Alan Greenspan - what's your opinion?

on-ramp · 07:37 AM

http://cnn.netscape.cnn.com/news/bigpic.jsp?photoid=20040225CDH104

turbo6bar · 02-25-2004, 06:43 PM

The stock market crash was due to lowering of interest rates???

SS... well that's a big mess. That's what happens when you let govment look out for number 1(you). Don't think anyone is innocent. How many Baby Boomers are financially unprepared for retirement? Heard it was 2/3 or greater...

What we have here is a bunch of lemmings approaching a cliff. Everyone is screaming, but no one is acting. Pretty soon we will have India exporting manufacturing jobs to the US, because we have too many old people who can't afford to retire. Why pay an Indian man $8/hr to build beachballs when Gramps can do it for $3/hr?

OH, you were talking about Greenspan. He sure does look old.

jürgen

turbo6bar · 02-25-2004, 08:38 PM

Greenspan's warnings about Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae should also raise some eyebrows, but it probably won't.

Schrup · Schrup's Garage

Who died & left this guy king, seems he wields more power than any other human. I for one am not looking forward to any social security. I have set myself up so that barring a catastrophe, I will need no goverment support. It would sure be nice if we got to invest & manage our own SS dollars.

Zeke · 02-25-2004, 09:20 PM

I first became aware of Greenspan when JFK was President. At that time, AG made some predictions that ALL came to be fact within the predicted time frame. I won't detail here, but it was about recapitalizing American industry, tax credits, etc. It was phenominnal how it all fell into place.

Later on, we had guys like T. Boone Pickens that ravaged the whole industrial economy. It's never been the same since; never will be. Greenspan continues to clearly understand what the big financial picture is inspite of the abberations and creations of people like Micheal Milken that are always undermining the solid system.

You better thank your lucky stars that someone like AG has been able to hold this tiger by the tail while these other idiots are provoking the beast. We could have had runaway inflation like South America; we could have become a third world country much before we finally will. And that will be after AG is dead. I don't not look forward to that day. There are not 6 people anywhere who, when working together, could do his job as well as he has.

dd74 · 02-25-2004, 11:46 PM

What's all the fuss? We'll never see the money. I think the whole system should be dismantled and we call it another screwed-up government experiment.

Moneyguy1 · 02-26-2004, 12:05 AM

What if the executive and legislative branches had stopped usingthe social security fund as a balancer all those years? Don't blame AG; blame your greedy, myopic elected officials and their desire to keep the pork barrels full.

tabs · 02-26-2004, 03:42 PM

My Gawd you all surprise me .... A bunch of frigged realists at last!

pwd72s · 02-26-2004, 05:00 PM

When is a pyramid/Ponzi scheme NOT a pyramid/Ponzi scheme? When they call it "social security"....Greenspan nailed it. And it's not helping things that we have a "conservative" President who spends, (As yesterday's MALLARD FILLMORE strip pointed out) like a drunken...Democrat. I retired before I was 50...now 60, have never seen a "social security" check. Will I take it when the time comes, IF it's still there? Ubetcherass...

dd74 · 02-26-2004, 06:10 PM

So when do we stop paying taxes into the system if we'll never see a red cent from it?

pwd72s · 02-26-2004, 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by dd74
So when do we stop paying taxes into the system if we'll never see a red cent from it?

Aye, There's the rub!

Moses · 02-26-2004, 08:38 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by dd74
So when do we stop paying taxes into the system if we'll never see a red cent from it?

Social Security "reform" will have the following phases:

1) Needs Testing. If you make too much money, no benefits. Also no Medicare if you can "afford" private insurance.

2) Accelerated rates. A steeply graduated SS payment plan.

3) SS payments not limited by or linked to wages. SS Payments will continue after retirement as a supplemental tax for the "wealthy".

I'm not Nostradamus, but I really think these policys are just a matter of time.

dd74 · 02-26-2004, 09:06 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Moses
Social Security "reform" will have the following phases:

1) Needs Testing. If you make too much money, no benefits. Also no Medicare if you can "afford" private insurance.

2) Accelerated rates. A steeply graduated SS payment plan.

3) SS payments not limited by or linked to wages. SS Payments will continue after retirement as a supplemental tax for the "wealthy".

I'm not Nostradamus, but I really think these policys are just a matter of time.

I guess the key here is to NOT become wealthy.

tabs · 11:37 PM

They want you to be poor so they can control you.

I believe that the current group of anniuents will continue to receive their swag from SS. Then they will start to have cut off dates according to the year your born....Actually I can get pissed off thinking I paid something into SS an won't get anything out of it.

One of the things PWD slammed me on before is when I said that if you put the same number of SS tax dollars into a bank account at X interest rate over a person working life of 45 years or so you'd have x million of dollars in the bank. Which would far exceed anything the govt is giving you in return...and you would have something to leave to your heirs to boot.

Moses · 02-27-2004, 06:25 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by dd74
I guess the key here is to NOT become wealthy.

You'd be surprised how little you need to earn before you get classified as "wealthy".

The nation is being divided into two groups; the workers and the rest of the people who are dependent on entitlements. If you have a steady job, pay your bills and own a home, your wallet is an easy target.