Prime example of intellectual disconnect - a convo with RW co-worker

[zbdent]

This morning, I had an amusing conversation with my RW co-worker.

Refreshing your memory: This guy turned purple in 2004 when someone said that Bush was screwing up the Iraq war, angrily said "I'd like to see someone else do a better job!" (of course, he voted Bush...). Tried to convince me (years ago) that Bill Clinton had admitted the affair with Monica Lewinsky (before the public admission) - he later denied ever having that conversation. Vietnam vet, Catholic, very RW ... and his paramedic son is of age and physical capability of serving in the armed forces ... and the son doesn't want to be bothered with the military (???).

Okay. This morning, he's telling me of working with a financial planner.

Planner hears that he's "bustin his ass" to pay off a home equity loan.

Planner says "Why? Are you going to leave the house to your kids?"

Co-worker answers that the kids wouldn't want the house.

Planner points out that he should just make regular payments on the equity loan ... and when he and his wife pass away, let the kids take the house and sell it to pay off the debt. Co-worker is thinking about that option, thinks it looks good.

At this point, I (good-naturedly) pointed out to my co-worker that he's the kind of guy who wants the elimination of the "death tax" - the inheritance tax. I pointed out that, according to what he's told me over time, his kids are never ever EVER going to have to concern themselves with the "death tax", since they would not stand to inherit more than $5 million each.

I point out to him that he's concerned about the "death tax", and yet he wants to leave his kids HIS DEBT ... sounds like a "death tax" to me ... he brushed aside my concerns ...

I marvel at the intellectual disconnect that Right-Wingers can achieve ...

:wtf:

[Warpy]

1. Face it, some people WANT to be dumb bastards

and this guy is a prime example.

The financial planner didn't tell the whole story, though. Yes, they think in terms of the tax deduction, but they don't consider that the interest on that equity loan is above what investments would pay over the same period. In other words, by investing the money at a low return rate instead of paying off a loan that's giving a bank a high return rate, he's screwing himself.

Dumb bastards have to find all that stuff out the hard way, I guess.

[zbdent]

3. and you always hear people saying

"Well, if you would have put X dollars aside each paycheck and never touched it, today, you would have X thousand/million dollars ..."

If you're paying X dollars for a mortgage, and Y percent of that payment is so much, and Z is your taxes, if you save a smaller portion of your taxes over the larger portion that you're spending EACH MONTH on interest (not principle! The bank gets its money up front!), how is that HELPING YOU???

edited to add:

And, if he paid off the loan early, he could take that money up front and invest it, instead of just handing it over to the bank.

Sure, you pay for a car up front, you're out X dollars ... but you save much more than what you would have paid in interest (at least, when the car companies were still charging interest on car loans - which is probably a huge reason why GM and Ford are in trouble ... no interest on car loans means no profit on the sale ... :silly:)

[jdadd]

2. Huh?

It looks to me like the Conservative meme of "HOORAY FOR ME..FUCK YOU" even applies to his family. :crazy: