"I'm on a fixed income"

[AZRedhawk44]

Hey, old people:

Bite me.

I'm tired of hearing about your "fixed income."  Get off the TV with your complaints of "fixed incomes."

Guess what:  I'm on a fixed income, too!  You think I can just invent money?  Heck no, if I want more money than what I actually have, I have to do one of several things...
1.  Borrow it
2.  Work more
3.  Invest the little I have into creating more money, with the risk of losing money
4.  Get by without it

Do you think I just assume I will make more money next year, and the year after, and the year after?  Heck, no!

In fact, you're on less of a "fixed income" than I am!  You've got social security, medicare, pensions and/or investments you've made.  Supposedly, you can survive (and probably do much better than just survive) without working an hour all week.

You think I can do that?

Then, to top it all off, if you want more income available, take your skills and/or capital resources and invest them into a revenue stream.

My skills and capital resources are less than that of old people.

If you have no skills or capital resources and are an old person, you can still be a door greeter at WalMart (or similar job).  You still get your ss, medicare, pension, investments... and somewhere between $7 and $10 an hour to just stand and smile at people for however many hours a week you are willing to ACTUALLY WORK.

(This rant inspired by a "screenvision" commercial at the movie theater last night prior to the movie, with a bunch of old medicare/ss recipients whining about cost of health care and being on a fixed income.)

[Monkeyleg]

Feel better now?

[AZRedhawk44]

Feel better now?

Not quite...

[continue rant]

Your "fixed income" is derived from taxing my income, which is most certainly NOT fixed and subject to the downward forces of taxation and mob rule by the stupid Baby Boomer generation that is ruining this country.

Your "fixed income" is growing every election year due to the fact that your generation has discovered it can vote itself largesse from the Public Treasury, and the Public Treasury is funded entirely by taxes on me and other tax payers who DON'T draw from the Public Treasury.

Your "fixed income" gets bigger as you increase your ss benefits and medicare benefits.

My "fixed income" is then given downards pressure from the expansion of your "fixed income."

 

'Tards.

[/rant]

Phew.   

[Tallpine]

I would sure like to fix my income.

It is broken right now.

[Balog]

Baby boomers have been screwing this country over since the 60's. Not all of them obviously, but as an overall group.

[BridgeRunner]

I try to not speak up too loudly about this, but yeah, I am in agreement. 

It was really great when I was working full time for FREE for seniors who would then bitch to me about they couldn't afford something or other, who often wanted me to come up with the money for court costs/fees because of their "fixed income." 

I would positively love to have a fixed income right now, or you know, any kind of income whatsoever.

[Fjolnirsson]

I try to not speak up too loudly about this, but yeah, I am in agreement. 

It was really great when I was working full time for FREE for seniors who would then bitch to me about they couldn't afford something or other, who often wanted me to come up with the money for court costs/fees because of their "fixed income." 

I would positively love to have a fixed income right now, or you know, any kind of income whatsoever.

I agree, a fixed income would be nice.

[Nick1911]

Well said.

[The Lone Haranguer]

As a tradesman on piece work, I find "fixed income" an insult to my intelligence.    "Fixed" incomes get increases for inflation every so often, while my income depends on your making those needed repairs to your car that you're too blasted cheap to do.

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

Baby boomers have been screwing this country over since the 60's. Not all of them obviously, but as an overall group.

The last laugh will come at their expense.  About the time the Boomers are all retired and depending on their precious fixed incomes, the inflation wave their policies caused will strike.  Their fixed incomes will be decimated.

It'll suck, but it'll be poetic justice.

[Fly320s]

Bravo, AZ, bravo.

[charby]

I'm on a fixed income too. Haven't had a salary increase in 20 months due to budget cuts/constrains and actually since healthcare premiums has gone up and I was orded to take 4 furlough days my income has decreased.  More than likely it will be over another year until I see a salary increase.

So bite me geriatics, at least your SS gets a cost of living increase most years.

[RevDisk]

I moreso just find it entertaining that we should theoretically lend credibility or sympathy to someone that intentionally let themselves become dependent on the government for survival.  If they worked hard, saved up responsibly and intelligently, and through absolutely no fault of their own somehow lost their diversified portfolio, I'd be sympathetic. 

Yes, I fully understand that they "paid in" all or most of their working life.  I fully expect to "pay in" my entire life and gets pennies on the dollar if I am lucky.  So I plan, save and budget accordingly.  I put money into a retirement account, into a saving account and into investments.  I have no desire to link my survival at any point of my current or future life on the US government.  I did it once, when I was in the Army.  It was a valuable education.

I'm losing my respect for a large segment of the elderly because they are the primary sponsors of state socialism.  Not all, not by a long shot, obviously.  But who do you think SS bribes at aimed at?  My generation, in their 20's?  Hell, not a single person my age that I've met thinks social security will be around when they retire.  Granted, not all of them are bright enough to start saving now, but that's their choice.

[RocketMan]

Watch it with those wildly swinging broad brushes there, folks.

[grampster]

Get off your lazy, whining, young duffs and get a 2nd job or work some overtime.  I didn't get a raise in my SS this year.  You whippersnappers need to get busy and get some more money into the system and fix my income a little better.  I'm sick of drinking scotch.  I want to switch to good Irish whiskey and I want to upgrade from those boring standing ribs to some good Japaese steaks.

Also I need to get a new truck, and I want to play golf 7 days a week instead of 5.  You greedy little whiners.  I think the 50 cents on each dollar you earn going into the goobermint and then into my pocket needs to be increased to 75 cents.  If you cut down to one meal a day and make your own beer from whatever leftovers who have, you'll do just fine.  You're all probably overweight anyhow.

I  on your complaints.

[RevDisk]

Get off your lazy, whining, young duffs and get a 2nd job or work some overtime.  I didn't get a raise in my SS this year.  You whippersnappers need to get busy and get some more money into the system and fix my income a little better.  I'm sick of drinking scotch.  I want to switch to good Irish whiskey and I want to upgrade from those boring standing ribs to some good Japaese steaks.

Also I need to get a new truck, and I want to play golf 7 days a week instead of 5.  You greedy little whiners.  I think the 50 cents on each dollar you earn going into the goobermint and then into my pocket needs to be increased to 75 cents.  If you cut down to one meal a day and make your own beer from whatever leftovers who have, you'll do just fine.  You're all probably overweight anyhow.

I  on your complaints.

 

I did get a laugh at your post, grampster.  Sadly, that is exactly what a lot of folks are saying, if they were thinking the matter through.  Instead they tend to say (and possibly even think) "government", which makes little to no money directly and only gets money from taxpayers. 

The only solution is to let folks opt out (at a penalty).  Cutting social security off instantly isn't going to happen, nor should it.  Unless it goes bankrupt or whatnot, but we'd have bigger issues anyways.  A gradual phase out would be the wisest course of action and likely the only one that would be considered remotely acceptable to all parties involved.  Unlikely, but still.

[Balog]

Watch it with those wildly swinging broad brushes there, folks.

Normally I'm all about not making broad brush statements, but I think everyone here is more pointing out a statistical fact regarding that generation. Maybe it's offensive, but then it's probably offensive to point out the higher rate of criminality in certain ethnic segments. Doesn't make it less true.

No one is saying all boomers are lazy or entitled, but denying that a whole lot of them are (and that attitude has helped shape our problems to a large extent) would be untruthful.