Forced Choices, Part 2

This is Part 2 of a multi-part post.

This post is an attempt to explain how people can be forced to make financial decisions that are not beneficial, why Social Security is necessary, and why the system of medical insurance and private doctors in the United States needs to change.

There are SO many things wrong with what goes on in the U.S. Congress; it is hard to know what to talk about first.  I share the feelings of many Americans that the members of Congress are completely out of touch with the people they are supposed to represent. It seems that the majority of members either don't know, or don't care about the hardships most working and retired Americans face every day.  The policies they advocate are just plain bad for the average American, and only benefit the very rich and the biggest, richest corporations.

When I worked in the computer industry, I put as much money as I thought I could afford in 401k plans. The money I put in the 401k was to buy a sailboat, which would be my retirement home, and on which, I would cruise the world.  When I was laid off in January 2007, I had about $50,000 in my 401k.

Otherwise, I was a good little American consumer, and spent everything I earned. Some of that was a rebellion against my "Children of the Depression" parents' extreme thriftiness, and some was the blind confidence in my ability to always find a good job. Throughout my working years, if a company closed or a job became problematic for me, I was always able to find not just a better paying job, but a MUCH better paying job. I had a skill set that was in demand, and good performance evaluations from all my managers. I just didn't see a need to save for the proverbial "rainy day" because I thought my skills and references would always be my umbrella.

I talked about not being able to find work in the computer industry in Part 1 of this post. Here are some reasons why. First, my primary skill set, as a UNIX System Administrator, was based on the products of one hardware manufacturer.  In July 1999, IBM bought out Sequent Computer Systems to acquire patents for Non-Uniform Memory Access technology. They killed the Sequent product line, and the DYNIX version of UNIX that was their operating system, in favor of their own AIX version of UNIX. By 2007, my skill set was obsolete, and no longer in demand.  I had been lazy and complacent, and hadn't earned certifications for other systems or versions of UNIX because all the MAJOR companies, like CISCO, ORACLE, and BOEING were using Sequent hardware, so I felt very secure as a Sequent "expert." These factors, along with my age, years of experience, and pay history, made it impossible for me to find work in the computer industry in 2007. The tech sector was already slipping into the recession that would wreak havoc on the rest of the economy in 2008.

I had always worked, mowing lawns and shoveling snow as a kid, and for an employer, since I was 16, and so I used my fall back skill, my teaching degrees, rather than sit collecting unemployment, and deluding myself that I would find a computer job.

In a misguided attempt to "make a difference," I took a job teaching children who had been expelled from their home school for serious violations of district rules. At first, it seemed like a dream job. I had one fourth grade student who brought a weapon to school because he was afraid of bullies. He was a nice kid, and we got a lot of schoolwork done, while I tried to help him build up his self-confidence, problem solving, and decision-making skills.

When a fifth grader was added later in the year, it actually helped accelerate the learning process. The fifth grader was also a "nice kid." He brought a weapon to school to show off. He wanted attention because his mom was giving most of her attention to a new boyfriend. The little guy got a lot more attention than he bargained for. He was a curious kid, and fit right in with my way of running the class, because I always tried to use what a student was interested in as the introduction to the research skills and academic work they needed to learn about their interests. It took a lot of extra work in my lesson plans to show the principal how studying, honey bees, for example, fit in with the "standard course of study," but I thought it was worth the effort.

Both of these students did well, by my evaluations, but did not show that progress on their standardized tests. The fourth grader returned to regular school, and successfully stayed out of trouble for at least the next two years. The fifth grader went back to regular school and was selected as "Student of the Month," his first month back in regular classes. Later, he was back in an "Alternative" program. I suspect the birth of a little brother caused a need for attention, and our work on better ways of getting attention hadn't jelled as well with him as I had thought. However, all in all, I was feeling like a successful teacher, and was very happy with my job.

The next school year, I got some hard core gang members who had been retained numerous times, and who were taller and bigger than I was, a crack baby grown into a teacher's nightmare, and a seriously emotionally troubled kid who was assigned to the program because he physically assaulted the security officer at his home school. At one point, I had 11 powder keg kids in my classroom. The year was not a good one for me. My low key approach didn't work with these kids. They weren't interested in anything except gang stuff, criminal activity, weapons, and gangster music. Because I couldn't find a key to unlock their curiosity, I had no leverage to direct them into learning. I was at a complete loss, so I just used End of Course Test preparation workbooks, and marked time, praying for the end of the year.  When the four foot tall crack baby threw a 70 pound desk across the room at me, and left a foot deep dent in a steel cabinet, I was at an all time professional and emotional low point. This was probably the moment that was most responsible for my decision to retire as soon after I was 62 as possible.

There is always a process that leads a person to a given decision. For me, the process started with my dad, who retired at 62.  He saved a LOT of money over his working years, and had the benefit of a civil service pension, so that between his pension and his Social Security, he didn't take a pay cut when he retired. I wasn't in as sound a position, but I remembered when he told me that the extra money he would get from working until he was 65 was not worth the stress he was getting in his job. A new City Manager was making his life miserable. As City Treasurer, he was appointed, by the pleasure of the City Council, so he felt like his job wasn't secure for the first time in 30 years. I did some preliminary math, and decided that working until I was 66 was not worth the stress I had in my job, just to qualify for teacher's retirement.  I would get less than $500 a month additional income because I would only have five or six years of service.

My choice to retire at 62 wasn’t forced, except in the sense that the failing U.S. Economy and the side effects of bad legislation left me with no good options for earning a living.  Perhaps if I could have worked in Special Education, in my specialty of Learning Disabilities, I would still be teaching now, getting paid at Master’s level, and I’d still be making mortgage payments on a house. There is no way to know.

To be continued …