Pensions

[Bent Barrel]

Feral,
I don`t post often though I am on the Forum almost every day. I just want to say--- I enjoy you`re posts and you`re straight-forward Honesty.

 

[gregintenn]

I didnt mean to sound like I was wineing about it.

It wasn't taken that way. I've gained quite a respct for you and feel you are like some men in my community who are my elders, in that there is a lot to be learned from you. Unfortunately, most folks in my area consider it crude to speak of personal finance. It's truly a shame, as this is a great waste of knowledge.

 

[Old 44 Guy]

Thanks Ferril; Enjoy your posts. I worked for Ma Bell in Calif. 38 years, retired in 1988. Got a golden handshake plus benefits. Health & dental still OK. Medicare sucks but better than nothing.

 

[gregintenn]

I lost a neighbor this weekend who was quite wealthy, and would have been a great mentor in the financial area. He'd tell you anything about his love life, or any other aspect you wouldn't expect him to tell; but nothing concerning money.

 

[sw282]

si-----------------------

 

[Evil Dog]

I spent 21 years defending our country and see my Military Retirement Benefits eroding practically daily.

 

[judge]

I expect the Govt. to find a way to tap into the 401K and Roth IRA - reason, there is too much money at stake here. Basicly, the Govt. is already broke, and is looking for additional funds. All the trillions of dollars inversted in the retirement system is too tempting to ignore. Watch out here. As for Soc.Security, they will raise the "ceiling" on the amount paid into the payroll deduction. All they have to do is raise the limit from the current 90K to 200K, and the problem is solved. Is there any other way to fix it? Not in my lifetime. Don't even get me started on the so called health plan run by Uncle Sam. They can't even afford the plan they have now (medicare-medicaid) - how the hell can they deal with 300 million.

 

[JcMack]

I spent 21 years defending our country and see my Military Retirement Benefits eroding practically daily.

This fact is truly indicative of how vile our system has been allowed to become. How many people were forced from the armed forces during the Klinton years? Strictly to cheat them out of retirement before their 20.

 

[CJ]

......Let me mention a personal example of how idiotic our Nation's decision making has become. My wife suffers from Parkinson's and her doctor had approved her for a motorized wheelchair. It was delivered yesterday along with an invoice for $5200+ paid for largely by U.S. taxpayers through the Medicare program. Anybody want to guess where her new wheelchair was made? Yep, it was made in CHINA! With unemployment hovering at 10% and the Government spending trillions for unemployment and stimulus, they buy wheelchairs made in China. That is a typical example of how dysfunctional our society has become and why our economy (and pension funds) are in big trouble.

I didn't google it, but odd as it may sound, perhaps there are no manufacturers of motorized wheelchairs left in the USA. One can't buy what is not being produced.

 

[JcMack]

I didn't google it, but odd as it may sound, perhaps there are no manufacturers of motorized wheelchairs left in the USA. One can't buy what is not being produced.

The crux of the delema.

 

[CJ]

The crux of the delema.

Is that the case here?

 

[ladder13]

No one on this Forum, speaks with the honesty and humility as does Merril, no one. My .02.

 

[feralmerril]

Gulp, I dont know what to say mike, except thanks! Dick, when you worked for bell in california, did you know Ed Ford? As I understand it he was the top field engineer in southern california and retired about 25 years ago. He was a very close friend of mine. He died last summer and his wife came by us a few days to get away.

 

[BarbC]

My cynical view is that government health care will take care of the pension problem.

 

[feralmerril]

Probley had I stayed in california my wifes insurance would have stayed almost the same. Last december the company wrote me her insurance company was no longer a option in utah and the only option for her was attna. It more than doubled!
The day I turned in my uniform they had a new head hunter giveing a speach in a hanger to all the employees. I walked over and listend. It was the most heartless threating cold speach I heard in my life and in my 35 years at lockheed! I felt odd! I was now no longer a guard and had I not retired probley would have been haveing to guard this AH! I was almost hopeing some hot heads would have attacked him, there was a lot of dissent and hollering but everyone behaved themselves.
Many years ago there was another head hunter named archie fullden who gave a similar speach and some guys broke one of his legs and threw him off the dock into the ocean, I heard!

 

[JcMack]

Merril: I can relate. I worked 35 yrs. as an FE for a World wide business machine company. (not IBM) I was with that company for 20 yrs before I started making real money (even by todays standards). Since the pay was no where near the wage levels of the tradesmen and millworkers around here the lure of the job was some perks like the pension. My then gold digger wife was always doggin me to change jobs. Thankfully she bailed on me at 8 yrs into the marraige and I took my son and raised him by myself. Years later my son was launched, and had a good job, when I was offered an early out from my job that had turned into a 7X24 support nightmare. Original partial pension included complete med benefits for $14 a month. Over the last ten years benefit costs to me have gone from $14 to $360 a month and coverage is terrible. I took SS at 62 a year ago and between SS, the pension, and working part time I'm barely eeking by. Now it appears the part time job will cease, and the pension may be in peril. Yesterday I watched our president refer to SS and Medicare as entitlement programs.

 

[JamesSion]

I am also retired. Like someone else posted I took a lump sum one time payment. Will I make better investment decisions than my former employer? I sure hope so.

When I was younger and had some involvement in how pensions were funded we were taught that fixed benefit pensions were to be funded with high grade single bond purchases so the money would definitely be there when needed and the return would be known.

When regulation or prudence relaxed and the equities markets heated up companies began to invest all or part of their pension funds in stocks so some years would have to make little or no contribution to fund the pension plan since the run up in stock values would show it was adequately funded. We all know what happened then.