hassaholic asked:

Steve McNair walks away from football. Here’s his parting words. Video via NFL.com/NFL Network (this is just his words, I will upload the full 25 minute press conference later, and post a link to it.

ALANIZ

moeursalen asked:


Full retirement age means that you won’t get a benefit rate which has been reduced because of age.

CALDERON

Roger M. Ingbretsen asked:


One financial area not receiving media attention in our present economic situation is the large deficits in federal, state and local retirement accounts. In fact the silence is almost deafening. According to the Pew Center on the States, “state government employee pension plans nationwide alone, have racked up nearly $360 billion in unfunded pension liabilities.” Research indicates there is also in excess of $380 billion in unfunded liabilities for other retirement benefits, including health care.

Both political parties have blamed unfunded pension liabilities on factors outside their control, such as lost tax revenue and the stock market downturn. Sagging returns have not helped pension investment portfolios, but they account for a fairly small portion of the problem. Many states have been diverting billions in pension payments to other state spending year after year, digging the hole deeper.

Politicians and administrators at all levels of government have “guaranteed” generous benefits, while pushing the costs onto future generations of taxpayers by failing to fully fund the pensions. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that in the past 15 months, and most notably in the past few months, employee retirement accounts have lost $2 trillion in value. By law, the trillions lost in public pension obligations must be paid out… and taxpayers will be forced to foot the bill.

While on vacation last spring in the Napa wine country of California, my wife and I listened in disbelief as the local news announced that the city of Vallejo had filed for bankruptcy. This was as a direct result of the more than generous retirement benefits paid to its employees. We should not have been surprised as the same thing has happened in the past in Orange County and San Diego. Many other municipalities across the nation are facing this same scenario.

It will be interesting to see how this plays out with States needing billions just to keep operating day to day and the millions of government employed baby-boomers getting ready to retire. With the high unemployment, personal debt running at an all-time high and high personal and property taxes, where will the states get the money to pay retirees? Where will the federal government get the funds to satisfy social security, Medicare and the unfunded retirement obligations?

There does not appear to be a definitive or even an estimated amount that the federal, state and local governments are short, in funding retirement accounts. The collective figure is definitely much bigger than the stimulus package just past and signed into law. Add to the government shortages those of the private sector, the future does not look good for those retired or thinking of retiring.

If you are retired or planning to retire in the next few years, contact the agency or your retirement account administrator; find out what condition the funding is in with regard to future retirement disbursements. This may put your mind at ease or cause you to save more of “your money for your retirement.” Additionally, you should contact your local, state and federal representatives and communicate your concern. Possibly suggest they do not pass more spending bills until all unfunded liabilities are covered.



PATTON

bobbalooee asked:


The company I work for uses AIG for their investment advisers. They match up to 3%. My question is should I rollover to another financial advisor or keep with AIG. I am have already lost 35% of my retirement and unhappy with what I have been reading in the papers about AIG. I know I should still contribute to AIG to receive my company match since its free money, but am not sold on leaving everything with them and watching the government continue to bail AIG out.

CREWS

tpmtv asked:

more at cspan.org May 1, 2009

NICKERSON

Jenn asked:


I’m 24 yrs old and I’ve been thinking about opening up a retirement plan. But I dont know what to look for. Any suggestions would be great! I am a freelance interpreter so my employment does not offer one.

EMANUEL

LaneCh asked:

John Piper’s view of planning for retirement. In short, don’t waste your life. It’s so refreshing to hear this advice coming from the same generation that feeds us this garbage about being anxious for tomorrow. (Matt. 6:34) www.desiringgod.org

KENNY

joelcomm asked:

www.AskJoelComm.com What is the fastest way to make money online? Unless you have an “easy button” you may not be able to do it! Watch my video response now!

LOONEY

Dr. Cynthia Barnett asked:


Many people in our society are clinging to retirement myths, despite the publicity and information available. Holding on to these myths as truth can be very harmful to your happiness in retirement.

To help you avoid holding on to these detrimental myths, I’d like to offer my take on some of the most widely held retirement myths.

Myth #1: Retirement is an event that occurs on the last day of your career. This is false. Retirement is a new phase of your life, quite unlike any previous stage of living. Few people step from the career phase of life to the retirement phase in a single action. The truth is that there will be a transition period of moving into a new lifestyle. The truth is that it will probably take a year or more for you to create your new retirement lifestyle.

Myth #2: Someone or something else will take care of me in retirement. This is unlikely today. Whether myth is that Social Security will take care of you or that you will be taken care of by an inheritance from your parents or by your children, it is increasingly unlikely that someone else will take care of you. Many retirees cannot subsist on Social Security alone. Many pensions have evaporated. Your parents now face the same economic challenges you are facing and will probably need to use much of their savings. Your children will also face these economic challenges, will need to be attending to the needs of their children, and must be saving for their own retirement. While I don’t think Social Security will disappear in the next ten years, as some predict, I do think it likely that retirement income from the government will decrease in the future.

Myth #3: I won’t need much to live on. The truth of this statement depends on how you define “much.” A recent study indicated that the average retiree will spend $250,000 on medical expenses between age 65 and death. We can expect to live another 18 to 30 years after retirement. As the cost of many essentials for living continues to rise, you might need to be thinking seriously about how you will supplement your retirement income.

Myth #4: Retirement is easy – it’s just one great long weekend. For the vast majority of people, this is simply not true. We all need meaning and purpose in our lives – this does not end when we retire from a job. The retirement transition can be difficult and can result in depression. Many people enter the second phase of life (retirement) with the attitude that they will spend the rest of their lives relaxing on a beach somewhere or pursuing other leisure activities. Most discover within one to three years, that a steady diet of leisure and relaxation creates a pretty empty and shallow existence. Our rest needs to be balanced by activity; our relaxation needs to be balanced with purposeful activity.

Myth #5: Retirement will be wonderful because I’ll spend all of my time with my spouse or significant other. Spending all of your time with your spouse or significant other will introduce new challenges to your retirement lifestyle. Many couples actually spend only about 20% of their time with their spouse before retiring. They don’t realize there must be some adjustment to spending significantly more time with their spouse. Statistics are indicating now that the highest divorce rate is with couples over age 55.



BARCLAY

stacktrick asked:

Espo retired at the Garden

AGUILERA