Date: Tue, 22 Jun 2004 08:27:35 CST
From: "T R" 
Subject: Re: Financial planning advice needed
Newsgroups: misc.invest.financial-plan
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"John A. Weeks III"  wrote in message
news:140620041047569254%john@johnweeks.com...

>
> This is a good attitude to start with.  Every dollar you put away
> in your 20's is worth $10 of savings in your 30's, $100 in your
> 40's, and $1000 in your 50's.

I guess it is only responsible when giving this advice as a certainty to
mention the potential downside. Every dollar you put away in your 20's could
be next to worthless in your 50's, etc. So many things are moving in a
unique way right now at a macro level that past is not prologue. What
happens if the dollar crashes for good? What happens if inflation
skyrockets? Do people really appreciate the present value of all the US
government's obligations going forward for the next 40-50 years? What about
the impact of oil supply. Or terrorism?
Sure you could hedge by putting your money into international funds or gold
or whatever, but then again, everything might turn out well, and you hedge
turns into a hog. There is no certainty about what $1 of saving in your 20's
will turn into.

Don't forget that (often) one of the most certain investments you can make
in your 20's and 30's is in your career and skill set.  In my situation I
think a pretty good investment is paying somebody $20/hr of my time to mow
the lawn, so that I can put that much extra time into my career.