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Old 02-20-2011, 09:29 AM
 
3,532 posts, read 6,407,615 times
Reputation: 1648

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I am starting to believe that the government and states should get out of the retirement business. I have the perfect solution. Raise everyone's salary about 20-30%. Then starting with people under 45, they will no longer pay into social security or state pension plans if they are government employees, and use that salary increase to save for their future retirement in a safe retirement plan, and after working for 20-30-or 40 years since they will probably have to work til they are 70, the person has saved a nice nest egg without being dependent on the government to take care of them which we have seen isn't working anyway. Social security will be bankrupt if the government doesn't do anything about it, and that means more borrowing or higher taxes to pay for it.

The states can't balance their budgets because they are forced to pay their retired government workers pension, that is guaranteed until the people die. So the state employees who will have a 20-30% pay raise, can start saving 10% instead of the average 8% for retirement. The state matches it in a 401k plan, and what ever that person has saved, then at retirement that's what he or she lives off of for the rest of their lives. It's just a thought, and probably won't ever happen. What do you all think?
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Old 02-20-2011, 09:30 AM
 
25,024 posts, read 27,870,912 times
Reputation: 11790
I think the government should get out of the everything business. If it's not defending the borders of this country from invasions and managing foreign affairs, then it's not the job of the feds to get involved
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Old 02-20-2011, 09:32 AM
 
Location: Great State of Texas
86,052 posts, read 84,321,515 times
Reputation: 27718
Corporations did it decades ago.
They moved people from pensions to 401K and washed their hands completely of retirement responsibility.

Governments and unions were not so quick to move.
Now we pay the piper.
Rising costs and shrinking revenues.

2011 should be one hella of a year don't ya think ?
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Old 02-20-2011, 09:41 AM
 
Location: Don't be a cry baby!
1,309 posts, read 1,360,213 times
Reputation: 617
Aren't the words "government" and "Business" antonyms?
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Old 02-20-2011, 09:42 AM
 
Location: Raleigh, NC
20,054 posts, read 18,251,969 times
Reputation: 3826
Quote:
Originally Posted by HappyTexan View Post
2011 should be one hella of a year don't ya think ?
UNPOSSIBLE! We're in recovery mode baby!
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Old 02-20-2011, 09:55 AM
 
3,532 posts, read 6,407,615 times
Reputation: 1648
Quote:
Originally Posted by HappyTexan View Post
Corporations did it decades ago.
They moved people from pensions to 401K and washed their hands completely of retirement responsibility.

Governments and unions were not so quick to move.
Now we pay the piper.
Rising costs and shrinking revenues.

2011 should be one hella of a year don't ya think ?
Yep, and even though I am a school teacher, I am pretty sure my salary and benefits would be affected again by all of the changes and budget shortfalls. I have enjoyed the ride, but now that the ride is coming to a quick end.
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Old 02-20-2011, 09:57 AM
 
Location: Great State of Texas
86,052 posts, read 84,321,515 times
Reputation: 27718
Quote:
Originally Posted by antredd View Post
Yep, and even though I am a school teacher, I am pretty sure my salary and benefits would be affected again by all of the changes and budget shortfalls. I have enjoyed the ride, but now that the ride is coming to a quick end.
In the end though we're all in the same sinking boat.
It's just hitting folks at different times.
All the private sector job cuts happened and now the knife turns to public sector jobs.

When the dust settles the US will be a mere shadow of itself.
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Old 02-20-2011, 10:16 AM
 
2,609 posts, read 4,353,197 times
Reputation: 1887
Funding social security isn't the problem, the problem is the politicians. In the history of the Social Security Trust Fund there were surplus's. In fact, before we allowed our politicians to draw on that money to pay for other projects social security was working. The problem is that anytime there is a surplus in any budget run by our federal government our politicians think of that as extra spending money, when in fact that money should be left alone.

Most of the people my age (late 20's) realize that social security will likely not be a viable option for us when we retire. I know a lot of people around my age that have already set up their 401k's and retirement accounts opened and are saving.

It's unfortunate, because social security could have worked... but our entire federal government is just way to corrupt to let social programs like that work.
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Old 02-20-2011, 10:25 AM
 
Location: Metro-Detroit area
4,050 posts, read 3,953,569 times
Reputation: 2107
Right let's trust our retirements to those bulworth's of morality and accountability on Wall st, after all they have proven themselves time and time again!!

This is exactly what Republicans and Conservatives would love for us to do, funnel all that money into companies that are first loyal to themselves, and then the stockholder. After paying multi million dollar salaries and dividends get around to cutting your retirement check.

Imagine how happy you will be when your check is short for this month because the market took an un-forseeable "downturn".

This would be just another avenue into which the middle class is further destroyed while the rich get richer and we continue to manufacture new millionaires from the money of the working class.
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Old 02-20-2011, 10:28 AM
 
Location: Arizona
13,778 posts, read 9,640,437 times
Reputation: 7485
Quote:
Originally Posted by antredd View Post
I am starting to believe that the government and states should get out of the retirement business. I have the perfect solution. Raise everyone's salary about 20-30%. Then starting with people under 45, they will no longer pay into social security or state pension plans if they are government employees, and use that salary increase to save for their future retirement in a safe retirement plan, and after working for 20-30-or 40 years since they will probably have to work til they are 70, the person has saved a nice nest egg without being dependent on the government to take care of them which we have seen isn't working anyway. Social security will be bankrupt if the government doesn't do anything about it, and that means more borrowing or higher taxes to pay for it.

The states can't balance their budgets because they are forced to pay their retired government workers pension, that is guaranteed until the people die. So the state employees who will have a 20-30% pay raise, can start saving 10% instead of the average 8% for retirement. The state matches it in a 401k plan, and what ever that person has saved, then at retirement that's what he or she lives off of for the rest of their lives. It's just a thought, and probably won't ever happen. What do you all think?
What, exactly would you consider a "safe retirement plan?" Put it in the market in the form of private 401s? Bank it and get 1.2% interest? Mattress? SS is solvent until 2037 with 2.7 trillion in assets. Just wondering out loud here.
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