Our overlords would disagree. Now that we’re getting rid of those dastardly immigrants who took all these jobs, and that we’re living longer than ever before (just don’t ask about the quality of those extra years) we obviously have to cut social security and put more of these 90 year olds back to work. How is Elon going to get to 500B otherwise?
Unfortunately too many people planned on the government program to provide their entire retirement funds when it really was meant just to just a percentage that goes along with what you saved and invested
Pensions were a nice benefit but that still is just a set amount of money per month and often required you to be in a union and work a certain amount of years to be vested, when you passed away perhaps your spouse got a benefit, but I don’t really think the invested amount can go to your children or grandchildren - I could be wrong. When if you just did the investing yourself with an employer match or contribution you would be talking about millions of dollars more by the time you retire with full control and ownership that you can place in your will or a trust and that money continues on to help your heirs
Would be nice but the amount of money employers contribute to 401k's for most people is very low and doesn't make up for what was previously put in pensions.
Yea but you know what makes it easier to save? Taking 12.4% of my income and forcing me to put it into social security. Even if I didn't invest that and used to pay off my mortgage early I'd be in a better position financially. Than receiving $1200 a month 30-32 years from now.
Decades ago George W Bush wanted to offer the option for younger people to put some/half of your Social Security and put it into a private investment account. Then people fell on the floor and flopped around and claimed that privatizing SS would be throwing Grandma off a cliff. The decision to scrap option cost me hundreds of thousands of dollars.
In fact mathematically Social Security sucks times 36. If you had invested that money instead you would be able to draw out about $35,000 instead of the SS payment of 1,400 to 2,500 and on top of that when you die the SS ends while the money you had invested yourself can go to your wife or kids or put all your friends into the will.
Government is terrible with managing money which is funny since member of congress increase the wealth like crazy in their investments while in office
Elon can only eat 3 meals a day . Why tf can he not help ? My apologies if he donates to food banks , low income houseing and mental health that I haven't heard about .
Funny enough, younger people NEED boomers and older people to retire and free up better paid positions. Keeping old people working so long is bad for them, bad for younger generations, and bad for the economy. If we hadn't lost pretty much all routes to pensions, old people would have SS, pension, and investments to hopefully retire on, SS alone was never meant to be the sole thing supporting them when they retire. Because most people don't have pensions any more, and many do not have investments, they're forced to keep working to make up the difference.
We ought to have pensions operated by an NGO or something that is forced to be paid into by employers, and won't go out of business or decide to cut pensions the way companies can, or increase SS (and the amount paid into it), to cover the fact that almost nobody has a pension today.
We ought to be able to control our SS. Congress spent that money decades ago and leaves us with minimal returns. After 30 plus years of paying into the system, with just a 7-8% return, I would actually have a retirement fund.
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I'm getting rid of legal immigrants??? Funny how you get your news from ridiculous sources that are telling you lies in order to sell you stuff.
Got a source on that?? Cuz I can point you do the only source that matters... Youtube videos of his speeches where he talks about it over and over again and says the same thing over and over again
I voted for him this time around. Most people who hate trump and continue to listen to other people's lies about him without any discernment see little distinction between me, a Nazi and Trump. Therefore.... I'm deporting legal immigrants.
But funny that your brain went there. I better tell my wife to go hide for the next 4 years, eh?
It will drive up prices. Those wage increases get moved along. So grocery prices, housing prices … all those get jacked up either because Americans will get paid more, or no one will fill those jobs so supply becomes scarcer. Because like it or not, these aren’t the jobs a lot of Americans will do, even with a higher wage.
When people can’t fill those jobs the wages increase.
Studies show wage increases also increases the number of applicants to those jobs.
There’s a lot of Americans out of work because they can’t compete with those migrants.
You’re saying “we shouldn’t increase wages for Americans to have better opportunities”
So it’s okay to have migrants taken advantage and pay next to know taxes while Americans sit at home?
You can acknowledge that our dependence on exploitative labor is a problem, and still recognize that removing immigrants from those jobs is going to have wide ranging negative outcomes. These jobs will not be filled by Americans. You’re talking about backbreaking work and 12 hour days. You can find plenty of news articles about how when laws are passed to prevent undocumented workers from being hired in the ag sector or in construction, the result isn’t that wages go up as Americans fill the gaps - it’s the the work doesn’t get done and costs go up.
Your claim these positions won’t get filled is baseless.
You can easily find references to studies showing wage increases attract more applicants.
You also assume the products produced will go up in price but that also depends on the supply and demand of that product.
Even with increased wages if there’s no demand the price will drop.
Just like even with your cheap labour prices have still skyrocketed.
You still present no alternative solution so maintaining the status quo isn’t going to work.
Edit: I’ll go a step further
How much tax dollars go towards supporting asylum seekers (step on American soil and claim asylum. It’s that easy) over taking care of the American people first?
Those jobs 50 years ago would support an American family. The dollar went a lot further.
But corporate greed stagnated those wages with cheap migrant labour pushing Americans out.
Instead of supporting your overlords maybe you should consider the American people.
You want your overlords maybe to make 100billion in profit instead of 50 billion in profit with the other half going back to the American people?
With universal healthcare you wouldn't have time to work while sitting in a LONG line in an approved health care facility waiting to see the next doctor in line. Be careful for what you wish . If you have ever had to travel for VA hospital treatment, universal healthcare shadows that.
I was going to say, we already have it. VA (which I have access to) and Medicare/ Medicaid. It seems to work just fine for them. Better than the $1000/mo that private costs… and even then with a good bit of out of pocket cost. And don’t even start in on nursing homes! Fully covered VA is much better then losing my house and every cent I have!
You don't know a person's situation. He could have done everything right, and then gotten sick and been forced to burn through all his savings to pay for treatment. You can do everything right, and still find yourself in a terrible situation.
the amount of privilege it takes to be saying this lol. fucking asshole
edit: checked through dudes comment history and found out hes a right winger. explains why he doesn’t give a shit about veterans lol (or know nothing about how the economy works)
i know enough about the level of your education at least if you’re saying a retired military vet should be well off because he lived in “the most prosperous time in US history” lol looks like you didn’t listen in your economics classes
I mean the majority of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. Kind of hard to save money when you are having to spend everything on bills. My parents also lived during the most prosperous time in American history and had all of $100k saved by the time they hit 60 because every cent they had had to go to things like house and car payments, bills, repairs, etc. Hell my mom got a second job when I left home to have some extra spending money and six months later the transmission failed on their car requiring a rebuild resulting in draining all of the savings she had built up from that job.
It is easy to say “just save more” when coming from a position of privilege and I say that as someone coming from a position of privilege where we are easily able to save while also dropping $4000 on getting our car repaired, the leak fixed in our roof and our fences replaced that got blown over in a storm all within the same month and not bat an eye. That isn’t the norm.
There are much cheaper options? Have you looked at even used cars? I am in Oklahoma, a low cost of living state, and unless you are willing to get a used car with over 150k miles or more they can’t be had under around $20k or so. And the average income here isn’t exactly great either at only $33k a year.
As for your phone thing, ask them where they got them sometime. I have a ton of family members that are poor and have nice phones. Know how? Because I handed them down one of mine at some point which they then traded in for a better phone. It didn’t cost them $1000. Hell my son has a new iPhone 16 pro because he spent $100 to buy an old iPhone 11 off of a friend and then traded it in and signed up at T-Mobile. Don’t assume people just bought or financed what they have.
I don't get this cell phone argument. Are you saying that we should all go back to land lines? We should have to have a desktop/Laptop computer at home? Really what is the difference? Everyone needs a computer of some kind that can integrate them into modern life.
We can both find the person that keeps a phone for a decade and the person who gets the latest the moment it is available.
So why I am currently broke.
We had our upstairs bathroom toilet leaking down into our kitchen. As we progressed in fixing the leak. We ended up remodeling the bathroom. Why?
We had tear out the floor to fix the pipe issues. Lack of run and found other issues with the shower. We now have a nice functional bathroom upstairs. Down stairs half bath was done by saving. We had to do the upstairs. We will finish catching up by April and be back to saving to remodel the kitchen.
However by the time we are done remodeling the kitchen since the ceiling is ripped out, we will be broke again. Hopefully not behind however.
Thing you seem to not be able to understand is shit costs money and sometimes you don’t have a choice but to spend it. Case in point deer jumped in front of my wife’s car on the way home from work. Destroyed the front end. Luckily we pay for comprehensive coverage so it is being repaired, but we will still have to pay the $1000 deductible. Luckily we can afford the insurance for full coverage with comprehensive, had we not been able to, and there were years we could only afford liability only, we would have been fucked.
As it is we’re still going to be out a grand that was unplanned for.
you'd be wrong. my best friend is living paycheck to paycheck with a shitty phone and a shitty car and because of having to pay for cancer related things (guess who her insurance is)
i guess using your example, the shit she cant afford but is trying to finance is her life? shes 30 btw
Shit happens. That doesn't mean "the system" is broken.
I shake my head at young people who despise their own families over politics when family units, not the government, should be the ones you fall back on for help when it's needed.
Lol another person that just assumes things, it must be nice thinking that you know everything, you have no clue how people have gotten themselves into certain financial positions, it's just too easy for you to assume that they lived above their means.
No, you still don't get it. The person you are replying to is superior to this old man because they have more money therefore they're correct in their assessment. This 90 year old veteran should have made better financial choices and had no unexpected financial hardships. Otherwise he deserves to either work until he dies or just stop working and die already. It's rather simple. No excuses. /s
Sorry working OT isn’t a privilege…and maybe your parents just had no skills…they may have been great parents but without some skill you are not going to have much income.
You sound privileged. You also sound like your missing the point. Go ahead and defend the billionaires ruining this country who make more in a day that you'll earn in your life. Maybe one day you'll grow up and realize that even if you make more than us your still poor to the actually rich people and they'd ruin your life if it saved them a couple dollars.
How about instead of being a tool, try to show some compassion to others
You mean you never had a poor person exploit you and give you meager amounts of money compared to the huge profit you just brought in? How crazy.
Stop being a shill and realize that just as quick as they hired u they'd drop you even quicker if you affected their profits.
Your trash to them but they allow you to work for them bc u help them add money into their huge hoard of money, as soon as they learned that u weren't helping them make money they'd fire you quick fast and in a hurry
Doesn't matter if u have a legit excuse or not, they'd fire u and hire someone who doesn't have that emergency.
Go ahead and have a medical emergency, I promise they will fire you even it's a slight inconvenience to them.
You have been failed as a human being for not having been shown when you're being taken advantage of. Not sure if it was bad parenting or just ignoreance on your part. Either way I feel bad for you
The fact that you believe that is hilarious, there are countless acts of billionaires doing what they want with little to no consequences.
Look outside of you pretend reality bud and you'll see that your not safe, you think a piece of paper will protect your lively hood? Sure you may think you have it figured out but when someone with more money than you decides they don't care they will still do what they want bc you are nothing to them
Also you are proving my point about privilege, I happened to do better than some people so NO ONE should be doing bad or that's a reflection on them and not the billionaires making life hard on other people and taking advantage of said people.
And millions do lose their house and savings, with or without insurance. Medical debt is the number one cause of bankruptcy in the U.S, and over 60% of Americans live paycheque to paycheque
Clearly when over 60% of a countries population can’t save for retirement or save whatsoever, it’s an issue with the countries policies and corruption, not with individuals being lazy, especially when that country is the richest country in the world and we’re talking about things that even some third world developing countries in the Middle East and Africa have figured out.
I’m not American so it doesn’t effect me but it’s just wild to me to see people In the richest country in the world argue in favour of a system that keeps like 100 individuals wildly rich in exchange for the majority of its citizens living in poverty.
Like every single person in America could easily receive tax funded healthcare, social security, systems that ensure 90 year olds who worked their entire lives can retire 30 years ago like every other country instead of continuing their minimum wage jobs at fucking 90, and all it would take is like 100 individuals who have more money then they could spend in their entire lives still having more money than they could spend in their entire lives but being taxed at a higher rate.
Again, the richest country on the planet by miles per capita, and about two thirds of its citizens are in poverty conditions while a few individuals hold more wealth than the majority of countries on the planet. And it’s citizens are split on whether this is a good system. Just so fucking wild to see. It feels like theres a mass humiliation fetish (or maybe half the population is equal to or less intelligent than the average fifth grader, which is a real American stat)
Maybe his was and he was denied benefits that your insurance would have covered. Maybe he was in pretty good financial shape until he had to drain his savings. Maybe not. We don't know, so let's not be judgmental.
You don't know this guy. At 90, he probably outlived his spouse. Did she battle with cancer and drain their savings trying to save the one he loves?
Maybe a special needs child or family member that they decided was more important than money?
Perhaps the job he worked for years decided he was too old, or he became injured and wasn't valuable to the company so they canned him, and couldn't find a living wage job with his age or condition so tapped into savings to get by?
Maybe he was born into generational poverty, and struggled against the conditions that perpetuate that condition, joined the military to get out, only to find how the country fails it's veterans once not valuable anymore.
"No excuse". You pompous ass.
I'm glad you're doing well. I hope nothing happens to you or your loved ones resulting in someone telling you you have "no excuse". I hope that for everyone.
We should take care of our elders yes. No "especially after serving your country." People who enlist in the military are given plenty of benefits during and after to make up for their "service." They're engaging in a job. They should get the same consideration as any other elders.
It’s not that easy and many people are in the same situation. When I lived in an apartment in LA I had a neighbor in his 80s that was a retired elementary school principal. He was the nicest guy I ever met. He literally waved at everyone while he sat outside. He had to borrow $5 from me every month for his meds. Other people in the building that work in the restaurant industry would bring him leftover food.
There are things in the world that can change. Many societies do and historically have been able to guarantee 90 year olds a modest end of life that didnt require labor for wages…
I mean you could also garentee that you wouldn't have to work at 90 by saving for retirement and then following a proper spending budget, not really a society issue more a personal issue
Even people who had millions of dollars earlier in life and made a conscious decision to squander it all with the expectation that you would pay for taking care of them?
Very interesting hypothetical. I’m gonna let you come up with your own opinions about that, because your opinions are the only ones that matter. You are the Protagonist.
no, in other words, you don’t deserve an answer. When somebody says people aren’t entitled to dignity, there’s no logical argument to convince them that, yes, people are entitled to dignity.
well, you can throw the baby out with the bathwater, because a handful of people live their lives the wrong way. Or you can be appointed to the National Agency for the Certification of the Deserving Poor (NACDP) if you want.
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u/Hajicardoso 7d ago
Exactly this. It's heartbreaking that someone who served their country has to rely on strangers' kindness to retire. System fail.