The founder of the tea party calls Tom Friedman and idiot

This is a classic piece of video brought to you by the daily caller via powerline. CNBC’s Rick Santelli  Faced off against New York Times columnist Tom Friedman on the subject of whether or not Social Security is a Ponzi scheme. It is of course. A Ponzi scheme is when future investors pay the returns of past investors. By itself it is unsustainable, and that is social security. Tom loses the argument which, as with all arguments with liberals, descends into name calling.

The kick off point of course is the Republican debate where Gov Rick Perry won’t back down on calling the sustainability of social security a ponzi scheme. Tom”if only we could be China for a day” Friedman won’t back down either and it’s off to the races. Awesome.

Says Scott Johnson at Powerline:

Is Social Security something of a Ponzi scheme? It seems to me to partake of its essential elements, requiring new “investors” to pay off previous “investors.” The trappings of the program are sufficiently misleading that they would land principals operating in the private sector in serious trouble. Thanks to a variety of material misrepresentations, as John recently noted, many Americans still believe that the government maintains an “account” in their name holding assets; some even think that their “account” contains their own contributions, carefully set aside for their retirement by Franklin Roosevelt or his successors.

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Jim Vicevich

Jim is a veteran broadcaster and conservative/libertarian blogger with more than 25 years experience in TV and radio. Jim's was the long-term host of The Jim Vicevich Show on WTIC 1080 in Hartford from 2004 through 2019. Prior to radio, Jim worked as a business and financial reporter for NBC30 - the NBC owned TV station in Hartford - and as business editor at WFSB-TV in Hartford for 14 years while earning six Emmy nominations and three Telly Awards.

13 Comments

  1. winnie on September 9, 2011 at 9:31 am

    Friedman is such a pompous ass.? And unjustifiably upbeat about the subject matter.? Can’t stand him.



  2. Dimsdale on September 9, 2011 at 10:52 am

    Friedman said SS “made promises it can’t keep in full”p, and “burdens our children”.? He dismisses the allegation of being a Ponzi scheme nonsense because it is “a criminal endeavor”.
    ?
    As winnie notes, pompous ass covers it nicely.? He doesn’t want to admit the truth.? I am grateful to Perry for standing firm on his convictions.
    ?
    The only difference between a Ponzi scheme and Social Security is that the latter is government approved.?? Just like the lottery or Keno:? the only difference between that and the bookie down the street is that the government declared their version legal.
    ?
    Don’t get me started on taxes and protection money!? 😉



  3. Dimsdale on September 9, 2011 at 1:15 pm

    Why is Friedman called in as an alleged expert on this anyway?



  4. Plainvillian on September 9, 2011 at 3:16 pm

    Friedman is a nattering nabob of nonsense whose only value is that he offers a model of what animates the radical left.



  5. essneff on September 9, 2011 at 10:00 pm

    “if only we could be China ah, ah, ah for just a day” Friedman is an arrogant stuffed shirt?elitist..?Whoops, I digress….. SS is the ultimate Ponzi scheme, the gold standard of Ponzi schemes…. do a simple graph depicitng the number of workers?needed to support receipients from say 1950 with 5 year increments leading to 2011…… it forms a perfect pyramid as in pyramid scheme aka Ponzi scheme…. Bernie Madoff?would be proud!?



  6. phil on September 10, 2011 at 8:15 am

    Why not appoint Bernie Madoff Social Security ‘czar’?? What say, Bobo?



    • Lynn on September 11, 2011 at 5:43 pm

      Phil. LOL, what a perfect SS czar, and BOBO! You made my day! Thanks



  7. sammy22 on September 10, 2011 at 6:44 pm

    Just remember, little cuties, to keep paying into SS for me.



  8. Anybody but Obama on September 10, 2011 at 7:44 pm

    Sammy you know my dad said ?the same thing when you were working.



    • Dimsdale on September 11, 2011 at 9:19 am

      Now we are saying it to our great grandchildren…



    • Dimsdale on September 16, 2011 at 10:27 am

      Excuse me, SAMMY is saying it to our great grandchildren.



  9. Anybody but Obama on September 11, 2011 at 11:45 am

    Now I know why they have the obamacare death panels, withhold treatment for the elderly, they die and no more SS payouts.



  10. Lynn on September 11, 2011 at 5:45 pm

    ABO and now you’ve got it. Tragic isn’t it?



friedman

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