My Comments: Full Retirement Age is that month, according to the Social Security Administration, where you gain some real advantages. I have some reservations about Sean Williams' comments since he’s not yet old enough to understand the emotional side of financial decisions when it comes to retirement income. However, the headline resonates with me as …
Continue reading 3 Smart Reasons to Take Social Security at Full Retirement Age
My Comments: This comes from the Washington Post which you will agree is not a right wing publication. Almost every day there is a statement or observation that runs 180 degrees from what I’ve learned over the past five decades in business. It’s frightening to me to realize we are going backwards as a nation …
Continue reading Trump’s ‘America First’ means Americans lose
My Comments: readers of my posts know that I’m a progressive, whatever that actually means. As an economist, I choose to call myself a social capitalist, in that I strongly believe unfettered capitalism is as dangerous and corruptive as communism. This is written before trump appears on national television to tell us why his wall …
Continue reading The Coming Bankruptcy of the American Empire
My Comments: Social Security was created in 1935. Apart from one in 1939, since 1950, there have been 30 Amendments across the years. The one I best remember happened in 1983 when the Full Retirement Age changed from 65 up to age 67. Additionally, the income percentage that we paid (FICA), along with the upper …
My Comments: As always, this is when I try to identify and make a list of things I want to do in the coming year. And as always, I might get one done but by the end of January, it’s all in the rear view mirror. But that doesn’t mean new year’s resolutions are a …
Continue reading The Ten Best Personal Finance Resolutions for 2019
My Comments: Thinking hard about your future retirement can be painful. But unless you want your later years full of unwanted stress, you need to spend time thinking about it. This is a rather technical overview for those of you not afraid of change and how it might affect your life going forward. November 1, …
Continue reading Change Is Coming To The Retirement Landscape
My Comments: What is described here is gut wrenching for me. Much of that is because the Democratic Party was, and perhaps remains, tone deaf to the malaise that gripped working people across the country as we approached 2016. As before, we cannot remake the past, only influence the future. My efforts to make positive …
Continue reading The death of our Siemens factory is the result of another Trump lie
My Comments: People become emotionally involved with their retirement accounts. With retirement money, there are components that reflect future peace of mind, freedom, independence and comfort levels. Making decisions about it are inherently difficult. Couple that with a feeling of intimidation resulting from, among other things, a lack of control over what’s happening with their …
Continue reading Why You Should Move Your 401(k) Into An IRA
My Comments: This is an alarmist headline written some five months ago. Because the ‘disaster’ has not yet happened, there’s a false assumption that it won’t happen. Markets crash, whether we like it or not. No amount of bluster by the political party in power or the efforts of the Federal Reserve will change the …
Continue reading America Is Overdue for Another Economic Disaster
My Comments: I strongly agree with this advice. If you plan to use the money invested to help pay for your retirement, the only additional consideration is whether you need income today from the money invested or whether it’s likely to be 10 years or more down the road. Financial decisions, which obviously includes investing …
Continue reading The Dow’s tumbles may raise fears, but you should still own stocks
Helping Define Your Financial Future 