|
Iran Death Toll Rises as Crackdown Toughens The Wall Street JournalIran protests rage for another night and deaths mount as Trump renews warning of possible U.S. intervention CBS NewsTrump says U.S. is ready to help Iranians get freedom AxiosProtesters in Tehran describe seeing ‘bodies piled up' in hospitals after crackdown by authorities CNN
|
|
Topic: MediaIn the young Olympic event of "speed climbing," Sam Watson (USA) set two new world records, breaking his own previous world record. For that, he got the Bronze medal. The reason he did relates to some concepts I have been mulling over about what makes a good spectator event. The Olympics are the rare time when a whole bunch of sports that are generally relatively obscure become big-audience, big-advertising events. Spectator sports are sports as entertainment, but they are also still athletic.
Watson got the bronze because speed climbing is run in the "pyramid" or "playoff" style where two climbers "race" and the winner of the race advances or gets a point. This is a common style used in lots of sports, and in most of the "mega" spectator sports that get 90% of the audiences and money (Football, Baseball, Basketball, Hockey, American Football, Cricket etc.) Watson set one new WR in the early rounds, but he had a minor stumble in the semi-finals so he missed the gold medal "round" and in his bronze metal match set a new WR that was not matched in the official goal medal match.
The problem is this -- there's really no "match" aspect to this particular sport. The two climbers are really just racing against a clock, and the fastest time wins. They rarely glance at their opponent, and while they may have some peripheral perception, in a good run they are racing only the clock. (If an opponent has a very poor run, and falls or stumbles majorly, a climber might notice that and slow down and be more careful, now that a win is assured for them if they
|
|
A lot of retirement guidance I have read lately continues to treat baby boomers the same as the rest of the investor public. Even after the first six months of 2022, when the traditional 60/40 stock/bond portfolio sank more than 20%.
I may not dispute the traditional approach for investors who are 25, 35 or 45 years old and accumulating savings for retirement or the kids' college education. As we know, markets historically rebound, and younger investors with time to recover from market corrections have the benefit of dollar cost averaging.
SEE MORE Find Out in 5 Minutes If You Have Enough to Retire
But boomers entering or already in retirement have different needs than all the "Gens" that have come after them: They may not be able to wait around for their depressed accounts to grow again. For boomers, income is the important consideration — income that stays steady and grows over the decades of retirement.
Where to find income
Economic downturns always provide winners along with the many losers, and annuity payment contracts (also called income annuities) — which with rising interest rates have increased the payouts on new contracts — are the current winners. As of August 15, 2022, new purchases of income annuities at certain ages are providing 20% to 50% (depending on the income start age) more than at the beginning of the year, and that could go up even further. They're almost the mirror image of mortgage interest rates, which are also going up.
How much do you think a 20% increase in annuity payments is worth? Just imagine that your starting Social Security benefit you could claim next year went up from $3,000 to $3,600 per month. Would that get your attention
|
|
