Re: hey does anyone remember when george bush wanted to privatize social security?

by dunnas Wed Sep 17, 2008 9:28 pm

Aristotle wrote:not so much, surprisingly. most of the top guys put the majority of their money in bonds and stick play money in hedge funds.

equities are for fun. bonds are for retirement.

also, with tax-free munis, you don't have to bother opening an IRA. they're tax-free, and you can redeem them whenever you want. no penalties; no fees; no hassle; guaranteed by the gov't.

as of right now, my friends with all their retirement in equities have lost 30% of the value this year. essentially making all their investments from the past 2yrs null and void. they'll be lucky to be flat in less than 5 years. meanwhile the bond guys will be way up. the equity guys can 'hope' to catch up via a few really strong years, but the chances are slim and hope is the dumbest investment thesis imaginable.

I've lost ~25% and am really not worried about it at all.

Sounds like things are too different in the US to really compare things.

by Aristotle Wed Sep 17, 2008 11:06 pm

true. i know next to nothing about the policies of australia.

we have a lot of shysters here, though, and they tend to put people in things based on their kickbacks, as opposed to sound investments. it's mainly due to the fact that all the big mutual funds and insurance companies have financial planners on their payroll.