To get crime under control, vote Republican

[homersapien 11,337]

11 minutes ago, PUB78 said:

Ha! Good one Homer. I am a white, upper middle class ,religious conservative, but not a MAGA, although I voted for him as the lesser of two evils in 2016-2020. I don’t consider myself rich, but comfortable.

You referred to yourself as wealthy in a post on the past. So, are you one of the rich, elitist leftists that thinks everyone else is just one of the masses and need to be led as sheep?

While I don't know what percentile qualifies as "elite" financially, but I am not likely in that category, although I am 2-3 times wealthier than the average value for my age group.  And it's all self-made.

I do not consider everyone else as "sheep" that need to be led.

I am concerned with the millions of people in the U.S. who lack the critical thinking skills to recognize the authoritarian threat represented by the current Republican party.  And I don't think they can be "led". 

These people need to be educated.  But it's not my job to either lead or educate them.

I can only hope they don't get educated the hard way, but I am not optimistic. 

I'll be fine regardless. (Well, as long as an actual civil war does not ensue, in which case we all lose.)

 

 

[SaltyTiger 7,757]

3 hours ago, arein0 said:

I agree with parts of this. I agree that it's not a D v R issue. People generally move to the urban areas with hopes of making a better life for themselves and their family. Crime generally happens when people dont make it and are struggling to make ends meet. They will use crime as a last resort, whether that's some extra money to pay for rent or food.

Can agree that the issue is not D vs R in urban areas. We have a culture that accepts crime as a part of life. We have people that see crime as a daily way of survival.

i.e. Acceptance is driving through NOLA. Treat every red light as a stop sign. Don’t linger in the Home Depot parking lot….could go on forever.

 

[PUB78 1,353]

13 minutes ago, homersapien said:

While I don't know what percentile qualifies as "elite" financially, but I am not likely in that category, although I am 2-3 times wealthier than the average value for my age group.  And it's all self-made.

I do not consider everyone else as "sheep" that need to be led.

I am concerned with the millions of people in the U.S. who lack the critical thinking skills to recognize the authoritarian threat represented by the current Republican party.  And I don't think they can be "led". 

These people need to be educated.  But it's not my job to either lead or educate them.

I can only hope they don't get educated the hard way, but I am not optimistic. 

I'll be fine regardless. (Well, as long as an actual civil war does not ensue, in which case we all lose.)

 

 

Yes, we don’t need another civil war although it is a possibility. It good to know you are not one of the professional victims of the Democratic Party.

[SaltyTiger 7,757]

20 minutes ago, homersapien said:

although I am 2-3 times wealthier than the average value for my age group.  And it's all self-made.

I was just like you before the Biden administration took over. Might need check your portfolio. 

[homersapien 11,337]

15 hours ago, PUB78 said:

 It good to know you are not one of the professional victims of the Democratic Party.

I don't know what that's supposed to mean, but coming from a Republican I nevertheless find it ironically funny.

Although it does beg the question of whether or not a cultist who believes the lies and propaganda is really a "victim".

Edited November 5, 2022 by homersapien

[homersapien 11,337]

13 hours ago, SaltyTiger said:

I was just like you before the Biden administration took over. Might need check your portfolio. 

Oh, I'm down all right, by several hundred thousand. 

But I am smart enough to realize it's not Biden's fault.

[I_M4_AU 7,751]

1 hour ago, homersapien said:

Oh, I'm down all right, by several hundred thousand. 

But I am smart enough to realize it's not Biden's fault.

If its not Biden’s fault and *its all self made* it must be your fault. You better start paying attention because we’re in a recession.

[homersapien 11,337]

12 minutes ago, I_M4_AU said:

If its not Biden’s fault and *its all self made* it must be your fault. You better start paying attention because we’re in a recession.

I created global inflation? 

I suppose I created the tech crash in 2000 and the financial crash in 2008 also.  Yet, I didn't pay much attention then, and I'm not paying much attention now. I don't speculate, I invest.  But you do you.

(What a stupid post.) 

Edited November 5, 2022 by homersapien

[PUB78 1,353]

1 hour ago, homersapien said:

I don't know what that's supposed to men, but coming from a Republican I nevertheless find it ironically funny.

Although it does beg the question of whether or not a cultist who believes the lies and propaganda is really a "victim".

I am a lot more anti- Democrat than I am pro-Republican. We need a 3rd party and term limits really badly.

[I_M4_AU 7,751]

13 minutes ago, homersapien said:

I created global inflation? 

I suppose I created the tech crash in 2000 and the financial crash in 2008 also.  Yet, I didn't pay much attention then, and I'm not paying much attention now. I don't speculate, I invest.  But you do you.

(What a stupid post.) 

The only thing you take credit for is being wealthier than the average person of your age group.  My point is if you don’t start paying attention to the *wealth you created* you’re going to lose it.  You can miss a point with the best of them. 

 

[homersapien 11,337]

7 minutes ago, PUB78 said:

I am a lot more anti- Democrat than I am pro-Republican. We need a 3rd party and term limits really badly.

I don't disagree about the emergence of a third party. It would at least break up the current 50:50 political impasse.  But I suspect it would evolve back to two parties in a few years.  It seems the structure of our system lends itself to two parties.

Not sure about term limits as being a solution for anything.  I certainly agree (in principle) with some restrictions, I am concerned that it could make things worse.  I think the more fundamental problem is with the unregulated financing of elections (which is the part that could make a more rapid turnover by elected officials even worse).

Considering the state of the Republican party, I don't see how anyone who really supports a democratic government could be less "anti" to them than to Democrats.

Frankly, I am to the point where I am ambivalent about Republicans taking over and trying to establish authoritarian rule.  If that doesn't wake up the country, then we are already lost. 

But, I am pinning my long term hopes on the backlash that I hope will occur of that happens. (Just hope it's not a violent one.)

Being relatively old, childless, and wealthy, I don't have nearly as much at stake as a lot of people on this forum. 

 

[Leftfield 2,572]

8 minutes ago, homersapien said:

But, I am pinning my long term hopes on the backlash that I hope will occur of that happens. (Just hope it's not a violent one.)

I've become more and more pessimistic. I really thought January 6 was going to be the wake-up call. It took about a month to realize it was already fizzling out. To see that Trump is still the front-runner almost two years later is even more insane to me than January 6. The decades of work to foster hatred of Democrats is bearing fruit. 

Granted, Democrats have done themselves no favors much of the time.

[homersapien 11,337]

24 minutes ago, I_M4_AU said:

The only thing you take credit for is being wealthier than the average person of your age group.  My point is if you don’t start paying attention to the *wealth you created* you’re going to lose it.  You can miss a point with the best of them. 

 

Yeah, about 3 times wealthier than the average at least (depending on the market value of my real estate).  And my age group is 65-74. 

And as I said, at age 24 when I got married, my net worth was negative 10,000 and I've been tracking it ever since.  If I weren't so conservative - and maybe smarter - I'd undoubtedly be wealthier, but using leverage or speculating was never very profitable for me - just the opposite actually.

Bottom line, I have enough now that I am not going to lose it all.  I won't even lose most of it.  I will still have well over a million, likely more, to give away before - or when - I die.

So. even if the Republicans destroy our democracy, I doubt they would ever destroy all of my wealth.  After all, they couldn't do that, without destroying most of their own wealth, right? 

And wealthy people do pretty well in authoritarian governments - if they keep their heads down.   (Which is one reason I don't want to say what my net worth is on the internet.)

 

[homersapien 11,337]

59 minutes ago, Leftfield said:

I've become more and more pessimistic. I really thought January 6 was going to be the wake-up call. It took about a month to realize it was already fizzling out. To see that Trump is still the front-runner almost two years later is even more insane to me than January 6. The decades of work to foster hatred of Democrats is bearing fruit. 

Granted, Democrats have done themselves no favors much of the time.

Yep.  I concur. 

Never thought there would be so many Americans willing to simply give up on democracy at this point in time. 

I've been reading up more on the political history of our country in the first part of the 20th century.  Blatant support for fascism was a lot more popular then that most Americans realize.

We've been through worse before though - the civil war, the great depression...  

The big challenge for the rest of this century is going to be democracy vs. authoritarianism.   Apparently very few Republicans are aware of that, much less realize which side they are supporting.

Edited November 5, 2022 by homersapien

[I_M4_AU 7,751]

5 minutes ago, homersapien said:

Yeah, about 3 times wealthier than the average at least

Good for you.  I don’t want to know your net worth, but I would be willing to bet it won’t grow over the next 2 years.

[homersapien 11,337]

49 minutes ago, I_M4_AU said:

Good for you.  I don’t want to know your net worth, but I would be willing to bet it won’t grow over the next 2 years.

I certainly don't expect it to "grow" over the next 2 years, or even to completely recover the several hundreds of thousands I am down since the market headed south.

I do hope it recovers - at least somewhat - within the next 5 years, but if it doesn't, I will be fine. 

It only affects the amount of money I will leave behind when I die. 

Edited November 5, 2022 by homersapien

[SaltyTiger 7,757]

9 hours ago, homersapien said:

Yeah, about 3 times wealthier than the average at least (depending on the market value of my real estate).  And my age group is 65-74. 

And as I said, at age 24 when I got married, my net worth was negative 10,000 and I've been tracking it ever since.  If I weren't so conservative - and maybe smarter - I'd undoubtedly be wealthier, but using leverage or speculating was never very profitable for me - just the opposite actually.

Bottom line, I have enough now that I am not going to lose it all.  I won't even lose most of it.  I will still have well over a million, likely more, to give away before - or when - I die.

So. even if the Republicans destroy our democracy, I doubt they would ever destroy all of my wealth.  After all, they couldn't do that, without destroying most of their own wealth, right? 

And wealthy people do pretty well in authoritarian governments - if they keep their heads down.   (Which is one reason I don't want to say what my net worth is on the internet.)

 

Sometimes best to just to say nuthin and move on. You agree Brother Homer?

[creed 1,628]

17 hours ago, I_M4_AU said:

The only thing you take credit for is being wealthier than the average person of your age group.  My point is if you don’t start paying attention to the *wealth you created* you’re going to lose it.  You can miss a point with the best of them. 

 

Can you enlighten us folks who need more financial advice? You sound like you may be a finanacial advisor/manager and know how to protect investments. Give us some hints (bullet points). Not some cut and paste link from forbes.

 

Edited November 6, 2022 by creed

[I_M4_AU 7,751]

1 hour ago, creed said:

Can you enlighten us folks who need more financial advice? You sound like you may be a finanacial advisor/manager and know how to protect investments. Give us some hints (bullet points). Not some cut and paste link from forbes.

 

Why would you ask me?  Why not ask homer, he is the one that has self make wealth all on his own that is 3 or 4 times that of his peers?
I can only give you the same advise as Reagan did in 1980; a recession is when your neighbor loses his job and a depression is when you lose yours.  A recovery is when Biden loses his job.

My advise:  vote.

[arein0 944]

1 hour ago, creed said:

Can you enlighten us folks who need more financial advice? You sound like you may be a finanacial advisor/manager and know how to protect investments. Give us some hints (bullet points). Not some cut and paste link from forbes.

 

It's actually pretty easy. I'm not a financial planner/advisor, but I have done a ton of research on this topic in my free time. This flow chart does a good job of walking you through step by step ways to save and where to better optimize your savings. 

My portfolio is 3 funds and I just rebalance when one fund starts to pull away or fall off.

My % are 75% total us stocks (FZROX), 15% international stocks (FZILX), 10% bonds (FXNAX). I know mine is aggressive, but I'm young and in the wealth accumulation phase.

The idea with this is usually not all 3 grow and fall at the same rate, so if one is outperforming the others, you are locking in the gains and buying the lagging at a discount price. 

[homersapien 11,337]

5 hours ago, I_M4_AU said:

Why would you ask me?  Why not ask homer, he is the one that has self make wealth all on his own that is 3 or 4 times that of his peers?
I can only give you the same advise as Reagan did in 1980; a recession is when your neighbor loses his job and a depression is when you lose yours.  A recovery is when Biden loses his job.

My advise:  vote.

OK, here's my  (simplified) "secret" (at no charge):

1) Don't have children

2) Live way beneath your means and invest the difference.  Weighted your portfolio toward equities, 60+% .

3) Avoid debt (especially consumer debt and large ticket items - like cars - that don't appreciate)

4) Stick with it and wait about 50 years

This won't get you extremely wealthy, but it will likely give you enough financial independence to retire early if you want. 

Obviously, this may not be the best formula for everyone, but it worked for me.

Recommended reading: 

The Millionaire Next Door  

Total Money Makeover by David Ramsey (I used to listen to his show). 

And possibly, Rich Dad, Poor Dad" (which I haven't read but it sounds very similar to Millionaire Next Door. 

Edited November 6, 2022 by homersapien

[homersapien 11,337]

5 hours ago, I_M4_AU said:

Why would you ask me?  Why not ask homer, he is the one that has self make wealth all on his own that is 3 or 4 times that of his peers?
I can only give you the same advise as Reagan did in 1980; a recession is when your neighbor loses his job and a depression is when you lose yours.  A recovery is when Biden loses his job.

My advise:  vote.

Yep.  Don't focus on your financial habits, worry about who's president.    

That's the ticket! 

[homersapien 11,337]

4 hours ago, arein0 said:

My % are 75% total us stocks (FZROX), 15% international stocks (FZILX), 10% bonds (FXNAX). I know mine is aggressive, but I'm young and in the wealth accumulation phase.

 

Smart on your part.  Just maintain your nerve through recessions and/or bear markets and stick to your strategy.

I have seen people lose their nerve and sell out at market lows. This is the worst thing you can do.  Market timing - at least for common investors - is a fool's game.  Time is your friend when you are young, take full advantage of it.

 

Edited November 6, 2022 by homersapien

[I_M4_AU 7,751]

2 minutes ago, homersapien said:

Yep.  Don't focus on your financial habits, worry about who's president.    

That's the ticket! 

How is the stock market reacting to Biden’s *Inflation Reduction Act*?  You said you lost 100’s of thousands on paper and don’t expect a recovery for 5 years or so.  And that will be when Biden is out of office and then, maybe, there will be more confidence in the market if the government isn’t run by a dementia patient.  

[arein0 944]

17 minutes ago, homersapien said:

Smart on your part.  Just maintain your nerve through recessions and/or bear markets and stick to your strategy.

I have seen people lose their nerve and sell out at market lows. This is the worst thing you can do.  Market timing - at least for common investors - is a fool's game.  Time is your friend when you are young, take full advantage of it.

 

Yes! I believe the easiest  way to wealth is figure out your expenses, keep a little in a savings account and invest the rest. If you are fortunate to have a salary income, automate your investments so you dont even have to think about it. I also agree with a bunch of your statements, live well below your income. 

People always worry about a recession, but I feel like people forget to zoom out. In the big picture, itll be just a little blip where you are able to buy lots for less.