Harold,

I want to commend you on your story. There are lessons here that would keep
people out of financial trouble. My plan is to retire in 3 1/2 years at 57.

Gary Repesh

Jim

Lower wages, those that are really earned, would be the answer to the
problem. If manufacturers had a conscience, they would price their
products in accordance with expenses, allowing for a REASONABLE profit, and
if expenses were in line with reality, the price of products would,
likewise, be reasonable. Assuming that scenario was true, perhaps I
would then be rewarded with lower prices at the grocery and other stores,
making my limited money still pay for my needs. This endless cycle of
demanding more for less is a big part of why we're where we are today as we
relate to the rest of the world. I've said it before, and I'll say it
again, the American worker is way too arrogant, way too over paid to go
along with it. If I'm wrong, how is it that so much of our industry is
leaving?

You seem to have a particular axe to grind with SS. I'm not sure we've
ever discussed your age, but judging from a photo of you I saw about three
years ago, I'd suggest you are in your mid 40's. That being the case,
you'll find that you will approach SS retirement age in one hell of a hurry.
Time zips by when you're busy, and I think, from our endless conversations,
that you are a busy person, certainly not a couch potato. Having
stated these great words of wisdom, trust me that as you approach retirement
age, you're going to see SS from a totally different perspective. As much
as I detested it, the very fact that they held me captive with the demands
to pay into the system, again, at 15%, not the half you've become accustomed
to paying, I now see it from a different position. . No, I do not agree
with it, not any more than I did previously. However, now that my pocket
has been relieved of the money, I want it back as was suggested to me
through the years. You will, too. Trust me. And you'll rejoice when the
first payment hits your checking account, just as I did one year ago.

By the way, part of the reason I chose to retire so young (54) was to end
(or limit) the cycle of being taxed at every turn. I realized that if I
wasn't extravagant, I could get by on a small income, which we do.
Understand we do not live like we're broke, in spite of the fact that we
have a limited income. When you own everything outright, and have money
drawing interest instead of paying it, the world takes on a different
meaning.

I'm also pleased to tell you that Susan is the type of woman that makes due,
without complaint, that which we have. She is just as happy with a burger
when we go to town as many women may be with a cut of prime rib. We are
simple people, living in a simple way. Both of us, in spite of our
conservative ways, however, enjoy a hobby that is expensive. Instead of
running lines of coke, punching needles into our arms, drinking ourselves
into insanity, or paying for and using weed, we spend our free money on
things that make sense, at least to us. I enjoy my machines and the stereo
system, and Susan enjoys her art glass collection. We didn't quit living
when we went into retirement, the only real change was the lowering of our
income.

Harold