Florida Retirement System

[robivi3]

I love when Florida Retirement System sends me their letters. Now, I won't kid you, they are rated the number one retirement system in the US. 130,000,000,000.00 in assets. Enron hit them for less than one percent, they are heavily diversified. The letters are informative and very helpful but....
They always tell me what I'm gonna need versus what I'm gonna get to maintain my present "Standard of living" or as I put "present standard of digging the hole a little deeper each day". Are these people kidding, they ain't factored in maybe seven or eight years no kids and no kids into retirement! No forty trips a day to this and that! No shoes, clothes, Band, Boxing, movies, allowances, stress related spending, they ain't factored in the ten thousand GOzillion dollars that my boys cost each year! This ain't no "standard of living" it is a "standard of existing"! And FOOD. That Sam's box of Mini Wheat that comes in the giant moving box that costs $6.00 and dissappears in three days! And you buy the fancy keebler crackers and the cheap saltines and they somehow "didn't see the saltines". And then "can we stop at McDonalds?" "No, not today" "I have my own money" "No, you have my money that I gave you". They haven't factored in school lunches at $30.00 per week, school related activities, extra AC and water. Heck, I can live in 10 bucks a week! Someone says, "kids are consumers" they ain't lyin'! Oh, and the new one "Can I have money for gas"!!!!!

Now, this is for the childless, loveless LIGHTNING:

This is all LOL

[debtisbad]

Rob,

I do not think (in my humble opinion) that any of us are going to be able to maintain our standard of living in coming years. I have read our govt is not going to do anything to lower gas prices. We will eventually catch up to what the rest of the world is paying (even though taxes are heavily included in their prices). At 5.00/gallon, I do not see how anyone can maintain their standard of living, and I include the upper middle class in this. After all, their businesses will be affected. The gas price is the "wild card" in our economy. No one knows what the price of gas, or heating oil will be 2-3 years out. How can one possibly plan for the future when we just do not know?

[robivi3]

That is very true. The depression showed us that "net worth" has little meaning unless you are in the Illuminatti, if you believe in tight conspiarcies, i don't.
remember the photo of the man selling apples beside his Dusenberg with the $100 sign on the Dusy?

Fuel and resource drive everything, wars, economies, hatreds whatever. the pressure for resource can revive feelings that otherwise would never surface. The Illegal issue is evidence of that. As jobs become a hotter commodity, the issue will grow. They gained no friends the other day. In reality they showed us how many jobs they are consuming. I've done one roof in my time. I did it as a volunteer for a friend. Yes, hard work, in the Florida sun. If I had to I'd do it every day, so would alot of Americans FOR CASH. Don't anyone hand me that "we aren't willing" crap. You can find young men to go into those jobs. Union maybe, better wages, decent wages, yes. THANK GOD WE AREN'T MEXICO, THAT IS FREAKING WHY, WE HAVE BETTER STANDARDS AND EXPECTATIONS. Miami is the greatest victim of white flight and surprisingly black flight (my place of work is 65% black, on retirement most move to Georgia, Alabama), I drive 54 miles a day RT to work NOT to live there. Why? because lower standards and expectations have left it a substandard place to live. Pressure for job resource will mount, things will turn ugly.

i hope we won't see any Joad families though. I do believe a deprssion is coming. Growing corn for fuel to me is bloody dangerous. Food is needed more. China is turning over much of its farm production for ethanol. Food will increase much more than fuel in the days to come. preachers are saying "get out of debt". It won't matter, we will all be in for a hard time unless something is done. "Because iniquity shall abound the love of many shall wax cold".

that is one reason i am selling my mountain land and buying down on highway 127 in TN, I have restrictions in Fairfield. I can get alot more land with room for a garden down below. I'll make out very well on this lot, we got it way below the going price.

[debtisbad]

Yep, I also believe in a coming depression (and I have always been the eternal optimist!). I am currently working retail. Interestingly, the Americans put all purchases on credit cards. For the most part, the Indians and hispanics do not. They pay cash. I find this very interesting. Also Americans do not tend to ask what the price is. The Indians particularly will ask price, is it going on sale soon, ect. Americans, in my view, are running them selves further and further into debt. It is still all about the Jones mentality. People still ask me, "how many square feet do you have?"," and "when are you going to get a new car?" I drive a 1995 model. My own family is also included in this. Dad is always saying "so and so bought a big new buick" and "I can't wait to see so and so's new 6,000 square foot house". Of course, dad has a wonderful pension and very rich friends.

[Minnymouth]

Yes, the days of the big retirement funds is just about over...... Soon their won't be any retirement funds unless YOU CONTRIBUTING TO IT YOURSELF....
Companies locally and in the North are doing away with retirement programs, medical coverage, etc. Even shutting down companies (GM - Adelphia -Dayton) and reopening them at lower wages, benefits........

The days of unions, good wages, benefits, is fixing to come to a screeching halt..... their trying to get everybody back down to min wage again and then start negotiating with us......

People whose expenses is based on their present salary...... are going to be in a world of hurt.............

Will be lots of people forced into bankruptcy....

[robivi3]

The FRs is in good shape and i am nearing retirement. It's going to be after my group that the worries will begin. As far as FRS they very strong. I have had several friends retire from DROP very happily and the estimate they gave me is around 4000.00 per month plus 200,000 if i ride out the DROP. The problem will be in riding the DROP. I will still be very young even if i go through DROP (58, 53 if i leave at 30). I am in Public Transit and we are covered under railroad regs and are exempt fdrom just about any regulation from other authorities that you can think of. i really don't worry for myself, more for my kids. MTA's are a community of their own, you can go from major city to major city. there are a ton of organizations within them that guarrantee members employment and to some extent family also. It's a different world and that's why as my wife says "you don't work in the real world", she is right. in this sense I ahve been blessed beyond belief.

If I go at 30 years i'm looking at about 3000.00 per month but I'll have to pay my insurance. They have been considering full retirememnt at 25/55 in which case I could retire in two years and find another job in TN or in another participant in the Florida retirement system which they do allow. Alott of the guys from my group are retiring and moving to North Florida using the county grapevine to secure other jobs.

My situation is not the norm and i know this. I've never known uneployment in my life. Have worked since age 15. I was always a mechanic. I had some formal training, the rest has been through GM, FLXBLE, NABI, NIEHOFF, VOITH, CUMMINS, WESTINGHOUSE, WABCO (aka westinghouse air brake company), DETROIT and even Sears Atlanta and am certified by the EPA, have my 608, all HVAC stuff needed, used to have all my ASE's and also certified in Electronics and several others associated with trains, engines and Buses. Getting employment will never be any problem. Rail and Diesel will be around long after I am gone.

I held alot of part time jobs through the years and have never had any problem getting hired for even a second. I am sure today would be the same. have passed lean times yes, but we all have.

[Minnymouth]

A lot of fed, state, county jobs are pretty secure also....... thank God!!! Not much change in these areas...... unless its due to political changes......
Got cut once before when Regan went out of office, program faded out, job gone........
Fortunate to get back in on County job thru the State...... same benefits.....

Count my blessings,

[robivi3]

It is a thing that most folks don't understand. Especiaaly when you involve 13c and Federal funding. You can't just lose your job. In order to dump us we would have to be paid a minium seven years salary and be given our retirement benefits. Basically you fire yourself. Only several ways to fire yourself:

1.Attendance: don't show, don't call. If you have a verifiable medical problem you are covered, can't be touched. If you need an accomodation they have to try to find another position for you. But it takes several years to can you for it. Most people have decent attendance, but our rules are nothing like the real world. 12 sick days, 10 annual leave days and 13 holidays which you can double pay or bank. Right now with my years I get twenty annual days per year and you never lose one hour of sick, annual or bank year by year and have to be paid at your hourly rate upon seperation for all of it. So my world is different, completely.

2. Drugs, nailed once, the program, nailed again, gone, no way to save you.

3. Lateness, 150-200 latenesse over threee or for years may get you fired. Most people don't come late. It is still frowned on and will get you the crappiest assignments. lateness isn't much of a problem.

The trade off is chemicals, odd hours, a lifetime of bumping and getting bumped to odd shifts until you are way up the seniority roster. And in general, alot of us die within days or weeks of retirement, especially the guys from Bus, which was why i got out. The chemicals used in Bus maintenance in ANY place are highly carcenogenic. Especially DCA4 a horrid anti freeze and you can't help but come into contact with them. Metallic dust from wheels and electrical hazards are a much better deal though i confess to love the deafening sound of an unmuffled Detroit running wide open on the stand, it is a throaty pure blooded American sound that no stinking Jap or German can imitate. Detroit is the sound that powered tanks and ships and won wars and i love it. It is the loudest thing imaginable, and yes in the old days we had no hearing protection so most of us laugh about our wives complaing about TV volume. But I wouldn't trade for all the earmuffs in the world, I worked on them when you set them by feel and electronics was not in the picture. And maybe that's why I can't drive anything that's not US or Canada made (and I know where to look to make sure). As far as Detroit and Cumnmins go if it has a Krupps (German) Steel or Sheffield (British) or US it is the best there is. Barzil blocks are the most horribly made that exist, poor casting, bad workmanship, no pride whatsoever. I'd rather have my dog build it.

[robivi3]

But I stay vigilant also, and i mean this. Life can throw you against the rocks in a day. I pray for the place I work in because i know what many people face. I pray for the safety of the trains and passengers as well. I do that on my way in every morning.