Getting it right on Politics, Economics, and Personal Finance: June 2022

Getting it Right - Welcome

The goal of this blog is to publish my thoughts on a variety of economic and political topics in the hopes that people who find them educational or beneficial will utilize them and/or forward to others who might find them interesting and/or worthwhile to promote to others, possibly including politicians who can push some of these ideas to fruition. The topics in my blog are meant to be of value on a long term basis, not a daily diary or political issue of the day log. If the information posted is useful to you, by all means utilize it and/or forward it as you see fit. If not useful, then merely ignore it. There are no universally agreed upon truisms and too little tolerance between some of those with opposing viewpoints to successfully convince the people with hardened opinions to move away from them. I am an analytical type person who will try to be as factual as I am able.
I disdain the current popularity of name calling and condemnation of viewpoints with no factual alternatives or logical solutions given that I see so often. If you don't have a solution based on fact and logic, then opt out of the discussion because you have nothing to contribute. My background is a degree in Economics from the University of Michigan and 39 years working in middle management jobs for a major retailer. My opinions are forged on the personal experence of life, family, friends, and work as well as triumphs and mistakes that I have made and hopefully learned from. My hope is that this blog helps you.
My first topic will be about personal finance. I chose that one first because most of us work long and hard just to survive but not all of us realize our dreams of becoming financially independent from the labors of our work. Much of our political votes/thinking also focus on the economy and in particular how well we are personally doing financially.
It is relatively simple, without sacrificing the enjoyment of living for 'today' and even at moderate incomes, to retire as a millionaire or multi-millionaire, if you focus on that goal consistently from a young age. It is also simple to ensure that your child or grandchild retires rich. It merely requires a one time gift of just $2,000 invested wisely and the passage of time. Please read my first post on this blog to learn more.

Sunday, June 26, 2022

Family History Questions I Wish I Had Asked My Parents and Grandparents

1. Please tell me all you know about the lives of your parents and grandparents, and also their brothers and sisters.

2. Please show me any photos of them and you that I've never seen.

3. Can we make a copy of these particular photos for my records plus write down the names of the people in these photos on the back of the photo.

4. On our family immigrants, why did they come to America?

Why did their other family members not come to America?

When were they born and what town were they from?

What else do you know about family that stayed in Italy, especially their descendants that are still there?

Are you still in contact with them?

5. Please tell me about family medical history/problems.

6. Did any relatives serve in the military? Were any that served in the military wounded or killed?

7. Is there any advice you'd like to give me?

8. Are there any regrets that you have that you'd like to share?

Sunday, June 19, 2022

Communist Economic systems have all failed

Communist Economic systems have all failed:

Russia was the first to implement Communism. Consequently, Russians became desperately  poor and miserable. Communism collapsed in Russia in 1989, freeing Russia and all the forced  nations that were forcibly inducted into the Soviet Union at the end of World War 2. All are much better off now under Capitalism.
China was the second nation to adopt Communism. 10 of millions of Chinese starved to death after China banned private ownership of farms and moved to "Collectivazation". It converted to Capitalism in the 1980s. The percentage of extremely poor people in China in 1981 stood at 88.3%. By 2015 only 0.7% of the Chinese population was living in extreme poverty. In this period, the number of poor people in China fell from 878 million to less than ten million.
North Korea remains staunchly Communist. Millions of its people eat grass in order to survive. Its per capita annual wealth is $1.700. By contrast, capitalist South Korea annual per capita wealth is $42,765.
Cuba was militarily forced into Communism by Fidel Castro in 1959. Their economy collapsed and the people became desperately poor. Shortly after Castro died, they converted back to Capitalism and are doing better.
Venezuela was once the wealthiest nation in South America. Then it converted to communism/Socialism. Now it is poor, plagued with food shortages, and millions have left the country.

So then why do we have idiot liberal teachers and organizations such as Black Lives Matter (created by admitted Marxists using a Trojan Horse popular slogan to fool you into supporting them) preaching and trying to convert America from Capitalism to Communism? Be wise and learn from following history and don't be fooled believing the economic nonsense by these total Economic ignoramuses.

Tuesday, June 7, 2022

Solo 401K for Business Owners

This may be a good option for any entrepreneurs out there running their own business with no employees (or employees working less than 1,000 hours a year). A solo 401K gives you a lot of room to catch up on building your tax deferred savings. The maximum contribution limit is huge - $58,000 in 2022; - $64,500 once you are over 50. And it can be set up as a Roth Solo 401K too (or a Traditional 401K though I don't recommend that). Here are relevant links:

https://gusto.com/blog/benefits/solo-401k

https://www.irafinancialgroup.com/.../2022-solo-401k.../

https://www.solo401k.com/.../roth-solo-401k-everything.../

Non-Working Spousal IRAs

Non-Working Spousal IRAs - https://www.forbes.com/advisor/retirement/spousal-ira/