By SJ
Otto
This
week I read The Wichita Eagle's
article called "Challenges ahead as baby boomers begin to retire"[1]
and I found a few of my own observations to the so called problem. Many people
are calling the baby boomer's retirement a "train
wreck." They are looking at the giant boost of retirees as
compared to the past— from 65,000 to 111,000. Baby boomer is the group I mostly
fit into. I will be retiring in the next 6 to 7 years and I expect the same
things the past generation had. Ten years ago, the last generation went around
bragging that they paid into the system and they insisted that it was workers
like me who had the responsibility of paying for their retirement, even though
many of us would not live long enough to see our own retirement. I'm getting on
in years and I keep hearing politicians talk about forcing people to work until
their 70s before they are eligible to retire at all. While it is true that many
of us will live longer than the last generation we still get sick a lot. I know
I do. So I need both the money and I need the health care. Also jobs are not
that easy to find. I've been looking lately and they aren't handing them out
like candy. The next generation may find that they not only have to work
years more before collecting Social Security
and Medicare, they will also have to find jobs in a tight market. They may have
to go without work OR social security and Medicare.
I
probably am old enough to avoid these problems, but if you are a lot younger,
50 or less years, better pay attention to what politicians do now. Don't wait,
it will be too late—and/or when you finally get as old as me, you may be in for
a very miserable surprise.
Sunday's
article had written about the need for skilled workers for the future of
industry and commerce. In other words companies are worried about losing some
skilled workers. But they are not too worried. Automation will make some jobs
obsolete. Some young people are being well schooled to take over for many of
the skilled professionals leaving. Some places are stepping down some of their
workers into retirement, so the skills can be retained. But not many are doing
the last thing and those that are are only doing it for the highest 10 to 20
percent of skilled workers.
As
for me I can't wait to retire. I have no interest in helping out the economy.
That is because in this Republican Party economy workers are treated almost as
bad as they were treated back at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. It is
not surprising that companies in France France US US Kansas Kansas
I'm
doing what I can to get ready for retirement. I have no money save up, although
I have a few antiques I can sell. We paid off our house so I don't have to pay
an exorbitant rent. And I have NO INTEREST in contributing to the economy past
my retirement age. I feel I have contributed more than my share already and the
people I worked for rarely appreciated it. I will still write my blog though.
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