[vision-master]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('jdmartin', 'W')ell at least they're kickin' it out on the higher-pay people on the salaries instead of just shittin' on the line workers only like they usually would...

[RedStateGreen]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('vision-master', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('jdmartin', 'W')ell at least they're kickin' it out on the higher-pay people on the salaries instead of just shittin' on the line workers only like they usually would...

[mattduke]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')he U.S. Treasury and Labor Departments will ask for public comment as soon as next week on ways to promote the conversion of 401(k) savings and Individual Retirement Accounts into annuities or other steady payment streams, according to Assistant Labor Secretary Phyllis C. Borzi and Deputy Assistant Treasury Secretary Mark Iwry, who are spearheading the effort.

[Ayoob]

BOHICA

[mattduke]

Googling Mark Iwry of Brookings and Heritage turns up this:

http://www.retirementsecurityproject.org

with this document on "automatic annuitization".

http://www.retirementsecurityproject.or ... fFinal.pdf

[dinopello]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('mattduke', 'I') stopped contributing to my 401k years ago for this reason and I strongly suggest you do to.

[Sixstrings]

Holy cow.. confiscation of private wealth, in exchange for an IOU from a bankrupt government.

[hardtootell-2]

FYI-In Canada the equivalent to a 401k allows citizens to hold gold bullion

[Pretorian]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Sixstrings', 'H')oly cow.. confiscation of private wealth, in exchange for an IOU from a bankrupt government.

[Sixstrings]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Pretorian', 'B')ankrupt government? Governments were bankrupt since the times of Sumeria and Egypt, yet they keep on governing.

[Novus]

I never put one red cent into a 401k for I knew at a young age that the system would become untenable in short order. All my professional friends thought I was stupid for turning down those matching funds but I believe I will have the last laugh in the end.

[Sixstrings]

Argentina did this very same thing in 2008:$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'H')ere is a warning to us all. The Argentine state is taking control of the country’s privately-managed pension funds in a drastic move to raise cash.

It is a foretaste of what may happen across the world as governments discover that tax revenue, and discover that the bond markets are unwilling to plug the gap. link

[Pretorian]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Sixstrings', 'A')rgentina did this very same thing in 2008:$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'H')ere is a warning to us all. The Argentine state is taking control of the country’s privately-managed pension funds in a drastic move to raise cash.
It is a foretaste of what may happen across the world as governments discover that tax revenue, and discover that the bond markets are unwilling to plug the gap. link

[Pretorian]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Sixstrings', 'O')k.. so for today, the national fiscal emergency necessitates confiscation of retirement accounts with a promise to pay later from the government. What happens when those two year t bills mature? If they can do this, what makes you think there won't be just another emergency and they'll roll them into 30 year bonds?

[mcgowanjm]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'N')o, retirement acounts are supposed to drive stock and bond market up, thats all.

[Troyboy1208]

I have a 403b not a 401k. I also have a Pension Investment Fund instead of a traditional Pension. Would those be targeted? I am a government employee

[mcgowanjm]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Troyboy1208', 'I') have a 403b not a 401k. I also have a Pension Investment Fund instead of a traditional Pension. Would those be targeted? I am a government employee

[Sixstrings]

My earlier post may have been a bit sensationalist.. it's really hard to believe they would think they can get away with a forced conversion of these 401ks and IRA's into treasury notes.

What would be fair is if the American worker is given the OPTION of where to place his investment money -- whether it be treasuries, the US markets, or in well-performing Chinese stocks.

Now.. IF there is ever a forced conversion of even a portion of these retirement accounts, then that's a real "batten down the hatches" wake up call. The day that happens, it will no longer be America as we've known it. We'll be living in a different kind of society, more along the lines of Argentina or Mexico.

I really hope a forced conversion doesn't happen, that would just be a bad bad sign on so many levels.

[BigTex]

The idea that the government can herd retirement funds out of equities and into bonds without objection from the Wall Street interests that make fortunes off of buying and selling equities is a tougher sell than it may seem.

The Argentina comparison is off the mark. The interests that were in control of that situation (foreign lenders) are entirely different from those that would drive any eventual decision in the U.S. (U.S.-based financial services firms).

I deal with this issue professionally and I can tell anyone who is interested in listening that we are a LONG way from mandatory treasury bonds in retirement plans.

Actually, I have always wondered why most 401(k) plans don't provide ANY option to invest in treasuries. I would love to see 401(k) plans offer an investment option for either a t-bill fund (something like VFISX) or a long term treasury fund (something like VUSTX) for the deflation crowd. It's the only thing that would have kept your portfolio afloat in 2008.

Try to look through the hype on this one. Don't get tails confused with dogs.

The actual outcome will be dictated by a set of interests with more complex agendas than to just herd private retirement plan funds into government debt.

[mattduke]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('BigTex', 'T')he idea that the government can herd retirement funds out of equities and into bonds without objection from the Wall Street interests that make fortunes off of buying and selling equities is a tougher sell than it may seem. --snip--
Try to look through the hype on this one. Don't get tails confused with dogs. The actual outcome will be dictated by a set of interests with more complex agendas than to just herd private retirement plan funds into government debt.