Retirement--Clinton Style

Economic Issues Will Have A Significant Impacts On Your Life.

Why Your Savings And Retirement Will Soon Be Gone

April 14, 2014 by Bob Livingston 

 1297 73

 

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What’s left of the U.S. middle class is under economic assault like no time in American history.

Federal Reserve money printing is finally catching up to us. One hundred years of money printing is coming to a head. We are seeing the beginning phases of hyperinflation.

Never mind the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ phony inflationary measurement, where the consumer price index basket of goods is changed monthly to remove price-rising goods. Food prices are up 19 percent just since January. On an annualized basis, that is 76 percent. Rising food prices and rising gas prices are where the middle class see and feel inflation.

Remember that inflation is not rising prices. Rising prices are a symptom of inflation, which is an increase in the money supply through money creation or debt.

Printing money is a crime if you do it. But if the powerful government monopoly does it, it’s called “monetization.” Government is now desperately inflating because the more inflation, the more wealth is stolen.

Here are some truths:

• Governments steal as much as they can without collapsing the system (they hope).
• The more money they create for nothing, the richer and more powerful they get.
• The bigger the government gets and the more reckless it gets, the more it must suppress its people, because many begin to wake up.
• The bigger government crime, the greater the propaganda and deception.
• Fact: Every dollar the government creates means that a dollar is stolen from the people. Paper money confiscates wealth.

The act of money creation means that more and more of the national wealth flows to the Federal government. How in the name of Pete do people think that the U.S. government became so powerful and so wealthy in property?

The government produces nothing. It has to steal, and it does so on an unimaginable scale. The mind of man cannot deal with such a massive transfer of wealth, and few people even suspect it. Why do people not know about the biggest fraud in history?

In addition to $75 billion a month of quantitative easing, the Federal government is running multi-hundred-billion-dollar deficits. The U.S. now has at least $126 trillion in outstanding obligations (i.e., money it has stolen from the American people).

So what’s a government to do? Steal even more from the people.

The Federal government is eyeing the remaining savings and retirement accounts of the American people. This has been going on for years. In fact, individual retirement accounts were set up to fool Americans into investing in the stock market to prop it up, help consolidate retirement accounts and transfer it to the bankster mob. Think your money in IRAs, 401(k)s and pension funds belong to you? Ha! Try to take out your money and see what hoops you have to jump through and what penalties you have to pay.

There is now more than $21 trillion in U.S IRAs, 401(k)s and pension plans. That $21 trillion would more than offset the mythical $17.5 trillion U.S. “debt.” For more on the U.S. debt, readThe ‘National Debt’ Is Smoke And Mirrors.

Last year, the U.S. Consumer Protection Bureau, established by the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act, stated that it believes Americans are too stupid to prepare on their own for retirement and that it has proposed “managing” people’s retirement funds. What that means is another unConstitutional government agency will take your money and swap it for government funny money.

President Barack Obama’s MyRA “savings plan” is yet another scam to try and prop up the failing system. Announced at this year’s State of the Union address, Obama tried to huckster this boondoggle as a great way to “invest” in safe government securities and a starter savings account.

The term “government securities” is nothing more than typical government double-speak and an oxymoron. When the government goes bankrupt — and it will — those Treasuries will be worthless. And now the government is encouraging you to buy them.

MyRAs will earn the same interest as the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) Government Securities Investment Fund that is available to Federal employees. The TSP’s own paperwork says this about its interest rate: “The G Fund is subject to inflation risk, or the possibility that your G Fund investment will not grow enough to offset the reduction in purchasing power that results from inflation.”

If you want to “invest” in the U.S. government (not something I would recommend), there is currently a provision to do so. The MyRA plan mimics it. Just open an account with Treasuryto buy U.S. savings bonds. The difference is that MyRA will be run by a crony Wall Street firm.

All your savings will be visible to government and available for confiscation — the same government that is already eyeing your pension funds, individual retirement accounts and 401(k) plans, as I mentioned. Don’t think this will happen? Governments across the globehave already done so, and the U.S. government is on board in supporting what it is speciously calling “bail-ins” as occurred in Cyprus.

Under the scheme, when banks get in trouble or government needs more money, it swaps your bank savings for bank stock. You are in essence “buying” into the bank.

And if this news isn’t bad enough, take these two factors into consideration. Last fall, the International Monetary Fund issued a report recommending a series of escalating income and consumption tax increases, culminating in the direct confiscation of assets. Then last week, Russia floated a balloon through its Voice of Russia propaganda arm that it intends to attack the petrodollar in retaliation for America’s meddling in Ukraine.

First, from the IMF, according to page 49 of its report:

The sharp deterioration of the public finances in many countries has revived interest in a “capital levy”— a one-off tax on private wealth—as an exceptional measure to restore debt sustainability. The appeal is that such a tax, if it is implemented before avoidance is possible and there is a belief that it will never be repeated, does not distort behavior (and may be seen by some as fair). … The conditions for success are strong, but also need to be weighed against the risks of the alternatives, which include repudiating public debt or inflating it away…

The tax rates needed to bring down public debt to precrisis levels, moreover, are sizable: reducing debt ratios to end-2007 levels would require (for a sample of 15 euro area countries) a tax rate of about 10 percent on households with positive net wealth.

Regarding Russia and the petrodollar, this is not the first time another nation has threatened to trade oil outside the dollar. Such a move would be disastrous for the American economy and likely crash it.

Because of an agreement between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia, in order to trade in oil, countries must first transfer their money into U.S. dollars. This happens no matter who is buying the oil or who they’re buying it from. The oil-buying country gives the oil-selling country U.S. dollars and receives oil in exchange.

The oil-selling country then has to sell those dollars to convert it back to its own currency. If Russia, China and a few other countries begin trading oil in some other currency, about 3 trillion U.S. dollars will suddenly flood the market. This will send hyperinflation into the stratosphere.

I have long sounded a warning to get your retirement funds out of the system and remove your money from banks (beyond what is necessary to pay bills) in order to protect yourself. I did so long ago. I gladly took the penalty and have long since recovered what was taken.

I also recommend you buy gold and silver and keep it in your possession, not in the bank or in a safe deposit box.

Retirement -- Not Like What Many Had Planned

Half of U.S. Households 'At Risk' in Retirement

Half of American households are considered to be "at risk" of being unable to maintain their current standard of living once they enter retirement.

The National Retirement Risk Index (NRRI) is calculated by comparing retirement income as a percent of pre-retirement income with target rates that would allow retirees to maintain their pre-retirement standard of living.

The NRRI shows that in 2013, 50 percent of households were at risk of lowering their standard of living once they retire.

That is up from 44 percent in 2007, and down only modestly from 53 percent in 2010, despite huge gains in the stock market and a rebound in housing values since 2010, according to a report from the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College.

The reason the improvement has been modest is that most of the gains have occurred in the stock market rather than the housing market. Since the third quarter of 2010, equity prices have increased by 45 percent after adjusting for inflation, while house prices have increased only about 6 percent.

"The house is a much more significant asset than stock holdings for most households, making trends in house prices a major influence on the NRRI results," the report states.

For low-income households, equities comprise only 2 percent of total wealth. For middle-income households, the figure is 6 percent. But high-income households have 17 percent of their total wealth in stocks.

As a result, 60 percent of low income households are considered to be at risk, as are 52 percent of middle-income households. But just 40 percent of high-income households are at risk.

"The fundamental message [is] that half of today's working-age households are unlikely to have enough resources to maintain their standard of living once they retire," according to the report. "The only way out of this box is for people to save more and/or work longer."

Depressing News: A Significant Number Of Americans Will Never Experience Retirement. They Will Work Their Entire Life.

Thursday,December 19, 2013

[Editor’s Note: The following post is by TDV Editor-in-Chief, Jeff Berwick]

I thought about calling this article, "Retirement: The New Heaven" (for US citizens at least), but found it too opaque.  So, I simplied.

Retirement is a "20th century relic," according to Wells Fargo's annual surveys on retirement. 

The bank finds year-after-year that middle class Americans anticipate they will work until illness or death. If this trend continues, respondents will indicate they will be forced to work from the grave. That's why we highly urge you to join the record number of citizens contributing to the brain drain of US society.

In the fall of 2011, Harris Interactive found that a quarter (25%) of middle class Americans say they will "need to work until at least age 80" to live comfortably in retirement. That number was at 34% in the 2013 survey. 

Is death the new retirement?

The retirement crisis in the US is well-known, and Wells Fargo's 2013 annual retirement study of the middle-class (income $25,000 - $100,000) illustrates this well, consisting this year of a simple question among others: do you expect to work until death?

"This is the first time we asked if people thought they would work until they die or become too sick," said Laurie Nordquist, head of Wells Fargo Institutional Retirement and Trust.

Thirty-seven percent of Americans surveyed believe they will work until they fall ill or die. This means that just under two in five US citizens believe they won't retire. Ever.

The questions are based on a larger trend uncovered in the annual Wells Fargo survey on retirement: That 80 is the new 65.

Fifty-nine percent surveyed say their main financial concern is everyday bills. Forty-two percent told Wells that it is impossible to pay them and save for retirement.

The survey also found that 75% of middle-class American's have no confidence in the stock market as a way to plan for retirement. This is true for both the young and old.

Respondents in their 20s are most skeptical of the stock market, as 80% say they are not confident about investing in stocks.

Wells Fargo asked what the young would do if given $5,000 to invest. Most said they'd put it into a savings account.

The Stock Market: Slightly Better Odds Than Vegas

The survey also found that 7% of Americans "strongly agree" that gambling in Las Vegas is as good an idea as investing in the stock market. 27% of Americans generally agree with the statement.

Forty-five percent of respondents said they have so few assets there is no reason for them to have a plan for retirement, with 25% saying they don't know how to create one.

The 2013 survey continues a trend.

Three-fourths (74%) of middle class Americans in the 2011 survey expected to work into retirement, with 39% of all respondents  needing to work into retirement to make ends meet or maintain their current lifestyles.

The 2011 survey found that, among middle class Americans from 40-59, 54% believe they will "need to work," while 34% of those ages 25 to 39 believe they will. 

Only 25% of those between the ages of 40-59 say they will work in retirement because they "want to." Forty-five percent of Americans between the ages of 25 and 39 believe they will work in retirement because they wish to.

Forty-seven percent of Americans believe they will do "similar work" to their pre-retirement years, with 42% saying they will work in a position that requires "less responsibility"; i.e. less money.

That the plurality of middle class Americans expect to work well into "retirement" - and even to the grave -  has serious social and economic implications for the US. Questions arise, such as will aging Americans - who have feasted upon GMO corn and chemical-laden meats their whole lifelong - be physically and mentally able to work later into their retirement ages?

Since the earliest parts of the 20th century, and quite likely beforehand, US citizens anticipated working until they were 65, and thereafter retiring with an employer-paid pension plan. Defined-benefit pensions don't happen in the private sector these days and government employees are receiving them less often, as well.

And so, their backup plan?

Work themselves to death.

Is Retirement Becoming A Thing Of The Past? Over One Third Of Americans Believe So!

Tags: middle | class | retire | work

Wells Fargo Study: 37 Percent of Middle-Class Americans Say They Never Will Retire

Thursday, 24 Oct 2013 10:28 AM

By Dan Weil

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Many middle-class Americans apparently aren't expecting to live their golden years in leisurely retirement.

A hefty 34 percent of them think they will work until at least the age of 80, because they haven't saved enough for retirement, according to a Wells Fargo study survey conducted by Harris Interactive.

That's up from 25 percent in 2011 and 30 percent in 2012.


But 37 percent say they'll never retire and will work until they are too sick or die.

What's the solution to this?

Building savings and creating a retirement plan can improve the retirements for those now in their working years, says Laurie Nordquist, head of Wells Fargo Institutional Retirement and Trust

Meanwhile, a 59 percent majority of the middle class say paying monthly bills is their chief day-to-day financial concern. That's up from 52 percent last year.

Saving for retirement takes second place, with 13 percent calling it a priority. Overall, 42 percent say saving for retirement and paying bills concurrently is impossible.

Thus 48 percent don't have confidence that they will be able to save enough for a comfortable retirement.

The survey of 1,000 middle-class Americans between the ages of 25 and 75 was conducted July 24 to Aug. 27.

"For the past three years, the struggle to pay bills is a growing concern, and the prospect of saving for retirement looks dim, particularly for those in their prime saving years," Nordquist says in a statement.

"Having a plan and saving not only creates more hopefulness, but it produces results that can grow and lead to a solid retirement."

In the survey, 52 percent of the middle class say they are confident they will save enough for retirement. But only 29 percent say they have a written plan.

Among those who have a written plan, 70 percent feel confident about their retirement, while only 44 percent of those who don't have a plan feel confident.

Of those who have a plan, 91 percent say they have willpower to save, compared with 75 percent for those who don't have a plan.

In the key 40-to-59 demographic, those who say they have written a plan also say they have saved $63,000 for retirement, while those who say they haven't written a plan say they have saved $20,000.

"This data so clearly shows what a difference a retirement plan makes in that people who have a plan have saved three times what those without a plan have saved," Nordquist explains. "A plan instills confidence and gives people the discipline to stick with their objectives and reach their financial goals."

As for the respondents who don't have a written retirement plan, 45 percent say it's because they have "so few financial assets." One-third of the middle class say Social Security will be their "primary" source of income in retirement.

"People say they don't have a plan because they don't have enough money," Nordquist notes. "The most important message I can impart about retirement is that planning is for everyone. It is the foundation for consistent savings, which can allow people to have the nest egg they will need in retirement and can also help people determine the role Social Security will play in their retirement."

Further, 40 percent say a large unexpected healthcare expense represents their biggest retirement fear, while and 37 percent list the loss or reduction of Social Security as fear No. 1.

As for the stock market, only 24 percent of the middle class view stocks as a good investment for retirement. Meanwhile, 45 percent say "the stock market doesn't benefit people like me."

A majority (52 percent) say they shun stocks because "I am afraid to lose my nest egg in the ups and downs of the market."

Surprisingly enough, fear of the stock market is more intense among those aged 25 to 29, with 56 percent of them afraid they would lose their savings in equities. Asked what they would do with $5,000 given to them for retirement investment, 58 percent of people in this age group say they would allocate it to a saving account or certificate of deposit.

The reluctance for stocks may stem partly from the fact that 51 percent of the middle class say they have little interest in learning about investing.

Nordquist is struck by the fear of stocks. "The middle class just isn't making the link between being invested and the potential growth of their savings, but on top of this fear is apathy. There is no interest in learning more about investing," she states.

"Fear and apathy are a bad combination, whereas knowledge about saving and investing is empowering. We've got to move people to this mindset."



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