I guess it just comes down to respect for me, brewer. As i said, a lot of people make sacrifices for me to have an edge in this world. On some levels, i feel accountable to yield a harvest of fruit from the seeds planted by those that love me. So you could be in my situation, and just say thinks for all the handouts and sacrifices, i'm just going to kick back and enjoy it. I just cant do that.
Azanon, you have generated some truly heated responses to your ideas. I think this is because you hit some bare nerves.
I like to give things the evolutionary test. If I can imagine Thor and Emma sitting around the fire somewhere along the Rhine saying or feeling what is being proposed, then I figure maybe it makes sense. But all I can imagine Thor and Emma and their neighbors thinking is pretty much what you have put forward.
Thor and Emma have a responsibility to the group. They will be respected, and earn benefits in proportion to the amount of meat Thor brings home, and the amount and quality of herbs ands roots Emma finds. Plus Thor's story telling ability, and Emma's childbearing prowess and skill as an herbalist. And on and on.
This is also how most people think today, even in America. Practically everyone in Asia thinks this way. They can't truly banish you from the tribe if you sit at home and play with kids instead of going to work the way the tribe could throw out Thor and Emma if Thor seemed to be getting a bit queasy at the prospect of facing another mastodon. But they can get the point across, to you or your kids.
I think probably most people here are thick skinned enough to ignore this, or don't live in the sorts of places where anybody would likely know much one way or the other about what they are doing. The guy who started this thread, Ben, is Scandinavian. Those are small countries which retain much of the old approaches.
It is totally beyond my ability to understand why anyone would hold up early retirement as a goal for others. ER is a good solution to work the way divorce is a good solution to marriage. Sometimes the best alternative, but not exactly a goal for most people. ER may be fun for many of us, but like Azanon says, 50 years is a long time to be without the flexibility conferred by current earnings.
Obviously very early retirement is only possible because people in certain occupations can generate very high earnings without accepting the socialization that usually comes with high earning positions. It is very definitely a minority possibility. I can think of lots of ways to derail it too. For one, adoption of asset taxes rather than income or production taxes. Not likely, but it has been proposed.
Anyway, to the extent that anyone cares, I would say if you hate your work and don't see the possibility of different work or different feelings toward what you have, by all means go for FIRE. In fact, go for FI in any case. It can't hurt anyone to get FI- it is truly a great feeling.
But to say someone who wants the respect of his community, who wants to deliver on the trust put in him, and the money spent on him is deserving of scorn is in my mind a statement that can only come from deep denial. Some people chafe under social expectations. They will know what to do. Others could consider themselves lucky and take the high road.
Personal note- I wish this described me. But in fact I am a classic work malcontent. Pretty much all aspects of organizational life annoyed me intensely. At the same time I was too lazy to be a good entrpreneur. Early on I gravitated toward investing, so here I am. But I have noticed that I am more comfortable socially since my kids are grown and my hair is gray.
Mikey
