Jackson Jambalaya

I'm a boomer who doesn't all all fit Sid's mold. I started with nothing, went to school and got a good degree, worked 35 years in a lower management professional position, retired before age 60, and now have more money and more income than ever before. So I don't really get his point.

2nd Lieutenant Obvious's weekly report of blitherings.

This was a hard read, meaning not very well written. Lots of gibberish.

There are a fair number of older folks, myself included, who do not need to work for financial reasons but want to work - often on their own terms/schedule - for personal satisfaction and enjoyment. As the number of folks over 65, 70, 75, whatever increase, the number of those who want to work will also increase. Then there are those who are satisfied with their retirement and choose not to work even if it means cutting expenditures. Don't worry about us, we're good.

Now, the group that simply had no other options but to work low-wage jobs that provided little or no actual ability to plan and save, and did work their asses off for 40-50-plus years, I have no problem giving them the ability to finally quit working those jobs yet still survive as though they were. Those folks are really who SS was established to help. If need be, take some of my SS for those folks - I had the ability to set things up the way I like, they didn't, so I'll pitch in for them.

The last group is those that spent foolishly while thinking they would rely upon SS, PERS, whatever, to be able to live as they wish, not as they must or should. They had the financial ability to make some small sacrifices, supplement their retirement, and do just that, but failed to do so. To those folks, tough shit. You did it to yourself. Don't expect others to help fund the lifestyle you want but cannot afford because you failed to plan.

You are a good man.....but out of touch with the rest of your generation who has not prepared as you have. Thank your Parents.

Well said. Blame their Parents.

It's hard to believe that you have to tell people (adults) that if you spend your money on things, you're going to have things....and no money. This is 90% of Boomers....ask any Financial Advisor about the converstations they have with them.

Larry Fink of Blackrock said outright that Covid was meant to solve this "problem". Would post the video, but it's already been scrubbed.

The high cost of health insurance and government induced inflation are two major factors that Sid omitted, and are more than enough to create the “economic necessity” he writes about.

Obama Care sent health insurance premiums through the roof, so, affordable group health insurance via an employer is a major reason many Boomers work until 65 years of age when Medicare eligibility starts.

Government induced inflation via the bank bailout (of criminal bankers) in 2008 combined with the $4 to $5 trillion of COVID funds printed and given away that made the rich much, much richer, while the vast majority deals with the high costs that come with currency devaluation.

Re: the PERS scam, some of us sure wish for some real journalism that give us the names of those in the MS legislature who voted for the “PERS takes the average of your highest 4 consecutive years of earned compensation” to determine state retirement benefits.

Critics like Sid are experts at telling us about the problem(s), but they don’t want you to know who and/or what caused the problem.

The solution is out there - when the state can’t afford its bills. We don’t budget well because we think short term. It all works well until it doesn’t. Drink up.

Isnt this what the reverse mortgage was invented for? To allow the eternal boomer to sell their kids inheritance to some giant real estate investment firm (for a fraction of the homes value) who will happily rent the home back to their kids (or some illegal immigrants) when the boomers finally succumb to their hedonism?

Two comments, including one to my 7:54PM comment, say to blame the parents of Baby Boomers (who are by definition at least 61 years old) who are in the "failed to plan" group. I cannot agree at all.

First, there is some personal obligation/duty/responsibility, especially once past your mid-20s, to handle your own finances. Then, similarly, that is about the time an adult really needs to consider the good and not-so-good information, etc., taught by their parents and their generation, along with past generations. That includes things proactively taught as well as taught by example (or bad example, as the case may be). For example, we now know that lead paint, asbestos, and a 3-pack-a-day habit are not good, but mature adults have known and understood for generations, even centuries, that if your out-go is more than your income, you'll have a problem. Ben Franklin wrote several adages about saving/investing for the future in general nearly 300 years ago ( “A penny saved is two pence clear," etc.).

So, no, I cannot agree that 80-90-100-plus year-old people, whether still alive or not, are to blame for the easily- and readily-avoidable situation that certain 60-70-plus year-old adults started getting themselves into 30-40 years ago and never altered their own conduct, even in the face of readily-available (and often-proclaimed) information warning them of their impending unpleasant situation..

Baby boomers were an important experiment. They were the first generation raised on TV. They were a marketing demographic. Hell, naming marketing demographic generations started with them!
Next were Gen X. Followed by Millennials. Their psyches were shaped by New York marketing firms. Then came the autists. Everyone knows that Autistic people are immune to propaganda. 4chan was created by an autistic. Marketing has changed to try and target autism. That’s why we have garbage like TikTok. China’s ByteDance is run by soulless chicoms who focused in this growing autism trend with videos that tickle ever autism fetish.

VTI and chill my dudes, this is the way.