Have you taken note the number of attorneys advertising their services on television lately? Even our former Attorney General of Alabama is frequently seen offering services to take care of you.

Television breaks are saturated with attorney ads searching especially for liability, disability and drug claims clients. Perhaps there has always been attorneys looking for clients, but there seems to be an inordinate amount going on now.

Sadly, Social Security disability claims are overwhelming the programs ability to pay the benefits. The disability portion of Social Security is precariously on the brink of insolvency.

Claims against the program have skyrocketed in the last few years. Unless Congress acts to shovel more money into the program, it will be unable to pay full benefits by 2017. Congress could rob from the retirement portion of Social Security, but to do so would only further hasten its demise also. The retirement portion of Social Security has its own problems with the influx of baby boomers coming into the program.

You have to wonder if all the advertising for disability claims clients has added to the demise of the program.

With all due respect, it probably is not altogether the reason although it may share some of the blame. You would have to place a large portion of blame on Congress and the Presidency, who generally are lawyers, for enacting legislation without adequate means of sustaining it, all for votes.

And, of course, there is always and forevermore the fraud and abuse to take into account. Filing for disability has become a popular thing recently, especially for some out of work and unable to find a job.

I suppose the attitude is it is worth a try whether successful or not.

To say there is fraud and abuse in the system is probably an understatement. Name some government program that isn’t plagued with fraud and abuse.

The amount would probably shock most tax payers, but not politicians. They nonchalantly write it off as a cost of  government doing business.

Without a doubt, we have become a litigious society. More and more we  rely on litigation to settle issues especially if money is involved. And, you can’t fault attorneys for drumming up a little business.

My personal choice  would be our local attorneys I know and trust, but should I have to go outside for an attorney, I’d choose Matlock because I’ve never seen him lose a case.