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Living may be dangerous to your long-term wealth
Isn't it fascinating how so many things are determined by your perspective?
The Wall Street Journal featured an article today about retirement: "An Age-Old Problem: How to Make Sure Your Money Lasts as Long as You Do". The focus was on how ever-increasing age expectancies mean that your lifetime savings may not be enough for you to live comfortably into your 80's or even 90's. Excellent story, good reminder, and even a well-done headline.
Here's the rather odd paragraph that caught me off guard:
"There may be 5% to 10% of 65-year-olds who are in poor enough health that they don't have to worry about living a long time,' says Ken McCullum, a senior vice president in Harford's wealth-management group. "But the other 90% or 95% could live a very long time. There's a lot of uncertainty for those folks." [emphasis added]
Yes, indeed. Thankfully, a few of us (we can only hope) will pass away before reaching 70. But God help me if I'm one of those unfortunate people who might "live a very long time" and face a great deal of uncertainty!
We've been taught to fear death, running out of money, terrorism, spinach, failing to provide for our children's future, computer viruses, going to school, and internet stalkers. I suppose it was only a matter of time before someone decided to profit by making us fear - living!
L' chaim!
Posted by: L.L. Barkat | October 05, 2006 at 09:33 AM
You forgot to mention fear of airplanes, spiders, or triscuits.
Posted by: Crys | October 05, 2006 at 12:50 PM
Yikes! That's kinda disturbing...
Posted by: Markus Watson | October 06, 2006 at 04:07 PM
Love the spinach remark.
Yes it is quite disturbing. I suppose soon we will all have a new genre of insurance to purchase, because there just aren't enough already. They might call it Age insurance. It would compliment Health, and Life insurance but age insurance could be bought at age 60, and if you live to 70 you get certain payouts for "long living" claims. And then at 75, you get another claim's payout. You know since you didn't save, or your 401K, SS, pension... bla bla bla didn't provide enough.... Age insurance could take up the slack.
I suppose my sarcasim is only a product of the fact that you can pretty much by insurance for anything and everything... why not buy it for your age and life expectation?
p.s. Is the font on your blog getting bigger and bigger each time I visit or is it just me?
Posted by: Murph | October 08, 2006 at 02:42 PM
Boy, this world continues to spiral downwards.
I agree with Murph in the insurance scope, because security sells. Too bad these people don't realize that Jesus Christ is all the security you'll ever need :)
Posted by: Josh | October 10, 2006 at 01:18 PM
Crys: I'm afraid I've haven't experienced fear of triscuits, but airplanes and spiders sound perfectly reasonable.
Matt: You mean you don't already have Age Insurance? Think of your new baby, man! Don't be irresponsible.
Josh: Amen!
Posted by: Brian | October 11, 2006 at 08:44 AM