#288 By Hank Silverberg The Third Rail If you follow train technology you will know the "third rail" is a semi-continuous rigid conductor alongside the tracks that carries electricity to power the train. Step on it in the wrong place and you will be electrocuted. In the old days, when we still had a functional Congress, any talk of cutting Social Security or Medicare, or not funding it, was considered a political third rail--or political suicide. Apparently that is not the case any more. This week, House Speaker Mike Johnson talked about possible cuts in both programs, and didn't seem to worry about the political fallout. It's true the Social Security Trust Fund is running out of money. That's the fund all the money deducted from your paycheck for Social Security, and a similar one for Medicare, is supposed to go, to make sure the money is there when it&