For More Americans, Retirement Can Wait

Newhouse News ^ | 6/23/2008 | Ted Roelofs

[Hound of the Baskervilles]

I worked in an insurance office for 25 years and I hated every single nano second of it. I retired early and have not been bored one second in 15 years. I love housework, cooking, cleaning, running errands. My house is immaculate and it is totally organized from top to bottom inside and out. To me homemaking is productive, satisfying work. I sometimes think I am the only woman in America who loves housework and hates being in an office away from home.

[Incorrigible]

When I retire in a year, I'm gonna turn Democrat and yell, holler and scream to my new buddies at the AARP "Where's my money?".........

I'm old.  Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!

 

[rabscuttle385]

Socialism will drain them of any ambition and initiative and many will just lay back.

I disagree. Some will succumb, others will go on the black markets, and still others will leave if possible.

[businessprofessor]

When I retire in a year, I'm gonna turn Democrat and yell, holler and scream to my new buddies at the AARP "Where's my money?".........

This article obviously does not sample from the public employee population. Most public employees have a birthright to early retirement no matter how much it costs the taxpayer, nor how much longer the private sector worker must be employed to pay the taxes to provide their regal retirement. Many public employees return to work part-time, essentially receiving full-time pay (with built-in inflation protection) for 1/4 time work.

Please do not argue that lavish retirement benefits compensate for lower public sector compensation. Most states have laws indicating that public sector employees should be paid prevailing compensation. However, the compensation surveys deliberately under report the huge advantage that public sector employees have in retirement compensation. These surveys sometimes claim that public sector employees receive less retirement compensation than private sector employees.

Despite all of the talk about working longer, public sector employees are not listening except to double dip. Any talk of raising the retirement age for public employees is met by howls from public employee groups and their rat allies.

[SierraWasp]

But, but, but... What about that school teacher I heard about just the other day that on the day she retired after teaching for 25 years, she fell over dead just like Tim Russert!!!

Your reply/post was excellent and loaded with good information. I'm just feeling nutz today after thinking about all the notorious people dying of heart disease lately and the effect on their family's lives... When that old ticker times out, it's lights out on all those retirement dreams and schemes!!!

[EagleUSA]

I disagree. Some will succumb, others will go on the black markets, and still others will leave if possible.
:::::
Certainly those are alternatives. And the bottom line to socialism is the same. These people STOP PRODUCING WEALTH that goes to the socialists’ confiscatory taxation. The sad part is that the damage to the country the socialists will do, will take DECADES to repair after socialism goes broke. The criminal infrastructure that socialism encourages will continue to plague the country for an extended period of time.

Socialism is pure poison and only serves the short-term power madness of those that foster it.

[ImpBill]

More than likely correct.

This 62 year old didn't have but modest savings in a IRA with 6 month emergency fund to boot when I retired 3 years ago.

The key, for me at least, was being in the position that I was servicing absolutely no debt.

It really would blow most folks minds to find out how little one can really live on without debt.

[AmericanInTokyo]

When AMERICAN NANNY/WELFARE STATE SOCIALISM is complete, the US middle class is gutted, and the remaining top 20% of earners and arse-busting THINKERS and PRODUCERS tire of pulling the wagon full of leechers, lowlifes and illegals w/their endless free education food stamp anchor babies and a corrupted egalitarian voting populace, I predict many of them will come to the conclusion that the laissez faire, economic freedom incumbent in the American Dream is pretty much dead (except that which can be pursued beyond America's shores). They will start to offshore their properties, investments, and their very selves to get away from such a draining bolshevik handout system taking upwards of 50 to 70% of their earnings--and it is then they will have a rude awakening, about the Financial Berlin Wall the US has been quietly constructing to keep people in the United States and stifle any brain drain or folks seeking their economic freedom. It is coming folks.

[qam1]

Xer Ping

Ping list for the discussion of the politics and social (and sometimes nostalgic) aspects that directly effects Generation Reagan / Generation-X (Those born from 1965-1981) including all the spending previous generations are doing that Gen-X and Y will end up paying for.

Freep mail me to be added or dropped. See my home page for details and previous articles.  

[Straight Vermonter]

I’m a gen Xer and I’d like to retire someday. My calculations show that I can do it around age 80.

[Redleg Duke]

"Child support is one thing, but giving alimony payments to an able bodied woman is RIDICULOUS!"

I agree on all points!

It is like being told that since a parasite has been feeding off of you for some amount of time, you need to continue to let it feed off of you for an additional amount of time until it can find another host!

[gura]

Missouri.

[alice_in_bubbaland]

My daughter lived in St. Louis county, they taxed everything, your car, sales tax changed depending where you lived. I’m looking to simplify....maybe Utah. :0)