In hindsight would it have been a better choice to forego the 401(k) deferrals & instead, party

[Liberal_in_LA]

like its 1999?

http://www.theglobalist.com/storyid.aspx?StoryId=7345&AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1

The 401k Generation

By Robert Lyle | Thursday, November 13, 2008

In the turmoil of the global financial crisis, nearly everyone is hurting. While the woes of financial companies and investment banks have been well-publicized, Robert Lyle points out that there's one especially hard-hit group which almost no one is noticing — the first generation of 401(k) retirees.

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No one noticed that for those of us already retired and living on 401 investments, this was not just a severe loss of value — this was catastrophe. A wipeout. There is no time to rebuild the value of those investments for us — we have to worry about next month's bills.


Without 401 value, the very foundation of our existence has disappeared. Suddenly, our income has dropped nearly 70%. How can we now afford our mortgages or to pay the real estate taxes which are still based on inflated values? How do we buy gasoline or anything else?

[Eric J in MN]

1. Retired people should have other sources of income,

...such as Social Security, to use until their 401Ks go up.

Also, they should have converted most of their 401Ks to something other than stocks if they're dependent on it.

[Odin2005]

2. IMO SS should be expanded into a full-blown national pension system

n/t