So my 401(k) lost 18% this quarter. My parents got their reports and lost thousands of dollars.

[krispos42]

All thanks to the games the Repubes played over the debt ceiling at the end of July.


This will just fuel OWS and the anger. And the 1% will shrug and say "hey, you weren't complaining when it was high, so don't complain now!"

The exact same thing they said when the housing market collapsed.


Fuckers!

[roamer65]

1. Most of this is actually from the sovereign debt crisis in Europe.

I fully expect it to get worse and see the collapse of the Euro.

People are fleeing the markets and are running to what they THINK is safe...the dollar and US gov't bonds.

They are suckers.

[BiggJawn]

2. My GF lost thousands.

But the 1%ers say "You'll make it back before you retire! Don't worry! I'm doing just GREAT!"
She's 62, doesn't have many years to recover.
Me? Shit, I was homeless 15 years ago, lost everything in a foreclosure and bankruptcy in '99. Wages now stagnant going on 10 years.
I got no investments. I'll never retire.

[CountAllVotes]

3. this is why people over the age of 40

have no business in the stock market. You cannot make it up over time as you age. It is not there any longer.

I have an "aunt" and she is in her 80's. Her husband passed away about 2 years ago and she has all of her money in Wall Street (with no knowledge of the basics; i.e. stocks v. bonds!). I have not spoken to her lately but I'm thinking she lost a load too. :(

:dem: :kick:

[vets74]

9. Riding that bike... perfect. That's economizing at its best.

[BiggJawn]

14. That's an old avatar...

I should change it. I enjoy cycling, even follow the pros in other races besides the TdF, but I can't handle the Maes handlebars anymore. Need some dirt-drop stems and North Road bars to get the weight off my palms.

[pansypoo53219]

4. aren't 401k's an AWESOME way to save for retirement???

let's tie EVERYTHING to the wall street casino. WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.

[dixiegrrrrl]

5. Smart people moved their funds into Money Market funds.

Lucky people took the money out.
True, ain't no growth to speak of in money market funds, but less chance of losing principal
( of course the silent inflation is eating away at that).

People are now realizing mandatory retirement programs were a hidden tax and we were ripped off.
Including Soc Sec. which was used as income by the Feds.

[RebelOne]

10. I was laid off my job in 2010.

I was already 70 years old and could cash in my 401K and IRA with no penalty, but did have to pay taxes. For the time being, it is sitting in my savings account. I am collecting $1,400 a month in social security and my expenses are low, so I am not desperate for money at this time. And I do not believe social security is a rip off, since I am benefitting from it now.

[dixiegrrrrl]

11. I am collecting on it now too.

But the actual "accounting" money does not exist, it was spent.
A bunch of IOUs exist, every month the checks are cut from the sale of T-bills, but if you watch the economy, you know that cannot continue. We are paying the funds out of debt.

[Dawgs]

6. Sorry, but it's dumb to pay attention to the ups and downs of the market.

It's actually a good thing for you in the long run when the market is down.

[krispos42]

18. It makes people who have no business voting republican, vote republican

"Oh noes, I need that stock price high, regardless of the mechanism! And I'll worry every time anybody tries to do anything about corporate profits!"

:shrug:

Now it's tied into a big casino, where people buy and sell a trillion dollars a day of used stocks. USED.

[kittykitty]

7. Ever hear of Gerald Clemente? A forecaster with an impeccable record

http://www.kingworldnews.com/kingworldnews/Broadcast/Entries/2011/10/12_Gerald_Celente.html

According to him, the whole world economy may collapse.

[vets74]

8. Keep in mind that BIG BUBBLE II 2003-2008 inflated stock prices irrationally.

The Fed pumped out money like it was paper after 9/11 sank the economy through 2003. All stops were pulled by The Fed to get George Bush re-elected in 2004. The Market DJIA was down to 7,00s where it belonged.

NYSE and NASDAQ blew up sky high. Like houses today, the markets are still overvalued by P/E-expectations measures. Here is a logarithmic graph of DJIA over recent years.



Considering what all is happening, movement from the 7.000s is rational. Bubble-driven DJIA numbers are suspect.

This compares with the 1929 crash and the Hoover-Mellon blunders all through till the election in 1932 and Roosevelt getting into office.



Anybody want to argue that Obama has been a "failure" ? That doesn't make sense. But DJIA above 12,000 is manipulation too.

[SOS]

12. Dow Jones...

December 31, 1999: 11,497

October 14, 2011: 11,644

Up 147 in only twelve years.

Two views on the stock market as retirement investment -

Financial advisor - "In the long run, stocks are always the best retirement investment you can make."

My late father - "Don't put money in the stock market you can't afford to lose".

[Generic Other]

13. A giant SUCKING sound

vacuuming my money. I need to stash it in my mattress!

[Hosnon]

15. Do you know if any of the accounts are invested in mortgage-backed securities?

An extremely knowledgeable financial friend of mine lists that as his biggest complaint.

Apparently many 401(k)s invested in such securities but were not bailed out like the banks were. On top of that, the rules were changed in 2009 to prevent the present market value of the mortgages from being considered in the valuation, i.e., the value at the time of purchase is considered. Obviously, that value is much higher.

If your 401(k) invested in mortgage-backed securities, it's likely worse than it looks on paper.

[krispos42]

19. Dunno the details

I have two tiny 401(k). One was started about 7 months before I ended my employment in South Dakota, and the other was about a year before I ended by employment in Minnesota.

Both times, because I'm fairly young, I put most of my distribution into aggressive stocks.

The second 401(k) had a "growth for life" plan or something, where the fund would morph from risky to conservative as I aged. I put a fair amount of distribution into that one.

:shrug:

I have no fucking clue. The total is less than $3,000 or so. I'm dead broke, and living with my parents. I have a job that doesn't pay (for now), so I'm looking for a regular job to keep things together until it does... or dies.

Managing my money would result in no change from just letting it ride. Hell, I don't even have a username or password to access my stuff.

Frankly, it's a damn wonder I'm not drinking or doing drugs to deal with the situation.

[yardwork]

16. The 1% make money when the market falls through hedges.

The insiders know how to make money on the market no matter what it does. Rise or fall, the hedge fund operators make their billions - literally billions of dollars in income. They profit off the destroyed lives of everybody else.

The stock market is a con game, a shell game, a pyramid scheme that is coming to its natural end.

[moondust]

17. Wall Street had a good week.

How much of it was due to big Wall Street investors hoping to minimize defections among their "customers?"