Burleson Star (Burleson, Tex.), Ed. 1 Thursday, December 29, 1994 Page: 3 of 12
twelve pages : ill. ; page 24 x 15 in. Digitized from 35 mm. microfilm.View a full description of this newspaper.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
Burleson Star, Thursday December 29, 1994-3
^Editorials
Star Poll
Burleson resolutions include these:
By TERRY EVANS
Associate Editor
Accused by some of being a
contrivance of a society bent on
making everyone feel inadequate, the
New Year's resolution is a tradition
firmly clutched to many chests.
Resolutions often are used to
challenge ourselves to quit smoking,
lose weight, not fight with siblings/
spouces/parents/children/firiends, and
virtually every other vice up to and
including watching too much televi-
sion.
I just threw that last one in—
nobody would expect anyone to keep
such a silly resolution. Everything is
in re-runs now, so it would start out
easy, but new shows and new epi-
sodes of our favorites will be airing
soon.
Such is the nature of resolutions,
that most people will offer encour-
agement when hearing someone
speak of one, then laugh behind their
back knowing how quickly it will be
broken.
Despite all that, here are some of
the resolutions going around in Burle-
son.
TROY SECKINGER, a Fort
Worth firefighter, said he would lose
some weight and get healthy.
"I'm getting to the age that 1 need
to become more serious about my
health,'' Seckinger said. "I weigh less
now than I did 30 years ago, but I'm
bigger around the middle. I’ll take
better care of myself, slow down, and
enjoy life."
Seckinger explained that he's
worked two and three jobs, and didn't
have time for his family. "I was
working for a family, then I didn't
have time to enjoy them."
BETTY BAUER, a retired
apartment supervisor, said she plans
to quit smoking.
"I've smoked 40 years, and I've
tried to quit before with no success,"
Bauer said. "It’s hard because my
^husband smokes, too. He'd like to
quit, but when we try, and we have a
weak moment, he'll say 'go get some
cigarrettes,' and I do. I don't know if
he’ll try, this time, but I'm going to."
JANET SKINNER, a T-shirt
dealer, resolved to be the same next
year as this.
"I've never been a bad person,"
Skinner said. "What I resolve is to
get the last of my three kids—a 20-
year-old—out of my house."
LAURIE TURNPAUGH, a
mnk
TROY SECKINGER
secretary, also wants to quit smok-
ing.
"I’ve been a smoker 20 years,"
Tumpaugh said. "I stopped four or
five times, the longest was one year.
January first, I plan to go cold turkey,
so tell everyone to stay away from me
for at least two weeks."
Ed. Note: For the uninitiated,
the phrase cold turkey refers to a
person-of-ha bit going from indulg-
ing that habit one day, to absolute
abstenence the next Nicotine with-
drawal is inevitable, in the case of a
smoker, and will generally make
the person extremely irritable,
subject to explosive outbursts of
BETtY BAUER
LAURIE TURNPAUGH
y NEW*YEAR’S '
RESOLUTIONS
Wfe. roesoWeTTo iTe
~T»pas o/*^YisTeaV>s
cx\\ ckjt sTbr.es
'wo l c\c^i
tExrr\esovo Sihr <5Yo^.
JANET SKINNER
temper at the slightest provoca-
tion, and evince an annoying feel-
ing that something has infested the
lining of the skuD and is graduaDy
digesting the bruin. So, people, stay
out of Turnpaugh's way.
Incongruously, the woman also
plans on being kinder to her children,
and letting them know she really loves
them. We may assume she has made
living arrangements for them other
than wherever she will be during her
two weeks of withdrawal.
RHONDA PEARSON, a data
RHONDA PEARSON
entry operator, resolves to attain
higher physical and fiscal fitness.
"I'm going to put more money
into a Savings account and exercise a
lot," she said.
CATHY WORLEY, a home-
maker, said Pearson's second resolu-
tion sounded familiar.
"I resolve to join a health spa,"
said Worley. "I've been walking for a
couple of years, but I want to firm-up.
I'm also at a point where I'm thinking
about working outside of my home."
SONYA SWANSON, a deli
CATHY WORLEY
SONYA SWANSON
worker for Winn Dixie, also wants to *k° want ma*ce mon
quit smoking, as well as lose 20 money, Swanson said. "Somehow
Guest Editorials
Social Security Poll inspires responses from experts on opposite sides of fence
‘ ’ " Program probably will fail no matter what;
the program will be available to future re-
cipients because Americans insist that it be
By IQJtf CLARK
^ A recent article in this paper
asked readers if they thought Social
Security would be there when they
retire. Although most people who
were asked correctly expressed the
opinion that Social Security would
be there in the future, this is a subject
of such great importance that I feel
some facts, rather than opinions, need
to be stated.
First of all, Social Security is far
more than a retirement program.
Social Security also pays benefits for
disability, and to minor children upon
the death of a parent.
Disability and survivors bene-
fits area very significant part of Social
Security, because 42 percent of men
and 28 percent of women die or be-
come disabled before they reach re-
tirement age. As a matter of fact,
about 8,000 children in Tarrant
County and 800 children in Johnson
County are receiving Social Security
benefits due to the death of a working
pareRl
Even for persons who do not die,
or become disabled, before retire-
ment age. Social Security is far more
than retirement benefits.
In addition to receiving monthly
checks, Social Security beneficiaries
also receive Medicare at age 65. At
the time in their lives when people
most need health insurance. Medi-
care^ the only health insurance which
BU«?N
Volume 30, Number 2J • 12 Pages in 1 Section
(USPS-07V780)
Second-Class Postage Paid at
Burleson. Texas 76028
Susan Hutson.......................................-........President
Jam? Moody.— .................................PttbMaher
Cathy Smith..............................Advertising Director
NEWS STAFF
Sally Ellertson................................Managing Editor
Glenn Cochran......................................Sports Editor
Terry Evans..-.................................Associate Editor
ADVERTISING SALES
Christine A key
Jim Pfeiffer
COMPOSITION
Connie Crannell, June Morris
FRONT OFFICE
Allyne Middleton. Sbdlie Cochran
Rosalyn Johnson
Subscription Price $29 95 Per Year
In Johnson A Tarrant Counties
Other Areas of Texas $35.95
Outside Texas $37.50
The Burleson Star is an independent newspaper pub-
lished two times a week on Monday and Thursday in the
interest of Burleson and adjacent areas by Buriesm
Publishing Company, tot . 319 N Burleson Blvd.
Burleson. Texas 76028. Any erroneous reflection on
any individual or firm win be corrected if brought to the
attention of the editor Address all correspondence L'
the Editor. Burleson Star. P.O. Drawer 909. Burleson,
Texas 76097
The contents of each issue are protected under the
n of any portion of
intents of each issue are protected i
Federal Copyright Act Reproduction of any |
any issue is prohibited without permurion
POSTM ASTER Send address changes to Burleson
Star P.O. Drawer 909. Burleson. Texas 76097.
COPYRIGHT© 1994 BURLESON STAR
Primed on recycled paper
offers primary health care coverage
to retired persons 65 years of age and
older.
If not for Medicare, most people
in this country would have no health
insurance coverage after age 65.
Has Social Security been suc-
cessful? Yes, to a remarkable degree.
Today, 14 percent of senior citizens
live in poverty.
Studies show that, without So-
" Social Security trust
funds are running a $6-
million-an-hour surplus.
This surplus is being
invested and saved"
Tom Clark___
cial Security, the poverty rate for
senior citizens would be 52 percent.
Closer to home, there are about 14,000
Johnson County residents receiving
$8 million monthly in Social Secu-
rity benefits.
In Tarrant County, there are
about 140,000 people receiving So-
cial Security which totals about $90
million monthly.
These figures probably make
Social Security benefits the largest
single source of income in both coun-
ties.
Is Social Security money spent
efficiently?
Once again, Social Security has
an enviable record. The Social Secu-
rity trust funds can only be used to
pay the Social Security benefits, and
to pay the cost of administering the
program.
The administrative costs are less
than one percent of expenditures. To
put it simply, out of every dollar of
Social Security taxes paid today,
eventually, more than 99 cents of that
dollar will go out in a Social Security
check to someone, and less than one
penny will be used for administrative
costs.
This makes the United States
Social Security system the most effi-
cient insurance system in the world.
Now, the question we started
with: Will Social Security be there
for future retirees?
Once again, an emphatic yes.
First of all, Social Security will
be there because we, as citizens and
voters, insiston it Even among young
people, who mistakenly doubt that
Social Security will be there when
they retire, polls show that they still
strongly support the program.
Social Security has planned
ahead far the baby boomers. Today,
the Social Security trust funds are J-(
running a $6-million-an-hour surplus.
That's right, the trust funds have
$6 million more coming in each hour
than is being spent The trust funds
will be having surpluses of this size
for about the next 15 yean.
This surplus is being invested
and saved for the baby boomers. The
trustees of the Social Security trust
funds examine the future of those
funds closely each year.
With changes in such factors as
how long people live, there may have
to be slight changes in tax rates or
retirement ages in the future, but the
huge surplus we are building in the
trust funds now, will help cushion
any future changes.
Actually, Social Security will be
more important for baby boomers
and the generation after them than it
is for our current generation of retir-
ees. Because of instability in the job
market, current workers change
employers far more often than in the
past
Due to this, fewer worker, in the
future will work long enough for one
shifting funds from other programs may help
employer to qualify for a pension at
retirement.
However, their Social Security
coverage will move with them from
employertoemployer. It is important
to explain that Social Secutiry was
never intended to be a person's only
income at retirement Itis intended to
be a base for people to build on with
savings, pensions, and other invest-
ments, and it will be there now, and in
the future.
If you have any questions about
Social Security, call the Social Secu-
rity office toll-free at 1-800-772-
1213.
[Tom Clark is a field representative
with Social Security Administration
in Fort Worth.]
By TODD PEARSON
The benefits of Social Security
have been significant and far-reach-
ing.
Included among the recipients
are widows, orphans, disabled and
retirees.Noonecouldever doubt that
the lives of the most needy have been
dramatically improved by the bene-
fits paid to them.
The recent poll in the Burleson
Star solicited opinions of citizens as
to whether they would receive bene-
fits at the future date of their eligibil-
ity. There was some doubt expressed
among the public not currently re-
ceiving benefits as to whether they
ever would.
Frankly, that doubt is not with-
out some cause. The citizens arrived
at that conclusion intuitively.
While we all seem to agree about
the benefit, the question is whether
we (or, better said: our children and
grandchildren) can pay for that bene-
fit It is this ability to pay for the
benefit that puts the future in ques-
tion.
Social Security began on Jan. 1,
1937. During a 12-year, phase-in
period, ending in 1949, the tax gradu-
ally rose from 1 percent on the first
$3,000 in wages, to 3 percent on the
first $3,000. The employer matched
the employee tax.
The publication announcing and
explaining the law to the workers of
America when it began read, "That is
the most you will ever pay."
The fundamental flaw of the
Social Security system is that it is a
pay-as-you-go system. That is, the
benefits being paid out today are
from the taxes being collected today.
In 1945, there were 46 workers
whose taxes supported each of the
one million recipients of Social Se-
curity benefits. Today, there are three
people working foreach beneficiary,
who now number some 41 million.
By the year 2020, the number of
workers per beneficiary will be down
to two. In addition, our grandparents
rarely retired early, and had only a
short retirement, fulfilling the life
expectancy of their time.
"The only assets held in
the Social Security Trust
Fund are promises from
the treasury department.
The cash has already
been used to cover
budget deficits."
Todd Pearson
Today, the life expectancy of a
65 year old is 20 years. In addition,
more and more are retiring early,
some in their mid-50's or younger,
thus reducing the Social Security tax
they pay, and assuring that they will
begin collecting benefits at the earli-
est-possible age of 62.
In 1995, the tax will be imposed
on the first $61,200of wages, and the
rate is 6.2 percent for the employee,
and a matching amount for the em-
ployer, for a total of 12.4 percent.
In addition, there is a tax of 1.45
percent, for both employee and
employer, to cover the cost of Medi-
care, with no limiton the wages taxed
In anticipation of the increased
demands on the financial health of
the system, when the baby boomer?
begin retirement, the administration
is currently collecting more taxes thar
necessary to fund current benefits.
This gives rise to the Social Security
Trust Fund.
Unfortunately, the only assets
held in die Social Security Trust Fund
are promises from the treasury de-
partment to pay that money back wi th
interest when it is needed in the fu-
ture.
The cash has actually already
been used in other government pro-
grams not funded from income taxes
or other revenue sources.
In other words, die Social Secu-
rity Trust Fund has been usedtocovei
the budget deficits that seem to be the
normal operation of our time. I am at
a loss to understand how our children
are going to provide us with those
benefits our parents and grandpar-
ents shared.
They will either be paying an
outrageous payroll tax to Kind the
trust fund, filled with IOUs, or we
will all be paying an outrageous in-
come tax to provide funds to repay
the IOUs the treasury was so gener-
ous in issuing.
We, as apeople, may decide that
the benefits of the program, as it is
currently constructed, are enough to
warrant the cost.
Our next decision, however, will
be which other government programs
are we going to eliminate to be able to
continue Social Security without
dooming our next generation to a
burden they will find insupportable.
[Todd Pearson is a principle of Pear-
son Financial Services and a Burle-
son City Council member.]
Keep your badge, I could not wear one if I wanted to
By TERRY EVANS
Associate Editor
I could not be a cop.
I'm just not cool enough to carry
a gun and accept the responsibility
for protecting people with it
I gladly am able to say I've never
killed or even harmed anyone. One of
the greatest fears I'd face as a cop is
that the first time someone showed
something that looked like a gun, my
immediate response would be deadly
force.
Shooting a person in the line of
duty carries onerous repercussions.
An officer must justify the action.
The burden of proof is on the cop and,
if the shooting is ruled unjustified,
punishment is swift—the least result
being loss of career.
Balance that tremendous weight
with what happens if an officer is a
microsecond slow deciding to shoot
when it's called for. Someone else is
hurt—either the officer or by-
standers). How can people go out
day after day with such a cloud of
consequences shadowing diem?
The circumstances surrounding
the death of the only Burleson officer
killed in the line of duty, Janice
Vanderveer, illustrate that police of-
ficers are almost never safe while
performing their duties.
Vanderveer was killed while
setting flares around a wreck on the
highway. The driver who struck her
was not charged with any violations.
It was just one of those bizarre chains
of events involving the weather, a
multitude of flashing emergency
lights that may have confused the
driver, and Vanderveer being in an
unavoidable, vulnerable position.
I've been in similar situations
because I voluntarily placed myself
in them in order to get photographs.
Doing so, I gave the officers one
more thing to wotTy about, so I tried
to get my shots and get out as quickly
as possible.
Police officers and other emer-
gency professionals must remain in
harm's way ftom beginning to end.
It's one of the many ways my job
differs from public-safety work.
My days involve dealing face-
to-face with the public. But, for the
most part, the faces I meet are sober,
at least marginally intgelligent, gen-
erally law-abiding, and non-aggres-
sive. Have you looked at the faces of
some criminals lately? Arlo Guthrie
was among Jeopardy contestants on
the "Group W" bench in Alice's Res-
taurant compared with these guys.
Not only must the police allow
themselves to be in dose proximity
to, but also actually talk with soci-
ety's dregs. The officers' jobs include
attempting to get semi-straight infor-
mation in an effort to solve crimes.
This is not easily doable.
Dealing with people as a jour-
nalist is difficult enough. Usually,
the folks I interview want to tell me
what is happening or has happened.
Please she NEVER, Plage 6
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Newspaper.
Ellertson, Sally. Burleson Star (Burleson, Tex.), Ed. 1 Thursday, December 29, 1994, newspaper, December 29, 1994; Burleson, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth762174/m1/3/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Burleson Public Library.