Obesity is a disease

Bob Smith said:
I didnt say that ALL social security sucks, only the vast majority. The problem I see with it is that my money is being taken away to send a check to both my grandmothers, you, and millions of other people. Individuals should be responsible for their own financial future instead of being a major drain on taxpayers. I say we go back to 1934.[/QUOTE
As a taxpayer for over 50 years, I will probably not live long enough to
recover what I put into social security. I would like to think that some of that money helps your grandmothers.
 
oldawg said:
As a taxpayer for over 50 years, I will probably not live long enough to recover what I put into social security. I would like to think that some of that money helps your grandmothers.

Actualy, you'll probably recover everything that you've ever paid into social security by the time your seventy bro..

Figure the average payments from SSA will be about $1000 dollars a month (you'll probably be closer to 1200-1300 if you've had a fairly good work record) but we'll say 1000 for the sake of this arguement.. You will draw roughly 12k a year.. over the course of 5 years...assuming you wait untill you're 65 and 4 months before you start drawing (that should be about your "full retirement age").. You can start drawing at 62 with a slight % penalty for every year that you drew early.... Anyway.. let's say you draw for 5 years at 12 k a year.. that is $60,000 that you will draw (granted this is a very low estimate..but it's only for arguement's sake) The average american Middle class to upper middle class pays in between 2k and 4k a year in social security tax (and that's based on today's standards...20 years ago you would have only paid in about 400-800 dollars a year) .
So lets say you pay in 2k a year for 30 years (no way, it's way less..even for the very rich because of the caps that are placed on the amount of SSA tax that can be paid, and there is a curve for depreciation and inflation..2k a year is WAAAY over estimating what you've paid in so I'll lump those first ten years or so you worked back in the 50's/60's where you paid less than a 100-200 dollars a year in tax and we'll lump it in on the total.... So you've now drawn 60k over a five year period, You've paid in about 60k over your lifetime.... SOOOOO, You will be breaking even on the paid-out/pay-recieved as soon as this five year period expires.....

Now, Lets look at the average life expectancy.. 77 for a white male.. That means that if you just live to the average age your expected to, you'll have drawin about 250% more than you ever paid in... And mind you, I estimated your monthly benefit very low.. and the amount you've paid in Very HIGH.. So in all proability you'll have drawn more than you paid by the time your 68-69 ish...

And before the questions and slander starts...Remember Social Security was NEVER intended to be the only source of income for the elderly.. IT was only supposed to be a SUPPLIMENT.

.
 
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oldawg said:
I would like to think that some of that money helps your grandmothers.

In all honesty, neither one of them needs it. Both of my grandfathers had been taking take of their own financial situation for many decades. I wouldnt say that either of them is truly "well off" but they are sitting better than the vast majority of retirees. My one grandma is 92 and change, healthier than almost anyone on this board, and pulls in $60-75k/yr just in interest and without touching the principle of her investments. Does $1200 or whatever a month help them? Sure, who wouldnt want that extra spending money. But its really not doing much of anything for them. THAT is the way peoples financial situation should be -- not having to rely on some govt entitlement program to help them retire.

Phreezer, Amen on your statement "And before the questions and slander starts...Remember Social Security was NEVER intended to be the only source of income for the elderly.. IT was only supposed to be a SUPPLIMENT."

IIRC, wasnt Social Security actually started as a way to help stimulate the economy during the Depression by giving old folks some spending money?
 
Bob 60-75k and not truly well off??? Is your family the Hiltons or something?? Here we have a minimum income guarantee of $600/month for a single person. Or if a couple $800. Here your grandma would be 1 in a million.
 
My gram is comfortable and should be an example to everyone. PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR OWN FINANCES AND TAKE RESPONSIBLITY FOR YOURSELF IF YOURE A POOR ASS! My family is far from being part of the Hilton clan. We work hard and dont want to be like everyone else living off of social security when we retire. My grandfather worked till the day he was killed by his stupid f'in incompetant doctor (no lawsuit was filed, unfortunately). My grandparents were never poor, but also never lived extravagantly. They took trips and provided for their kids (my dad and uncle) but didnt drive fancy cars or anything like that. They lived in the same house for 50 years before my grandma finally decided that a 200+ year old house is too much upkeep for one person.

Besides my grandfathers regular work, he also was very involved in the town/city they lived. When he died, the flag at city hall was lowered to half mast. He wasnt some big shot that had a huge salary or anything like that, he simply worked hard for most of his life and was smart with his money. He loved his family and friends and would do anything for them. We used to play pool together when I was little. We were supposed to go golfing at his country club the week that he died. I still resent the doctor for taking that away from me.

Sorry for the tangent there. The moral of the story is that it doesnt take much to become relatively wealthy (say $1 MM+ net worth). Just invest a little bit of money over a long period of time and dont live beyond your means. Trying to "keep up with the Joneses" is probably the fastest way to major debt than anything else. Its a stupid trap that millions of people fall into. So what if your friend has a $300k house, a $65k Escalade in his 3 car garage, and a vacation house in Bora-Bora. Most likely he is barely able to pay his bills, has $10k+ on his platinum credit cards, has a negative net worth of well over $150k and a failing marriage. Wohoo, just the kind of person I want to emulate.

Head to your local library and pick up "The Millionaire Next Door." Might give you a new perspective on the millionaries in America. My grandparents would fit in that book 100%.
 
Ronin_ said:
Bob 60-75k and not truly well off??? Is your family the Hiltons or something?? Here we have a minimum income guarantee of $600/month for a single person. Or if a couple $800. Here your grandma would be 1 in a million.

And that, my friend, is the beauty of America and free enterprise. Sure, we have a guaranteed minimum income of ZERO dollars a month, but you can make what you want if you try hard. In fact, the average American salary is probably right around 600 A WEEK. Honestly, it's probably a bit more. If we erased the welfare queens and drug addled shitheads without jobs from the equation, it would probably be closer to 1200.

Bob, I agree. We've talked about this. My grandpa is 80 years old and he STILL WORKS. He could very easily retire with what he has, but he still works. He's now only thinking about retiring and his plan is to quit the one job and start another that's only 2-3 days/wk. He gets his SS, because that's what happens when you're old as dirt, but he sure as fuck doesn't need it.
 
Well that is definitely something to aspire to, I admittedly have zero knowledge of investment, and round here it's hard to get more than $18 000 a year unfortunately for me at the moment, so those figures just seemed unreal to me. Unless I was a doctor, dentist or lawyer(which won't happen) I can't imagine ever having that much money during the peak of my career!

Grizzly, working as long as you are able to, is the best thing to keep you healthy, I worked for the civil service in the pension area and almost without exception the 60 year olds who no longer worked sounded 20 years older physically and mentally than those 65-70 that still worked. Although alot didnt work due to health problems so it's a biased group, I do think working and keeping your brain active is as important maybe more so than physical activity.
 
Grizz, glad to hear about your grandfather. I think its sad to see people in their late 60s, 70s and older still working. Unless of course they do it just as a little something to do and not for the actual income. Ive met a bunch of retired guys that work for car dealerships either as local transport bringing people to work while their car is in the shop or they transport cars between dealers. Easy job and you get to meet new people every day.

Ronin, IIRC, what you speak of has been studied. Old folks that retire and have no hobbies, no family or something to keep them somewhat busy end up dying very soon after retirement. Those that are active both physically and mentally last much longer. The grandma I mentioned thats 92....she has lunch or dinner with some of her friends probably 2-4 times per week, she does yoga, walks around the mall, goes to music concerts or theatre productions. Shes amazing, really! Very healthy both physically and mentally, is the sweetest lady ever, and is an inspiration.

Ronin, whats your situation? Are you still in school or do you have a 4 yr degree? What kinda work do you do?
 
Bob I was doing a 4 year degree which had a great future but I got into some trouble for a street fight(which i did not start) a couple of years back, so had to quit the degree, and it has kind of put a halt to things as I cant afford to go back to college. Work I'm doing now, I work for a cell phone company offering dealer support, basically I have 5 or 6 databases/systems and look up information and alsoblack list stolen phones etc. It's quite alot of things to learn for the first 6 weeks, after that it's pretty much same old.

I would like to get into physiotherapy, but here it requires a biology qualification, and I only have arts subjects, english literature etc, and it would take 2 years for that then 4-5 for the degree and i dont know how id fund that now
 
Take night classes at a local community college. If its a decent one, all, or nearly all, of your credits will transfer. I transferred to my final school with 48 credits from comm college. The classes are much cheaper than at a 4 yr school and they usually have more classes for working people.
 
In socialist Europe, isn't the financial aid for students absolutely phenomenal? Even here, you can easily get enough to attend a school. A dude might have to work while attending school(it's amazing to me the amount of people who don't work while going to school) but he can get the tuition taken care of.
 
yep, shouldnt ever hear the excuse i cant afford to go back to school with all the loans etc out there. I took night classes at the cc for two years. Easiest damn credits ever and much cheaper. do as much as possible the cc route
 
Phreezer said:
Actualy, you'll probably recover everything that you've ever paid into social security by the time your seventy bro..

Figure the average payments from SSA will be about $1000 dollars a month (you'll probably be closer to 1200-1300 if you've had a fairly good work record) but we'll say 1000 for the sake of this arguement.. You will draw roughly 12k a year.. over the course of 5 years...assuming you wait untill you're 65 and 4 months before you start drawing (that should be about your "full retirement age").. You can start drawing at 62 with a slight % penalty for every year that you drew early.... Anyway.. let's say you draw for 5 years at 12 k a year.. that is $60,000 that you will draw (granted this is a very low estimate..but it's only for arguement's sake) The average american Middle class to upper middle class pays in between 2k and 4k a year in social security tax (and that's based on today's standards...20 years ago you would have only paid in about 400-800 dollars a year) .
So lets say you pay in 2k a year for 30 years (no way, it's way less..even for the very rich because of the caps that are placed on the amount of SSA tax that can be paid, and there is a curve for depreciation and inflation..2k a year is WAAAY over estimating what you've paid in so I'll lump those first ten years or so you worked back in the 50's/60's where you paid less than a 100-200 dollars a year in tax and we'll lump it in on the total.... So you've now drawn 60k over a five year period, You've paid in about 60k over your lifetime.... SOOOOO, You will be breaking even on the paid-out/pay-recieved as soon as this five year period expires.....

Now, Lets look at the average life expectancy.. 77 for a white male.. That means that if you just live to the average age your expected to, you'll have drawin about 250% more than you ever paid in... And mind you, I estimated your monthly benefit very low.. and the amount you've paid in Very HIGH.. So in all proability you'll have drawn more than you paid by the time your 68-69 ish...

And before the questions and slander starts...Remember Social Security was NEVER intended to be the only source of income for the elderly.. IT was only supposed to be a SUPPLIMENT.

.
Not a bad analysis but you forgot one thing. If I could have put my social security money
into an account with a 5% compound interest rate it would now be worth well over a million dollars . Damn, that makes Bob Smith right.
Social security sucks. And, your'e right, it was only intended to be a
SUPPLEMENT.
 
oldawg said:
Not a bad analysis but you forgot one thing. If I could have put my social security money
into an account with a 5% compound interest rate it would now be worth well over a million dollars . Damn, that makes Bob Smith right.
Social security sucks. And, your'e right, it was only intended to be a
SUPPLEMENT.
5% interest over the long haul would really suck, but its still better than SS. Depending on which market one refers to, they have historically averaged 8-14% compounded annually. For most people, I cant see why they would bother "diversifying" with mutual funds or multiple mutual funds instead of just buying a very low expense index fund like the Vanguard 500 or similar. Youd end up beating about 90% of all fund managers and with a much lower expense ratio.
 
Bob Smith said:
5% interest over the long haul would really suck, but its still better than SS. Depending on which market one refers to, they have historically averaged 8-14% compounded annually. For most people, I cant see why they would bother "diversifying" with mutual funds or multiple mutual funds instead of just buying a very low expense index fund like the Vanguard 500 or similar. Youd end up beating about 90% of all fund managers and with a much lower expense ratio.

I only used 5% because nobody should question it as being excessive. I agree that low expense index funds are the best. And, altho I disagree with some of your opinions, you are one of the best. And, is obesity a disease? No. It's sloth. Who the hell feeds them?. It's like a queen bee, but who are the drones?
 
Yeah, pretty much anyone could get 5% without much effort. And even then, they could probably go with a lower investment grade bond or bond fund and hit 5% with no real chance at losing your principle. Im not really a big fan of bonds, though.

Now to the real question, what opinions of mine do you disagree with? ;)
 
Well to be honest guys re night school, since i got the criminal record I've lost all drive I had left, which wasn't alot. Things have been compunded a great deal by injury after injury the last 6 months, and after being so important to me, it's hard to see much point in anything without the gym going OK. I try to imagine how people feel with a drive for work and success and I just get thoughts, but you're getting out of shape etc, what will be the point, having your life as work
 
i dont think hockey is a sport
Bob Smith said:
Yeah, pretty much anyone could get 5% without much effort. And even then, they could probably go with a lower investment grade bond or bond fund and hit 5% with no real chance at losing your principle. Im not really a big fan of bonds, though.

Now to the real question, what opinions of mine do you disagree with? ;)
 
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