First this week, Another example of why the rich are different from you and me an article focused on a financial ad in which the bank talks about long term planning. So many of us are living check to check, the idea that we should plan for the next generation, let along the ones after, is like talking a foreign language.
At Rick Kahler’s Financial Awakenings I read Defining Rich. A recurring topic, the question of whether “rich’ can be defined by income or only by accumulated wealth is one to consider. I agree with Rick, when we talk about whom to tax (well, not me, but those talking about such things) the words used should be “high earners.” The doctors making $250,000 per year may not be rich, not after malpractice insurance, and three kids at home.
At Get Rich Slowly, JD discussed how he and the missus handle their money in How to Make Separate Finances Work: An Interview with J.D. and Kris. This is one of those situations where I’d say “whatever works.” Jane and I have separate check books but deposit most of our paychecks into the joint account. Purely for convenience. I handle the bills and keep written checks to a minimum.
Beating Broke asks What if Everyone Was a Frugaler? It’s actually an interesting question to me. It would mean a shift in consumption that would result in a depression, I’m sure of that. But what if the last 12 years scared us enough that we’re on a path to frugality, not an instant flip of a switch? That really is something to ponder.
At My Money Blog, I read that Investors Again Had Poor Timing During Recent Market Crash and Recovery. No surprise, I wrote about this some time ago in an article titled Disappointing Returns in which I cite data showing investors lag the market by a wide margin year after year.
A Simple Way to Add $100,000 to Your 401(k) was posted at US News Money. A nice article showing how expenses are key to long term success.
The Wandering Tax Pro Posted THE NEW TAX CODE – TAXATION OF SOCIAL SECURITY AND RAILROAD RETIREMENT BENEFITS.The whole Social Security taxation issue is one near and dear to my heart as Jane and I get closer to retiring. The system needs fixing and Robert proposes his own way to do that.
At Money Ning, Miranda Marquit asked Do You Really Own That? Of course she was asking whether you really own your house so long as it’s mortgaged, or your car on a five year loan, for that matter. This is one of those articles that’s more an attempt at getting you thinking, a different spin on what it really means to “own” something. Nice article, Miranda.
Thanks for including my post, Joe!
For sure, if it were an instantaneous switch to frugaling, it would result in a depression the likes of which we haven’t seen in a while, or ever. But, a slow and steady move in that direction? I think it’s possible, although unlikely. Doesn’t mean there aren’t more of us headed in that direction though. The slow recovery could be an indicator of just such a movement.