Posted on 06/10/2015 7:37:19 AM PDT by shortstop
I’m not sure retirement is a good thing.
Not the way it’s done now.
The way it’s done now, it seems to me that we’re marginalizing our most skilled workers, fostering idlers and turning old age into a near useless stage of life.
It used to be that people didn’t retire. They worked til they died. And if they couldn’t work, hopefully their family or their church took care of them.
But everyone who was physically and mentally able to do some useful task did so.
The difficulty arose when people became what used to be called senile, or when they became so physically enfeebled that they couldn’t provide for themselves – and they didn’t have family, clan, tribe or church to look after them.
That’s when Social Security came about.
Laying aside its socialist assumptions, Social Security was envisioned as a pension system for those who were at the tail end of their lives. It was a pittance to help maintain those who couldn’t maintain themselves.
It was just assumed that anyone who could still work would still work. In that innocent day the notion that anyone would willfully choose to be idle, to live off the sweat of someone else’s brow, was shameful.
Retirement, as little as 50 years ago, was the time in life when old age and its limitations prohibited people from supporting themselves. It was almost always a fairly short time, because people that stricken by age typically don’t have much life left.
But that was then and this is now.
Now, people live longer and think different.
Now, retirement is seen as the “vacation” of life. People go into retirement long before they are physically or mentally incapacitated and, typically, with many years of potentially fruitful life still ahead of them.
This has come about by an advancing life expectancy, the former abundance of generous pensions, and a sense of entitlement to a comfortable retirement and the Social Security check that helps make it possible.
And our work ethic has changed. The connection between self-support and self-respect has – with unfortunate and tragic consequences for society – been broken in our country. Increasingly, a spirit of “I’m going to get what I can, it’s owed to me” has crept into our national values.
Rather, a spirit of personal greed and covetousness has replaced the value of self-reliance and hard work. This is not true for all, of course, but in varying degree it has become true for many, maybe even for most.
So we retire. Sometimes at 62. Or 63 or 65. Typically, Americans retire in their early 60s.
And, typically, Americans in their early 60s have another 20 years of life ahead of them.
And yet they have sidelined themselves. At a stage of life and their careers when their knowledge and experience are at their best, they lay work aside.
Which is a terrible waste.
Yes, people in their 20s will work for less. But people in their 60s have a wealth of ability built up over decades that is invaluable. They have learned lessons through success and failure that put them head and shoulders above younger workers.
But they retire. And then to fill their time many of them volunteer in helpful but generally menial tasks. They are helping hands, no doubt, but typically their skill sets lay fallow and wasted.
Many make retirement a time of ease and idleness. They do nothing. It seems sometimes that is harder than it sounds, as many of the most idle retirees seem to die fairly soon.
And it is the hardest working, interestingly, who seem to live longer.
I think that is because they have a purpose. They have a reason to get up in the morning. They know they are useful, and being useful is essential to a happy life.
I’m not begrudging someone who has worked a long and successful career a little ease at the end of life, but I am saying that “the end of life” isn’t anywhere as early as our custom of retirement seems to indicate. As a matter of personal fulfillment and happiness, and as a matter of social and economic policy, people who work are better than people who don’t work – and there’s no reason to think that changes when you turn 63.
As our health stays strong, we should consider staying in the workforce. And in meaningful jobs. Not that there’s anything wrong with being a Wal-Mart greeter, but the vast majority of elderly workers are capable of far more than smiling and handing out stickers.
Part of the problem is that we dismiss old people. We don’t take them or their abilities and experience seriously. Sometimes the most capable person in a company is the old guy they’re eager to push into retirement. Sometimes the arrogance of youth wins out over the ability of age and we suffer as a result.
So I think we should change our thinking.
Retirement shouldn’t be an automatic. There are no automatic milestones of age, and there should be no automatic milestones of the workplace.
People shouldn’t automatically assume they must retire, and society shouldn’t automatically assume that they must either. Much joy, prosperity and productivity can be found by staying in the workplace, instead of shuffling off to Florida, and more people should consider the option.
A stock index fund, or mutual fund, is a continuous offering
Exactly, Loonsberry can kiss my @ss ( ! )
As you say busier and happier. I'm not sure about busier cause work was CRAZY the last few years... but way HAPPIER!
Sorry, while I can agree with Lonsberry that older people should not be disregarded and put aside, I sure as heck don’t want my nose to the grindstone until the day I die! I’m looking forward to retirement as a time when I can step back out of the rat race and do stuff that I really want to do. That doesn’t mean I won’t work, I’ll have to in order to supplement my retirement account and SSN, so I can afford to do the extras, such as traveling, but in a no pressure job, part-time.
Huh?
A company is authorized to issue and sell a certain number of shares of stock. An initial IPO sells shares to the general public. They don't keep on putting additional shares out there. That would have the effect of diluting earnings per share and that's the last thing a company wants to do! In fact, if you read the financial pages, a lot of companies - such as Apple - are actively buying shares back. They're cash rich and this is one way they can bump up earnings per share.
I retired in 2002 at the age of 53 and I have only one regret — I should have done it 10 years sooner.
Every day is another Saturday.... I love being retired. It is important to have a good retirement income and it’s a good idea to have accumulated and paid off most of the toys you like the most. I have all but one of those toys and I am working on that right now. ;>)
My bride of over 43 wonderful years continues to work, but that is because she still loves her job, and well, I like the mad money she brings in...and she is going to pay for that last big toy. ;>)
I have many serious health issues that in time would have forced me to retire, so for me it has all worked out. For each new health issue, I adjust, find workarounds, and continue to have as much fun as my mind and body will allow me to have.
I think that for me, having my bride - whom is my wonderful best friend- and God hanging out with me, has helped to make this retirement time enjoyable.
This past week I washed my beautiful boat, worked on putting in a flagstone walk and learned how to completely overhaul my Stihl weed trimmer ( I couldn’t believe that the cam on this thing is made of plastic!!!).
This next week I am going to work on building a rock garden and install a fountain in our pond. When I am done with those projects, I might go camping and watch my dog run on the beach.
~~ just livin’ life~~
You said you bought index mutual funds and how does that benefit the economy. As the mutual fund grows they buy more stock in the underlying companies which creates buying pressure normally helping to increase the share price which helps the capitalization of the issuing company which in turn helps then in many business related ways.
The only major goal I have left in life is retiring. Anybody that stands in the way of that is gonna wind up in a hole in the desert.
I cannot wait to retire. I hope to do some traveling, learn woodworking, maybe build a boat, do some fishing, sailing, all kinds of things.
I’d retire tomorrow if I could afford it.
How does it help the capitalization of the issuing company? They don't see any money from sales of their stock on the secondary market.
Which helps the economy more? Taking my $25,000 in dividends and buying more stock from the secondary market, or me taking that $25,000 and paying local small businesses to remodel my home?
Im a ways from retiring, if ever, but one thing id like to do is serve on a Grand Jury. I was offered this once but FedEx would have killed me if i signed up! I joked with my boss at the time that i did. Apparently its a several week stint.
Anyone done this after retirement?
Ps...i terminted auto spell checker and it shows!
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