Most Americans are covered by some form of Social Security: If you are a U.S. citizen and you work in the United States, you ought to receive a statement in the mail every year that tells you about how much money you will receive every month when you retire. Retirement age for Social Security benfits is 67 years old.

How much should you get? According to the Social Security Administration, beginning in June 2005, 6.2 percent of worker's wages are diverted into the Social Security trust funds (one for retirement benefits and one for disability). Employers put in an additional 6.2 percent, resulting in a total payroll tax of 12.4 percent. Self-employed workers pay all 12.4 percent themselves. Income greater than $90,000 is not subject to Social Security taxation -- this is known as the "maximum amount."

Lately, however, there has been a lot of talk about Social Security "going broke," and how that might affect Americans trying to plan for paying their bills when they retire.

This scenario is based on two reports, one by the Social Security Trustees and another by the Congressional Budget Office; the latter tends to take a more optimistic outlook. Each report is expressed in terms of "workers per beneficiary." If more workers are putting money into the system than are taking it out, Social Security is in good shape. If not, the system is in trouble.

In 2005, the most recent year for which statistics are available, there were about 3.3 people paying into the system for every person taking out benefits. Compare that to 1960: Then, there were 5.1 people paying into the system for every person takiong out benefits. That's why people say the system is in trouble. And, as the number of people retiring increases every year -- and the number of people no longer collecting pay and contributing to system decreases -- the squeeze on the sytem gets tighter and tighter.

The trustees predict that in 2018, the amount being paid out for benefits will begin to exceed the amount being paid in. There is enough money to keep paying full benefits until 2041. The CBO predicts the sytem will fall apart about 10 years later.