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I invest. And since 1997 I have put just over 12 grand into one retirement plan and about 4 into another. The big one is worth just over 29 thousand now and the small one is at about 8. I can move them all over to either high, medium and low risk, move them into or out of NASDAC and into or out of the DOW and I keep a very close eye on them. The small one I have in commodities and can move them all over as well. So my account is worth about 37 grand and I have just about 16 into them..and all this since early 1997. Wanna know what my SS account is up to? A wopping 22 grand! WOW thats a bunch now aint it!!! WOW all that since 1969! I can collect and live in comfort with the whopping 700 bucks a month I MIGHT get when I retire. I say might..because I doubt it will be around when I retire.

Point is-those 70 years olds you mentioned made a mistake when they lost on their accounts. They didnt pay attention to them and listened to a investor "expert" and he told them to stay into what they had.

You are so right about not paying attention. I had invested in mutual funds that were supposed to be conservative and they were great for a number of years. I got lax in watching and was so surprised to find that the funds were heavily invested in companies such as Enron. The rest is history, and I am too old to start over.

Thank goodness that I had divested.

If I had started investing part of my self-employment tax when I was young, I probably would have paid closer attention.

I agree with you. Once we got the two kids through college and on their own (during the late 70's), the wife and I started investing any pay raises we got. It was amazing
how quickly it added up. We've been retired now since
the early 90's and our monthly income is more than adequate for us to live comfortably, vacation annually, and occasionally help out the grandkids financially. Social
Security is the smallest check we receive every month.

As we've advised our heirs, it's NEVER too early to start saving for your seniior years.

Yes, I agree with your sentiments. You are very smart, and you know how to invest and how to attend to your investments, so you ensure your money is working for you, not for anyone else. And I agree it is very irresponsible to leave one's investments to a so-called-expert salesman. But not everyone is as astute or as intelligent as you are, and so it seems to me that this must be considered when discussing reforms. Some people will invest badly because they are incapable of doing better. And so--how much will it cost to care for these people?