmaster, which has been
unpopular with fans for years, drew fresh heat from US
lawmakers over Howard handled ticket sales last fall for Swift's
(11:20):
errors tour, her first in five years. Experts say Ticketmaster
commands more than a seventy percent market share of primary
ticket services from major US concert venues. The fact sheets
singled out bought sales in particular. So that's something that
I think most of us can agree with the President's side.
A good executive order. Let me go to Sandy in Connecticut. Sandy,
(11:41):
you are next on nightside. Welcome Hi, Sandy.
Speaker 5 (11:44):
How are you fire?
Speaker 8 (11:45):
A pretty good man? Interesting topic? Always makes me think
about what social Security is and how I'm so glad
that we have it. Now. I'm a little confused because
I've been in social security for five years now. I
(12:06):
worked forty seven years and when you started the show someone,
I think it was your first or second call. I
was a man who said he had to go to
the office. Now is that a requirement for everyone? I
was a little confused if I have to go, because
(12:26):
the first time I went, I applied. I went into
an office in Connecticut near my home, and they I
gave them the documents and everything was verified and I
started receiving payments.
Speaker 3 (12:42):
I think you're all said, I'll ask you. I'll ask
you a simple question. Do you have Do you have
a Social Security account on your computer? In other words,
if you wanted.
Speaker 5 (12:54):
To no, no, no, do not.
Speaker 3 (12:57):
Well, what I would suggest you do, in my opinion,
would be to go to log in dot CoV H
and try to set up an account. You I'm sure
have the ability to set up an account. Uh, if
(13:18):
you have gone through the process of verifying you, you
probably would be smart. And as a matter of fact,
people even who aren't yet on so scurity would be
smart to set up this government account. Now you can
if you're having trouble doing it, since you're receiving so
security checks. My suspicion is that you'll and you and
(13:41):
you went in and identified yourself and all of that. Yeah,
what they will do is give you an opportunity to
set up the account, I believe by using your email
and you would create a password, okay, and then you
would probably have to put in your your cell phone
(14:02):
number or something like that to verify who you are.
And then every time you signed in, they would have
what's called two two party or identification where have you ever.
So that's the whole thing. So what I did with that,
what I did with Rick from Dover, is I logged
(14:22):
in to my my account, which which I have, and
within a few seconds I was into my account and
I just was able to print her out, print out
my lifetime earnings and how much money I paid into
Social Security and and and into Medicare. And so if
(14:43):
you have a problem with that, one of our other
callers said, if there's not a Social Security office near you,
And by the way, they have decided to keep the
Social Security offices open, okay. Social Security Administration had announced
that it is delaying implementation of its new identification verification
(15:05):
rules for new applicants for retirement benefit until April fourteenth,
the two week delay. But that's not you. You have
your SO Security, You get your check, Yeah, and you
should be fine. And do you do you have a
Social Security office near you?
Speaker 5 (15:24):
Yeah? Very near.
Speaker 8 (15:25):
But the thing is, I get my check deposited every month,
so I didn't get any letter. I'm offset. I think
I don't think.
Speaker 3 (15:34):
I don't think you have anything. I don't think you
have anything to worry about. Okay, but if you wanted
to be you know, I don't work for SO Security.
If you wanted to just double check, I would suggest
you how far away is your SO Security office? How
far away?
Speaker 4 (15:51):
Oh?
Speaker 5 (15:52):
Five miles?
Speaker 3 (15:54):
I think I'd take a ride by there someday. I'd
bring a couple of pieces of identification, a driver's license,
a p AS for your birth certificates. Yea and and
and you're in Connecticut. I'm sure that that help you out.
And you'd if you're not already set up, I'm sure
they'll set you up and you'll never have to do
it again.
Speaker 8 (16:13):
Okay, Yeah, and you know what to dan something? I
maybe I missed because I listen to you almost every night.
Uh So, there's a lot of fraud and social security
with people working and collecting. I read a lot of it,
right Whenever I see a social security item, I read it.
(16:35):
And there's so many cheaters out there.
Speaker 6 (16:37):
Right.
Speaker 3 (16:38):
Well, I think that there's an effort to get rid
of the cheaters. But there's a lot of people who
now are saying, oh, they're going to not get rid
of the cheaters, but they're going to knock off people
like Dan and Sandy from Social Security. That I do
not believe that's going to happen. Or the people saying well,
they're going to cut back, they're not going to cut
back the amount of money. Every year we get a
cost of living increase in our so a lot of
(17:02):
people with politically, you're trying to panic people. Let's see
what happens.
Speaker 8 (17:08):
Yeah, I think you know, because so many elderly people
actually from years ago just rely on that as their
main source of income. So it makes them worry more.
And there's nothing like making an eighty year old worry
where his money he's gonna is he gonna have enough?
Speaker 5 (17:26):
Quality?
Speaker 3 (17:26):
But also but also again in this article by Sean
Murphy and The Boston Globe Today. He asks he has
questions and answers and how much misinformation is out there
about SO security? Sean writes, probably a lot. A slightly
(17:46):
panicked reader wrote to me with a link for a
nonprofit website that said SOB Security beneficiaries must verify their
identity in person or continue to continue receiving payments. Is
it true for all of us, including our recipients, the
reader asked, no, Sean wrote, I suspect that website truly
was fear mongering to boost traffic and charge more for
(18:09):
the ads itsels. I think what will happen is the fraudsters,
the professional fraudsters, are going to start calling people like
you and me and say, you know you're so scurty.
Speaker 7 (18:19):
Benefit check is in jeopardy, and if you don't give
us your SO Security number and your birthday, we won't
be able to verify that your check is coming to
you next week.
Speaker 3 (18:29):
And you know what, a lot of people will fall
for that. So I don't want people to fall for that.
If someone calls you and says they're calling from the
Social Security Office, I don't think anyone from the SO
Security Office is going to call you so please, And
this isn't for you, Sandy, but it's for everyone. If
you get one of these phone calls in which they're saying, well,
(18:51):
could you please confirm your SO security number for us,
and at that point say to them, why did you
tell me what? If you're the Social Security you must
know my social security number, tell me what you got
and they'll hang up on you. Okay. They want to
trick you. They want to say to you, Sandy, give
us your SO security number because if not, your account's
(19:11):
going to be in jeopardy. And some people will panic
and they'll go my SOI scary numbers O oh one,
O two, oh oh oh three, and then they got
your scrit.
Speaker 8 (19:20):
I'm pretty much bavvy. I'm pretty much you are.
Speaker 3 (19:23):
I'm not talking to you, Sandy. I'm talking about people.
I'm talking to people who are listening Sandy.
Speaker 8 (19:28):
Yeah, okay, that's what I'm worried about.
Speaker 3 (19:31):
Thanks, Sandy, got to run imp. We're in Connecticut. Do
you listen in, Sandy, where do you listen to?
Speaker 4 (19:37):
Oh?
Speaker 8 (19:38):
In the lovely You want to tell you where in
the lovely towne of Lebanon, which is a really rural farmsclore, No,
no businesses.
Speaker 3 (19:49):
Really, I think okay, you've called before. You know what,
you don't do a pr thing for Lebanon, Connecticut. You'll
have everybody moving there. You've called before, I believe correct.
Speaker 8 (19:59):
Yeah, I'm all right, nurse but retired.
Speaker 4 (20:02):
That's okay, good for you.
Speaker 3 (20:04):
Enjoy Thanks Andy, you pay the dues an bye bye,
bye bye. All right, Nancy and Peabody, will it long Island.
I think we'll take this to eleven. We'll switch at eleven.
But you got a call now if you want to
be on six one, seven, nine, three, one ten thirty
six one, seven, two, five, four ten thirty. We're talking
so security and I'm trying to take the temperature down.
(20:26):
Probably not the smartest thing for a talk show host
to do. Probably if I was a smarter talk show
host to be saying, you're better be concerned because they're
gonna take yourself give me a call. No, No, I
don't want my listeners to be overly concerned. I do
want you to be aware that if anybody calls and
says I'm calling from the US Social Security Office and
(20:48):
we want to confirm that you're still eligible, can you
give us your security number. Stop right there and just say, well,
if you're with SO Security, you must have my SO
security number, but't you tell me what it is. Turned
the tables on them. Back on Night Side right after this, you're.
Speaker 2 (21:08):
On Night Side with Dan Ray on Boston's news radio.
Speaker 3 (21:13):
All right, we're talking about SO Security. It's gone a
little longer than I expected, and I'd love to hear
from you if you have any questions or concerns. My
belief at this point is that that the Trump administration
would be fools if they did anything that tried to
eliminate current beneficiaries or cut the amount of money that
(21:39):
current beneficiaries are receiving. I just think it would be
incomprehensibly stupid. And they may be many adjectives you might
want to use against Elon Musk and and Doge. They're
not stupid people politically. So love to hear from you.
Let me go to Nancy in Peabody. Nancy, appreciate your patience,
(22:00):
Thanks for holding on. Next on Nightside, Nancy, go right ahead.
Speaker 9 (22:03):
Hi, Dan, Nancy hy Nancy, Hu, Hi, I'm calling the
lady that just got off the phone. She pretty much
covered what I was calling about. I have been on
Social Security disability for twenty six years, and it's my
deceased husband social security. And I'm a little shure shaped
(22:30):
up or shook up or whatever you want to call it,
because do I have to go to the Social Security
office where I've been getting for twenty six years and
I went there originally where I used to live.
Speaker 3 (22:46):
No, No, I do not believe. So if I do
not believe there's going to be any interruption of anyone's
SO security now they may do you have a Social
secure already account by any chance on the internet?
Speaker 5 (23:02):
Or no?
Speaker 9 (23:03):
No, my computer croaked.
Speaker 3 (23:06):
How long you go to your computer croak?
Speaker 9 (23:09):
Oh? Promost A year. I been sick with COVID nineteen
and now they're sailing. I have long term COVID nineteen.
Speaker 3 (23:18):
So we've done a couple of shows on long term COVID.
So the old I know, I know, and I appreciate that.
The only thing that I think you might at some
point be asked to do is you might be asked
to verify your your identity. Okay, Now there's there's a
(23:42):
couple of ways you could do that. If you were
capable of going to a SO securty office, you could
do it that way, or you can do it through
a computer by essentially uploading maybe a driver's license and all.
This is going to sound really complicated, but it's not
that complicated.
Speaker 9 (24:02):
I don't have a computer, so that's.
Speaker 3 (24:04):
What Well, hold on, let me help you out.
Speaker 9 (24:07):
Here, okay, okay me.
Speaker 3 (24:09):
What I'm looking to do is try to put your
mind at ease. Okay. Is there anyone in your family,
immediate family, extended family, neighbors that have a computer.
Speaker 9 (24:22):
No, I'm on my own. My children, My children are
out of states.
Speaker 3 (24:30):
Okay, all right, they don't you have telephone communication with them?
Speaker 9 (24:38):
I'm not looking at not right now. There's a situation,
all right, right, right?
Speaker 3 (24:43):
Right? Okay, Well, okay, do you have any mobility whereby
you could go to a Social Security office?
Speaker 9 (24:52):
Not right now. That's why I'm calling you because I'm okay,
I heard about April fourth is it fourteen? That I
heard on busy radio that you had to do something
by April fourteen. That's why I'm calling you.
Speaker 3 (25:07):
Well, Uh, you pose the situation, Nancy, where the only
thing that I could say is how about if I
drive up and pick you up and I'll drive you
to the office. Would that be okay, Yeah, yeah, I
wish I had the time I would. So you don't
have a friend in the world. How do you go
to the store. Do you go to the store or no?
Speaker 9 (25:30):
Oh no, my my sister set up at instacart for
me right now the last few months?
Speaker 3 (25:38):
Okay, have you when was the last time you were
out of your house? You're making me cross examine your nancy,
which I'm not comfortable in doing. But how do you
go to dark.
Speaker 9 (25:47):
For a couple of months? Because actually I had, I
ended up in the hospital.
Speaker 3 (25:51):
Will come Yeah? No, And I don't need the medical nance.
Nance don't need the medical home. I find. I'm trying
to help you out here. Okay. Are you in a wheelchair? Nancy?
Speaker 9 (26:02):
No?
Speaker 1 (26:02):
No?
Speaker 3 (26:03):
Are you ambulatory? Do you walk?
Speaker 5 (26:07):
I have to have.
Speaker 3 (26:10):
Yes, you could walk? Okay?
Speaker 2 (26:11):
Fine.
Speaker 3 (26:13):
Do you have a taxicab company in Peabody?
Speaker 9 (26:19):
I don't know. I've never used it.
Speaker 3 (26:22):
Do you have a telephone? Yes? You have a telephone? Right?
Do you know how to use?
Speaker 9 (26:28):
Uh?
Speaker 3 (26:29):
Do you know how to find if there's a telephone? Uh?
The easiest way if to find a telephone company in Pboty, Nancy,
would be to do you know what the number of
the police department is in.
Speaker 4 (26:39):
Pvty, Yes I do.
Speaker 3 (26:41):
Do you know the number of the Mayor's office?
Speaker 8 (26:45):
Oh?
Speaker 3 (26:46):
Yes, yes, Well you could call them and say I
need to get a ride to the Social Security Office.
Do you know where your nearest Social Security office is?
Speaker 9 (26:56):
But I can't do it right now because of the
health problems some have and with this long term COVID.
Speaker 3 (27:03):
Well, Nancy, I gotta tell you, Well, the only thing
I can tell you, Nancy, is why don't you try
to call the Social Security Office explain to them the
variety of problems that you have, and maybe they'll send
someone over up. I've run out of options for you, Nancy,
I've really.
Speaker 9 (27:18):
Are you saying Dan that you have to go?
Speaker 3 (27:23):
No, what I'm saying to you is everyone's situation is different,
and I don't have an answer for your situation. I
don't work for Social Security. However, however, you should contact
you have a telephone, call the Social Security office nearest
you and ask some of them the questions. You may
have a Social Security account that you're not even aware of, Nancy.
Speaker 9 (27:46):
Believe it or not, you can give them twenty six years.
Speaker 3 (27:50):
I understand that that's what I'm saying to you is
that you know, if you call them, they may be
able to help you out. And I think that I'm
not an oracle here, so I don't know all of
your circumstances. I was trying to figure out a way
to get you from point A to point B. Obviously
I failed miserably on that effort.
Speaker 4 (28:08):
So I think, well, I don't know.
Speaker 9 (28:10):
I know i'm interrupting, Dan, but I don't know if
PbD has the sceenior you can get a ride.
Speaker 3 (28:17):
Well, there's there's there's some things like that. That was
one of the things I was going, I.
Speaker 9 (28:21):
Can't do it now because of my head.
Speaker 3 (28:23):
I understand that because you have long COVID, I understand
that you haven't been out in two months. That is
why I said to you, please call your local security office. Okay,
I tried.
Speaker 9 (28:34):
I tried this morning. I couldn't even get through.
Speaker 4 (28:36):
Yeah, well I held on for.
Speaker 3 (28:40):
You do have time, and you can just put the
phone down and maybe you can put it on speakerphone
or whatever. So let me know how how how you
make out? Okay?
Speaker 9 (28:49):
Yeah? Oh by the way, Dan, how do you spell
your last name? Is it R E R.
Speaker 3 (28:54):
A R e A R E.
Speaker 9 (28:57):
A R E A. Okay, okay, yeah, okay, well thanks
a lot.
Speaker 4 (29:02):
Thanks I wives some good answers, and thank you.
Speaker 3 (29:06):
I tried. I tried. Thanks Nancy. Good night. Let me
keep rolling here if I can. I'm going to go
to Mary in Hyde Park. Mary your next on Nightsager,
right ahead.
Speaker 10 (29:15):
Hello, Dan, I'm highly hysterical, so I'm hoping you can
give me some suggestions. I did not get my pension.
I was a federal worker for forty four years and
I've been retired for nine years, and I always got
my pension on time. And I got a letter from
Social Security.
Speaker 5 (29:35):
Two letters.
Speaker 10 (29:36):
They enliged a print on one Swiss and identical letter.
It came on to the beginning of March, and it
said that because of the windfall, I think they called
the wind for a Relief Act. That's the one that
Joseph Biden signed on January.
Speaker 6 (29:48):
Right.
Speaker 10 (29:49):
You probably talked about that earlier. Okay, Well, I would
be receiving a check for the money from January. I
think it said of twenty twenty four through January of five,
or maybe I think it was February twenty February, so
I did receive that check. They said I'd be receiving
it towards the end of the month, but I did
receive it around March third of this month.
Speaker 3 (30:11):
It was about fuck, it was probably about five I
guessing it's about five thousand dollars.
Speaker 10 (30:16):
Yes, it was, but I did not read almost five thousand.
It was almost five thousand, but I did not receive
my regular pay check. What I have for direct deposit
is Social Security, my thrift savings plan, and.
Speaker 5 (30:32):
My pension.
Speaker 10 (30:33):
So I'm wondering did they take my pension away and
returned for that check, because I sort of don't.
Speaker 3 (30:38):
No, no, no, no, no. When does your pension check
normally arrive? What day of the month?
Speaker 10 (30:43):
March twenty six And I checked with fifteen people who
all got their checks and not me. But they all
have different things, like some people didn't have quarters and
they weren't getting Social Security, or some people were.
Speaker 3 (30:52):
For let's talk. You said you worked for the government
for forty six years.
Speaker 10 (30:58):
Yeah, I retired from the Department of House in Urban
Development on November thirtieth of two thousand and fifty.
Speaker 3 (31:03):
I would suspect and the check should have been deposited
in your bank account on March twenty sixth, correct, right.
Speaker 10 (31:11):
I'm thinking it's because the people got fired. They let
a lot of people from hut go. They lot a
lot of people from oh pm go Office of Personal Management.
They let a lot of people from the Help You Go.
Speaker 3 (31:21):
No, I don't think. So. My question to you is
does your check hit your bank account on the twenty
sixth or do you do you receive a copy of
the check? Okay, So what.
Speaker 10 (31:32):
I would do is, first, all I know is that
I checked. I checked with my bank, and that's how
I do it. I check the automated system, and it
never hit the automative system. So I gave it until
today when I talked to a live person and they said, no,
it never came in.
Speaker 3 (31:45):
Okay, did you talk to the bank today?
Speaker 5 (31:49):
Yes?
Speaker 11 (31:50):
Today? I called them first thing this morning.
Speaker 3 (31:52):
Which which one's your bank?
Speaker 10 (31:54):
Transportation Federal Credit Union, which is located in Alexandria, Virginia,
but they have a branch here at Kimball Square, so
I called the main office.
Speaker 3 (32:02):
What I'm saying is system, these these are unrelated. The
social Security was a makeup and you should be getting
then a note of five thousand dollars a month from
soci Security. There should have been in that letter. They
should have told you that you're going to get maybe
a check of seven hundred dollars in April.
Speaker 10 (32:21):
Starting to get a lot more. I was only getting
twenty five dollars a month from Social Security because again
that you got.
Speaker 3 (32:27):
Taken care of the terms of all your fit. If
you listen to me, I can help you. The fact
that your federal pension check did not hit your bank
account when it should, that is unrelated. That has to
be a glitch in the system. I can't help you there.
I would suggest you ask your bank to see if
(32:49):
they I mean they're in they have an interest in
this too. If they're able to send a message back
and get an answer for you. Your bank should be able,
your or your credit union should be able to do
a little work for you on this.
Speaker 4 (33:05):
And I would suggest they didn't do that.
Speaker 3 (33:08):
I don't so many people don't. Just a suggestion and
do me a favor, call me back and let me
know how you make out. But I think you're going
to be just fine.
Speaker 11 (33:15):
Okay, okay.
Speaker 10 (33:16):
I'm also going to go to the Social Security rally
that they have and tomorrow. That masking reaction is putting on.
Speaker 3 (33:22):
I think it'd be better to spend your time tomorrow
working to solve your problem of today.
Speaker 10 (33:29):
The Congressman Markey and the Congressman Warren, your favorite person.
I did send out two emails to them good luck.
Nobody ever answers me.
Speaker 5 (33:38):
I tried, good luck, good luck.
Speaker 3 (33:44):
I gotta go. I gave you the best advice I
would work on it. Okay, thanks, We'll be right back
on night Side.
Speaker 2 (33:53):
You're on night Side with Dan Ray on Boston's news radio.
Speaker 3 (33:59):
But go to my friend will Don in Long Island.
Will I get three behind you here? Help me out
where you go? Ahead?
Speaker 11 (34:04):
Will all right?
Speaker 4 (34:05):
Dan?
Speaker 12 (34:06):
Well, I'll tell you I really think you should be
considered for saying to it. I would definitely, you know,
not that I have any poll with the church, but
I think that they should because I have certainly not
just your kindness and benevolence and that stuff, but like
I've at least heard you at least probably performed two
or three miracles because I've been listening to the.
Speaker 5 (34:23):
Past this year.
Speaker 3 (34:25):
You're the best.
Speaker 1 (34:27):
You get through it.
Speaker 12 (34:28):
You get through it somehow. And I got to say,
people my age generation X almost millennial, have always been
concerned about the existence of the Social Security program for
us that have been paying into it, and a much
larger generation on top of us who obviously also paid
into it, and a lot of them for years and decades, right,
(34:50):
and then obviously a large group of those people are
going to be the beneficiaries of it. And there's always
been talk for decades at this point whether that program
would exist, the retirement age would be pushed back further.
Speaker 4 (35:02):
So someone like me has the way that least.
Speaker 12 (35:04):
You know, seventeen eighteen years or longer, depending.
Speaker 3 (35:07):
On how old do you know, well, fifty one, how
old are.
Speaker 12 (35:09):
You, forty eight, forty Okay, we'd be looking at you know,
possibly you know, the sixty five. If you push it
to seventy, obvises a lot more.
Speaker 8 (35:18):
But yeah, I don't think.
Speaker 3 (35:20):
I don't think realistically they'll push it to seventy. I
think it'll go up incrementally and if if, if, those
is successful and they are able to eliminate waste, and
I want I won't believe it till I see it. Okay,
that's gonna maybe uh stop, slow down or maybe even
reverse this increased in retirement age.
Speaker 12 (35:44):
Yeah, well, let's and that's why I think people my
age are looking at this as a good thing, because
you have to realize there are sixty nine million people
that receive Social Security checks every month to the tune
of one point six trillion dollars per year. Right, yeah, So,
and they did find social Security numbers, not checks, with
social Security numbers issued to two million illegals.
Speaker 4 (36:05):
Usually illegals get what we.
Speaker 12 (36:06):
Go on it in identification numbers so that they could,
you know, pay taxes or whatever or actually they usually
to actually get refunds actually for the child tax credits.
I won't get into that. But they found two million
social Security numbers issued to these people that were using
it for Medicare and everything else. So, just like every
government program, there's going to be fraud. Right, So if
(36:28):
they it hasn't been looked at in a long time,
nobody actually wanted to do the work of looking at it,
auditing it, finding out where the money's going. Is their
misinformation sure coming from both sides? Sure are they saying
that people are dead getting Social Security checks?
Speaker 5 (36:43):
Of course there are.
Speaker 12 (36:44):
Dead people getting Social Security checks and people committing fraud
to what extent we don't know. But just like the
debt conversation, you and I had and I'm not the
biggest the ceiling is falling debt guy, But I also
believe in turning the needle back, going.
Speaker 4 (36:57):
The right way.
Speaker 3 (36:59):
Right to do it with all of these programs, all right,
thirty seven trillion, I don't want to see it at
thirty eight or thirty nine. Absolutely will.
Speaker 4 (37:08):
I don't mind.
Speaker 12 (37:08):
I don't say you got a cut in half tomorrow,
but I do understand the idea of turning the needle
back the right way and heading in the right direction,
which you can start with a balanced budget and work backwards,
you know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (37:19):
Well, thank you, thank you for your kind comments, thank
you for your alacrity. Tonight you hit it. You hit
a thousand points and you're absolutely right. That's exactly what
we hope will happen. And thank you very much for
listening to my show and participating. It was a great call.
Speaker 2 (37:33):
Thank love it, love it.
Speaker 3 (37:35):
Talk to you later, man. Okay, Okay, gonna hustle everybody.
Let's go to Tony and Natick. Tony, I got three
more behind you. Can you be quick. I'd like to
change topics at eleven.
Speaker 12 (37:44):
Go ahead, Tony, that's all right.
Speaker 13 (37:46):
I just was gonna I reiterate everything Will said just now.
And I did kind of yell myself, Horse, I did
want to put out the Nancy from Peabody. Yes, it's
okay that maybe she should Peabody should have some senior
or aging counsel.
Speaker 3 (38:03):
Oh yeah, probably absolutely.
Speaker 13 (38:05):
And I know she has long COVID, so she probably
has like a home help date or something like that.
Speaker 12 (38:10):
So the agency said that it could probably also help
her get the ball.
Speaker 3 (38:16):
I was just, you know, I was it was so frustrating, Tony,
because I'm trying to give her some ideas and some
kind you know, and I mean we all have to
kind of do something for ourselves a little bit, you know,
with I mean, the government is not going to send
so securty people to my house to to help me
or whatever. I mean, I got to have some initiative.
(38:36):
And I just was trying to help Nancy. I mean,
I'm serious, you know.
Speaker 5 (38:42):
That's what you do.
Speaker 13 (38:44):
Yes, And I I deal sort of with that population too,
so I understand that it is it is from.
Speaker 3 (38:50):
That's that's there's another good suggestion for Nancy if she's
still listening, listening, and I hope she is.
Speaker 13 (38:57):
Nancy Senior services in Peabody.
Speaker 12 (39:00):
Write it down.
Speaker 3 (39:01):
Okay, sounds great, Tony, thank you. That's what Night Side's
all about. People helping people. Thank you. Have a good night.
By bye. All right, let me get real quickly here,
got to go Michael in Boston, Michael, I got to
get a couple more behind you.
Speaker 6 (39:13):
Go ahead, Michael, Okay, okay, fast, and first of all,
forgive me for asking, but I'm in and out of
the room here. Maybe I missed it, but I'm just
wondering why you didn't have a knowing the way you
usually conduct the show. A representative from Social Security on
(39:34):
tonight so we could ask questions of them.
Speaker 1 (39:38):
Did I miss well?
Speaker 3 (39:39):
Too? Well, you didn't listen to the beginning I had scheduled.
I'm Jim Roosevelt, who happens to be the grandson of
Franklin Roosevelt, the president that signed to SO Scurty. No
one knows more about so Scurity than Jim. He's going
to join us tomorrow night at nine o'clock. He was
stuck on the train today at a train that had
broken down. I'm not going to tell you where or what,
(40:00):
but he was scheduled. I miss the Okay, yep, so what.
Speaker 6 (40:03):
Else you got to get your opinion? I do taxes
for myself and another person, a friend of mine, and
he took early retirement at sixty two plus, and he
was happy with that. He did that for various reasons.
But since then he's gone back to work part time,
so he has a small salary. And when I did
(40:25):
his taxes this year, I noticed that of that twenty
thousand dollars that he made in wages on a W two,
they took out one thousand dollars in social Security. Does
that sound right to you? Yes, he's already done it.
Speaker 3 (40:39):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely, because look I'm still working at the pool.
I'm on Social Security. I'm still working. I pay Social
Security and I pay Medicare twice a month.
Speaker 6 (40:50):
Okay, So there's no way you're going to see that again.
It's going in the pool for other people.
Speaker 3 (40:56):
He's like, it depends upon how I live. Can you
tell me when I'm going to die?
Speaker 6 (41:01):
No, you'll get social Security for your life?
Speaker 3 (41:04):
Well right, yeah, for my life. Yes, that's correct. If
I if I live to one hundred, I might make
out a big time. If I live to well, you know,
you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 6 (41:14):
What they're taking out now additional Dan when you were
as you're working, you will not see they won't bump
up your current social security. It'll stay the same until
you die.
Speaker 3 (41:26):
Uh. I think you're right on that. I think you're right.
Speaker 11 (41:30):
Well that is me.
Speaker 6 (41:32):
So we got to call security and ask okay, all right,
thank you much.
Speaker 1 (41:36):
I want to be sure. I want to be sure.
Speaker 3 (41:39):
Okay, me too, Thanks Michael. What do we get left here? Rob?
Thirty seconds? Okay, Michael and Addleborough Carl in New York,
stay there if you want. I will get you both
on and then we're going to go to another topic,
which is which I think a lot of my Trump
supporters are going to be upset with me about. Maybe
I'll be surprised. We'll be back on night Side.
Speaker 6 (42:01):
It's nice.
Speaker 2 (42:03):
I'm Boston's news radio.
Speaker 3 (42:06):
I just want to clarify one thing that I said
last hour, towards the end of last hours, kind of
a rushed phone call. I think with Michael from Boston.
Your social Security benefits are based upon your average earnings
over thirty five years. Now, some people don't work thirty
five years, but if you do have a long career
(42:30):
and I've worked, earned money over a long period of time,
longer than perhaps I want to acknowledge here on the program.
But the point is that there are ways to calculate
your earnings and you can go check it out. So
(42:51):
if you are still working after having retired and you're
taking a Social Security check and then you go back
to work, if you're working part time, as Michael suggested
his film, was working, it's probably not a not going
to make much of a difference. But I can tell
you that I'm working full time, and so my so
(43:13):
scurity benefits have gone up a little bit because again
averaging over my top thirty five years, it's helped me
a little bit. But there's also a cap on it.
So no matter how much you earn, there's a cap.
So even though if you have somebody who has earned,
you know, a huge salary, theres so security is going
(43:37):
to be capped. I mean, you're not going to have
people making if let's say they averaged a million dollars
for thirty five years. You know, say they were a
movie star or a singer, or a professional athlete who
then went into coaching and you know, had a long
(43:57):
career and they averaged a million dollars a year. They're
not going to get a million dollars a year in
social Security benefits. So there's all sorts of calculations and formulas,
and you're invited to just you know, just go to
the Social Security website and there are benefit calculations calculators
that are available. A right back to the calls, we go.
(44:19):
Next up Carl and New York. Carl next on Nightsager, right.
Speaker 1 (44:21):
Ahead, Yeah, how you doing.
Speaker 14 (44:25):
I was listening to you talking about the social Security thing.
I'm retired, so I have a lot of time to
do some research. And it looks to me like the
only people they want to go in are new cases
or if you're changing your banking information because they're no
longer going to do better with the phone around.
Speaker 3 (44:40):
Yeah, right, And I think that even in that case,
they can make exceptions. If someone is changing their banking information,
they can they can make exceptions. And obviously, let us say,
you know, you you want to avoid having to go in,
and let's assume you decide you want to change your
bank from Bank A to Bank B. Well, you could
(45:02):
leave your account that could receive the benefits on a
monthly basis at Bank A, and then you could just
you know, every month transfer it over, you know, to
to B so you know you there. There are ways
to work around it. But if you have to go in,
you have to go in because.
Speaker 14 (45:24):
Our local our local office here now you can't just
walk in anymore.
Speaker 1 (45:29):
You got to have an appointment, yep.
Speaker 3 (45:32):
And how difficult is it to get an appointment from
your experience.
Speaker 14 (45:35):
Well, they're a week out mhm when you go when
you go in, because I have that and there and
people that are getting like us to science social security
and stuff like that, people that are working a little
and you have to tage, you have to put.
Speaker 1 (45:51):
On like you make in. They're no longer doing that
online either.
Speaker 3 (45:57):
Okay, so you got to go in the other So you're.
Speaker 14 (46:00):
So from now on, if you're going to turn in
pace ups or whatever, you've got to go to the office.
Speaker 3 (46:05):
Okay. And how how you're in New York, I'm not
sure whereabouts in New York you are. How closest do
you have a soci Security They are closing some social
security buildings and offices around the country. That is also
in the article that I have in the Globe today.
And just to give you a sense of it, they
are closing. Social Security managers plan to layoff seven thousand,
(46:32):
fifty seven thousand employees, so that's about twelve percent of
the workforce.
Speaker 14 (46:37):
And to close that's probably that's probably why there were
a week out already.
Speaker 3 (46:42):
Yeah, and to close six of ten regional offices and
regional offices and four hundred and eighty of its offices
forty percent. So my question is how close is you
your SO Security office to you wherever you are in
New York? Is it ten miles away, one hundred miles away,
(47:04):
how far is it?
Speaker 1 (47:06):
I'm probably five or six miles.
Speaker 3 (47:08):
Yeah, Okay, So hopefully they'll be squad and they're not
going to say, well, we're going to eliminate every office
in you know, the state.
Speaker 1 (47:16):
I hope they I hope they don't.
Speaker 14 (47:18):
I hope they don't, because they just they just built
a brand new building. They took they took they took
our all local office out of a downtown area and
moved it to like a suburban area, which really hurts
a lot of people around here, especially our seniors and
stuff getting transportations.
Speaker 1 (47:38):
To go all the way up there. You know what
I mean.
Speaker 14 (47:40):
People are people are not very happy that that they
actually moved.
Speaker 3 (47:46):
But well, everybody, you know, everybody wants everything next door
to them. I get that. I certainly do understand that,
and particularly you know, senior citizens, but hopefully myself.
Speaker 1 (47:57):
I don't have a I don't have a car. I
have to use buses.
Speaker 14 (48:00):
That's instead of taking one bus to the to the
place now and now it's two.
Speaker 3 (48:06):
Are you a senior citizen at this point or no?
Speaker 1 (48:08):
Yes, I am on sixty five.
Speaker 3 (48:10):
So we have back here. We have something called the ride.
I don't know if you have anything like that where
you know, seniors can it can get rides, you know,
free of charge or for a nominal fee. They'll pick
you up and they'll drive your door to door.
Speaker 1 (48:28):
Yeah, I just do.
Speaker 14 (48:30):
But it's better weather out now, so it's not going
to really bother me.
Speaker 1 (48:35):
You know what I mean. And I do get transportation
locally for my doctor's appointment.
Speaker 14 (48:41):
The VA is all the way in Albany, ten fifteen
miles away.
Speaker 1 (48:45):
So I get transportation to there.
Speaker 3 (48:48):
Okay, sounds great, sounds great. Thanks for the update. It's
always great to hear from folks in different parts of
the country. Carl, Thank you.
Speaker 1 (48:54):
All right, by my talk to you soon.
Speaker 3 (48:55):
Let me get one more in here before the break,
going to go to Michael and Attleborough. Michael next on Nightsiger.
Speaker 4 (49:00):
Right ahead, again, how are you.
Speaker 3 (49:02):
I'm doing great, hope you're doing well.
Speaker 11 (49:04):
Yeah, yeah, I am.
Speaker 6 (49:08):
My wife worked for the state for close to forty years.
Speaker 4 (49:12):
She just passed.
Speaker 11 (49:13):
But that, okay, I'm not entitled to a pension because
she didn't because we weren't married while she was working there.
Speaker 3 (49:29):
Okay.
Speaker 14 (49:31):
And however, Mara Haley.
Speaker 3 (49:36):
We don't have common law marriage and mass.
Speaker 11 (49:40):
However, mar Haley, if the gay, if the gay and
you can, you're a.
Speaker 14 (49:44):
Common law marriage in another state, You're entitled to the
other person's pension.
Speaker 3 (49:51):
Okay. Again, that's that's getting into some some areas that
would open up a huge can of worms tonight. And
I've at this late.
Speaker 4 (49:58):
In the hour out Okay.
Speaker 11 (49:59):
The other is I am going to call on tomorrow
night because what I didn't realize is social Security separate.
Speaker 14 (50:04):
I called them and they said I'm not entitled so
bad either, but that is a separate thing.
Speaker 11 (50:09):
So I'm gonna call tomorrow night and see what they
have to say about it.
Speaker 3 (50:13):
Okay. So what is your Your question is can your can?
Your can you receive the Social Security.
Speaker 12 (50:25):
From your Yeah, I already get Social I already get
Social but like someone has said to me, it's her money.
She worked for it.
Speaker 3 (50:35):
Yeah, okay, well, yeah, we'll try the other thing that
you can do tomorrow is try to call the Social
Security Office and explain the situation. You know, I mean,
I don't.
Speaker 4 (50:43):
Know that I did.
Speaker 6 (50:44):
They said they said I wasn't entitled.
Speaker 3 (50:46):
Okay, Well, if they said you weren't entitled, Jim Roosevelt
might give you that same same answer. But feel free
to give it a shot tomorrow night. Okay, thanks, Michael.
Speaker 4 (50:55):
Appreciate, Thank you.
Speaker 3 (50:56):
Bye, I have a great night. Okay, We're gonna take
a quick break. That wraps it up in so security conversation. Again.
I try to try to help as many people as
we can here. But we're going to now switch to
another topic. And this is one that some of you
might be surprised by, and that is that I don't
quite understand what the Trump administration is doing in terms
(51:23):
of resting people on the streets with ice officers. Plain closed.
I'm speaking specifically about the arrest of the Toughts graduate
student that occurred last week, and I want to explain
it and whether you agree or disagree, I'd love to
(51:45):
have you joined the conversation back on Nightside right after
this quick break
D Y.
Speaker 2 (00:03):
I'm bas Boston Radio.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
All right, we have one caller hanging over from last hour.
I want to talk about soci security. We will talk
tomorrow night with Jim Roosevelt, attorney James Roosevelt, who is
a fixture here in New England, and he, of course
is the well you may not know that he's a
grandson of Franklin, Ellen and Roosevelt. So if you want
to keep this conversation going, fine, If not, we're going
(00:27):
to move on right after Jack down on the cave.
Hi Jack, Thanks for.
Speaker 4 (00:30):
Calling in, Hey Dan.
Speaker 5 (00:33):
Over the years, I have sensed that the argument against
Social Security by the financial gurus call him if you will, yes,
was that if everyone's had put their Social Security contributions
(00:53):
into an indexed fund or some type of a managed
correct market, you'd be much better off than you are
today waiting for that check to come in the mail.
That's correct, which is yeah. And so in light of that,
(01:13):
I want to bring up a Treasury Secretary John Snow
under the Bush administration GW he brought out an idea
I thought deserved immense focus, and that was that for
every child born in the United States, that the government
(01:39):
would put two thousand dollars per year into that individual's
account up until the age of eighteen and would stop,
and that economic little fund would grow as our economy
grows and prospers over the decades, and that at the
(02:00):
time that that individual would retire, let's say at sixty five,
that fund would be worth over a million dollars using
past historical performances. That's correct, And I think what we're
really looking at here, I think is the lack of
(02:21):
financial literacy. You know, Dan, the financial markets and the
machine that we all serve and live under is so
complex and so sophisticated that the financial literacy to be
able to navigate one's life through this world that we're
living in. It really needs to be addressed. And we
(02:45):
need to everyone needs a crash course on what's happening.
And you know, we're all sort of living under the
age old economic models of the past, but obviously we're
entering a new economic era. The crypto financial inventiveness that's
going on, I think that needs to be looked at,
(03:05):
and I think the young people coming up are definitely
going to be looking at that. So I just to
kind of encapsulate my argument is that the entire financial model,
top to bottom, beginning to end. A DIZA needs to
be rehashed and reconfigured for the future, or we are
(03:31):
going to end up in a dystopian future that you
brought that you brought them with one of your earlier guests,
and I am glad that you do that. I find
very few people are even remotely aware of what the
future of work money when we when Elon I, I've
got a pdf. I'll try to send you. Uh it
(03:54):
just recently came out, but Elon is it's a compilation
of about intelligent AI driven robotics. Oh and so by
twenty forty, Elon Musk estimates we're going to have ten
billion robots that are all connected with AI and their
dexterity their abilities.
Speaker 3 (04:16):
Well, again, that's what kind of takes me down another
path here, Jack, and I appreciate that obviously things are changing,
but I want to go back to your point. I
want to go back to your original point, and that
is that for many, many years, people said, hey, give
people the option put their money in a private account,
and they'll do better in a private account, put in
(04:38):
some sort of IRA money fund or something like that.
But the problem is if you opt if you had
these people opt out of the system, and if those
markets crashed at some point the government said, well, how
are we going to take care of those people? So look,
all of us who have worked, let me finish jack
(04:59):
if you don't mind. All of us who have worked
a long time have put hundreds of thousands of dollars,
hundreds of thousands of dollars into Social Security and have
put a lot of money also, not quite as much.
I'm looking at my numbers right now, about half a
couple of hundred thousand dollars in Medicare. So I've paid
(05:21):
a lot of Social Security taxes in Medicare taxes. It's
going to take me some time to recoup that money.
But you know, it's it's kind of part of the
social contract. And I wished I had an opportunity to
have probably invested my own money personally from the age
of twenty one when I started to earn money, or
(05:42):
age of twenty two or twenty three when I really
started to earn money. But that option wasn't there. And
that's the system we have. Now. Let's see if they
can clean it up, Let's see if they can make
it more effective. More efficient, and in terms of the
whole question about twelve billion, twelve million robots or whatever,
I'm not even sure I want to be around for that,
be honest. I mean really, I remember. I'm old enough
(06:10):
to remember the Jetsons, one of the cartoons from the sixties,
and they had people driving to work in flying cars,
and they were people futurists at the time said, well,
by the nineteen nineties, we won't have to drive on roads.
We'll have cars that fly through the air. Didn't quite happen.
You know, I believe it when I say.
Speaker 5 (06:30):
It, It is happening.
Speaker 6 (06:34):
You can.
Speaker 5 (06:34):
They have drones powerful enough to lift a person and
take them where they want to go. Check it out.
It's they happen.
Speaker 4 (06:41):
It's now, and there's so much.
Speaker 3 (06:43):
Well, when they start lifting people in drones and flying them,
you know, communing distances, let's say from the Cape to Boston,
and they are doing that, let me know. Okay, Oh,
they're having trouble figuring out how they get a drone
to carry a package that wastes five pounds, never mind
someone that weighs one hundred and fifty or one hundred
(07:04):
and eighty or two hundred pounds. Uh, never I've driven
in one of those those of driverless cars. I was
in San Francisco in January and my daughter insisted that
she and her husband and I get in the car.
I had a ball. I kept asking them. I played
the role of the dumb dumb old guy said where's
the driver? And you know, my daughter said, Dad, we're
(07:27):
in a car without a driver. I said, really, really,
you know, it was no big deal. It was no
big deal. I could see that. But when we have
a three hundred thousand non driverless cars, I should say
on the road in the major American cities, let's see
how that works out.
Speaker 5 (07:45):
It'll work out better. Actually, because they're all being community still,
all be in touch with it.
Speaker 3 (07:50):
We just we just had we just had a plane
and a helicopter collide going into Reagan Airport in sixty eight.
Sixty seven people are dead as a result. I have
a lot of this stuff that you do. Okay, that's
all you might be right.
Speaker 5 (08:04):
I've looked at that a lot, and a I would
have totally picked that up. A I would have been
on that in me instantly. Never would have happened if
they But here we have human controllers trying with their
eyes to see the blinking lights of this plane in
that plane and looking through you know, okay, I would
have would.
Speaker 4 (08:25):
Have been on.
Speaker 3 (08:26):
I don't think those I don't think they will looking
through binoculars at at nine o'clock at night. Right.
Speaker 5 (08:31):
Well, I'm just.
Speaker 3 (08:32):
If they should have they should have been they should
have had night scopes if they were. But look whatever,
ye Jack, Jack, I gotta go. I gotta look at you.
Held all a long time and I've given you eight minutes.
I gotta keep rolling here because if they don't, I'm
going to get fired and then I'll they'll have a
robot who will replace me as a talk show host.
Speaker 7 (08:53):
And the robot will say we will be back in
a couple of minutes.
Speaker 3 (08:59):
After the brief messages. If you get more, okay, begs Jack,
fact to you soon, good night. I will stick with this.
I got san Die, Connecticut, Nancy and Peabody. I'll be
more than happy to take this at the bottom of
the hour, maybe a little longer. I do have one
other topic I need to get to tonight, and I
promise I will no later than eleven o'clock. We'll be
(09:20):
back on Nightside right after.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
This it's Night Side with Boston's News Radio.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
By the way, not every executive order that Donald Trump
has signed I want to criticize. He signed one today
with Kid Rock in the Oval Office and the protecting
Fans from exploitative ticket scalping and reforming the US Live
Entertainment ticketing Industry. Trump signed the directive in the Oval
(09:50):
Office with singer Kid Rock standing next to him in
a patriotic American flag themed outfit. Kid Rock said ticket
scalpers use of bots to buy large numbers of tickets
at face value and then selling them for a profit
is a big problem in the industry. I want the
fans to have fair ticket prices, Kid Rock said, adding
that legislation was eventually needed to cap ticket prices. The
(10:14):
ordered direct's Treasury Secretary Scott Bessett and US Attorney General
Pambondi to ensure that ticket scalpers are in full compliance
with the tax Collecting Internal Revenue Service and other applicable law.
A White House fact sheet said. It also orders the
Federal Trade Commission to work with the US Attorney to
ensure the competition laws are appropriately enforced in the concert
(10:36):
and entertainment industry. According to a fact sheet. The Justice
Department and dozens of state attorneys general sued Live Nation
Entertainment and its ticket scalping unit ticketmax Master last year
for allegedly monopolizing markets across the live concert industry in
ways that hurts artists and fans Inuary. In January, US
(10:58):
senators and saled Live Nation Entertainment lack of transparency and
inability to block bought purchases of tickets, and a hearing
call there for a major fiasco involving ticket sales for
a tailor Swift concert tour. Anyway, Ticketmaster, which has been
unpopular with fans for years, drew fresh heat from US
lawmakers over Howard handled ticket sales last fall for Swift's
(11:20):
errors tour, her first in five years. Experts say Ticketmaster
commands more than a seventy percent market share of primary
ticket services from major US concert venues. The fact sheets
singled out bought sales in particular. So that's something that
I think most of us can agree with the President's side.
A good executive order. Let me go to Sandy in Connecticut. Sandy,
(11:41):
you are next on nightside. Welcome Hi, Sandy.
Speaker 5 (11:44):
How are you fire?
Speaker 8 (11:45):
A pretty good man? Interesting topic? Always makes me think
about what social Security is and how I'm so glad
that we have it. Now. I'm a little confused because
I've been in social security for five years now. I
(12:06):
worked forty seven years and when you started the show someone,
I think it was your first or second call. I
was a man who said he had to go to
the office. Now is that a requirement for everyone? I
was a little confused if I have to go, because
(12:26):
the first time I went, I applied. I went into
an office in Connecticut near my home, and they I
gave them the documents and everything was verified and I
started receiving payments.
Speaker 3 (12:42):
I think you're all said, I'll ask you. I'll ask
you a simple question. Do you have Do you have
a Social Security account on your computer? In other words,
if you wanted.
Speaker 5 (12:54):
To no, no, no, do not.
Speaker 3 (12:57):
Well, what I would suggest you do, in my opinion,
would be to go to log in dot CoV H
and try to set up an account. You I'm sure
have the ability to set up an account. Uh, if
(13:18):
you have gone through the process of verifying you, you
probably would be smart. And as a matter of fact,
people even who aren't yet on so scurity would be
smart to set up this government account. Now you can
if you're having trouble doing it, since you're receiving so
security checks. My suspicion is that you'll and you and
(13:41):
you went in and identified yourself and all of that. Yeah,
what they will do is give you an opportunity to
set up the account, I believe by using your email
and you would create a password, okay, and then you
would probably have to put in your your cell phone
(14:02):
number or something like that to verify who you are.
And then every time you signed in, they would have
what's called two two party or identification where have you ever.
So that's the whole thing. So what I did with that,
what I did with Rick from Dover, is I logged
(14:22):
in to my my account, which which I have, and
within a few seconds I was into my account and
I just was able to print her out, print out
my lifetime earnings and how much money I paid into
Social Security and and and into Medicare. And so if
(14:43):
you have a problem with that, one of our other
callers said, if there's not a Social Security office near you,
And by the way, they have decided to keep the
Social Security offices open, okay. Social Security Administration had announced
that it is delaying implementation of its new identification verification
(15:05):
rules for new applicants for retirement benefit until April fourteenth,
the two week delay. But that's not you. You have
your SO Security, You get your check, Yeah, and you
should be fine. And do you do you have a
Social Security office near you?
Speaker 5 (15:24):
Yeah? Very near.
Speaker 8 (15:25):
But the thing is, I get my check deposited every month,
so I didn't get any letter. I'm offset. I think
I don't think.
Speaker 3 (15:34):
I don't think you have anything. I don't think you
have anything to worry about. Okay, but if you wanted
to be you know, I don't work for SO Security.
If you wanted to just double check, I would suggest
you how far away is your SO Security office? How
far away?
Speaker 4 (15:51):
Oh?
Speaker 5 (15:52):
Five miles?
Speaker 3 (15:54):
I think I'd take a ride by there someday. I'd
bring a couple of pieces of identification, a driver's license,
a p AS for your birth certificates. Yea and and
and you're in Connecticut. I'm sure that that help you out.
And you'd if you're not already set up, I'm sure
they'll set you up and you'll never have to do
it again.
Speaker 8 (16:13):
Okay, Yeah, and you know what to dan something? I
maybe I missed because I listen to you almost every night.
Uh So, there's a lot of fraud and social security
with people working and collecting. I read a lot of it,
right Whenever I see a social security item, I read it.
(16:35):
And there's so many cheaters out there.
Speaker 6 (16:37):
Right.
Speaker 3 (16:38):
Well, I think that there's an effort to get rid
of the cheaters. But there's a lot of people who
now are saying, oh, they're going to not get rid
of the cheaters, but they're going to knock off people
like Dan and Sandy from Social Security. That I do
not believe that's going to happen. Or the people saying well,
they're going to cut back, they're not going to cut
back the amount of money. Every year we get a
cost of living increase in our so a lot of
(17:02):
people with politically, you're trying to panic people. Let's see
what happens.
Speaker 8 (17:08):
Yeah, I think you know, because so many elderly people
actually from years ago just rely on that as their
main source of income. So it makes them worry more.
And there's nothing like making an eighty year old worry
where his money he's gonna is he gonna have enough?
Speaker 5 (17:26):
Quality?
Speaker 3 (17:26):
But also but also again in this article by Sean
Murphy and The Boston Globe Today. He asks he has
questions and answers and how much misinformation is out there
about SO security? Sean writes, probably a lot. A slightly
(17:46):
panicked reader wrote to me with a link for a
nonprofit website that said SOB Security beneficiaries must verify their
identity in person or continue to continue receiving payments. Is
it true for all of us, including our recipients, the
reader asked, no, Sean wrote, I suspect that website truly
was fear mongering to boost traffic and charge more for
(18:09):
the ads itsels. I think what will happen is the fraudsters,
the professional fraudsters, are going to start calling people like
you and me and say, you know you're so scurty.
Speaker 7 (18:19):
Benefit check is in jeopardy, and if you don't give
us your SO Security number and your birthday, we won't
be able to verify that your check is coming to
you next week.
Speaker 3 (18:29):
And you know what, a lot of people will fall
for that. So I don't want people to fall for that.
If someone calls you and says they're calling from the
Social Security Office, I don't think anyone from the SO
Security Office is going to call you so please, And
this isn't for you, Sandy, but it's for everyone. If
you get one of these phone calls in which they're saying, well,
(18:51):
could you please confirm your SO security number for us,
and at that point say to them, why did you
tell me what? If you're the Social Security you must
know my social security number, tell me what you got
and they'll hang up on you. Okay. They want to
trick you. They want to say to you, Sandy, give
us your SO security number because if not, your account's
(19:11):
going to be in jeopardy. And some people will panic
and they'll go my SOI scary numbers O oh one,
O two, oh oh oh three, and then they got
your scrit.
Speaker 8 (19:20):
I'm pretty much bavvy. I'm pretty much you are.
Speaker 3 (19:23):
I'm not talking to you, Sandy. I'm talking about people.
I'm talking to people who are listening Sandy.
Speaker 8 (19:28):
Yeah, okay, that's what I'm worried about.
Speaker 3 (19:31):
Thanks, Sandy, got to run imp. We're in Connecticut. Do
you listen in, Sandy, where do you listen to?
Speaker 4 (19:37):
Oh?
Speaker 8 (19:38):
In the lovely You want to tell you where in
the lovely towne of Lebanon, which is a really rural farmsclore, No,
no businesses.
Speaker 3 (19:49):
Really, I think okay, you've called before. You know what,
you don't do a pr thing for Lebanon, Connecticut. You'll
have everybody moving there. You've called before, I believe correct.
Speaker 8 (19:59):
Yeah, I'm all right, nurse but retired.
Speaker 4 (20:02):
That's okay, good for you.
Speaker 3 (20:04):
Enjoy Thanks Andy, you pay the dues an bye bye,
bye bye. All right, Nancy and Peabody, will it long Island.
I think we'll take this to eleven. We'll switch at eleven.
But you got a call now if you want to
be on six one, seven, nine, three, one ten thirty
six one, seven, two, five, four ten thirty. We're talking
so security and I'm trying to take the temperature down.
(20:26):
Probably not the smartest thing for a talk show host
to do. Probably if I was a smarter talk show
host to be saying, you're better be concerned because they're
gonna take yourself give me a call. No, No, I
don't want my listeners to be overly concerned. I do
want you to be aware that if anybody calls and
says I'm calling from the US Social Security Office and
(20:48):
we want to confirm that you're still eligible, can you
give us your security number. Stop right there and just say, well,
if you're with SO Security, you must have my SO
security number, but't you tell me what it is. Turned
the tables on them. Back on Night Side right after this, you're.
Speaker 2 (21:08):
On Night Side with Dan Ray on Boston's news radio.
Speaker 3 (21:13):
All right, we're talking about SO Security. It's gone a
little longer than I expected, and I'd love to hear
from you if you have any questions or concerns. My
belief at this point is that that the Trump administration
would be fools if they did anything that tried to
eliminate current beneficiaries or cut the amount of money that
(21:39):
current beneficiaries are receiving. I just think it would be
incomprehensibly stupid. And they may be many adjectives you might
want to use against Elon Musk and and Doge. They're
not stupid people politically. So love to hear from you.
Let me go to Nancy in Peabody. Nancy, appreciate your patience,
(22:00):
Thanks for holding on. Next on Nightside, Nancy, go right ahead.
Speaker 9 (22:03):
Hi, Dan, Nancy hy Nancy, Hu, Hi, I'm calling the
lady that just got off the phone. She pretty much
covered what I was calling about. I have been on
Social Security disability for twenty six years, and it's my
deceased husband social security. And I'm a little shure shaped
(22:30):
up or shook up or whatever you want to call it,
because do I have to go to the Social Security
office where I've been getting for twenty six years and
I went there originally where I used to live.
Speaker 3 (22:46):
No, No, I do not believe. So if I do
not believe there's going to be any interruption of anyone's
SO security now they may do you have a Social
secure already account by any chance on the internet?
Speaker 5 (23:02):
Or no?
Speaker 9 (23:03):
No, my computer croaked.
Speaker 3 (23:06):
How long you go to your computer croak?
Speaker 9 (23:09):
Oh? Promost A year. I been sick with COVID nineteen
and now they're sailing. I have long term COVID nineteen.
Speaker 3 (23:18):
So we've done a couple of shows on long term COVID.
So the old I know, I know, and I appreciate that.
The only thing that I think you might at some
point be asked to do is you might be asked
to verify your your identity. Okay, Now there's there's a
(23:42):
couple of ways you could do that. If you were
capable of going to a SO securty office, you could
do it that way, or you can do it through
a computer by essentially uploading maybe a driver's license and all.
This is going to sound really complicated, but it's not
that complicated.
Speaker 9 (24:02):
I don't have a computer, so that's.
Speaker 3 (24:04):
What Well, hold on, let me help you out.
Speaker 9 (24:07):
Here, okay, okay me.
Speaker 3 (24:09):
What I'm looking to do is try to put your
mind at ease. Okay. Is there anyone in your family,
immediate family, extended family, neighbors that have a computer.
Speaker 9 (24:22):
No, I'm on my own. My children, My children are
out of states.
Speaker 3 (24:30):
Okay, all right, they don't you have telephone communication with them?
Speaker 9 (24:38):
I'm not looking at not right now. There's a situation,
all right, right, right?
Speaker 3 (24:43):
Right? Okay, Well, okay, do you have any mobility whereby
you could go to a Social Security office?
Speaker 9 (24:52):
Not right now. That's why I'm calling you because I'm okay,
I heard about April fourth is it fourteen? That I
heard on busy radio that you had to do something
by April fourteen. That's why I'm calling you.
Speaker 3 (25:07):
Well, Uh, you pose the situation, Nancy, where the only
thing that I could say is how about if I
drive up and pick you up and I'll drive you
to the office. Would that be okay, Yeah, yeah, I
wish I had the time I would. So you don't
have a friend in the world. How do you go
to the store. Do you go to the store or no?
Speaker 9 (25:30):
Oh no, my my sister set up at instacart for
me right now the last few months?
Speaker 3 (25:38):
Okay, have you when was the last time you were
out of your house? You're making me cross examine your nancy,
which I'm not comfortable in doing. But how do you
go to dark.
Speaker 9 (25:47):
For a couple of months? Because actually I had, I
ended up in the hospital.
Speaker 3 (25:51):
Will come Yeah? No, And I don't need the medical nance.
Nance don't need the medical home. I find. I'm trying
to help you out here. Okay. Are you in a wheelchair? Nancy?
Speaker 9 (26:02):
No?
Speaker 1 (26:02):
No?
Speaker 3 (26:03):
Are you ambulatory? Do you walk?
Speaker 5 (26:07):
I have to have.
Speaker 3 (26:10):
Yes, you could walk? Okay?
Speaker 2 (26:11):
Fine.
Speaker 3 (26:13):
Do you have a taxicab company in Peabody?
Speaker 9 (26:19):
I don't know. I've never used it.
Speaker 3 (26:22):
Do you have a telephone? Yes? You have a telephone? Right?
Do you know how to use?
Speaker 9 (26:28):
Uh?
Speaker 3 (26:29):
Do you know how to find if there's a telephone? Uh?
The easiest way if to find a telephone company in Pboty, Nancy,
would be to do you know what the number of
the police department is in.
Speaker 4 (26:39):
Pvty, Yes I do.
Speaker 3 (26:41):
Do you know the number of the Mayor's office?
Speaker 8 (26:45):
Oh?
Speaker 3 (26:46):
Yes, yes, Well you could call them and say I
need to get a ride to the Social Security Office.
Do you know where your nearest Social Security office is?
Speaker 9 (26:56):
But I can't do it right now because of the
health problems some have and with this long term COVID.
Speaker 3 (27:03):
Well, Nancy, I gotta tell you, Well, the only thing
I can tell you, Nancy, is why don't you try
to call the Social Security Office explain to them the
variety of problems that you have, and maybe they'll send
someone over up. I've run out of options for you, Nancy,
I've really.
Speaker 9 (27:18):
Are you saying Dan that you have to go?
Speaker 3 (27:23):
No, what I'm saying to you is everyone's situation is different,
and I don't have an answer for your situation. I
don't work for Social Security. However, however, you should contact
you have a telephone, call the Social Security office nearest
you and ask some of them the questions. You may
have a Social Security account that you're not even aware of, Nancy.
Speaker 9 (27:46):
Believe it or not, you can give them twenty six years.
Speaker 3 (27:50):
I understand that that's what I'm saying to you is
that you know, if you call them, they may be
able to help you out. And I think that I'm
not an oracle here, so I don't know all of
your circumstances. I was trying to figure out a way
to get you from point A to point B. Obviously
I failed miserably on that effort.
Speaker 4 (28:08):
So I think, well, I don't know.
Speaker 9 (28:10):
I know i'm interrupting, Dan, but I don't know if
PbD has the sceenior you can get a ride.
Speaker 3 (28:17):
Well, there's there's there's some things like that. That was
one of the things I was going, I.
Speaker 9 (28:21):
Can't do it now because of my head.
Speaker 3 (28:23):
I understand that because you have long COVID, I understand
that you haven't been out in two months. That is
why I said to you, please call your local security office. Okay,
I tried.
Speaker 9 (28:34):
I tried this morning. I couldn't even get through.
Speaker 4 (28:36):
Yeah, well I held on for.
Speaker 3 (28:40):
You do have time, and you can just put the
phone down and maybe you can put it on speakerphone
or whatever. So let me know how how how you
make out? Okay?
Speaker 9 (28:49):
Yeah? Oh by the way, Dan, how do you spell
your last name? Is it R E R.
Speaker 3 (28:54):
A R e A R E.
Speaker 9 (28:57):
A R E A. Okay, okay, yeah, okay, well thanks
a lot.
Speaker 4 (29:02):
Thanks I wives some good answers, and thank you.
Speaker 3 (29:06):
I tried. I tried. Thanks Nancy. Good night. Let me
keep rolling here if I can. I'm going to go
to Mary in Hyde Park. Mary your next on Nightsager,
right ahead.
Speaker 10 (29:15):
Hello, Dan, I'm highly hysterical, so I'm hoping you can
give me some suggestions. I did not get my pension.
I was a federal worker for forty four years and
I've been retired for nine years, and I always got
my pension on time. And I got a letter from
Social Security.
Speaker 5 (29:35):
Two letters.
Speaker 10 (29:36):
They enliged a print on one Swiss and identical letter.
It came on to the beginning of March, and it
said that because of the windfall, I think they called
the wind for a Relief Act. That's the one that
Joseph Biden signed on January.
Speaker 6 (29:48):
Right.
Speaker 10 (29:49):
You probably talked about that earlier. Okay, Well, I would
be receiving a check for the money from January. I
think it said of twenty twenty four through January of five,
or maybe I think it was February twenty February, so
I did receive that check. They said I'd be receiving
it towards the end of the month, but I did
receive it around March third of this month.
Speaker 3 (30:11):
It was about fuck, it was probably about five I
guessing it's about five thousand dollars.
Speaker 10 (30:16):
Yes, it was, but I did not read almost five thousand.
It was almost five thousand, but I did not receive
my regular pay check. What I have for direct deposit
is Social Security, my thrift savings plan, and.
Speaker 5 (30:32):
My pension.
Speaker 10 (30:33):
So I'm wondering did they take my pension away and
returned for that check, because I sort of don't.
Speaker 3 (30:38):
No, no, no, no, no. When does your pension check
normally arrive? What day of the month?
Speaker 10 (30:43):
March twenty six And I checked with fifteen people who
all got their checks and not me. But they all
have different things, like some people didn't have quarters and
they weren't getting Social Security, or some people were.
Speaker 3 (30:52):
For let's talk. You said you worked for the government
for forty six years.
Speaker 10 (30:58):
Yeah, I retired from the Department of House in Urban
Development on November thirtieth of two thousand and fifty.
Speaker 3 (31:03):
I would suspect and the check should have been deposited
in your bank account on March twenty sixth, correct, right.
Speaker 10 (31:11):
I'm thinking it's because the people got fired. They let
a lot of people from hut go. They lot a
lot of people from oh pm go Office of Personal Management.
They let a lot of people from the Help You Go.
Speaker 3 (31:21):
No, I don't think. So. My question to you is
does your check hit your bank account on the twenty
sixth or do you do you receive a copy of
the check? Okay, So what.
Speaker 10 (31:32):
I would do is, first, all I know is that
I checked. I checked with my bank, and that's how
I do it. I check the automated system, and it
never hit the automative system. So I gave it until
today when I talked to a live person and they said, no,
it never came in.
Speaker 3 (31:45):
Okay, did you talk to the bank today?
Speaker 5 (31:49):
Yes?
Speaker 11 (31:50):
Today? I called them first thing this morning.
Speaker 3 (31:52):
Which which one's your bank?
Speaker 10 (31:54):
Transportation Federal Credit Union, which is located in Alexandria, Virginia,
but they have a branch here at Kimball Square, so
I called the main office.
Speaker 3 (32:02):
What I'm saying is system, these these are unrelated. The
social Security was a makeup and you should be getting
then a note of five thousand dollars a month from
soci Security. There should have been in that letter. They
should have told you that you're going to get maybe
a check of seven hundred dollars in April.
Speaker 10 (32:21):
Starting to get a lot more. I was only getting
twenty five dollars a month from Social Security because again
that you got.
Speaker 3 (32:27):
Taken care of the terms of all your fit. If
you listen to me, I can help you. The fact
that your federal pension check did not hit your bank
account when it should, that is unrelated. That has to
be a glitch in the system. I can't help you there.
I would suggest you ask your bank to see if
(32:49):
they I mean they're in they have an interest in
this too. If they're able to send a message back
and get an answer for you. Your bank should be able,
your or your credit union should be able to do
a little work for you on this.
Speaker 4 (33:05):
And I would suggest they didn't do that.
Speaker 3 (33:08):
I don't so many people don't. Just a suggestion and
do me a favor, call me back and let me
know how you make out. But I think you're going
to be just fine.
Speaker 11 (33:15):
Okay, okay.
Speaker 10 (33:16):
I'm also going to go to the Social Security rally
that they have and tomorrow. That masking reaction is putting on.
Speaker 3 (33:22):
I think it'd be better to spend your time tomorrow
working to solve your problem of today.
Speaker 10 (33:29):
The Congressman Markey and the Congressman Warren, your favorite person.
I did send out two emails to them good luck.
Nobody ever answers me.
Speaker 5 (33:38):
I tried, good luck, good luck.
Speaker 3 (33:44):
I gotta go. I gave you the best advice I
would work on it. Okay, thanks, We'll be right back
on night Side.
Speaker 2 (33:53):
You're on night Side with Dan Ray on Boston's news radio.
Speaker 3 (33:59):
But go to my friend will Don in Long Island.
Will I get three behind you here? Help me out
where you go? Ahead?
Speaker 11 (34:04):
Will all right?
Speaker 4 (34:05):
Dan?
Speaker 12 (34:06):
Well, I'll tell you I really think you should be
considered for saying to it. I would definitely, you know,
not that I have any poll with the church, but
I think that they should because I have certainly not
just your kindness and benevolence and that stuff, but like
I've at least heard you at least probably performed two
or three miracles because I've been listening to the.
Speaker 5 (34:23):
Past this year.
Speaker 3 (34:25):
You're the best.
Speaker 1 (34:27):
You get through it.
Speaker 12 (34:28):
You get through it somehow. And I got to say,
people my age generation X almost millennial, have always been
concerned about the existence of the Social Security program for
us that have been paying into it, and a much
larger generation on top of us who obviously also paid
into it, and a lot of them for years and decades, right,
(34:50):
and then obviously a large group of those people are
going to be the beneficiaries of it. And there's always
been talk for decades at this point whether that program
would exist, the retirement age would be pushed back further.
Speaker 4 (35:02):
So someone like me has the way that least.
Speaker 12 (35:04):
You know, seventeen eighteen years or longer, depending.
Speaker 3 (35:07):
On how old do you know, well, fifty one, how
old are.
Speaker 12 (35:09):
You, forty eight, forty Okay, we'd be looking at you know,
possibly you know, the sixty five. If you push it
to seventy, obvises a lot more.
Speaker 8 (35:18):
But yeah, I don't think.
Speaker 3 (35:20):
I don't think realistically they'll push it to seventy. I
think it'll go up incrementally and if if, if, those
is successful and they are able to eliminate waste, and
I want I won't believe it till I see it. Okay,
that's gonna maybe uh stop, slow down or maybe even
reverse this increased in retirement age.
Speaker 12 (35:44):
Yeah, well, let's and that's why I think people my
age are looking at this as a good thing, because
you have to realize there are sixty nine million people
that receive Social Security checks every month to the tune
of one point six trillion dollars per year. Right, yeah, So,
and they did find social Security numbers, not checks, with
social Security numbers issued to two million illegals.
Speaker 4 (36:05):
Usually illegals get what we.
Speaker 12 (36:06):
Go on it in identification numbers so that they could,
you know, pay taxes or whatever or actually they usually
to actually get refunds actually for the child tax credits.
I won't get into that. But they found two million
social Security numbers issued to these people that were using
it for Medicare and everything else. So, just like every
government program, there's going to be fraud. Right, So if
(36:28):
they it hasn't been looked at in a long time,
nobody actually wanted to do the work of looking at it,
auditing it, finding out where the money's going. Is their
misinformation sure coming from both sides? Sure are they saying
that people are dead getting Social Security checks?
Speaker 5 (36:43):
Of course there are.
Speaker 12 (36:44):
Dead people getting Social Security checks and people committing fraud
to what extent we don't know. But just like the
debt conversation, you and I had and I'm not the
biggest the ceiling is falling debt guy, But I also
believe in turning the needle back, going.
Speaker 4 (36:57):
The right way.
Speaker 3 (36:59):
Right to do it with all of these programs, all right,
thirty seven trillion, I don't want to see it at
thirty eight or thirty nine. Absolutely will.
Speaker 4 (37:08):
I don't mind.
Speaker 12 (37:08):
I don't say you got a cut in half tomorrow,
but I do understand the idea of turning the needle
back the right way and heading in the right direction,
which you can start with a balanced budget and work backwards,
you know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (37:19):
Well, thank you, thank you for your kind comments, thank
you for your alacrity. Tonight you hit it. You hit
a thousand points and you're absolutely right. That's exactly what
we hope will happen. And thank you very much for
listening to my show and participating. It was a great call.
Speaker 2 (37:33):
Thank love it, love it.
Speaker 3 (37:35):
Talk to you later, man. Okay, Okay, gonna hustle everybody.
Let's go to Tony and Natick. Tony, I got three
more behind you. Can you be quick. I'd like to
change topics at eleven.
Speaker 12 (37:44):
Go ahead, Tony, that's all right.
Speaker 13 (37:46):
I just was gonna I reiterate everything Will said just now.
And I did kind of yell myself, Horse, I did
want to put out the Nancy from Peabody. Yes, it's
okay that maybe she should Peabody should have some senior
or aging counsel.
Speaker 3 (38:03):
Oh yeah, probably absolutely.
Speaker 13 (38:05):
And I know she has long COVID, so she probably
has like a home help date or something like that.
Speaker 12 (38:10):
So the agency said that it could probably also help
her get the ball.
Speaker 3 (38:16):
I was just, you know, I was it was so frustrating, Tony,
because I'm trying to give her some ideas and some
kind you know, and I mean we all have to
kind of do something for ourselves a little bit, you know,
with I mean, the government is not going to send
so securty people to my house to to help me
or whatever. I mean, I got to have some initiative.
(38:36):
And I just was trying to help Nancy. I mean,
I'm serious, you know.
Speaker 5 (38:42):
That's what you do.
Speaker 13 (38:44):
Yes, And I I deal sort of with that population too,
so I understand that it is it is from.
Speaker 3 (38:50):
That's that's there's another good suggestion for Nancy if she's
still listening, listening, and I hope she is.
Speaker 13 (38:57):
Nancy Senior services in Peabody.
Speaker 12 (39:00):
Write it down.
Speaker 3 (39:01):
Okay, sounds great, Tony, thank you. That's what Night Side's
all about. People helping people. Thank you. Have a good night.
By bye. All right, let me get real quickly here,
got to go Michael in Boston, Michael, I got to
get a couple more behind you.
Speaker 6 (39:13):
Go ahead, Michael, Okay, okay, fast, and first of all,
forgive me for asking, but I'm in and out of
the room here. Maybe I missed it, but I'm just
wondering why you didn't have a knowing the way you
usually conduct the show. A representative from Social Security on
(39:34):
tonight so we could ask questions of them.
Speaker 1 (39:38):
Did I miss well?
Speaker 3 (39:39):
Too? Well, you didn't listen to the beginning I had scheduled.
I'm Jim Roosevelt, who happens to be the grandson of
Franklin Roosevelt, the president that signed to SO Scurty. No
one knows more about so Scurity than Jim. He's going
to join us tomorrow night at nine o'clock. He was
stuck on the train today at a train that had
broken down. I'm not going to tell you where or what,
(40:00):
but he was scheduled. I miss the Okay, yep, so what.
Speaker 6 (40:03):
Else you got to get your opinion? I do taxes
for myself and another person, a friend of mine, and
he took early retirement at sixty two plus, and he
was happy with that. He did that for various reasons.
But since then he's gone back to work part time,
so he has a small salary. And when I did
(40:25):
his taxes this year, I noticed that of that twenty
thousand dollars that he made in wages on a W two,
they took out one thousand dollars in social Security. Does
that sound right to you? Yes, he's already done it.
Speaker 3 (40:39):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely, because look I'm still working at the pool.
I'm on Social Security. I'm still working. I pay Social
Security and I pay Medicare twice a month.
Speaker 6 (40:50):
Okay, So there's no way you're going to see that again.
It's going in the pool for other people.
Speaker 3 (40:56):
He's like, it depends upon how I live. Can you
tell me when I'm going to die?
Speaker 6 (41:01):
No, you'll get social Security for your life?
Speaker 3 (41:04):
Well right, yeah, for my life. Yes, that's correct. If
I if I live to one hundred, I might make
out a big time. If I live to well, you know,
you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 6 (41:14):
What they're taking out now additional Dan when you were
as you're working, you will not see they won't bump
up your current social security. It'll stay the same until
you die.
Speaker 3 (41:26):
Uh. I think you're right on that. I think you're right.
Speaker 11 (41:30):
Well that is me.
Speaker 6 (41:32):
So we got to call security and ask okay, all right,
thank you much.
Speaker 1 (41:36):
I want to be sure. I want to be sure.
Speaker 3 (41:39):
Okay, me too, Thanks Michael. What do we get left here? Rob?
Thirty seconds? Okay, Michael and Addleborough Carl in New York,
stay there if you want. I will get you both
on and then we're going to go to another topic,
which is which I think a lot of my Trump
supporters are going to be upset with me about. Maybe
I'll be surprised. We'll be back on night Side.
Speaker 6 (42:01):
It's nice.
Speaker 2 (42:03):
I'm Boston's news radio.
Speaker 3 (42:06):
I just want to clarify one thing that I said
last hour, towards the end of last hours, kind of
a rushed phone call. I think with Michael from Boston.
Your social Security benefits are based upon your average earnings
over thirty five years. Now, some people don't work thirty
five years, but if you do have a long career
(42:30):
and I've worked, earned money over a long period of time,
longer than perhaps I want to acknowledge here on the program.
But the point is that there are ways to calculate
your earnings and you can go check it out. So
(42:51):
if you are still working after having retired and you're
taking a Social Security check and then you go back
to work, if you're working part time, as Michael suggested
his film, was working, it's probably not a not going
to make much of a difference. But I can tell
you that I'm working full time, and so my so
(43:13):
scurity benefits have gone up a little bit because again
averaging over my top thirty five years, it's helped me
a little bit. But there's also a cap on it.
So no matter how much you earn, there's a cap.
So even though if you have somebody who has earned,
you know, a huge salary, theres so security is going
(43:37):
to be capped. I mean, you're not going to have
people making if let's say they averaged a million dollars
for thirty five years. You know, say they were a
movie star or a singer, or a professional athlete who
then went into coaching and you know, had a long
(43:57):
career and they averaged a million dollars a year. They're
not going to get a million dollars a year in
social Security benefits. So there's all sorts of calculations and formulas,
and you're invited to just you know, just go to
the Social Security website and there are benefit calculations calculators
that are available. A right back to the calls, we go.
(44:19):
Next up Carl and New York. Carl next on Nightsager, right.
Speaker 1 (44:21):
Ahead, Yeah, how you doing.
Speaker 14 (44:25):
I was listening to you talking about the social Security thing.
I'm retired, so I have a lot of time to
do some research. And it looks to me like the
only people they want to go in are new cases
or if you're changing your banking information because they're no
longer going to do better with the phone around.
Speaker 3 (44:40):
Yeah, right, And I think that even in that case,
they can make exceptions. If someone is changing their banking information,
they can they can make exceptions. And obviously, let us say,
you know, you you want to avoid having to go in,
and let's assume you decide you want to change your
bank from Bank A to Bank B. Well, you could
(45:02):
leave your account that could receive the benefits on a
monthly basis at Bank A, and then you could just
you know, every month transfer it over, you know, to
to B so you know you there. There are ways
to work around it. But if you have to go in,
you have to go in because.
Speaker 14 (45:24):
Our local our local office here now you can't just
walk in anymore.
Speaker 1 (45:29):
You got to have an appointment, yep.
Speaker 3 (45:32):
And how difficult is it to get an appointment from
your experience.
Speaker 14 (45:35):
Well, they're a week out mhm when you go when
you go in, because I have that and there and
people that are getting like us to science social security
and stuff like that, people that are working a little
and you have to tage, you have to put.
Speaker 1 (45:51):
On like you make in. They're no longer doing that
online either.
Speaker 3 (45:57):
Okay, so you got to go in the other So you're.
Speaker 14 (46:00):
So from now on, if you're going to turn in
pace ups or whatever, you've got to go to the office.
Speaker 3 (46:05):
Okay. And how how you're in New York, I'm not
sure whereabouts in New York you are. How closest do
you have a soci Security They are closing some social
security buildings and offices around the country. That is also
in the article that I have in the Globe today.
And just to give you a sense of it, they
are closing. Social Security managers plan to layoff seven thousand,
(46:32):
fifty seven thousand employees, so that's about twelve percent of
the workforce.
Speaker 14 (46:37):
And to close that's probably that's probably why there were
a week out already.
Speaker 3 (46:42):
Yeah, and to close six of ten regional offices and
regional offices and four hundred and eighty of its offices
forty percent. So my question is how close is you
your SO Security office to you wherever you are in
New York? Is it ten miles away, one hundred miles away,
(47:04):
how far is it?
Speaker 1 (47:06):
I'm probably five or six miles.
Speaker 3 (47:08):
Yeah, Okay, So hopefully they'll be squad and they're not
going to say, well, we're going to eliminate every office
in you know, the state.
Speaker 1 (47:16):
I hope they I hope they don't.
Speaker 14 (47:18):
I hope they don't, because they just they just built
a brand new building. They took they took they took
our all local office out of a downtown area and
moved it to like a suburban area, which really hurts
a lot of people around here, especially our seniors and
stuff getting transportations.
Speaker 1 (47:38):
To go all the way up there. You know what
I mean.
Speaker 14 (47:40):
People are people are not very happy that that they
actually moved.
Speaker 3 (47:46):
But well, everybody, you know, everybody wants everything next door
to them. I get that. I certainly do understand that,
and particularly you know, senior citizens, but hopefully myself.
Speaker 1 (47:57):
I don't have a I don't have a car. I
have to use buses.
Speaker 14 (48:00):
That's instead of taking one bus to the to the
place now and now it's two.
Speaker 3 (48:06):
Are you a senior citizen at this point or no?
Speaker 1 (48:08):
Yes, I am on sixty five.
Speaker 3 (48:10):
So we have back here. We have something called the ride.
I don't know if you have anything like that where
you know, seniors can it can get rides, you know,
free of charge or for a nominal fee. They'll pick
you up and they'll drive your door to door.
Speaker 1 (48:28):
Yeah, I just do.
Speaker 14 (48:30):
But it's better weather out now, so it's not going
to really bother me.
Speaker 1 (48:35):
You know what I mean. And I do get transportation
locally for my doctor's appointment.
Speaker 14 (48:41):
The VA is all the way in Albany, ten fifteen
miles away.
Speaker 1 (48:45):
So I get transportation to there.
Speaker 3 (48:48):
Okay, sounds great, sounds great. Thanks for the update. It's
always great to hear from folks in different parts of
the country. Carl, Thank you.
Speaker 1 (48:54):
All right, by my talk to you soon.
Speaker 3 (48:55):
Let me get one more in here before the break,
going to go to Michael and Attleborough. Michael next on Nightsiger.
Speaker 4 (49:00):
Right ahead, again, how are you.
Speaker 3 (49:02):
I'm doing great, hope you're doing well.
Speaker 11 (49:04):
Yeah, yeah, I am.
Speaker 6 (49:08):
My wife worked for the state for close to forty years.
Speaker 4 (49:12):
She just passed.
Speaker 11 (49:13):
But that, okay, I'm not entitled to a pension because
she didn't because we weren't married while she was working there.
Speaker 3 (49:29):
Okay.
Speaker 14 (49:31):
And however, Mara Haley.
Speaker 3 (49:36):
We don't have common law marriage and mass.
Speaker 11 (49:40):
However, mar Haley, if the gay, if the gay and
you can, you're a.
Speaker 14 (49:44):
Common law marriage in another state, You're entitled to the
other person's pension.
Speaker 3 (49:51):
Okay. Again, that's that's getting into some some areas that
would open up a huge can of worms tonight. And
I've at this late.
Speaker 4 (49:58):
In the hour out Okay.
Speaker 11 (49:59):
The other is I am going to call on tomorrow
night because what I didn't realize is social Security separate.
Speaker 14 (50:04):
I called them and they said I'm not entitled so
bad either, but that is a separate thing.
Speaker 11 (50:09):
So I'm gonna call tomorrow night and see what they
have to say about it.
Speaker 3 (50:13):
Okay. So what is your Your question is can your can?
Your can you receive the Social Security.
Speaker 12 (50:25):
From your Yeah, I already get Social I already get
Social but like someone has said to me, it's her money.
She worked for it.
Speaker 3 (50:35):
Yeah, okay, well, yeah, we'll try the other thing that
you can do tomorrow is try to call the Social
Security Office and explain the situation. You know, I mean,
I don't.
Speaker 4 (50:43):
Know that I did.
Speaker 6 (50:44):
They said they said I wasn't entitled.
Speaker 3 (50:46):
Okay, Well, if they said you weren't entitled, Jim Roosevelt
might give you that same same answer. But feel free
to give it a shot tomorrow night. Okay, thanks, Michael.
Speaker 4 (50:55):
Appreciate, Thank you.
Speaker 3 (50:56):
Bye, I have a great night. Okay, We're gonna take
a quick break. That wraps it up in so security conversation. Again.
I try to try to help as many people as
we can here. But we're going to now switch to
another topic. And this is one that some of you
might be surprised by, and that is that I don't
quite understand what the Trump administration is doing in terms
(51:23):
of resting people on the streets with ice officers. Plain closed.
I'm speaking specifically about the arrest of the Toughts graduate
student that occurred last week, and I want to explain
it and whether you agree or disagree, I'd love to
(51:45):
have you joined the conversation back on Nightside right after
this quick break
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