(and What It Will Mean for the Economy) My Comments: I’ve written previously about the danger of income inequality. You only have to look at countries in the middle east to understand the chaos and turmoil in countries where the middle class barely exists. Any population without a realistic ability to rise above poverty is …
Continue reading Why the American Middle Class Is Disappearing
My Comments: Wow! A monthly payment every month for the rest of your life! How good is that? Despite the caustic rhetoric filling the air waves, causing turmoil and worry, I very much doubt there’s going to be any drastic changes to Social Security. Some loud voices want it to be abolished, but there are …
Continue reading The Death of Social Security Has Been Greatly Exaggerated
My Comments: As someone who depends on payments from the Social Security Administration to maintain my standard of living, the idea that people in Congress are considering reducing those payments is concerning. We have to hope that elected representatives find a reasonable solution that will allow the program to remain viable. It’s become an integral …
Continue reading Social Security and the U.S. deficit: Separating fact from fiction
My Comments: Much of my retirement money is at Vanguard. At some point I’m going to decide we’ve hit bottom and move it back into Vanguard growth funds or ETFs. But right now, if you have the courage of your convictions, here are five low cost funds that you can use. If you are still …
Continue reading The 6 Best Vanguard Funds to Own in a Bear Market
My Comments: In a political context, my initial reaction to having Trump in the White House was that it was a healthy step in the evolution of these United States. We’ve been a formidable leader on the world stage for the past 80 plus years. From time to time, it is useful for the status …
Continue reading Trump’s ties to the Russian mafia go back 3 decades
My Comments: Though written two years ago, the message here is increasingly relevant. Social Security is under attack by the Republican leadership in the Senate. Reasonable solutions to keep it viable and properly funded are readily available provided there is a political will to make that happen. My experience over the past 40 years in …
My Comments: My observations and memories of economic and financial forces over the past five decades has led me to fundamentally distrust the moves made by those who profess to Make America Great Again. My instincts told me they were pushing us in the opposite direction, ie Make America Irrelevant. It started with us withdrawing …
Continue reading How Donald Trump Is Shaping The Next Global Economic Recession
My Comments: Well, duh! This headline seems like a no-brainer to me. Social Security was created as a safety net program 80 plus years ago. This implies you MUST have additional funds so you can pay your bills. With 80 years of expectations now built into the system, it has become ‘normal’ to view it …
Continue reading 4 Reasons You Can’t Live on Social Security
My Comments: My efforts to coach people to start thinking seriously about their future retirement is complicated. For every positive associated with retirement there are just as many negatives. This is one of them. Unless you plan to die before you reach retirement, you should find time to get your ducks lined up well in …
Continue reading Retirees Will Spend a Third of Their Social Security on This One Big Expense
My Comments: Too many people are wondering where the money will come from to pay for their retirement. And too many people will not have enough money to live the way they want to. And too many people will not have the necessary resources to pay for health care in retirement. All this is leading …
Continue reading Public Pensions Could Become Retirement Crisis for Everyone
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