Railroaders' Nostalgia > Reminders during retirement

Even after being retired from the U.P. for over 20 years, the railroad is never too far away, and memories sometimes are handy.

If nothing else, I can hear the trains going through Claremont, CA. 

My mitral valve was replaced seven years after I retired.  A few months later when I saw my primary care physician again, he took the time to carefully apologize.  He said that he had forgotten to warn me that the cardiologist he referred me to tended to be grouchy.  I told him that I had noticed.  However, I quickly added that I came from a whole railroad full of grouchy people, may have been grouchy a time or two myself, and as long as the cardiologist knew his business, that was all I cared about.  The physician laughed and said that the cardiologist did indeed know his business. 

On a more pleasant note, through the U.P. I recently received a check for my share of a tax refund.  It all dates back to 1991 and 1996, quite a long time ago.  The U.P. won a longstanding dispute with the IRS about stock awards and lump sum payments for ratification of labor agreements.  The check accounts for both the tax refund and interest.  And at least part of it is taxable, so I will be getting a 1099 for that at the end of the year. 

Having lived long enough to get the check is a pleasant reminder of my time with the U.P. 

And with the current lockdown I downloaded an app, deposited the check via my iPhone, and joined more of the modern world. 

Eugene Crowner

I pulled the pin four years ago, so all the "great" memories are still fresh. And I must say, right now is a most excellent time to be retired!

On my check the interest exceeded the original amount.

Bob Wilcox
Charlottesville, VA
My Flickr Shots

Been gone from CSX 32 years.All I care about is a RRB check every month.

Uncle Joe
Seffner,Fl.

My check arrived on Wendsday and the intrest was also way more than the refund also. Yay !!

As mentioned above, in my case the interest was a little over 2.5 times the amount of the refund.  Interest not only adds up, it multiplies.  In my favor, this time. 

The mention of interest is a reminder that takes me back to my parents.  Both of my parents came from families with limited income.  They both began college in 1928, just in time for the Great Depression that began the following year.  My father had his savings for college in the wrong place, and lost it all.  He went to the seminary after college.   

That is the way my parents learned the value of money.  Other than for buying a house, or maybe after a large down payment when buying a new car after they had wrung the last mile out of the old car, taking out a loan was not in their universe.  If they wanted something they saved up for it and paid cash. 

Eugene Crowner  

My parents and In-Laws never forgot the Depression either.  There stories of those times before a government safety net has collered how my spouse and I look a spending and saving.

Shafty Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> As mentioned above, in my case the interest was a
> little over 2.5 times the amount of the refund. 
> Interest not only adds up, it multiplies.  In my
> favor, this time. 
>
> The mention of interest is a reminder that takes
> me back to my parents.  Both of my parents came
> from families with limited income.  They both
> began college in 1928, just in time for the Great
> Depression that began the following year.  My
> father had his savings for college in the wrong
> place, and lost it all.  He went to the seminary
> after college.   
>
> That is the way my parents learned the value of
> money.  Other than for buying a house, or maybe
> after a large down payment when buying a new car
> after they had wrung the last mile out of the old
> car, taking out a loan was not in their
> universe.  If they wanted something they saved up
> for it and paid cash. 
>
> Eugene Crowner  

Bob Wilcox
Charlottesville, VA
My Flickr Shots

bobwilcox Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> My parents and In-Laws never forgot the Depression
> either.  There stories of those times before a
> government safety net has collered how my spouse
> and I look a spending and saving.

A number of family members & friends of mine are on unemployment for the first time during this C-19 quarantine. The number of those who are stating “I’m making more money collecting these checks than when I was working” is alarming, and for a few reasons, a bit scary as well. Some are even reluctant to return, or find work, & already talking about how to “make this last as long as possible”, but hey, with all this extra money rolling in, & no where to spend it, I guess the personal debt that has plagued the last generation or two of Americans will be solved...

Desmond Praetzel, “4451 Puff”

4451Puff Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> bobwilcox Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > My parents and In-Laws never forgot the
> Depression
> > either.  There stories of those times before a
> > government safety net has collered how my
> spouse
> > and I look a spending and saving.
>
> A number of family members & friends of mine are
> on unemployment for the first time during this
> C-19 quarantine. The number of those who are
> stating “I’m making more money collecting
> these checks than when I was working” is
> alarming, and for a few reasons, a bit scary as
> well. Some are even reluctant to return, or find
> work, & already talking about how to “make this
> last as long as possible”, but hey, with all
> this extra money rolling in, & no where to spend
> it, I guess the personal debt that has plagued the
> last generation or two of Americans will be
> solved...
>
> Desmond Praetzel, “4451 Puff”

I was furloughed from my job in Florida back on March 18th and applied for unemployment benefits which I started receiving in April. Now I receive $600 per week from the Feds, $220 a week from the State of Florida and about $200 a week from some gig work with Uber eats. So now I make more money staying home which is almost a good thing since my employer won't be up to speed for some time since it is dependent on when the airlines and cruise lines get going again.

The other day I read about some members of the House that have floated a proposal that would pay every American over 16 years or older $2,000 per month while X% of the population is unemployed. How would the United States be able to pay for something like this?

It's pretty simple, print money, raise taxes, borrow money or all three.

”How would the United States be able to pay for
> something like this?”

Bob Wilcox
Charlottesville, VA
My Flickr Shots

> ”How would the United States be able to pay for
> > something like this?”

They could pay for it the same way they paid to bail out Big Finance trillions of dollars since last fall, or the same way they've paid the $6 trillion + Middle East wars since 9/11, or the way they've bailed out corporations who have been borrowing cheap money to buy back stocks instead of grow their businesses.  It's too much money to pay for it by increasing middle class taxes in a variety of ways, including inflation, but this could happen just to make sure we proles are given a false sense of self-sacrifice.
Or they could just not do it and blame the workers for not being smart like those who didn't lose their jobs: before coronavirus, it was reported that 40% of Americans would not be able to raise $400 in cash.

RRTom Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> > ”How would the United States be able to pay
> for
> > > something like this?”
>
> They could pay for it the same way they paid to
> bail out Big Finance trillions of dollars since
> last fall, or the same way they've paid the $6
> trillion + Middle East wars since 9/11, or the way
> they've bailed out corporations who have been
> borrowing cheap money to buy back stocks instead
> of grow their businesses.  It's too much money to
> pay for it by increasing middle class taxes in a
> variety of ways, including inflation, but this
> could happen just to make sure we proles are given
> a false sense of self-sacrifice.
> Or they could just not do it and blame the workers
> for not being smart like those who didn't lose
> their jobs: before coronavirus, it was reported
> that 40% of Americans would not be able to raise
> $400 in cash.

Why can't working class Americans save cash?
How about: 
Rents that consume up to 1/2 of your take-home pay every month, and if you're lucky, you might have a 20-minute commute to your job, fighting rush hour traffic all the way.
Utility costs that force you to heat half of your apt. in winter.
Technology hookups that go up every year; i.e., in 1995, I didn't have to worry about paying for internet service.
Chintzy employers that pay "what the local market will bear" that make you sweat for the 1-2% raise you get, use made-up discipline to make sure you work harder for nothing, and 3 months later, change or raise health insurance plans that take away everything you got previously.
I put up for 15 years with an employer that did the above, along with dealing with a supervisor that had only his self-preservation in mind, and felt threatened by anyone who seemed smarter than himself. Damn right I'm bitter...

Central banks have disincentivized people from saving money through CD’s and savings accounts with near-zero interest rates.

Why should I put $10,000 in the bank when I get $29 in interest at the end of the year? This forces “savers” to put their money on Wall St. to get any respectable return on investment that will outpace inflation.

Low interest rates keep people (and businesses) addicted to credit.

Eventually all this money printing by the Fed and reckless borrowing by the Treasury to finance campaign promises in election years will come to a head and the US will have to go back on a gold standard after the Dollar collapses. Right now a dollar is only worth whatever you value your time for. It’s not backed by anything but faith in the current monetary system (see quantitative easing).

No civilization has had economic longevity using fiat currency and reckless borrowing. As a nation, we are like the guy making minimum wage who is always buying stuff on credit cards and making minimum monthly payments. When he can’t afford the minimum payments, he gets another credit card with a bigger spending limit and no payments for 6 months.

RGTOWER Spot on!

Posted from iPhone

RGTower wrote: "Low interest rates keep people (and businesses) addicted to credit."

Amen.  Sad.