Financial firms want a bigger piece of the $10 trillion in America’s 401(k) plans, and the Trump administration is planning a regulatory rollback to encourage less-regulated — and often riskier — investments.
I had a little early exposure myself. A math class in junior high had a project where we invested fake money over the semester. When my dad learned of this he opened me a brokerage account and put a little money in so I was doing it for real and took the opportunity to give me some basic education. My results were…mixed, but I learned a lot. (This was the late 80s so he actually had to get on the phone every time I wanted to trade.) So I paid more attention than my peers as soon as I got my “real” job after college, this allowed me to retire as soon as I earned a pension in my late 40s. My wife thought it was weird how much I was into it when we met in our mid 20s but she says she’s very appreciative now.
Losing that 6th figure from the mortgage is huge. I remember how good that felt, congrats on the milestone!
I don’t know how long you’ve been on Lemmy but discussing sound strategies for living in a capitalist system (which most of us have no control over) instead of screaming about how everything is designed to make us wage slaves for life and ensure we die pennyless (they may be right, but many people avoid that fate and I would like to be one of them) is always going to pick up some downvotes. God help us if someone decides it’s interesting enough to post a screenshot on “the triad” and they decide to hop on their alts and come over. Comes with the territory.
Wow, that was great your dad did all that to help you learn! My wife isn’t much into it, but she at least knows it’s a good thing. When I met her, she was basically broke and had trashed credit and got her car repo-ed. It turned out she had some underlying mental health things exacerbated by 2 significant deaths in the family, so after getting her back on track with that, I helped her get her finances back in order, and then she was able to go back to school and is now doing better than I am! 😅
There are all kinds of investments really. I funded her a secured credit card and supported her while she was recovering and while she was in school and interning, cosigned so she could get a reliable car for all that, and now her credit score is over 800, she got her own new car and gave me her 3 year old one I helped her get, and she’s putting a good amount into her retirement savings and pays for all our travel and dining. It’s not a luxurious life, but it’s more than enough. A lot of people probably would have seen that as a risky investment!
I’ve been here for 3 years and mainly just talk owls and wildlife rehab, but I was curious what the OPs article was about and wanted to give people a brief overview since I know many respond just to the headline and I wanted to show it wasn’t all that sinister. I was just talking to someone else here this morning I kind of feel alienated from just about all political movements, but I acknowledge I live in a capitalist society, so that’s the game I’m stuck in right now, so I’m going to play that to the best of my abilities. I don’t have to cherish it, but it’s the hand I’ve drawn. Complaining nets me nothing. Making the most of what I do have, in a way I feel is moral, is the best I can do. I’ve got to look out for myself and my wife because no one else will if things ever go bad. If all my educational and helpful posts haven’t convinced people I’m at least a smidge on the decent side, nothing is going to convince them. I’m just here to chat with people, not convert them to some belief system.
I had a little early exposure myself. A math class in junior high had a project where we invested fake money over the semester. When my dad learned of this he opened me a brokerage account and put a little money in so I was doing it for real and took the opportunity to give me some basic education. My results were…mixed, but I learned a lot. (This was the late 80s so he actually had to get on the phone every time I wanted to trade.) So I paid more attention than my peers as soon as I got my “real” job after college, this allowed me to retire as soon as I earned a pension in my late 40s. My wife thought it was weird how much I was into it when we met in our mid 20s but she says she’s very appreciative now.
Losing that 6th figure from the mortgage is huge. I remember how good that felt, congrats on the milestone!
I don’t know how long you’ve been on Lemmy but discussing sound strategies for living in a capitalist system (which most of us have no control over) instead of screaming about how everything is designed to make us wage slaves for life and ensure we die pennyless (they may be right, but many people avoid that fate and I would like to be one of them) is always going to pick up some downvotes. God help us if someone decides it’s interesting enough to post a screenshot on “the triad” and they decide to hop on their alts and come over. Comes with the territory.
Wow, that was great your dad did all that to help you learn! My wife isn’t much into it, but she at least knows it’s a good thing. When I met her, she was basically broke and had trashed credit and got her car repo-ed. It turned out she had some underlying mental health things exacerbated by 2 significant deaths in the family, so after getting her back on track with that, I helped her get her finances back in order, and then she was able to go back to school and is now doing better than I am! 😅
There are all kinds of investments really. I funded her a secured credit card and supported her while she was recovering and while she was in school and interning, cosigned so she could get a reliable car for all that, and now her credit score is over 800, she got her own new car and gave me her 3 year old one I helped her get, and she’s putting a good amount into her retirement savings and pays for all our travel and dining. It’s not a luxurious life, but it’s more than enough. A lot of people probably would have seen that as a risky investment!
I’ve been here for 3 years and mainly just talk owls and wildlife rehab, but I was curious what the OPs article was about and wanted to give people a brief overview since I know many respond just to the headline and I wanted to show it wasn’t all that sinister. I was just talking to someone else here this morning I kind of feel alienated from just about all political movements, but I acknowledge I live in a capitalist society, so that’s the game I’m stuck in right now, so I’m going to play that to the best of my abilities. I don’t have to cherish it, but it’s the hand I’ve drawn. Complaining nets me nothing. Making the most of what I do have, in a way I feel is moral, is the best I can do. I’ve got to look out for myself and my wife because no one else will if things ever go bad. If all my educational and helpful posts haven’t convinced people I’m at least a smidge on the decent side, nothing is going to convince them. I’m just here to chat with people, not convert them to some belief system.