Is AARP worth joining? (states, friend, drugs, insurance)

[Minervah]

Yes, even if you don't need their benefits they do have publications with great articles. I find their information on places for seniors to live and finanical suggestions helpful. I am not thrilled with their magazine articles that feature older air-brushed movies stars (who cares how they live? They have more money to live on than I can ever dream of) but the good outweighs the bad.

Also, they have some good political articles and keep their readers current on the present political climate.

[eureka1]

Thank you all so much for your thoughtful and caring responses. Having processed all of this, I WILL be joining-the lobbying is important and should be supported. And I probably wont get any more mail from them than I'm already getting. Thank you very much for sharing your perspectives. (Junk mail wasn't such an issue before I got so paranoid I've begun shredding anything with my name and address-hassle!) This forum rocks and so do all of you.

[nancy thereader]

..... and they have a great crossword with a lot of sixties type questions.

[texdav]

Originally Posted by Tesaje

I thought they were a bit to the right too. They seem to have settled out some after the big brouhaha when they went lock step with the administration a few years ago (before I was eligible)

They only went lock step with teh administraiotn after years of promises from democrats on drug coverage for medicare. When they saw that bush actually introduced a bill that would pass they supported itOnly the fools fell for the kennedy substitution that was designed to put off a vote on that bill and then fail because it was written to fail.

[Tesaje]

Originally Posted by nancy thereader

..... and they have a great crossword with a lot of sixties type questions.

Oh yeah - I love that too.

[Miss Blue]

I get way too much junk mail from them..Too much pressure to buy anything and everything they sell their endorsements to..My H thinks everything they say is next to gospel truth..So it gives us one more thing to disagree about and have a good ole arguement over He thinks all their little gifts are wonderful I think they are a bribe, and I don't bite

[texdav]

Yes I still get alot of junk mail from tehm. Once they get your name on memebrship ;it is sold to every fuenral plan ;and other aging product provider in teh country. Then they also keep trying to sell you insurance plans that frankly looking from the coverage are not that good.

[Tesaje]

I also get junk asking me to join - and I already have. You get the junk from them whether or not you join.

[ESFP]

Hmmm, I want to join. We got flooded with solicitations when we turned 50. About a half-year later we applied. They sent our paperwork back saying we weren't eligible to join yet. They still send solicitations, but I won't be 50 again for a long time. Just celebrated the 30th anniversary of my 21st birthday.

[AliceT]

I joined for one specific benefit - the discount I get on car rentals and motels. Coupled with my AAA card, I often get a double discount. How important is that to me? I travel with two dogs and generally, there is a $10 additional fee just for having a dog with me. That's $20 extra for two dogs. The AARP card gives me a 10% discount and the AAA card gives me another 10% discount so when everything is said and done, even with the two dogs, my nightly rate is less than what a traveler without pets would pay. If you don't have pets, it pays to have both cards for the discounts.