Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Fifteen years isn't all that long

My youngest is older than that.  And that's how long the Congressional Budget Office says the economy will last before "shutting down" because of the government debt crisis.



It's not true that Nero fiddled while Rome burned.  It's a true fact that he didn't do anything to put out the flames.  Me, I have a retirement plan: don't retire.

UPDATE 27 March 2012 20:50: So much for "The Greatest Generation," who've impoverished their grandchildrenJ'accuse.

9 comments:

Quizikle said...

I think that's getting to be a pretty popular plan. It's the one I have. A lot more popular than the ones from a few years back...
Q

Goober said...

The part that makes me angry, Ted, is the attitude of the Boomers that they somehow are OWED a retirement, and are willing to take it from all of us against our will.

So i don't get one now. And realistically, i probably won't. YOu need the miracle of compound interest to make enough to retire at my salary levels, and the fact is, you can't find anywhere that's paying compound interest any more, unless it is negative compaound interest.

My Dad always used to say that at 7% you can double your money in 7 years!

Great, Pop, show me where I can make 0.007% anywhere right now, and I'll double my money in 700 years. In the mean time, how's that retirement that I'm helping to fund?

it ticks me off to no end.

Goober said...

Oh, and Boomers? Don't come on here and give me that "We paid into the system our whole career and now we're OWED that money!" BS, either, because it was spent.

It was spent on YOUR watch. By people YOU voted for. And most importantly, it was spent on things for YOU - things that YOU saw the benefit of, and that YOU enjoyed. The deed was done long before my generation even had the right to vote, and now that we do, we're still outnumbered by you.

So don't tell me you didn't get yours and that you're owed. The money is spent. Any claim to it now will be a claim on your kids' and grandkids' backs, because you spent it already.

So if your right to a retirement is so fundamental that you feel comfortable forcing your kids and grandkids at gunpoint* to pay for it, then by all means, enjoy...

*Not holding a gun to their head? Tell me, what do you think will happen if they choose not to pay for your retirement? Men, with guns, will show up on their doorstep, and slowly escalate the situiation until they either pay, or are incarcerated, or, if they resist that, dead.

Oh, yeah - enjoy your retirement...

Rev. Paul said...

Yeah, because all the programs begun during the Great Depression & early WWII years are the fault of people who weren't born yet.

Not all Boomers are at fault, just like not all Gen X/Y/Z/EIEIO folks are concerned about it.

Everyone who's ever voted for yet another tax-and-spend politician, however ... that's another story.

Me? Nobody owes me a damned thing, Goober, except what I earn for an honest day's work - and only after I've worked it.

Murphy's Law said...

My plan is to be retired by then, on a plot of land that I've paid for the same way that I've ensured my post-retirement financial future: by scrimping today and socking as much cash away as I can.

Once I'm in my own home on my own land and reasonably self-sufficient, let the wheels fall off and let the boomers go crazy. All the ammunition that I'll ever need for the defense of my home I already have, and it doesn't go bad.

Home on the Range said...

Goober - this all started LONG before any of we "boomers" ever voted.

All the people that laughed at me when I sold the 4 bedroom home and went for "cash, off grid, tiny house, big shop, grow vegetables, can and reload" while saving my cash for items that can be sold, bartered or traded won't be pointing fingers at me calling me crazy.

Borepatch said...

Over the last 3 years, we've reduced our debt by 80%. I'm unhappy with that, because of that last 20%. But College for #1 Son (and soon, #2 Son) puts a dent in that - but I'm determined to launch them into the world not buried under a mountain of debt.

Goober, please don't pin on me the many failings of the Boomers (and it must be said, the "Greatest Generation" who loved all the spending too). I'm pretty torqued off, too: it's cutting into my Garand fund.

Old NFO said...

I'm with Murphy and Brigid... scrimp/save/buy the essentials and in a few years I'll be 'ready' for what I see coming... And yes, I'm a boomer, and yes I get a retirement THAT I EARNED!

Goober said...

Rev. Paul - When my generation has been in charge for the last 40 years, and God forbid we're still robbing from our kids for our retirement, I'll universally lambast MY generation, too. You have my word on that - I'm nothing if not fair.

Also, those claiming that it was the war generation that started it - it is immaterial to me which generation started it. The Boomers had the chance to stop it, and not only did they do nothing, they went on a spending spree and spent it all with the idea that they could get it all back from their children once they started working.

Sounds like a ponzi scheme to me. Also, immoral.

Ted;

It is hard to write about the actions of a generation, because I am a person that focuses more on the actions of a individual rather than the acts of groups of individuals. That being said, sometimes it is unavoidable to lump people into groups in which they may not belong. I know a lot of Boomers that are pissed off about what happened. I know a lot of Boomers who aren't expecting Social Security for their retirement and earned it with their own money on their own. There are exceptions to every rule, but it doesn't change the fact that all of this happened on the Boomer's watch, so I find myself compelled to point that out.

As for how us X'er and Y'ers feel about all of this, I have yet to speak with even a single one of my peers, even the most liberal and "big government uber alles" among us that thinks we will ever see a dime out of social security, despite the fact that we'll likely pay into it our entire careers, so you'll have to forgive me if I get a little riled up when I hear Boomers demand their SS money because they are OWED it when they must know damned good and well that they spent their money already, are demanding it be paid by us, all the while knowing in their heart that we won't ever see a dime of it. They are forcing us to fund their retirement agaisnt our will, and in my opinion, most of them know that we will never get our money back.

Can you see why I am a little juiced up about all this? I figure I'll have over a million dollars when adjusted for interest invested in SS by the time I reach retirement age. And I'll never see a dime of it. The only thing i can say is that i hope you Boomers really enjoy your retirement, because I'm working my ass off to fund it. Sorry guys, nothing personal, but them's the facts!