sunday morning

So, I am sitting in Goldberg's with my dad on Sunday morning (great bagels, by the way - try the sourdough! mmm), and I look up at the TV, which is on CNN. Before the break, the tease is about finances and they say, you might have all the answers in a book you already have. Ohhh interesting right? Then lo & behold, they come back from break, and I see my pastor...and then, hey that looks like the sanctuary...well wouldn't you know, CNN's Betty Nguyen interviewed my pastor about money matters. He had a lot of good stuff to say:

questions

So I don't know very much beyond the basics of economics. But when the stock market loses 300 points in one day, and the government bails out companies left and right while leaving others out in the cold, I have to wonder...what should I do?

My honest first impressions: not happy with the government right now. It's like they are rewarding failure. Have we forgotten how free markets work? Some businesses will fail, others will succeed. That's just how it goes. Is it really necessary for the government to step in and buy these companies with my (and your) hard-earned money? Or have we been fooled into thinking the U.S. is capitalist?

If anyone has any answers, I would love to hear them. Or advice. Since my retirement funds have lost significant amounts of money this year, and it's not looking like that trend is going to stop. I wonder if I should stop contributing and save that money for now. Or should I have the hope that things will get better, and 20 years from now, that money will have grown? I don't want to panic. I just want some real answers!

no love, no money

Interesting...Democrats running for seats in the Senate need help...and Obama says no.

Then Biden releases his tax returns and we see that over 10 years, Biden donated 1/8th of 1% of his income to charity. Wow.