"I have no confidence in the economic stimulus plans, although I am a supporter of this President."
At least you can still HOPE FOR CHANGE...
Posted on 06/08/2009 6:52:11 AM PDT by PeterL
I retired in late 2006 with a conservative financial plan in place that would last through the lives of my wife and myself and still leave a little something for the kids. My financial planner and I choose an appropriate asset allocation model and we needed only 5% returns to be in good shape. My wife and I planned on working or volunteering, but we could do things because we wanted to and not because we had to. After many years in corporate America, this was a great place to be.
I am still in a little bit of shock over everything that has happened in the financial markets over the past year. On one hand, events unfolded in the blink of an eye and on the other, it was a death by a thousand cuts. My retirement plans were solid and in place and now they are gone. Disappeared. Vanished. Dead. They will not be revived and I am left with the shock, disbelief, despair and anger of trying to figure out what to do next.
Who is to blame for all this because I would like to introduce them to their worst fears and nightmares? Not really, but they should suffer. I played by the rules. I put my money in secure investments. I didn’t gamble on housing or any of the other get rich schemes out there. Perhaps I was too willing to accept the advice of financial planners with all of their asset allocation models and long term investing theories. History always repeats itself, the market runs in cycles, you cannot time the market and so in the end you buy and hold knowing that which comes down will eventually rise even higher…but I don’t think so this time. The mess we are in right now feels very different. No one is talking about rebounding to past highs. All of the talk is can we avoid the dire straits of a total system collapse.
There is probably much blame to go around. For years, while I was still a part of corporate America I was incensed at the salaries, bonuses, perks and power being given to our CEO and to all CEOs. In the good old USA our CEO’s average 450 times the salary of the average worker. The next highest country averaged 22 times the average worker. Not too hard to see that something was terribly wrong, but times were booming, money being made, stock prices climbing so who cared. Of course now we find out that most of these profits were just shell games and the people who could manipulate their way to huge paydays. The foxes raided the hen houses and they have all gotten away.
I need to get back to work. I need to make money comparable to what I used to, but it won’t be easy. My age and experience work against me not for me. The job market is terrible and we just hit 23 straight months of net jobs lost. There is no end in sight, but still, I conduct my daily job searches and try to stay positive and pray I do not lose everything I have worked so hard to acquire.
I am an optimistic person, but it is clear to me that all of the rules have changed. I have no confidence in the economic stimulus plans, although I am a supporter of this President. I do not see how we can buy our way out of this mess. It is like we are trying to pay off the judge in order to avoid going to jail, but the judge is a harsh judge who does not accept bribes. Something tells me that we must accept our sentence and learn from all this. I don’t claim to know what our lesson or lessons might be, but I feel certain that our lives need to change and our desires need to change. “He who dies with the most toys wins” was a funny bumper sticker, but it is funny no more. I think it is time to end this era of greed and selfishness and over consumption. It is time to focus on needs and not wants, and it certainly wouldn’t hurt to think about how our actions affect the other guy, and not just that it is good for me.
There are so many of us in this predicament. It is as if we are stranded on an island and there is no one coming to our rescue. Certainly not the government! Perhaps therein lays our opportunities. Those of us with first hand experience on how the old rules no longer apply can begin to create the new rules. We find strength as we look to each other for strength. Our unique bond expanding into a feeling the connection between us…and this connection feels good and right…and we begin to desire this connection…and nurture this connection…and begin to realize what our world could look like if we took care of each other instead of taking care of our self. Why not put this into action? It has been talked about often but never implemented. What do we have to lose?
Two post troll alert!!
http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/by:peterl/index?tab=comments;brevity=full;options=no-change
but I feel certain that our lives need to change and our desires need to change.
How's that change thing working for ya, Obomba supporter?
Please do not beleive the MSM telling you that the sub prime is the reason...it is just one little reason amongst the greed of corporations.
The untold story was the massive run on our financial system on 9/11/08.
http://www.freerepublic.com/perl/post?id=2267128%2C6
"I have no confidence in the economic stimulus plans, although I am a supporter of this President."
At least you can still HOPE FOR CHANGE...
Well there is your problem right there. You don't have enough brains to see who actually caused all this sh**. The dimwits. Support Bozo and you will NEVER retire, ever. Only a total f***wit would support Bozo at this point in time.
“The untold story was the massive run on our financial system on 9/11/08. “
I’m aware of this story. Actually has some Soros conspiracy features as well.
Doesn’t change the root cause, the financial sector collapsed due to sub prime loan defaults.
He’s a nice guy, ... Nothing to do with it. In fact, the CEO can afford to be a nice guy, he pays other people to do his dirty work for him.
but I am counting on him to take care of me, ...mistake #2. I like my CEO, he's a pretty nice guy. I even trust him, so long as our goals mutually compatible. However, his job is to protect the company, and the assets of the shareholders. If he can balance that, and look out for the needs of his employees, that's good. But his Number One Job is act in the best interests of the company. That's what he was hired to do.
when he can’t even take care of himself ...decent point, but irrelevant. Surprised that the board has let the guy stay on, with so many personal problems. Of course, changes at that level aren't made overnight, either. Look for the guy to "Pursue Other Interests" over the next six months to a year....
I realized then also that Government promises are the same thing, even worse. ...you're absolutely right in this regard. The job of Gov't is to act in the interests of the people. However, its been corrupted by power, and frankly human nature, to act in its own interests, and to protect itself.
Again, so long as the government's goals and your goals are mutually compatible, you may be able to work together. However, as soon as they diverge, watch out.
I *never* trust the government. Too many meddling busybodies wanting to do things "for my own good". Does that make me paranoid? Maybe, but only because they're all out to get me. :-)
True.
So far it is cutting back on planned travel, acquisitions, and telling the kid to pay for his own cell phone (that one's not working too well so far).
Reading over the original I can't help wondering if it is some kind of a plant. The author seems just as conflicted today as when he planned for retirement:
He supports Obama.
His old CEO was the worst of the worst.
He's decided that having more empathy would have cured the problem before it hit (him).
He needs to work and to "make money comparable to what I used to..." - which sounds a touch greedy to me.
And, he's expecting some kind of utopian brotherhood of the screwed to arise from all this?
Regardless of the opinions of the Gloom and Doomers, the market will always do well in the long run. Dollar Cost Averaging (what you're doing, a little each month) is the way to get in. Invest in solid companies, for the long term, and you'll be fine.
AND....if..... The Gloom and Doomers here on FR are correct, and your investment in the market is "completely worthless, guaranteed to lose money, blah blah blah" ....we'll all have bigger things to worry about than a few dollars invested in the stock market.
Many CEOs were paid well even when they made bad decisions that ran the company into the ground.
I most certainly I don't want government stepping in to control CEO compensation. I do want Boards of Directors (with pressure from/backing of stockholders) to negotiate contracts with CEOs that hold them accountable for poor performance. (And yes, I know there is competition for good executives, but one who drives a company into the ground is not a good executive.)
My sister is a senior HR manager and has been working harder than ever lately. She’s the hatchet man when they let people go, and it is very stressful. Her tires have been slashed twice. She just had to lay off a good friend she’s had for 15 years. Nobody seems to realize that these are decisions made at the most senior levels in her company, not her personal whim. HR managers are definitely earning their salary lately.
Of course, I'd not be too sympathetic either, if that were the case. :-)
“I can’t be responsible for every undercapitalized small business in America.” - Hillary Clinton
Incensed?
Why?
What prevented you from becoming a CEO and making the same so someone could be pissed at your income?
When someone makes more than you do, you have a choice to either improve your situation (Hint: That is what has always made it the "Good Old USA") or piss and moan about their situation being better than yours and blame them for having it better.
Obviously, you chose the piss and moan option.
Now you are free to start your own business and be the head man and make alllll the money.
Enjoy.
Best of luck.
Then let's see how much you support a socialist president.
Unfortunately you are correct.
People who thought they had enough socked away in stocks and savings and 401K’s are going to have to go back to work.
Now the gas speculators are starting to sock it to us again.
The Congress is happy as pigs in slop watching the gas prices go back up and no drilling for our own sources.
Nancy is hiding since her recent lies about the CIA, but she will soon be back killing us again with more proposals. Obama is watching Medicare go broke and still insisting he can solve our health care troubles by robbing the rich, of which there are a lot fewer.
How’s that change working out for you.?
How many people in countries like Belgium, Greece, Holland, etc.. lost everything they had during WWII
Another example:
How many Vietnamese/Cubans lost EVERYTHING, risked their lives on rickety boats, arrived to the US and became successful?
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