Senior citizens get ripped off

Senior citizens get ripped off

My compliments to Jerry Monkarsh for his letter in the Jan. 16 Acorn: "Stop helping the rich and start to help senior citizens."

My wife and I suffer this problem along with many other seniors in our community. Thanks to former President Bill Clinton, who raised the limit [on percentage of Social Security benefits taxed] from 50 percent to 85 percent in 1993.

We seniors worked all our lives, paid into Social Security during all those years only to give 33 percent of our Social Security payment to the U.S. Treasury. This is a grossly unfair tax on our meager income and should be abolished.

I have written our former U.S. Rep. Brad Sherman, our new Rep. Henry Waxman, as well as both of our senators, Feinstein and Boxer. The usual response, if any, is: "Thank you for your letter. I will keep your views in mind." The so-called supporting organizations, i.e. AARP, Senior Coalition and 60 Plus, all provide us seniors with a lot of rhetoric regarding their stand on this tax code and request that we send them $10 or whatever, so they can further address this situation.

What is needed is that all of us seniors should inundate Congress, the Senate and administration with letters, e-mail, etc. voicing our feelings regarding this taxation.

Harry J. Heilbroner

Westlake Village