Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Retirement
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
 
Old 08-11-2014, 01:10 PM
 
3,092 posts, read 1,935,165 times
Reputation: 3030

Advertisements

Quote:
Originally Posted by stevek64 View Post
I think drive has much to do with it. With a nation with a college graduation rate in the 30% or so range as I recall, we have a majority of uneducated people in this country who don't have speciliazed skills
.
We don't have enough jobs for the 30% of college grads, what makes you think that if we doubled that rate things would change? Not to mention that college doesn't equal skills and it never has.

Quote:
We make our own "luck" mostly. Yes, bad things happen once in a while to people that is out of their control. For those in that bad of shape, there are safety social nets. Too many in my view but that's another story. Sorry your field has collapsed in terms of jobs. It happens often these days. I trust you're pulling up your boot straps and moving on to a field that has a promising future where they are begging for working like in the health care industry?
We don't make our own luck. That is actually impossible as luck is something that is mathematically improbable. For example, did a person that got struck by lightning and died (I know someone this happened too, incidentally), have a hand in being struck? You may say that person shouldn't have been outside during a storm. Fair enough. What about the family of the person that was struck by lightning and killed. How did they 'make' their bad luck of having a family member struck and killed by lightning?

As to myself, I've tried 3 or 4 other fields so far and nothing has panned out yet as far as making enough money to support a family. Of course I'll keep trying. I don't see healthcare in my future as going to school while trying to support a family isn't practical in my situation. But thank you.


Quote:
hehehe....wow, I give up! You seem to have an excuse for every situation. All I can say is look back on history on the great depression, which was far worse than anything we have today, and see the attitude people had back then which is far different than the excuse laden list many people today use today. People would take 2 or 3 jobs basic jobs if that's what it took to support their family and work on things to better themselves without an endless list of external things they can't control and focus on the things they can control. And make choices where the odds are stacked in their favor.

I wish you the best
I believe what's happening nowadays is that the truth behind the root causes of these depressions is coming to light. In short, these depressions and economic travesties are caused by a criminal junta of unjust bankers and lawyers that are profiting from usury, the federal reserve system, the fractional reserve banking system, limited liabilities that make monopolization and fascism possible, and corporate government.
Bottom line: collectively, the poor people are the victims and consequence of a criminal system and the bankers and lawyers are the perpetrators.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 08-11-2014, 01:13 PM
 
18,492 posts, read 15,461,777 times
Reputation: 16150
Quote:
Originally Posted by Yakscsd View Post
This was the wisest man here IMO and I'd do the exact same thing. He enjoyed his life, did everything while he was young and could enjoy it. As we age it simply is harder and for some, there are activities that we enjoyed at 30 or 40, that now at 70 we cant do. He may not even live to retirement and that would have been a shame to scrimp and save for an early death. He took a sure bet by living for the day.
That is no reason for sending the kids to a private college that he couldn't afford instead of a public one or pay for his kids to have weddings that none of them could afford.

Send the kids to public school and refuse to pay for the wedding. If the kids want a more expensive wedding they should work for it. What ever happened to working hard to earn what you want?

I'm not against parents giving gifts when they can do so without endangering themselves, but in that case it was unwise at the least, and an expensive wedding is neither a necessity nor something you need to have a good marriage nor something anyone is entitled to have.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-11-2014, 01:16 PM
 
3,092 posts, read 1,935,165 times
Reputation: 3030
Quote:
Originally Posted by Petunia 100 View Post
No, but I can guarantee you that if you do nothing while waiting for life to magically be made fair, you will die still waiting. Is that what you want for yourself? Only you can say.
I'll tell you one thing- there are a growing number of people out there that are harming themselves by trying. More and more older people in their 40s and 50s are attending college or going back to college. As it stands right now, a high percentage of those people are going to graduate into a worse situation. As in, low income exacerbated by student loan debt.

This is not sustainable. Something has to give.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-11-2014, 01:17 PM
 
3,092 posts, read 1,935,165 times
Reputation: 3030
Quote:
Originally Posted by ncole1 View Post
What ever happened to working hard to earn what you want?
It's been replaced by working hard and not earning enough money for what you want (or need).
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-11-2014, 01:25 PM
 
18,492 posts, read 15,461,777 times
Reputation: 16150
Quote:
Originally Posted by dysgenic View Post
It's been replaced by working hard and not earning enough money for what you want (or need).
Then the kids need to decide between working overtime and having a cheaper wedding. No one is obliged to give you money for a wedding you can't afford!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-11-2014, 01:30 PM
 
Location: State of Being
35,879 posts, read 77,155,934 times
Reputation: 22751
Quote:
Originally Posted by newenglandgirl View Post
The higher taxes in Mass. are as well due to top-heavy city and town administration with overly high salaries (we won't mention pensions) for their actual function. Most people in this state know this.

It is a shame that the legitimately poor people in NC have no voice and fewer and fewer resources for aid. What are your job training programs?
I think you really need to do a LOT more research on NC b/c this statement is waaaay off base.

There have been a plethora of job training programs in this state as well as freebie classes in order to get degrees, and the stats are appalling as to how many folks start out in the FREE programs and don't bother to finish.

As far as no voice . . . ???? This state is heavily skewered to Democrat registration and like every other state in the nation, poor folks can cast their votes as readily as every one else.

The problem in NC is not that people don't have resources, education or healthcare. The problem is that we have a large population of folks who have chosen to live off welfare and food stamps and whatever other subsidy is out there. Plain and simple. They had the same opportunities as everyone else, but they chose to drop out of school, or they ended up incarcerated, or they are druggies with children the state is supporting. And these folks by and large have never paid taxes and never WILL pay taxes.

We are not talking about the working poor here. NC was hit with a huge wollop when furniture factories and textile mills shut down, long before the rest of the country was hit with economic woes post 2008.

The working poor often don't qualify for subsidies, in every state of this union, not just NC.

As far as Seniors:

NC Division of Aging and Adult Services

And then each local jurisdiction's info is available online for those locations services. This doesn't take into account, of course, the services available through NGOs.

As far as "back to work" programs, NC funds programs all over the state through community colleges. The problem is not that there are no "Free" or low cost educational programs (for the underemployed, unemployed or returning Vets) but rather that 1. there are no jobs once a person finishes the programs and 2. some folks would rather be in the system than do whatever is necessary to get out of it.

Last edited by brokensky; 08-11-2014 at 02:07 PM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-11-2014, 01:37 PM
 
Location: TN/NC
34,864 posts, read 30,954,560 times
Reputation: 47205
Quote:
Originally Posted by dysgenic View Post
I'll tell you one thing- there are a growing number of people out there that are harming themselves by trying. More and more older people in their 40s and 50s are attending college or going back to college. As it stands right now, a high percentage of those people are going to graduate into a worse situation. As in, low income exacerbated by student loan debt.

This is not sustainable. Something has to give.
I totally agree the loan treadmill is not sustainable. Sadly, many of the older people are in areas where there are no jobs, and are either unwilling or have too many family obligations to move.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-11-2014, 01:50 PM
 
31,657 posts, read 26,548,657 times
Reputation: 24487
Quote:
Originally Posted by dysgenic View Post
I'll tell you one thing- there are a growing number of people out there that are harming themselves by trying. More and more older people in their 40s and 50s are attending college or going back to college. As it stands right now, a high percentage of those people are going to graduate into a worse situation. As in, low income exacerbated by student loan debt.

This is not sustainable. Something has to give.
Many of those going to college in their 40's and 50's either never attended in the first place, and or are doing so to gain skills/degree necessary to find employment. Many of those students are men whom back in their day (through the 1980's and perhaps 1990's) graduated high school and had no trouble finding work. Now of course you need a college degree to work in the mail room of some businesses.

The other shoe falls because many tail end Boomers have been downsized, Sigma Sixed, Leaned, outsourced, or whatever out of jobs in their original college major. Over the past ten or so years vast numbers of positions have been eliminated including lower, middle and even high management/administration. Those were the jobs many "middle aged" men and women would find themselves in or aspiring to by this time in their lives. Instead they have been given the push.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-11-2014, 02:17 PM
 
Location: Amongst the AZ Cactus
7,068 posts, read 6,428,341 times
Reputation: 7730
Quote:
Originally Posted by Emigrations View Post
The biggest benefit I can think of heading toward your retirement years is to be completely debt-free, including the mortgage.
100% agree


Quote:
Originally Posted by Emigrations View Post
The best jobs are increasingly consolidating in urban areas, particularly high cost, coastal areas where property is expensive and increasingly unattainable for the average person. Many interior areas of the country where property is cheap have few jobs that pay anything.
I don't agree with that. TX for example has a lot of decent paying jobs and the housing is reasonable compared to many parts of the country. TX has been leading the nation/towards the top in job growth for sometime now based on what I've read. And of course there are pockets all around the country with low cost of living that are doing back flips for teachers, health care workers, pharmacists, etc.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-11-2014, 02:42 PM
 
Location: California side of the Sierras
11,162 posts, read 7,597,388 times
Reputation: 12523
Quote:
Originally Posted by dysgenic View Post
I'll tell you one thing- there are a growing number of people out there that are harming themselves by trying. More and more older people in their 40s and 50s are attending college or going back to college. As it stands right now, a high percentage of those people are going to graduate into a worse situation. As in, low income exacerbated by student loan debt.

This is not sustainable. Something has to give.
I suppose that all depends on what they choose to study, and how much they choose to borrow to study it.

Somehow people have gotten the message that any college degree = a high paying job. I agree with you that this is not the case.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Retirement

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top