OT: Hurricanes Lounge XLV: Y2K Twenty-Four Years Later

[DaveG]

Oh I’m with you. Im a fall/winter person so I’m in my glory aside from shoveling snow. I ski a lot and started volunteering my medic “skills” at a local resort for a free pass so…..bring it.

yeah this is something I miss about being back up north, probably the main one. I have zero doubts I could trade my skills with brewing into a season pass for a case or three if needed.

 

[bleedgreen]

yeah this is something I miss about being back up north, probably the main one. I have zero doubts I could trade my skills with brewing into a season pass for a case or three if needed.

I get paid comp tickets too, your brewing skills would absolutely get some day passes out of me.

 

[WreckingCrew]

I just miss snow. I’ll probably regret saying that, since driving in the stuff in NC is literally the worst thing ever, but it never really feels like winter without. At least, IMO

Agreed, I enjoy a nice peaceful snowfall, instead of what we've had the last 2 years which is 32F and raining...that's truly miserable weather

 

[Lempo]

I get paid comp tickets too, your brewing skills would absolutely get some day passes out of me.

Are we so close to nuclear holocaust now that we better start listing our barterable skills just in case?

 

[DaveG]

Are we so close to nuclear holocaust now that we better start listing our barterable skills just in case?

I mean never hurts to find those with useful skills for when the shit hits the fan while simultaneously hoping it doesn't

 

[MrazeksVengeance]

I mean never hurts to find those with useful skills for when the shit hits the fan while simultaneously hoping it doesn't

I’d better start making antibiotics at home…

 

[NotOpie]

@NotOpie in relation to my last response to you about not calling them "entitlements", I did the following analysis last night based on my Social Security Statement.

Assumptions:
1) The SS taxes I paid and my employer paid since the start of my first full time job goes into my own account vs. being sent to the gov't. Call it a 401Ks. This is 12.4% of income up to the income limit.
2) 5% investment return, but for simplicity sake, only compounded annually.
3) Do not take money out until 67. Although my contributions have ceased, the account will still get 5% return. I'm still quite a few years from that age so it will continue to grow for many years.
4) At age 67, take the amount in the account and put into an annuity using a 3% return and running for 20 years (which is 10 years beyond the average life expectancy of a male in the US). I wouldn't take out an annuity, but it's easier for this analysis.
5) Compare that to my Social Security statement where at age 67, I take social securing and my wife takes it based off of mine at 50%.

The analysis? The annuity would be paying me 33% more than Social Security in year 1.

I realize it's more complicated because of taxes on investment earnings and taxes on Social Security, but it exemplifies that these aren't "entitlements". The fact that the gov't is inept at handling money is the real issue, not the people receiving the benefits for money we all paid into the system.

@Boom Boom Apathy There is nothing that you say that I disagree with. I merely use the "shorthand" term entitlements because that's what the government refers to them as and, dammit, I paid in for years and years. So no matter how shitty the government is at managing money, I'm still entitled to "that money".

Now all of that said, I also did a calculation of my return if I invested my SS funds into low risk stock and bond funds and came up with the same conclusion. In fact, I believe my monthly checks would have been about 140% of what my projected SS will be (assuming retirement at 68).

In fact, way back when, George W. Bush floated a social security reform plan that would have allowed you to steer a portion of your social security into other investment vehicles, I was all for it. My recollection is that they did the appropriate actuarial calculations, offered the option to opt in to the private investment component, and would allow people to stay on traditional SS. Of course he was demonized and it was never even seriously debated.

In the end Social Security is a rapidly deflating Ponzi scheme and I feel for all of us. As I said, our elected representatives are too chickenshit or just too "hold on to my power" to do anything about it. Every day that goes by ensures the reform will have to be more painful for all.

 

[skipnjump]

It's early November and it's 81 degrees outside. There are people outside jogging in bike shorts. It's bizarre.

And my family members in Colorado had snow yesterday...

I just miss snow. I’ll probably regret saying that, since driving in the stuff in NC is literally the worst thing ever, but it never really feels like winter without. At least, IMO

I agree. I'm from Indiana originally and I just miss a good snow.

 

[Unsustainable]

We got about six inches of snow last night up to now, still going and it’s 26 degrees. Not buying it’s a warm winter yet! It’s our second snow and I think there’s more coming.

Snow huh?

 

[bleedgreen]

Snow huh?

Sometimes my youth is so humiliating. Leaving us to with “a licky boom boom down”……

I’m glad I don’t have kids to explain that to.