I’m going to be talking about a few things today.

I’m going to speak about a woman who paid off her debt and what her budget looked like before and after paying off the debt. Budgets can be a wonderful tool to tell a story.

I’m also going to speak about an article I found comparing 401K saving levels by age and income level. This will be enlightening to many.

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Lastly, I want to pose a question. How can something be good for the economy and yet be bad for the individual?

I hear people television speaking all the time about how great it is that people are taking on more debt. Spending money on cars, clothes, really anything to stimulate the economy.

Now, I’m all for pumping up the economy, but if people are spending all their earning and more on things and aren’t saving enough for retirement and they aren’t, how can it be good for the economy long term?

It can’t be! The population is aging and fast. In 2012 there were 43.1 million people age 65+. By 2020 that number will be 56M, 2040 it will be 79.1M and by 2060 it will be 92M.

So what I see is a celebration of overspending by the economists making these broader economy statements. The same economists must realize social security can’t support the rapidly aging population. They aren’t sounding much of a warning bell as far as I can tell. If these people don’t plan and save for their own retirement how many people will enter their “golden” years with little to no money saved.

So, we may see a short term increase in new car sales and therefore create jobs in the hard hit city of Detroit among others.

Is this the old saying “Live drink and be merry for tomorrow we die?” Maybe so, but the problem is we aren’t dying. In fact we are living longer than ever.

MONDAY, Jan. 6, 2014 — Americans are living longer than ever and their life expectancy is increasing every year, federal health officials reported Monday.

People born in 2009 can expect to live 78.5 years. That’s an increase from just a year earlier — when life expectancy at birth was 78.1 years. Since these latest statistics were collected, life expectancy has increased even more, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website, and now stands at 78.7 years.

Much of the continued increase in life expectancy owes to better treatment of cardiovascular disease, a CDC researcher said.

As the population ages and lives longer, the bill for all this spending, borrowing, and lack of savings will come due.

My question is how can something that is so bad for the individual be considered good for the economy. By what metic can this be true!?!

The next time you hear someone say we need to spend our money to kick start the economy or that lower gas prices are good for consumers, but bad for the economy, please challenge this thinking.

Take responsibility for your own life, do it now! Do it with urgency! The government or American business isn’t coming to save you, me, or our children. We, the individuals, must do what’s best for us, and that doesn’t include a new car.

God Bless You!

Links:

Here’s the budget one woman used before and after paying off $32,000 of debt: http://yhoo.it/1xNcYmY

The Average American Has This Much Saved in a 401(k) — How Do You Compare?:  http://bit.ly/1Fx6X2X

Administration on Aging (AoA) Future Growth: http://bit.ly/1HYvY4E

Average American can no longer afford “average-priced” new car or truck (and why it’s getting worse): http://yhoo.it/1tRVea2

Americans Living Longer Than Ever: CDC: http://bit.ly/17oml2g

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