I'm watching Frontline now and am already POed!!

[Cut-Throat]

I hope Bush pushes harder for Lifetime Savings Accounts and Retirement Savings Accounts. The system we have now (IRA, ROTH IRA, Sep-IRA, Simple-IRA, 401K, Roth 401k, KEOG, Rollovers, ESAs, 529s, UGTM, 403B....._ is way to complicated and expensive.

Bush is over! - He's just keeping the seat warm. He has screwed things up so much, Congress is no longer listening to him. Usually this takes place after the midterm elections in November, 2006 - However, most pundits agree that there is No Bush agenda.

- No one is listening anymore.

 

[youbet]

The small engineering firm I work for recently started an ESOP.  The tax benefits are still very significant.  The corp gets a tax deduction for contributions (essentially tax deferred bonuses to employees).  On top of that, a portion of income is nontaxable based on the percentage of the corp's ownership by the ESOP.  Double tax savings. 

Interesting.  I'll have to dig back in my records a few years.  Here at Megacorp, USA, we got an email several years ago saying that due to changes in gov regs, tax laws or something like that, the ESOP plan was being cancelled.  The shares we held were liquidated and the funds added to our 401K accounts.  I'll dig around and see what I can come up with.  Way too long ago to remember off the top of my head.

 

[CCdaCE]

Bogle explains it all...

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/retirement/interviews/bogle.html

A couple of pretty good responses from John Bogle regarding how Megacorp dumped their pension liabilities on PBGC.  What should be done about the whole retirement "crisis", etc.

-CC

 

[HFWR]

Favorite line:

Believe me, the government doesn't pay anything, the taxpayers pay everything.

 

[larry]

I hope Bush pushes harder for Lifetime Savings Accounts and Retirement Savings Accounts. The system we have now (IRA, ROTH IRA, Sep-IRA, Simple-IRA, 401K, Roth 401k, KEOG, Rollovers, ESAs, 529s, UGTM, 403B....._ is way to complicated and expensive.

I agree completely as my DW and I hold 1-SEP-IRA, 1-401k, 1-IRA, 2-Roths and 1-403B. We tried to take advantage of vehicles available to us as much as possible but it sure does need consolidating now.

Can this complication also be hindering those reluctant to save because it is so confusing?

 

[mikew]

I found this interesting

Honda is alone among the big three Japanese carmakers to still offer a defined-benefit pension guaranteeing a monthly check to newly retired workers in the United States....

Tim Garrett, vice president of administration at Honda Manufacturing of America, says talk of the Big Three's "legacy" problem is overblown. Had they set enough money aside when the workers were active, their retirement would not be costing them anything today. "Depending on your decisions you will have legacy costs or you will not have legacy costs," Mr. Garrett said. "We have no legacy costs."

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/19/automobiles/19auto.html?_r=1&oref=slogin