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Explaining Little Quirks in Social Security Law in 1,000 Words

500 words isn’t nearly enough to answer five questions on Social Security.
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Explaining Little Quirks in Social Security Law in 1,000 Words
Everyone has questions about Social Security. zimmytws/Shutterstock
Tom Margenau
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I doubt if any of you have ever bothered to count, but my average weekly column comes out to about 1,000 words. I bring this up because the other day, a national newspaper asked me to write a one-time Social Security column for them. They told me they wanted me to answer five questions (of their choosing) and that they would give me 500 words of space in their publication.

I politely turned them down. I mean, I suppose I could have done it. But because there are so many “ifs, ands, or buts” associated with Social Security rules, I just don’t think I could have done them justice limiting myself to so few words.

Tom Margenau
Tom Margenau
Author
Tom Margenau worked for 32 years in a variety of positions for the Social Security Administration before retiring in 2005. He has served as the director of SSA’s public information office, the chief editor of more than 100 SSA publications, a deputy press officer and spokesman, and a speechwriter for the commissioner of Social Security. For 12 years, he also wrote Social Security columns for local newspapers, and recently published the book “Social Security: Simple and Smart.” If you have a Social Security question, contact him at [email protected]