Well most wealth is NOT inherited so savings in whatever vehicle (cash, equity, fixed income, etc.) that the worker chooses has to be at some level above negative to expect the average person's net worth to rise in a significant way. If the average worker is only putting up 0 - 2%, then that contribution has to be doing some pretty heavy lifting on performance to ensure 20+ years of security in retirement. The home mortgage as you say is just a liability these days.

I think your comments on savings/inflation rates were based on a time when central banks weren't as active as they are now. But even if we weren't into this ZIRP era, the growth of global corporate wealth would still push the average investor to lean heavily on equities to 'make up' for lost time. Global growth is just too tough an act to follow for competing non-equity investments, especially to someone whose time in the workforce is ending soon.

Many things factor into savings rates, a VERY interesting chart concerning savings rates over the past 56 years for US Citizens:

United States Personal Savings Rate | 1959-2015 | Data | Chart | Calendar

A paradigm shift of retirement vehicles should start rearing it's ugly head in the next 15 to 20 years (baby boomers started retiring in earnest in 2011) if not sooner, conventional pensions and what were otherwise structured retirement programs will begin petering out / become a thing of the past. The other 800 lb. gorilla, health care costs will be burdened by whom?

Think of the average Joe and the look they have on their face when confronted with anything resembling financial acumen and preparing for the future, they totally zone out and want to hear none of it. As the comedian said, You can't fix stupid.

your joking right? off topic ?

How about using our tax dollars more effectively? I am not impressed with this much profit being "given" away. The other horrible side of this is that the corps. buy people. People often give up their morals for profit. This is a reckless way of proving your good.

Cheapest fill ups right. Local ARCO station has regular for $1.79. Good friend of mine lives in San Jose and pays $2.59 for regular at his local ARCO. The huge difference, 44%, is interesting.

I'm not following you. How does giving money to charities have anything to do with using tax dollars more effectively?

I can still recall the time a fillup cost more than $20. Of course that was with a '74 Opel Manta.

About 24 gallons of diesel for my GL was only $56 instead of the usual $75 yesterday and I took note of that.

How quickly we forget...

Barron's reminding of the WTI drop from nose bleeding $146 to $32 in 2008 during the financial collapse. They also point out that commodity funds' NYMEX long positions are so deep, way deeper than 08, that we could see $20 WTI... $1 unleaded?
For energy stocks, this may be the 2009 equivalent of buying banking stocks for pocket money. Or at least get some OIH bait on your hook, its been pulling on that line looking for a bottom. Down nearly 7% just in the last five days.
Seriously... what we're not going to have oil services anymore? LOL. I'd love to know what Warren has in his cross hairs right now. He'll have energy right where he wants them much like he did with Goldman. Wait until they're desperate and then swoop in.

Sold my XOM and PVA at the start of the slide. I'm really starting to get the itch to get back in.

A few years ago I was in a class with a professor who was preaching the doom of our unsustainable oil consumption. While he was showing a film about how we are about to run out of oil, I was reading an article on my tablet about new advances in fracking starting a new oil boom. It was actually a very well made propaganda 'documentary' and I'm sure that the backers have made appropriate revisions to their view to remain relevant. Must have been 2006 or 2007.

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads01...1421261498.jpg

WOW this has gone off topic a bit
its about how much your current price is for a gallon of gas, not all the economic reasons, etc

off topic
 

oh no these guys are always "on Topic"

Gas is obviously cheep in the states.
Normal price in sweden is 15.5 SEK / litre (1.91 USD)
Current price 11.80 SEK / litre (14.60 USD)
That's messed up!

Ya I think it's an unwritten rule- I've never found it in writing anyways. Then again I'm stupid...:confused:
Gas is down to $0.95 L in parts of lower main land BC eh.

and interesting... are you in your version of summer there?

Yesterday I filled up with 93 octane in the small town of Belton, TX.
I paid a whopping $1.98 per gallon.

MNC-I

The Tide is turning
 

Folks I resurrect this thread because Me thinks the tide has turned
Several day ago $1.71 for regular, today $1.81
The news is starting their sky is falling reporting about rising oil prices
I can just see the new reports now "3 months ago gas was $1.80/gal now, just in time for summer, it's at an all time high $4.50/gal"

Prepare for the Bend over

How much did the oil guys pay the news people? :D

We had near all-time high prices when demand wasn't keeping up (peak oil panic pricing). Now we have low prices with low demand ("real time" pricing). I think this all mainly depends on foreign sentiment. If China, Brazil and Russia's economies slow down in 2015 the prices won't have anything that to justify an uptick. We've had some of our best quarters since the 2008 crash during this slump in oil prices without any movement but down. Clearly US demand is not as big a mover in shaping the expectation of demand as it once was.

p.s.
for an investor, the OIH has seen a 5% lift in Feb. Not bad way to start the quarter if you got in already. The S&P is nearly 50% invested in just three sectors: IT, Energy and Healthcare. Energy certainly seems like the value component in that trifecta at this point in 2015.

The Saudi plan to let prices fall is working according to analysts.

Turns out there's an actual market at work. If oil prices get too cheap (for some) they just stop drilling.

Saudis