The Truth About Social Security

Ok, so I know it's been a long time since I've said anything and I know you're all dying to know what's going on in my life (ha ha), but for the most part this entry will be nothing but a long ranting spell about the American Social Security System. So if you are waiting for me to tell you exactly what's going on in my life, that might take another month. Or maybe this entry will all include all the things going on in my life, I have decided yet. It's kinda like this blog; a little bit of this, a little bit of that, but in the end it all comes down to the same truth: life sux and then you die, fuck the world, let's go get high...

I heard that saying years ago when I was in High School. Back then I believed that if I could just sign up for social security, then everything would be perfect. Truthfully, I believed that until Tuesday, March 13, at about 1:30 in the afternoon. But let's go back a few steps and see how I got here...

Two years ago my parents and I finally decided that I should probably try to get social security disability because I probably won't be able to get a job any time soon. I applied in PA once, was denied, once in Maryland, and was denied, and finally once again in PA, and was denied. But the good thing is that after you go through the emotional roller coaster that is applying three times you get to actually go before a judge a say "look, just because my disease is not on your list of diseases that will cause me to not be able to work (there aren't many diseases that are on that list) doesn't mean that I'm not disabled." And the judge gets to look at all your work history and doctors reports and decide if you truly are disabled. Then after all that you get to go to about a thousand different meetings and get sent piles of paper work only to learn that the 30,000 some odd dollars that your lawyer said you were going to get in back money (because you believe her right because she's the lawyer and she's done this a thousand times before) is actually going to be somewhere around 3,000, and the house you thought you might be getting goes away where all your other dreams have gone: down the tubes.

By the way, back money is the government's way of saying "we're sorry, we didn't know that you were telling the truth two years ago when you said you were disabled, so now we are going to pay you back the money you should have been getting if you had been accepted like you should have been." And you get all the total amount of money that's each month's pay times the number of months that you didn't get social security when you should have.

That's the way it's supposed to work anyway. But then you find out that they get to take some money away for your lawyer, and because: you lived with your parents, they gave you money, heaven forbid you had more then 2,000 dollars in your bank account at some point during the time the government should have been paying you, but if you did, they don't count that month. That's right ladies and gentleman: a person on disability is not allowed to have more then 2,000 dollars in any bank account at any one time. You are not allowed to save for such things as a car, a house, a wedding.. you get the picture. So you have to cheat the system and get your parents or someone else who has a bank account to put some of your money away for you so that you may be able to save up for some of those things that are all part of the American dream. I guess disabled people aren't allowed to dream.

Sigh...I'm sorry...I'm just very depressed, and very angry. I can't get over this and I'm not sure I will any time fast. So let us be away children so we can contemplate all that we have learned today. And remember: this entry has been sponsored by the letter S, for social, security, and suck it. Until next time!