ABSTRACT
The Flemming V. Nestor supreme court decision of 1960 and the Internal Revenue Service's penalizing of Amish farmers for nonpayment of their Old-Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance (OASDI) premiums afford further proof that Social Security's self-description as insurance is inaccurate and misleading. In 1958, Elmer Wollenberg of the Oregon State Bar took a long and careful look at the issue of a person's vested rights under OASDI. He began with a clear-eyed view of the realities of Social Security. The government brief acknowledged that one of the questions at issue was whether an alien who had begun to receive monthly Social Security benefits has a vested or property right to the continued receipt of such benefits. And the power of the word explains Social Security's defenders reflexive response to critics: the accusation of undermining public confidence in the program.
