Longevity And Prosperity
Fixed Income And Ability -To- Pay

If you are 85 years old this year: You have already exceeded your own expectations of yesteryears. You have also exceeded the total amount of your Social Security contributions by age 75.

Workers call it progress, while retirees on fixed incomes call it inflation. If you retired with a professional skilled worker's pay and savings twenty years ago yesterday. Your retirement and savings now can only purchase unskilled minimum wage labor at the same rate today.

If you can avoid life's little disasters, diseases, disabilities, and catastrophes your future is secure. You are definitely on your way to longevity, being a survivor. We are definitely living longer today. We are also retiring earlier as well as living longer.

Senior Adults, as survivors, hold the greater portion of individually accumulated wealth in our country. But this does not mean that many Seniors, and most Disabled, have no problems with ability -to- pay in our pay as you go economy. Today the average retirement income is $16,000.00 per year. With early disability the average is $8,000.00.

For the first time, retirement options can become more financially restricted; than physical limitations by health, mobility and physical disability. It's a great retirement only if you can afford to pay.

Prosperity, Diversity, And Security

The day you retire the future looks great. Whether by choice of circumstance, [by plan or accident] you chose several of life's current options:

Prosperity Profile

• You and your spouse have good health.
  
• You and your spouse have no other dependents.
  
• You were employed by a large Corporate entity. Where you acquired stock options, incentives, and early retirement severance pay.
  
• You were employed by a large Public Service entity. Where you acquired sabbaticals, consultantcies, honoraria, and early retirement severance pay.
  
• Your retirement income is tied to 80% of current wages.
  
• Your savings and investment portfolio pays 30 to 50 percent above your retirement income; after tax.
  
• Your full health care coverage continues after retirement.
  
• Your home, and vehicles are paid in full.
  
• All your insurance is current or fully paid.
  
• You are independently wealthy, or own your Company.
  
• You are supported by a Large Trust, or Family.
  
• A rich relative passed away, or you won the lottery.

Obviously given time and longevity, many will be lost; or loose their way. Survivors of life's pit falls may find their lives and options greatly changed. With savings depleted, insurance expired, assets gone; while health and medical bills remain.

All it takes is a disaster, disease, or disability, to be a catastrophe. Even when everything was planned, protected, and in place.

Prosperity Pit Falls

• Loss of personal health due to disease or physical degeneration.
  
• Loss of personal independence and mobility.
  
• The catastrophic lingering illness of a spouse, a child, or dependent family member.
  
• Ever increasing health related costs for medicine and personal physical assistance.
  
• Loss of a spouse and their retirement income.
  
• Loss of Corporate post-retirement benefits, income and/or insurance.
  
• Loss of savings and investment income due to market conditions or taxation.
  
• Loss of fixed assets due to catastrophic disaster.

Sometimes catastrophe hides disaster; the chaos can be to big to be seen. Such as surviving the roller coaster ride of the 1980's. The early 1980's saw the inflation bubble rise and gave way to the Wall Street Market Plunge in 1987. Not to mention what was to follow in between:

• The failure of the Washington - Oregon Power Supply System [Nuclear] Bonds.
  
• The failure of the Southwestern Oil Exploration industry.
  
• The stagnation of the building industry.
  
• Corporate Take-overs and Junk Bond financing.
  
• The default of unsecured Certificates Of Deposit.
  
• The devaluation of real estate property.
  
• The failure of the Savings and Loan Industry.
  
• The relocation of local industry.
  
• Personal Unemployment, Dislocation, and Bankruptcy.

In less than a decade multiple billions of dollars were lost from the economy. At the same time, while billions were also made; the effects of the loss have yet to be repaid. Unless experienced personally, these losses went unnoticed; and everybody pays today. Person to person, pension to pension, fixed income to fixed income, and dollar for dollar in "buying power". Not to be restored by higher interest rates, cost of living increases, or increasing net asset valuations. You and your fixed income buying power were better off yesterday. Regardless of the amount you receive today.

However, hopefully your savings and investment portfolio survived the pit falls of the 1980's to ride the crest of the 1990's. If you did it right, your investment income is now far greater, and your fixed income Social Security now pays your investment income tax obligations.

Prosperity Yesterday And Today,
Ability -To- Pay Tomorrow

Prosperity, economic fantasy, or fiscal reality? As we retire earlier, and live longer, we exceeded the total amount of our Social Security contributions. Prosperity has never been perpetual. Social Security's escalating fiscal obligations [worker pay-in] and [retiree pay-out] are already a real-time [money-in, money-out] exchange without parity. As it takes more and more workers [paying in] to support retiree [pay outs].

Social Security is debt financing; not Social Savings or Assurance. There are no accumulated savings from Social Security contributions. What comes in ... is what is paid out. Of course any temporary surplus is reinvested into government [debt obligation] securities.

Not backed by gold or accumulated savings Social Security becomes another obligation of our National Debt. To be backed by the full faith and credit of our national economy and our nation's assets. Which is everything and everyone in this country. However before we foreclose on ourselves, there is the power of the National Printing Press to manipulate [inflate or deflate] your dollar's worth. This is the base for our Social Insecurity.

Prosperity And The Perpetual Money Machine
Perpetual Prosperity

In nature, as in economics, Perpetual Motion and Perpetual Prosperity have never been seen in all of history. For anything to be perpetual there must be:
1. Confidence of personal expectations, to fill the void of individual doubt with faith to proceed.
2. Continuity of prosperity, to fill the void of an ever expanding economic vacuum. It is the volume and movement of money that keeps the system in motion with the illusion of progress and prosperity.

Social Security And Ponzzi's Game

Ponzzi was a "Confidence Man" creator of an investment scam called the Ponzzi Game. So long as new investment money kept coming in ... older investments were paid. When volume stopped the money dropped and no one was repaid.

Social Security has degenerated into a bigger scam than Ponzzi ever dreamed. So long as the workers have confidence to continue to contribute to Social Security. So long as the continuity of worker contributions pay ins meets the amount of retiree pay outs.

Standing Pat And Staying Put
Landing On Your Feet

If you were fortunate enough to have it, you are living your retirement "comfortably". Either you planned it right; or you are lucky. Depending on how much comfort you want or need.

1. Against disaster or catastrophe diversification is your only hope for guarantee. Keep your resources diversified by making smaller investments, in a variety of different securities, from several different institutions.
2. Do your moving before you retire, and move only once more after you retire. Stay put and change nothing; unless you are converting your real estate assets to further portfolio investments and savings.
3. Against disaster or catastrophe never assume your good fortune is a function of your own genius. Rather than just plane luck.

When Retirement Is Not Enough
Landing On Your Feet

Whether by disability or mandatory retirement when there is not enough the obvious solutions include:

• Don't retire, early or ever. Keep working as long as you can.
  
• After mandatory retirement get post retirement employment from a temporary placement agency. Doing what you did, and know best, before you were retired.
  
• Go into business for yourself. Doing what you did, and know best.
  
• Reduce your living expenses. Double up on your living accommodations to reduce the cost of shelter.

  Not so obvious are the alternatives:

• Make application and put your name on the waiting list for HUD Subsidized High Rise Housing for ambulatory senior adults and the independantly mobile disabled. Most of the facilities were built in major metropolitan areas. Some facilities were residential hotels converted to individual apartments in the urban centers of cities. Other [Farm Home Administration] subsidized apartment facilities were built in rural communities. Your apartment rent will be linked and limited to a fixed percentage of your total income.

• If your income is low enough, hopefully you are lucky enough to live in a state where Medicaid is a state subsidized supplemental insurance. Even Medicare premiums are paid along with full medical and prescription costs.
  You must meet both an income and assets criteria to qualify.

Before proceeding, you need to assess what is available in your locality. Educate yourself regarding their rules and regulations. Learn about the application process and duration.

If you qualify by fixed income ... adjust your assets to meet the regulations.

This could be selling a car, truck, trailer, or boat for recreation. This could also be reinvesting to buy a newer used car, or truck and camper combination.

This could be selling off personal assets to make qualification. This means reinvesting by buying personal assets not covered or permitted by regulation.

To Be Continued
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06-28-98