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I try to convey this fact to all that will listen. This is as much of a National crisis as Health care and yet resolving this will not buy votes for either of the primary Parties.
1) How do you fix a problem which requires a certain level of financial literacy? 2) How do you address an issue which is viewed differently based upon your own personal views (politics)? 3) In a so called free society, how do you impose a policy on all to protect all?
One day inflation is going to kill all retirements. That said I see the problem two ways and I'm not sure I would call one of them about "financial literacy". Some other literacy maybe.
1) Some people just don't make enough to save. It is easy to preach saying you should at least save a little etc. However, it is not easy to make argument it is going to matter if its too little. 2) People need to figure out the difference between iWant and iNeed. In our iWaste my iMoney on iWatch culture, that's the biggest problem. It is all about iWant. That's not financial literacy. That is something else.
Finally let me add or economy seems to be running primarily on consumption. If people start saving and not consuming we will have other problems. This is an excellent example of an article that makes rounds once a quarter or so. I call such articles the "who killed Marilyn Monroe" variety. When you don't have anything to report this is always a stock article to pull out and pen. Like the 1% vs 99% article. We keep discussing it, but there is no real actionable result, ever.
It is shameful that in a nation as wealthy as ours, we cannot make a dent in either our debt or savings. And, it is shameful that we cannot construct a response that may not please all, but moves us in the right direction.
Comments
1) How do you fix a problem which requires a certain level of financial literacy?
2) How do you address an issue which is viewed differently based upon your own personal views (politics)?
3) In a so called free society, how do you impose a policy on all to protect all?
1) Some people just don't make enough to save. It is easy to preach saying you should at least save a little etc. However, it is not easy to make argument it is going to matter if its too little.
2) People need to figure out the difference between iWant and iNeed. In our iWaste my iMoney on iWatch culture, that's the biggest problem. It is all about iWant. That's not financial literacy. That is something else.
Finally let me add or economy seems to be running primarily on consumption. If people start saving and not consuming we will have other problems. This is an excellent example of an article that makes rounds once a quarter or so. I call such articles the "who killed Marilyn Monroe" variety. When you don't have anything to report this is always a stock article to pull out and pen. Like the 1% vs 99% article. We keep discussing it, but there is no real actionable result, ever.