401(K)s Are A Sham - Salon

[SoCalDem]

16. Just a shell game to fund the wallstreet gamblers with money so they could play with it

Retirement income USED to be considered a 3-legged stool.

Defined benefit Pension (usually WITH health care)
Personal Savings
Social Security

401-k REPLACED pension
LOW interest & low wages KILLED savings growth
Social security stands alone (for now)

There was a time when the ONLY mention of anything Wall Streetish was relegated to the back pages of the newspapers, and was only read by those-in-the-know.

Ordinary folks had savings accounts and the occasional certificate of deposit
Some people occasionally bought stock in a particular company if they had a few extra bucks
They took LESS wages at review time to BOLSTER their retirement pension

401-ks were a con game from the get-go, and at the time they were created the media was awash with all the wunderkind stock broker-ish people who became millionaires.. there was "Dallas" & "Falcon Crest" & the movie "Wall Street".. Credit cards flooded the market & everyone thought riches were just around the corner for them too.. It was the era of Mad-Crazy Instant Wealth, and who wanted a stodgy old fashioned pension like Grandpa had, if your could invest like the big-guys and become rich?

It was just another bubble..and it's popped..