No need to apologize about replying to my reply to another. I think I barged in on his/her conversation.
Your summation of the 70’s can be transported to 2008 very easily. There have been some terrible financial decisions made by both individuals and the government.
Low interest rates can be as detrimental as high interest rates. I guess it depends on which horse you are riding.
I don’t find that Defined Benefit Plans being shifted to Defined Contribution Plans is a bad thing. Most employers provide a match. Why should my employer take care of me for the rest of my life, if I don’t choose to participate? (the automobile industry is a great example) AND the stock market has done very well with the advent of 401k’s. Call me pie in the sky..I think it will continue to do so..eventually.
I can’t debate the de-pegging of the dollar from gold except to ask if that happened in the 70’s...or before.
So is what you call derivates the same thing as the future market? If so, we may also be in agreement. If so, that is a gamble that may only affect that multi-layered market. Many, many people have gone belly up in that market in the past and the whole US economy didn’t go down.
Ask the employees of General Motors how confident they feel about their retirement now. Ask the employees of various local and state government agencies, in about another year, how they feel about that. Ask the recipients of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid how they fell about that, in a few more years.
With Defined Contribution Plans, I own the asset, and can move it to safer ground, or bequeath it to my children, or do as I will with it. I am not all that worried that my employer will probably go toes up before I do.