Through several quirks of fate, I have very little of my retirement
income or assets in the "market." The defined benefit pension I have
from my nearly 40 years of union membership *is* decent and is at least
partially invested in the market, but the pension fund has diverse
holdings, and the last time I looked was worth substantially more than
it was during the Bush crash. I used to be a pension fund director and
when I was I kept a close watch because of my fiduciary liability, but I
(gladly) gave up that office when my last elected term was coming to a
close. The fund needed young blood. The fund's rules do not permit
unfunded liabilities, not even a dollar's worth.


Your assumption is that the pension will exist in a couple of years. Ask
the guys at the many union funded pension plans that had to be taken
over by the PBGC? Make sure your bookmark www.pbgc.gov.

I have a decent amount of cash at interest and in money market funds,
and I am a one-third partner in a nice, fully leased out strip shopping
mall in Connecticut. My two partners are two years older than I am, and
we are planning to sell the mall at some point in the not too distant
future. We all have adult children and young grandchildren, and all of
us are planning to leave most of what we have to them after our needs
and the needs of our spouses are met.

Cash is not an investment. In most cases cash is a depreciating asset.

You hope your "strip mall" stays fully leased. If the hard times persist
then your "strip mall" may become a liability.

I'm "maxed" in the Social Security benefit.

What does that mean? Quite a few people these days are maxed or near
maxed.

When the financial system crashes, I'll probably be under ground. Until
then, I have the liquidity to survive and when we sell the mall, I'll
figure out the best way to keep my share of the resulting cash safe.

Underground or under water? Do you have a custom bunker or are you
assuming your current dwelling will suffice, continuing to live in the
basement of your landlord's property?

I don't trust Wall Street. Not any of it.