The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: http://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/674959
D-6 Home Life Wednesday, May 4, 2016 The Press-Dispatch Sweet's Column by Barbara Sweet The Resurgent Library by Bart Stinson Social Security HOLIDAYS THIS WEEK May 4 Star Wars Day May 5 Cinco de Mayo May 6 Military Spouses Day May 7 National Tourism Day May 8 Mother's Day May 9 Lost Sock Memorial Day May 10 Clean Up Your Room Day Source: HolidayInsights.com See SWEET'S on page 7 FARM Down on the WHEAT CROP PROGRESS REPORT By Hans Schmitz Extension Educator Gibson County Purdue Extension As of Monday last week, Indiana had 11 percent of the corn crop planted and two percent of the soybean crop. With wet weather through most of late last week, those numbers will likely not ex- pand too sig- nificantly for the May 2 report. Gibson County does have the ad- vantage of beginning a lit- tle earlier in the year than the cold north of the state, and our numbers need to be adjusted upward ac- cordingly. Likewise, win- ter wheat progress diverg- es from the state average progress, with all the wheat in this area jointed and a significant portion in the process of heading out, the crop stage known as boot or Feekes 10. The stems emerging will con- tain the reproductive por- tion of the plant, the flow- ers, anthers and seed. Those stems are begin- ning to poke their "heads" above the leafy portion of the crop. This growth stage has some rather sig- nificant implications to be considered in the near fu- ture. The first implication is that the emergence of the stem makes the wheat crop a lot more suscepti- ble to environmental dam- age. Wildlife, machin- ery, or hail that traipses through a field after the boot stage causes irrep- arable damage to plants. Therefore, rescue treat- ments for fertility or pest issues have to be more carefully considered in relation to the yield loss that will occur under a tractor tire. As has been reported in the Purdue Pest and Crop Newsletter the past two weeks, dis- ease pressure has been spotted in southern In- diana. Findings have in- cluded stripe rust, a fun- gal pathogen that has the potential to be controlled with a fungicide possibly recommended based on the extent of the disease compared with damage caused by spray equip- ment traversing the field. Most of the other diseas- es spotted have been vi- ral in nature. Each indi- vidual virus is difficult to identify without laborato- ry testing, and farmers finding damage indicative of a virus are encouraged to submit a few sample plants to Purdue for test- ing. Unfortu- nately, there are no treatment op- tions for viral presence, but some more re- sistant varieties can be found on the market and used in those fields in the future. Another action to be taken now is active moni- toring for the potential in- fection of fusarium head scab. In years where head scab is prevalent, not on- ly is yield affected, but al- so grain that is harvest- ed can be of low enough quality to be rejected by grain elevators. From now through the flowering pe- riod for wheat, farmers or their consultants need to access http://www. wheatscab.psu.edu/ fre- quently to assess the risk for infection by this fun- gus. In addition, the dis- ease is more widespread when wet conditions ex- ist through flowering and grain fill. The mod- el referenced above may not have perfect accura- cy, so weather forecasts and other factors should be considered when con- templating action. Where concern for infection is high, fungicide timing should line up with the early flowering period for the wheat crop. Bloom can occur in as little as four days after the heading of the crop completes, and the pollination period for a single wheat plant lasts around four days. There- fore, the window for most effective fusarium head blight control is a very small time frame, but that time is upon us. The next week to two weeks will be critical for those farmers that plant wheat as they make decisions on whether to spray a fungi- cide to protect their crop. For more information on wheat or wheat disease, contact Hans Schmitz at hschmitz@purdue.edu or 812-385 -3491, ext. 103. Keep an eye out for head scab on grain as shown here. Purdue Extension photo. I am a Baby Boomer. I watched Social Security rescue my grandparents from certain poverty, no doubt about that. The Social Security Act was passed by New Deal legislators and signed by Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1935. It's con- sidered irresponsible bombast to call Social Security a "Ponzi scheme," but the similarities are undeniable. It works out well for people who got in early, but can be a really bad deal for latecomers. If you claimed Social Security in 1940, you had 159.4 workers contribut- ing to your support. It wasn't a signifi- cant burden for younger workers to pay for your retirement. Demographics and attrition - due to shorter life spans - fa- vored the Social Security scheme. But it couldn't last. By 1950, there were 16.5 workers paying into the sys- tem for each Social Security retiree. In 1960, only 5.1 workers carried each re- tiree. The most recent numbers I've seen are from 2013. It was the fourth consecutive year that the ratio was be- low 3-to-1. Only 2.8 active workers sup- ported each Social Security retiree. It has become burdensome for young workers. Mandatory Social Security "contributions" are often higher than the federal income tax. Many low-in- come workers eventually receive much of their withheld federal income tax re- funded back to them, but they never get their Social Security "contributions" re- funded. It's a regressive tax on the work- ing poor. Who avoids the Social Security con- tribution? People who don't work, or who work in the underground economy (under the table). And people who take disability while they're still of working age. You only have to pay if you work. Disability is a growth industry now- adays. Applications for Social Security Disability have increased by 28 percent over the past decade. Yet it's no slam dunk. Only 32 percent of applicants were awarded Social Security disabil- ity payments last year. The number of Americans and res- ident aliens receiving Social Securi- ty Disability Insurance (SSDI) has in- creased by 58 percent so far this cen- tury. Social Security administrators tell us that's because of the aging of the Baby Boomers. But a 43-page National Bu- reau of Economic Research (NPER) report says only 13 percent of recent growth resulted from an aging male population, and only four percent from an aging female population. Relaxed medical criteria account for 45 percent of the men's increase and 36 percent of the women's increase, according to NPER. President Obama didn't do it! The Social Security Disability Benefits Re- form Act was passed unanimously by Congress and signed by President Rea- gan in 1984. It mandated looser mental illness screening and obligated the gov- ernment to accept applicants' self-de- scription as to physical pain or mental distress. The government's direct eval- uation of medical evidence was replaced by the findings of the applicants' own physicians, thus creating an entrepre- neurial opportunity for physicians and chiropractors who advocate for approv- als. The number of disability awards for conditions that are objectively diag- nosed – stroke, heart attack, cancer, etc. – has remained rela- tively constant, according to a Brookings Institution report. But the number of awards for subjectively re- ported musculoskeletal pain and mental disorders has exploded. The second greatest driv- er of disability applications is the increasing value of awards. For low-income workers, the disability awards com- prise a larger proportion of earned in- come than for high-income workers. During each of the three most recent recessions, disability claims spiked as employment declined. Disability, ac- cording to Forbes magazine, has re- placed welfare. A disability award automatically qual- ifies the applicant for Medicare. Thus a permanent disability pension is much more valuable than temporary unem- ployment insurance that requires the applicant to seek re-employment, with- out any certainty of medical coverage. Once you obtain a Social Securi- ty disability pension, though, you may need to guard against losing it. The So- cial Security Administration terminated the benefits of 817,045 recipients (8.62 percent) last year. If disability becomes your job, you had better be good at it. The widespread abuse of Social Se- curity disability might stir some re- sentment among fiscal conservatives, or among legitimately disabled Amer- icans who see apparently able-bodied applicants depleting what was intend- ed for people unable to work. But retired economist Allen W. Smith, author of The Trust Fund, saves his out- rage for the rich. He subtitles his book "Using Social Security Money to Fund Tax Cuts for the Rich." We've received three copies of his book and when we're done cataloging them, there will be one in each of our library branches. Smith was educat- ed at Ball State and Indiana Universi- ty, and spent most of his career as an economics professor at Eastern Illinois University. I am intrigued by his idea of funding tax cuts for the rich. Expenditures re- quire funding but how, exactly, do you fund a cut? Do we really have to fund letting people keep their own property? I'm pretty sure what's really happening is that we fund expenditures that don't get reduced along with the taxes. Smith's focus is on our pillage of the fictional "Social Security trust fund" to buy what we can't afford because our taxes aren't high enough. This is a much bigger problem than disability abuse. It dwarfs even the national debt. According to www.usDebtClock.org, which cites the Federal Reserve as its source, our national debt is roughly $19.3 trillion. But our total unfunded lia- bilities (Social Security, Medicare parts A, B and D, federal debt held by the pub- lic, federal pensions and veterans' ben- efits) are close to $102 trillion. That's about $ 853,000 per taxpayer. Everybody understands how the na- tional debt got so big: we spent more than we took in. But why do we have a problem with Social Security? Hasn't the government been deducting large "contributions" from our paychecks to fund it? Yes, but we've co-mingled our Social Se- curity money with the gen- eral fund. We've "robbed Peter to pay Paul." If a trusted person us- es your money to pay for his stuff, or for his friends' stuff, we can call it embez- zlement, we can call it mis- appropriation, or we can just call it stealing. When the government uses somebody else's Social Security contributions for our benefit, though, we rarely call it steal- ing. We make peace with it. Didn't we pay into the Social Security trust fund? Well then, it's our money, right? But former Sen. Tom Coburn, of Okla- homa, calls it stealing. "Congresses un- der both Republican and Democrat con- trol, both Republican and Democrat presidents, have stolen money from So- cial Security and spent it," Coburn said on the Senate floor. "The money's gone. It's been used for a different purpose." And Smith calls it embezzlement – of $2.7 trillion from the Social Securi- ty trust fund. Will there be anything left of Social Security when the current workers mature, or will they be left holding the bag? A better question may be whether there's anything left right now. "It's not like there's any money in Social Security or Medicare," former House Speaker John Boehner said on one of the Sunday morning talk shows. "The government, over the last 30 years, has spent it all." "There are no stocks or bonds or re- al estate in the trust fund," General Ac- counting Office Comptroller General David Walker reported 11 years ago, the last time public officials dared to talk about Social Security policy. "It has nothing of real value to draw down." "There is no trust fund," writes San Diego State University professor Mario Garrett. The special bonds created to bail out Social Security for Baby Boom- ers "cannot be sold, bought, exchanged or bartered; they are not bonds; there is no accrued interest, and there are no plans for Congress to ever repay the 'special' bonds." "There is no (Social Security) trust fund," former President George W. Bush warned in a 2005 speech, "just IOU's … that future generations will pay, either in higher taxes, or reduced benefits, or cuts to other critical govern- ment programs." And this is probably the most disturb- ing outcome of dumping mountainous debt on future generations – not that they'll have to pay high taxes or that slackers will take advantage of work- ers, but that we will deprive our grand- children of the capacity for self-govern- ment. Schools and hospitals will go unbuilt, police and firefighters will go unhired, potholes and bridges will go unrepaired, borders and allies will go undefended, because our grandchildren have a pri- or obligation to pay for OUR stuff. The fruits of their labor are already spoken for. We have forged their signatures to our own obligations. It's nothing less than identity theft on a vast scale. Hi stars and welcome to this big stage all lit up in colorful lights and decorated to help celebrate with all our stars who will have a birthday or an- niversary in the week of May 5 to 11. Don't be too shy and come on up onto this big stage and take a bow. First we would like to wish and con- gratulate Lincoln and Samantha on ty- ing the knot on April 30, 2016, so wel- come Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln and Sa- mantha Poehlein, may you have ma- ny days of happiness that never end. May 5 – Jesse Meyer turns 18, Don- ny Hayes turns 66, Trey Culbertson turns 17, Amber Strobel turns 27, Jo- Anna Nowark, Felicia Hayes turns 36. May 6 – April Aldridge, Angela Hill turns 36, Daniel and Brittney Baker celebrate 10 years. May 7 – Twins Brodyn Kohl Ray and Khloe Dawn Hartley turn 8. May 8 – Becky Russell Pride, Dep- uty Mike Willis turns 50, Patton Joe King turns 3, Brian and Angie Schwen- gel celebrate 6 years. May 9 – Justin Meyer turns 37, Becky Lamb Popp turns 27, Sylvia Wheeler turns 85. May 11 – Ryleigh Dillman turns 11, Owen Sanders turns 9, Steve English. May all our stars have a really great day and may all your wishes come true. Keep in your heart and your prayers all our stars who need to know they are thought of through cards, visits, phone calls and most of all those dai- ly thoughts such as Jeff Meyer and George Meyer. Dee Fiscus stayed over- night in the hospital for heart stints. Our prayers go out to the family of Elizabeth Slunder, who passed away April 26, 2016, at the age of 41 years in Florida. Her parents are Chip and Liz Slunder, and uncle Vernon Arnold, and uncle and aunt Tom and Sherry Arnold. Elizabeth was loved by ev- eryone who knew her and she will be missed, so remember the great times you all had and share those memories with others and more memories will be shared with you. Events coming up in Winslow and the surrounding area are: May 5 – Winslow Lions Club at 7 p.m. at The Trading Post May 7 – Poehlein Spring Bass Tour- ney from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. This tour- ney will be hosted in memory of Jeff Perry, who has won multiple times. Contact Greg at 812- 789 -3778 for rules and to en- ter as a single fisherman or fisherwoman or as couples. May 7 – Petersburg City- wide Yard Sale. See list of places to go in The Press-Dis- patch. A zalea Blossom Fes- tival starts on Friday, May 6 at 5 p.m. and continues through Saturday, May 7 at 10 p.m. May 8 – Mother's Day – Take Mom out for the whole day, take Mom out to eat, throughout the day tell Mom "I love you." Most moms like presents, but having family together is a gift also. Happy Mothers' Day to all the Moms everywhere. May 9 – Winslow Town Hall meet- ing at 7 p.m. at the Snyder Communi- ty Center. May 10 – Winslow Beatification at 6:30 p.m. and Winslow Economic at 7:30 p.m. at the Snyder Community Center. May 19 -21 – Pike County Spring Clean-Up – Flyers are everywhere you shop in Pike County. Contact SWMD at 812-354-2924. Winslow town will hold their spring clean-up, so contact Winslow Town Hall for pick up at 812- 789 -2207. May 30 – Winslow Memorial Day Pa- rade and Honor at 1 p.m. Everyone is welcome to ride or walk in the parade and everyone is invited to view along Main Street to Oak Hill Cemetery. Winslow seniors meet on Monday and Tuesday at the Snyder Communi- ty Center. Petersburg seniors meet on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Fri- day in the courthouse basement. No postcards this week at Sweets Column, Winslow, IN 47598. Point of interest is that Winslow has another citizen to move to our friendly town and that is Katie Green and her three boys. Janice Sucech is Katie's grand- mother. Another star has moved back to Petersburg and she is Edwina Daw- son. Welcome to Pike County from all of the stars of Sweet's Column. Last week, we had rain and storms with lightning and some brought in the risk for tornadoes. The mowing was done for a few nice days after the water soaked in- to the ground. I have rose bushes with lots of buds, the poppies are grow- ing, blooms on the pink flags, Rose of Sharon has leaves starting, the peo- nies are getting bigger and the cling peach tree has loads of little peaches on it, if they stay on, the mixed flower seeds are already coming up. The squirrels are having fun play- ing and chasing each other, the birds of many types have the sweetest songs they sing each day. The Indiana Primary to vote was Tuesday so we all hope you got out and voted for the best person you think could handle the job. I know some of the choices were hard to choose but I'm sure you made the right choice and voted. Saturday was a long but happy day, and it started with the Spurgeon VFD Pancake Breakfast that started at 5 a.m. where I helped all the volunteers cook pancakes and sausage and bacon. We ran out of just about everything and I guess that was a good thing. We served loads of people who came in the pouring rain, sometimes it was nobody but then, more stars came in. We had a great time working together and we also had an eager worker by the name of Arianna Barclay who helped clean off the tables and collected and put away the containers of syrup, but- ter, napkins and lots more item, and helped put them where they belong. Thanks Arianna for the help and when you grow a little older you might help us again on the next Spurgeon VFD Pancake Breakfast. It was a delight to attend the wed- ding of Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln (Saman- tha) Poehlein that was solemnized at Glezen G.B. Church where family and friends witnessed the love of two people who found their true love and wanted to share this moment with all who were there and those who cele- brated in heaven – Julie Hendricks,