It is a shame that our schools do not teach kids the basics of saving. I realize that kids probably will not see the value, but like many other things you thought were useless when learning them turn out to be valuable later in life.
And yes, I realize that those who truly struggle and live from hand to mouth may never be in a position to save a dime. We can't save them all. But for those who can, you need a plan and need to follow it. I have a neighbor who worked for UPS. Their Teamster pension was the envy of a lot of other corporate employees. Friend of mine ran a gun shop after he retired from NYNEX. He was telling me that his UPS guy was retiring and was going to make more in his pension than my friend made as a salary. Well, that bubble has burst. Teamster pensions took a major cut. The neighbor's plan was to sell his house here, move to FL, buy a condo (he hates yard work), buy two new cars and enjoy life. He's been retired 3 years now. They just towed away one of their cars because it died. They are down to one. He drove tandem rigs for UPS and made big bucks. He spent it all on vacations, parties, expensive restaurants, etc.. while he was working. I suspect he is going to die in NY. I feel bad for him. He had the American dream going for him and the economy ruined it. But he could be fat and happy if he had not relied 100% on the Teamster pension. It's kinda sad, actually.
