The Biggest Myths About Social Security

November 10, 2011

In talking to people all over the country about their retirement, there are two big myths I’ve noticed when it comes to Social Security. The first one (which I hear less and less) is that there’s an account set up somewhere for you that you’ve been contributing to with your tax dollars. Unfortunately, Social Security doesn’t work that way. Instead, your tax dollars are immediately paid out to current beneficiaries with the expectation that future taxpayers will pay for your benefits when you retire. Continue reading “The Biggest Myths About Social Security”

Risk of Failure to Balance Budget

May 11, 2011

So in my last blog I outlined the real danger of government spending without a balanced budget.  If the government continues to borrow and spend, borrow and spend, borrow and spend, pretty soon Uncle Sam won’t be able to borrow any more.  If that happens – if foreign governments don’t lend the U.S. money, if investors don’t buy U.S. Government Bonds – how will the government pay for its expenditures?  This is a difficult question, and one we hope we never have to answer, but rather than cross our fingers and put our heads in the sand, we need to face this potential reality head on.  We know that the government’s going to have to do something, so here’s what you can do to be prepared: Continue reading “Risk of Failure to Balance Budget”

A Balanced Budget is a BIG Deal

May 04, 2011

While on vacation recently I had an opportunity to do something I don’t often find the time to do: think.  I had the chance to read the morning paper and scan a few of the opted articles that had differing viewpoints on a topic that seems to be getting a lot of attention these days: our nation’s debt and the importance of balancing the budget.  Now when I was in college, I had a roommate explain that the national debt really wasn’t that big of a deal because we essentially owed the money to ourselves, so who cares?  Well, I’m not really sure that’s how it works, so I wanted to spell out why the national debt and having a balance budget ARE BIG DEALS when it comes to our economy as a whole. Continue reading “A Balanced Budget is a BIG Deal”