Just in case nobody around here reads the blog anymore, I just wrote a post about the destiny of the middle class.
Middle Class Lifestyle
@Jacob
I did. I think what you did is a great way to post new material for the blog. A wonderful, well thought out idea as we have grown accustumed to. Maybe it would make more sense to answer many forum posts in this manner as the response can be more complete and in our face!
Also, your recent finance posts that included links to other older posts were greatly useful. I plan to spend more time looking them over in detail.
The Dogs of the Dow coupled with value averaging...you may have already covered this, but what lead you to believe in this strategy (besides seeing better past returns)? What has you trusting that popularity doesn't bust this? Wouldn't it make sense that an index would eventually track this (even though the fee would be money wasted) if the theory holds true?
I did. I think what you did is a great way to post new material for the blog. A wonderful, well thought out idea as we have grown accustumed to. Maybe it would make more sense to answer many forum posts in this manner as the response can be more complete and in our face!
Also, your recent finance posts that included links to other older posts were greatly useful. I plan to spend more time looking them over in detail.
The Dogs of the Dow coupled with value averaging...you may have already covered this, but what lead you to believe in this strategy (besides seeing better past returns)? What has you trusting that popularity doesn't bust this? Wouldn't it make sense that an index would eventually track this (even though the fee would be money wasted) if the theory holds true?
Post Script--
Dad wound up in prison, along with his lady friend in the wreck. Seems they found a baggie of Crystal Meth in her purse. Mom left him for "Marcus McBodybuilder", the 70 year old man in the wheel chair she had been chatting with on the internet. Sarah moved in with Grandpa Jacob and Grandma DW. Grandpa Jacob taught her to drive and bought her a car. When she graduates this next year, Grandpa Jacob is going to pay her way to attend Harvard Law School. The house was sold short by Mom, and she actually came out with a $1,000 gain after paying all expenses left in the marriage.
Dad, in prison, wrote a book about living a more frugal life, and keeping your nose clean. He closed the first chapter with:
"No one brings anything into this world, and no one takes anything out of it. This is why you see no moving vans parked at funerals, next to the caskets. It is better to live a simple life and have peace, than to have it all and lose it. In closing, my advice is neither a borrower nor a lender be. In reality there is nothing new under the sun, living the financed life is like chasing the wind. I forget where I heard these sayings, but I find them to be true. I get out in four more years with good behavior".
(Grandpa Jacob believes that "all these problems can be solved by going back to "Harvard" and getting a degree.")
Dad wound up in prison, along with his lady friend in the wreck. Seems they found a baggie of Crystal Meth in her purse. Mom left him for "Marcus McBodybuilder", the 70 year old man in the wheel chair she had been chatting with on the internet. Sarah moved in with Grandpa Jacob and Grandma DW. Grandpa Jacob taught her to drive and bought her a car. When she graduates this next year, Grandpa Jacob is going to pay her way to attend Harvard Law School. The house was sold short by Mom, and she actually came out with a $1,000 gain after paying all expenses left in the marriage.
Dad, in prison, wrote a book about living a more frugal life, and keeping your nose clean. He closed the first chapter with:
"No one brings anything into this world, and no one takes anything out of it. This is why you see no moving vans parked at funerals, next to the caskets. It is better to live a simple life and have peace, than to have it all and lose it. In closing, my advice is neither a borrower nor a lender be. In reality there is nothing new under the sun, living the financed life is like chasing the wind. I forget where I heard these sayings, but I find them to be true. I get out in four more years with good behavior".
(Grandpa Jacob believes that "all these problems can be solved by going back to "Harvard" and getting a degree.")
Well, theoretically they could've played the bill merri-go-round and pay 1 car one month and another another month. Rinse, repeat.
Skip three months payments on the house and the 4th month pay the mortgage. Use the three month payments saved to start a CD ladder. Rinse, repeat up all the ladders.
Cut all the expenses and save the money. Pay down the mini-van. Mom should take a job advertising on said van for the tax deduction (drive around x hours in a week, yadda yadda).
Eat rice, beans, eggs, porkchops. Filling and complete. Water and milk to drink. $50/mo, about $100 to start.
Switch to basic TV. Sell the jet-skis.
I don't really think that all is lost in these situations except "pride". Just sayin...
Skip three months payments on the house and the 4th month pay the mortgage. Use the three month payments saved to start a CD ladder. Rinse, repeat up all the ladders.
Cut all the expenses and save the money. Pay down the mini-van. Mom should take a job advertising on said van for the tax deduction (drive around x hours in a week, yadda yadda).
Eat rice, beans, eggs, porkchops. Filling and complete. Water and milk to drink. $50/mo, about $100 to start.
Switch to basic TV. Sell the jet-skis.
I don't really think that all is lost in these situations except "pride". Just sayin...
@Jacob
Thanks! I knew I was going off topic but I didn't want to start another thread, but I guess I will:)
@HSpencer
At least dad found some good advice. (Spoiler alert) I think some similar advise can be found in Ecclesiastes. Now he just needs to read Proverbs so he has the wisdom not to do it again:)
Thanks! I knew I was going off topic but I didn't want to start another thread, but I guess I will:)
@HSpencer
At least dad found some good advice. (Spoiler alert) I think some similar advise can be found in Ecclesiastes. Now he just needs to read Proverbs so he has the wisdom not to do it again:)
This may be a case of just reporting the facts.
http://www.theonion.com/articles/middle ... hei,20552/
http://www.theonion.com/articles/middle ... hei,20552/
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workathome
- Posts: 1298
- Joined: Sat Jun 29, 2013 3:06 pm
Re: Middle Class Lifestyle
Going back to the scenario posts, Dad would probably do what a lot of people have done - keep driving the vehicles until the repo man figures out how to grab them, stay in the house until the mortgage company evicts. Could be a year or more.
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secretwealth
- Posts: 1948
- Joined: Mon Jun 27, 2011 3:31 am
Re: Middle Class Lifestyle
@Andre9000: My first private sector job offer after getting my B.A. was a secretary at a small office (3 employees). Pay was $15/hr.
My first private sector job offer after getting my Ph.D. was as a document translator and analyst at a very large Wall Street firm (the office was on Wall St.) Pay was $15/hr.
Needless to say, I didn't take the job, but from what they told me there were plenty of new grads eager to take the position.
Edit: I didn't see this thread was three years old! I never saw it before, but I'm glad I did now.
My first private sector job offer after getting my Ph.D. was as a document translator and analyst at a very large Wall Street firm (the office was on Wall St.) Pay was $15/hr.
Needless to say, I didn't take the job, but from what they told me there were plenty of new grads eager to take the position.
Edit: I didn't see this thread was three years old! I never saw it before, but I'm glad I did now.
Re: Middle Class Lifestyle
Mom calls the orthodontists office in tears, explains to the receptionist that the family is in a financial jam and that Sarah is in a lot of pain. The receptionists tells Mom that she will let the orthodontist know. The orthodontist calls Mom back that night, from home, and tells her to take Sarah down to the local university dental school for evaluation. He gives her a number that she can call to set up an intake/evaluation appointment.
Mom calls the number the next day, and explains to the receptionist that she's been referred by Dr. So and So, and that her daughter has impacted wisdom teeth and is in a lot of pain. Sarah is seen at the dental school's clinic within the next couple of days. Sarah is accepted for treatment. Based on the family's current reduced income and financial strain, she is accepted on a sliding scale payment basis.
Sarah's impacted wisdom teeth are removed by oral surgery students under the supervision of their fully accredited instructor.
Sarah is then handed over to the dental students, again under the supervision of their fully accredited instructor, for restoration work, before she is then passed on to the orthodontic students, ditto.
Over the next three years, Sarah's dental work is handled by the dental school on a sliding fee basis.
In the process, Sarah becomes familiar with many aspects of the school, and many aspects of allied health. She becomes interested in dentistry as a career. She decides to attend the allied health school to receive her degree as a dental hygienist. It is a public university, and she qualifies for financial aid. She also earns scholarships. Sarah has a job as a dental hygienist before she is graduated from the program. She will later decide whether to go back to dental school to get her own DDS degree, or to start a family, or both. Either way she has a lucrative and mobile degree as a dental hygienist and can work as much or as little as she can absorb at any given moment in her life.
Dad goes back to community college and gets his new certificate as a mechanic of some type: auto, HVAC, plumbing, electrician, mechanical/industrial engineer, etc. He soon takes a job with a local manufacturer/car dealership/etc. He repairs cars/does handyman jobs on the side for extra cash. Dad keeps the minivan running via his new skill set.
Mom gets a job as a bookkeeper at a local small business that needs help with payroll. It doesn't pay a lot but it buys the groceries. Mom's mom and dad send vegetables from the large back yard garden that they still maintain. Mom dusts off her canning and freezing skills, and teaches Sarah these skills as well. Mom also dusts off the sewing machine and sends Sarah to the school dance in a dress that no one but Mom and Sarah would ever know had its beginnings in the family room at home. Sarah is fascinated with the sewing machine and learns to sew that summer.
Family downsizes to a smaller home once Sarah is in college. Minivan is sold on Craigslist and dad buys a used car with better gas mileage.
All of these alternate endings are examples/facsimiles of choices made in my own family to make ends meet, to get through tough patches, and to acquire skill sets that have lasted a lifetime.
Mom calls the number the next day, and explains to the receptionist that she's been referred by Dr. So and So, and that her daughter has impacted wisdom teeth and is in a lot of pain. Sarah is seen at the dental school's clinic within the next couple of days. Sarah is accepted for treatment. Based on the family's current reduced income and financial strain, she is accepted on a sliding scale payment basis.
Sarah's impacted wisdom teeth are removed by oral surgery students under the supervision of their fully accredited instructor.
Sarah is then handed over to the dental students, again under the supervision of their fully accredited instructor, for restoration work, before she is then passed on to the orthodontic students, ditto.
Over the next three years, Sarah's dental work is handled by the dental school on a sliding fee basis.
In the process, Sarah becomes familiar with many aspects of the school, and many aspects of allied health. She becomes interested in dentistry as a career. She decides to attend the allied health school to receive her degree as a dental hygienist. It is a public university, and she qualifies for financial aid. She also earns scholarships. Sarah has a job as a dental hygienist before she is graduated from the program. She will later decide whether to go back to dental school to get her own DDS degree, or to start a family, or both. Either way she has a lucrative and mobile degree as a dental hygienist and can work as much or as little as she can absorb at any given moment in her life.
Dad goes back to community college and gets his new certificate as a mechanic of some type: auto, HVAC, plumbing, electrician, mechanical/industrial engineer, etc. He soon takes a job with a local manufacturer/car dealership/etc. He repairs cars/does handyman jobs on the side for extra cash. Dad keeps the minivan running via his new skill set.
Mom gets a job as a bookkeeper at a local small business that needs help with payroll. It doesn't pay a lot but it buys the groceries. Mom's mom and dad send vegetables from the large back yard garden that they still maintain. Mom dusts off her canning and freezing skills, and teaches Sarah these skills as well. Mom also dusts off the sewing machine and sends Sarah to the school dance in a dress that no one but Mom and Sarah would ever know had its beginnings in the family room at home. Sarah is fascinated with the sewing machine and learns to sew that summer.
Family downsizes to a smaller home once Sarah is in college. Minivan is sold on Craigslist and dad buys a used car with better gas mileage.
All of these alternate endings are examples/facsimiles of choices made in my own family to make ends meet, to get through tough patches, and to acquire skill sets that have lasted a lifetime.
Re:
Haha nice.George the original one wrote:>
Both of these are voters who will have turned down a state healthcare system and voted down the "tax the weathly" initiatives even though they were never in those tax brackets.
I could never figure out why some people think conservatism helps the middle class.