Moderators Travis In Austin Posted June 19, 2021 Moderators Share Posted June 19, 2021 2 hours ago, Subway said: Life expectancy USA: 78.8 years "breakeven is around 77 to 78 years old" Is that for some one who is 62? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander Posted June 19, 2021 Share Posted June 19, 2021 On 6/10/2021 at 7:16 AM, Oicu812 said: I use a long T-square to help aim my speakers... The cross piece is placed firmly on the top back of the speaker, and the 3' rule is then aimed directly at the listening spot so that I absolutely know that it is aimed directly at the listening position of my head. Shims are used to bring either the front or back of the speaker up, effectively raising or lowering the aiming spot of the mid horn (which is the most important audio frequency range to me!). Another way to align speakers is to use a laser level, or even a laser pointer might do the job. I like the laser level, because it has a flat bottom that you place against the side of the speaker, which gives repeatable results. Sometimes I place a head form on the upper part of the sofa to get the best target for the laser, but even a sock can represent my head for this purpose. The laser doesn't need to be some high-end level. I got mine on sale at Canadian Tire for under $10 (they often have 80% off sales). It's easy to make sure that your speakers converge equally this way. Since I usually listen to music with my preferred section of the sofa reclined, I make sure the sofa is in that position before aiming the laser, since the sofa is at a slight angle to the front of the room. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henry4841 Posted June 19, 2021 Share Posted June 19, 2021 8 hours ago, garyrc said: BREITBART? Give me a break! I try to take a grain of salt when (very rarely) reading sources that are extreme, even when they are merely selecting materials, rather than writing editorials. Breitbart, Fox News, the late Russ Limbaugh and the like can be strangely interesting from time to time, the way a snake pit is. They belong with fellow reptilians like The People's World, The Spartacist Youth League and Pravda. I am on the other side of the fence feeling the same way about the extreme other channels of which you know who. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with having opposing views. Having opposing views is what makes America great and a democracy. I just cannot understand why there is so much hostility now if someone does not agree with you. Sickening and terrible people turning against one another. Some of my best friends of my adult life did not agree with me on so many issues. It did not make us less good friends. We even enjoyed debating each other on the issues of our country. Where has love of our fellow man gone? 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garyrc Posted June 19, 2021 Share Posted June 19, 2021 1 hour ago, henry4841 said: I am on the other side of the fence feeling the same way about the extreme other channels of which you know who. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with having opposing views. Having opposing views is what makes America great and a democracy. I just cannot understand why there is so much hostility now if someone does not agree with you. Sickening and terrible people turning against one another. Some of my best friends of my adult life did not agree with me on so many issues. It did not make us less good friends. We even enjoyed debating each other on the issues of our country. Where has love of our fellow man gone? I substantially agree. There was one good friend, though, that I car pooled with every day. We had to agree not to talk about economics, history, or politics. That worked. We made several indie films together, and that went well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henry4841 Posted June 19, 2021 Share Posted June 19, 2021 I should also mention the old lady next door, younger then me, is extremely on the other side of the fence but it does not makes us less friends. She is so opinionated we do not discuss it anymore but I take her garbage can to the street every week and visit her when she is in the hospital. She knows she can depend on me when she needs me even though we disagree. This is the way it is supposed to be in a democracy. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woofers and Tweeters Posted June 19, 2021 Share Posted June 19, 2021 2 hours ago, henry4841 said: Where has love of our fellow man gone? Prevalence-induced concept change, or the blue dot effect? Talking heads sensationalizing micro things or some things that don't even exist. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richieb Posted June 19, 2021 Share Posted June 19, 2021 4 hours ago, Woofers and Tweeters said: Prevalence-induced concept change, or the blue dot effect? Talking heads sensationalizing micro things or some things that don't even exist. News organizations - cable or network. When there is little or no content then let’s be creative, let’s cause a stir whether there is anything to be stirred or not. It’s all about viewers, hits = $$$. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted June 19, 2021 Moderators Share Posted June 19, 2021 6 hours ago, garyrc said: I substantially agree. There was one good friend, though, that I car pooled with every day. We had to agree not to talk about economics, history, or politics. That worked. We made several indie films together, and that went well. Can we get the films somewhere today? Subjects? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted June 19, 2021 Moderators Share Posted June 19, 2021 2 hours ago, richieb said: News organizations - cable or network. When there is little or no content then let’s be creative, let’s cause a stir whether there is anything to be stirred or not. It’s all about viewers, hits = $$$. It it bleeds . . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted June 19, 2021 Moderators Share Posted June 19, 2021 If you make it to 62, your life expectancy is 20 more years: 82 If you are like Carl @CECAA850 and sitting on tons of retirement money because you were wise (or didn't meet a lady you hate, buy her a house and then get divorced), going early may be the ticket. On the other hand, if your ex-wive(s) have your retirement, and your only source is SSA, those extra years may make a significant difference in the quality of your retirement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subway Posted June 19, 2021 Share Posted June 19, 2021 10 hours ago, dwilawyer said: Is that for some one who is 62? Average age from CDC. FastStats - Life Expectancy (cdc.gov) Life Expectancy Calculator - Calculate Your Probable Age Expectancy (calcxml.com) Inflation vs COLA | Federal Retirement Benefits Center Increase in Retirement Age (ssa.gov) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted June 19, 2021 Moderators Share Posted June 19, 2021 57 minutes ago, Subway said: Average age from CDC. FastStats - Life Expectancy (cdc.gov) Life Expectancy Calculator - Calculate Your Probable Age Expectancy (calcxml.com) Inflation vs COLA | Federal Retirement Benefits Center Increase in Retirement Age (ssa.gov) Great links here, thank you! So there is a "life expectancy" we all have at birth. 76 or so. Usually broken down by at least gender, because women live longer, on average, than men. Every time you make it to a new year your life expectancy goes up. Just a fraction in early years, growing as you get older. Fortunately, we don't have to decide at birth whether we want to collect SSA at 62, 67 or 70. The decision comes at 61 so that's the year you want to go from if you can. On life expectancy, here is a chart from the CDC site you linked, it is broken down by gender and race for "at birth" 65 and 70. At 65 for a white male it is going to be 76.4 at birth, at 65 plus 18.1 and + 11.2 at 75. (83.1 and 86.6.2, respectively). https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/2019/004-508.pdf Notice the almost full page of footnotes that discuss the factors, assumptions, data sources, etc. The ASA numbers are very, very close,to the CDC numbers, but slightly different. They each are looking at if from a slightly different perspective. The CDC wants to know from a medical (trends) perspective, what is the American diet doing, cancer, heat disease, availability of medical treatment and wellness in ru, etc. The ASA is looking at it from a "decision point." The ASA will give it to you for age 61 and 62. So here is the big question: Is the Man trying to work us longer and harder; or can they really invest and earn a return on the "trust" that justifies an $800 a month bump in benefits by delaying the payment of benefits by 8yrs? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted June 19, 2021 Moderators Share Posted June 19, 2021 Federal Civil Service has an excellent pension plan (from the link above on COLA adjustments). The average monthly benefit paid is $5,000. No max, it is 80% of avg. of last three years salary. A lot of guys I know down at the Depot in Corpus Christi who are retired all look young and seem to always have new bay boats, golf clubs, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted June 19, 2021 Share Posted June 19, 2021 2 hours ago, dwilawyer said: If you make it to 62, your life expectancy is 20 more years: 82 If you are like Carl @CECAA850 and sitting on tons of retirement money because you were wise (or didn't meet a lady you hate, buy her a house and then get divorced), going early may be the ticket. On the other hand, if your ex-wive(s) have your retirement, and your only source is SSA, those extra years may make a significant difference in the quality of your retirement. Both my parents were in their mid ninetys when they passed so I tend to project out a ways when I think about retirement funding. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted June 19, 2021 Moderators Share Posted June 19, 2021 9 hours ago, Woofers and Tweeters said: Prevalence-induced concept change, or the blue dot effect? Talking heads sensationalizing micro things or some things that don't even exist. "More importantly, the pessimism that the perceptual bias fosters causes us to fail to acknowledge our achievement and to continue arguing in the same strident tones. We continue to fight increasingly divisive battles by expanding our focus to matters that were not of concern a few years ago. In the US, air pollution battles have moved from cars to household products and cosmetics; for smoking, despite a reduction from 42.4% in 1975 to 15.5% last year the media chatter is about vaping. Sometimes we have to take a moment to recalibrate." 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subway Posted June 19, 2021 Share Posted June 19, 2021 46 minutes ago, dwilawyer said: Federal Civil Service has an excellent pension plan (from the link above on COLA adjustments). The average monthly benefit paid is $5,000. No max, it is 80% of avg. of last three years salary. A lot of guys I know down at the Depot in Corpus Christi who are retired all look young and seem to always have new bay boats, golf clubs, etc. My Brother severed 25 years in Navy, they even paid for grad school at UT. It wasn’t a walk in the park though. Nice retirement package, he now has second career. I bailed after my initial time was up- coulda, shoulda, woulda. Ample time spent explaining to son the benefits of retiring from military. He's in ROTC and graduates next year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted June 19, 2021 Share Posted June 19, 2021 I had a 403(b) at my last job.I pulled it out and spent it... (yes, foolish...). I have a 401(k) at present job, and the company matches up to a certain percentage. Can't remember off the top of my head. Already getting full amount of SS, which would actually allow wife and I to retire in the Philippines and live comfortably with no other income. We will have more, but it isn't clear just how much yet. I just turned 72, still work full time. Don't mind working, I'm in IT, but not highly paid, never have been. Hard to really know how long you will live... I'm healthy, but that could change course in a hearbeat. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henry4841 Posted June 19, 2021 Share Posted June 19, 2021 Especially with this virus circling the globe. My best who was never sick caught Covid and was dead less than a week later. Tomorrow is not promised to any of us. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted June 20, 2021 Moderators Share Posted June 20, 2021 9 hours ago, Subway said: My Brother severed 25 years in Navy, they even paid for grad school at UT. It wasn’t a walk in the park though. Nice retirement package, he now has second career. I bailed after my initial time was up- coulda, shoulda, woulda. Ample time spent explaining to son the benefits of retiring from military. He's in ROTC and graduates next year. A very long history between UT and USN, not just their Naval Science program, but also with the engineering school's Acoustic's Program. Some great engineers and Naval grads come out of there. Congratulations to your son! Excellent work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted June 20, 2021 Moderators Share Posted June 20, 2021 8 hours ago, henry4841 said: Especially with this virus circling the globe. My best who was never sick caught Covid and was dead less than a week later. Tomorrow is not promised to any of us. Very, very sorry to hear that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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