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There's no reason not to take it seriously. It's just common sense and good observational skills. Anyone who takes the time to think about it and do some research could write the same article.
One thing that is odd about this Baby Boomer generation is how smug and self-centered alot of us have become. We preached the merits of peace, love, sex, drugs, rock and roll, etc. 20 or 30 years ago and now want laws and ordinances passed for everything and people thrown in jail for (god forbid) things like smoking in public places, talking on a cell phone when driving, and someone letting their dog pee on our beautiful lawn. Think about it, we're becoming an absolutely hypocritical group of grumbling old grey hairs that will be irrelevant in a few years. Does this remind you of anybody you knew a few decades back?
I just wish companies would forget the color and age of the person and concentrate on what that person can do for your company. Period. That will change retirement if those that have to work get employment.
One thing that is odd about this Baby Boomer generation is how smug and self-centered alot of us have become. We preached the merits of peace, love, sex, drugs, rock and roll, etc. 20 or 30 years ago and now want laws and ordinances passed for everything and people thrown in jail for (god forbid) things like smoking in public places, talking on a cell phone when driving, and someone letting their dog pee on our beautiful lawn. Think about it, we're becoming an absolutely hypocritical group of grumbling old grey hairs that will be irrelevant in a few years. Does this remind you of anybody you knew a few decades back?
Who is this "we" of whom you speak? I never preached anything. Indulged maybe but never preached. I don't care where someone smokes as long as it isn't in my apartment and I don't own a lawn.
OK you got me on the cell-phone-driving thing. Yesterday I saw a stupid driver almost run an elderly man down at a cross-walk. He had the green light. The driver was on her cell-phone chatting merrily away completely oblivious she had crossed over the white line. Fortunately this was a spry old geezer who yelled at her (she didn't see that either) and shook his fist. BTW she was about 30.
I wouldn't throw her in jail though. I would just take away her cell-phone or her driver's license or both. It has nothing to do with being a baby boomer; just a desire to not get killed by some idiot who thinks they can talk and drive at the same time.
Interest reading and the comments, too! I don't feel I'm reinventing my retirement, I'm just doing what I always planned to do. I didn't stay where I initially thought I would, left my job at 55 instead of 62, but worked for Manpower for 4 years at a contract job.
My dad lived on $1,100.00 a month but at that time his expenses weren't that high, he's been gone 10 years. I pay a mortgage, car payment, plus all my utilities, cable TV, etc. and I still manage to save money every month. I'm doing fine with a pension and social security. Of course, reading posts, I realize I don't require what some people think they have to have, everyone is different.
As I've mentioned before, I traveled a great deal in my 30's, 40's and 50's, I wasn't going to wait and try to get to Europe, Alaska, So. Pacific and other places in my 70's or 80's. Why not travel and pay for those trips while I was working, made sense to me. Now I'll do some simpler trips around the U.S. to the few states I haven't seen yet.
As the saying goes, "A conservative is a liberal who gets a mortgage or has a kid."
Also, "A man who isn't liberal when he's 20 has no heart. If he isn't conservative at 40, he has no head."
As the saying goes, "A conservative is a liberal who gets a mortgage or has a kid."
Also, "A man who isn't liberal when he's 20 has no heart. If he isn't conservative at 40, he has no head."
And if you remember the old movie "The Breakfast Club", when Ally Sheedy was asked what happens when you grow up, she said that "your heart dies". ..
I just don't see today's younger generation being prepared for retirement with the absence of pensions. What I see is a generation that lives for today, has hand-to-mouth spending, saves very little, needs the same material goods/lifestyle that their parents may have had during their peak earning periods or retirement. Used to be a 20-something lived in a small apartment, drove a beater car, and ate TV-dinners to survive. Today I see that age group buying high end cars, owning homes, and traveling to Europe/elsewhere. I don't see the current generation X (or whatever their label is now) having enough money to retire on like their parents did.
No pension - Both my wife and I have CSRS federal pensions, and things would have to be royally screwed up for those pensions to be reduced or taken away. I'm not saying it can't happen, but it's unlikely.
Lower Social Security benefits - Nope. Neither my wife nor I have anywhere close to a sufficient number of quarters to be eligible for SS. Just yesterday I received my annual SS statement, and I last worked in a job that took out FICA tax for SS in 1977. Our retirement planning included the assumption that neither of us would receive a dime in SS.
Government pensions and social security are unfunded but are two programs government will keep gong regardless of cost. If political leaders think the tea party is ugly imagine the push back if they suggest social security be cut back 30% especially without cutting federal pensions. This while congress gives itself ye another pay increase.
Like most people we don't have what we should have in our retirement accounts and we are relying on social security to fund a substantial portion (60% to 70%) of our retirement income.
I am planning to work and not collect to age 70 to maximize my social security benefits.
Looking at my latest SS estimate.
In a few short months I could retire but how on earth would we make it on $1,481 per month? Coupled with my wife's small state pension and her social security I suppose we could make it if I retired at 63 and she at 62 but barely. The only reason we could barely is her state pension, it isn't much it's hardly enough to make new car payments, offers heavily subsidized health insurance at age 60 and up. I count the medical insurance as a big blessing to have worth even more than the monthly check.
If I worked to age 63 both of us would draw social security we'd get somewhere around $2,600 a month to live on but that would be after we paid our portion of our medical insurance premium. I suppose we could live comfortably enough on that but there would be few extras and less cushion for what we want to do.
But if I work to age 70, this is only 8 years from now, my monthly benefit would rise to $2,723. Coupled with my wife's SS, pension and other savings we should have enough to live very well and do what we want to do.
But the biggest driving force for me working to age 70 is should something happen to me my wife gets the larger of our social security and that is mine by a long shot. When she is alone do I want to leave her living on $2,020 or $2,723 a month? $700 a month extra just for four years makes this decision a no brainer in my mind.
Working longer will become the new norm. I wish they would let me put off social security to age 74 and pay another $700 per month on top of that.
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Retiring with debt - Yes. We have a mortgage. But no car loans or other big-ticket loans, and any credit card bills are paid in full when received.
One thing that is odd about this Baby Boomer generation is how smug and self-centered alot of us have become. We preached the merits of peace, love, sex, drugs, rock and roll, etc. 20 or 30 years ago
More like 40ish, actually...
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and now want laws and ordinances passed for everything and people thrown in jail for (god forbid) things like smoking in public places, talking on a cell phone when driving,
I don't know and haven't even heard of anyone advocating jail for such things, but you're right - God forbid! It makes much more sense to allow people to endanger our health (and gross us out) with their smoking and endanger our lives with the colossal stupidity of jabbering on their precious cell phones while driving.
PS that's incongruous with the whole 60s thing how?
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Think about it, we're becoming an absolutely hypocritical group of grumbling old grey hairs that will be irrelevant in a few years.
Not unless you consider 30-40+ years a "few."
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Does this remind you of anybody you knew a few decades back?
Nope. And while people as you describe certainly exist, they were actually in the minority even then...it was mostly the hippies and the like, and yes you are correct that most of them turned out to be flaming hypocrites, or at least people who woke up to reality (finally) after preaching such brilliant concepts as "free love" (sleep with anything that moves), communes, and taking baths rather infrequently.
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