I know they've been talking about making cuts in SS and Medicare, but to say they may not send out checks in August??! About half of our income relies on my SS disability check. I know I am fortunate to have my husband provide the other half, but it would still put us in very dire straits. To be honest with you, I think it's a scare tactic, and somehow they'll come up with a solution in the wee hours of the night of the deadline. There are just way too many people who rely on that money for basic necessities and critical medications and such. Congress also knows that retirees make up a huge percentage of the voting bloc and you can bet that a lot of the "baby boomers" who are looking at retiring in the next few years are watching very closely. Hopefully they'll get their heads out of their arses and fix this, but I'm hanging on to any extra money we may have just in case.

It is a huge wake-up call, though, for a lot of people. If we handled our personal finances the way the government does, we'd all be bankrupt. All out of money? Just raise our credit limits! What happens when China decides to foreclose on us, metaphorically speaking? The whole thing just makes me sick.