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Strategies & Market Trends : Booms, Busts, and Recoveries -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: BubbaFred who wrote (43704)	12/20/2003 12:01:14 PM
From: Raymond Duray	Respond to of 74559

If you think US boomers are net spenders (i.e. not savers), The term "saver" is misrepresented in the U.S. government's statistics. Since home equity is the greatest form of savings in the U.S. you'd think it would be regarded as such in government statistics. But you'd be wrong. The stats seem skewed to some idealized and romanicized view of capital formation and retention from some past golden age. Savings within 401ks, pension plans and Social Security is certainly not keeping up with actuarial realities. But it's not quite a dire as the savings stats portray things. Unless one becomes a statistic by having a medical catastrophe without adequate health insurance. Then it is BK and penury for almost certain. The American system is unique among OECD countries in presenting this gamble to its citizens. **** RE: There will be many more Ken Lay types from the pool of these two generations. We are witnessing a breakdown of ethical standards that is unprecedented in the history of the U.S. Never before has American capitalism been as ruthless, criminal-minded and greedy. This has been noted by some very astute observers in the industry, and in the salons, such as Kevin Philips, Felix Rohatyn, Eliot Spitzer, Molly Ivins and other worthies.