Bought an iPad 2 a year ago, it still works fine. Will keep it till it dies. My MacBook is from 2007 and still works fine. I might rotate out in a year or two, because I want to do some heavy duty programming for both Mac and PC and I need a bigger hard disk and more RAM for that. I have an original iPod from 2001, and...more

Sorry, but it is a zero sum game. Say you invested $10 000 in a fund, and then the market tanks. You keep waiting and waiting for the rebound, and at some point you really end up needing the money and cash out - the princely sum of $500. Those other $9500 did not go up in smoke, the guy who sold the investment for $10 ...more

All these scenarios are totally unrealistic. How about this one: highly educated Gen X, making 35 000 a year. The career ends after 15 years due to cir****stances beyond control. Just over 40 and "overqualified", this person cannot find a job paying more than minimum wage. The choice - spend the next 20 years on minimu...more

Ok, please DO tell me how to accomplish my dreams on $10 an hour. I did all the right things, got an education, sacrificed everything to get into a good career (biomedical research). That career turned out to be not as advertised: I slaved away for $15-$20 an hour plus unpaid overtime for 10 years after getting my Ph.D...more

Even the fee-based ones are often not to be trusted. I will stick with my self-directed investments. I may only average 7% a year, but it's better than losing my shirt!

I hear you, loud and clear. Worked 20+ hours a week during high school ('82-'87). Paid for my own undergraduate degree ('87-'91) with scholarships, savings and part time jobs. Stuck out 8 years of graduate school ('91-'99) to get my Ph.D., surviving on a stipend of $1000/month. Worked in cancer research ('00-'10), ...more

My grandmother's aunt just passed...at the respectable age of 105. Some of us who have longevity genes do need to wait for the full social security

I do not advocate 100% GIC's. Note I stated that I use them as a "buffer", not as my only investment.  I simply believe that whatever amount you would have put into an annuity would, on a statistical level, give you a greater return than an annuity and with lower risk. Laddered GIC's also have the advantage of that if ...more

I am aware that there is some kind of "insurance" on annuities, however, I do not believe that it  will provide any reasonable protection when a real problem occurs. Insurance companies invest our money, and if half of them run into major trouble whatever pot of insurance money Assuris has is going to be a drop in the ...more