If you are over 50 , how does the future appear ?

Mine seems tainted now , the past may have not been great but I have to ask myself where do I go from here and what do I hold onto and what do I let go of in this now so changed and screwed up horror of a world .

I don;t have children , this may hold many promise if they do .

If we take Congress, there's at least a thread of hope. If they steal it (we can't lose), then all is lost. I'm going to either hunker down on my mountain top, or take to the streets in DC. I'm too old for this shit. I should be cruising in a motor home on $1.29 gas. Oh well.

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indescribably heart wrenchingly ruinously bleak. It is the culmination of all the sci-fi horror movies rolled into one.

different world then.

I'll let you know how I feel about this on November 8th.
GO VOTE.

I worry for my kids who are both in their 20's.

And revoke Corporate Personhood. Then, we can start to rebuild.

battle to undo the damage done by Smirkco.

than to give up on the world. I'm 57. I've seen so much of this before, and others saw far worse before me. Stop wallowing in despair... the world is way more resilient than that.

I'm 53 and I did something that has helped me tremendously. I signed up to protest with Code Pink. We stand with our signs at The Traffic Circle in Orange every Wednesday night and we just had our second anniversary a few weeks ago.
I had thought my protesting days were over, but here I am again. I won't stop until this madness does.

thinking that it had to be the end of civilization. Well, got some pretty good years after that.

administration, even during the Viet Nam era, conditions in the states are nothing compared to the Bush regime.

The United States wasn't looked down on or despised/hated as it is now by other nations and I'm NOT including the middle east!

Nixon was a saint compared to the turd in office, and if Rove hadn't benefited from the mistakes of government during Viet Nam era Bush would never be in office from the get go!

the world didn't begin in 1968 (though people then, and during the Reagan years were making exactly these same kind of "this-is-the-end" noises -- blinded by their own contexts... and whether people "look down" on the U.S. is hardly a life-defining issue for the rest of the planet. Things are better now in some places and worse in others, as always.

They have had about all the resiliency they can take. How many species will be gone by the end of this year? Don't sit here and blow smoke, that is just simplistic. Mitigation is possible, but things will never be restored. Whaling for God's sake!

and thanks for your kind words about being "simplistic" and "blowing smoke."

If you have been all the places in all the terrible situations you claim you have been subjected to much harsher words than that & as you tell us, survived just fine-don't worry, be happy, all shall be sunny and bright tomorrow! Gaia may be dying, but such disasters are always going on right?

Those of us who have well founded concerns are merely losers choosing to wallow in despair and self pity.

I think times are going to be harder on them than it was for me. And I fear if we do not get to our constitution it will be worse than I ever want to think about. It will be a slow creep toward less and less freedom and less for the middle class.

Long term I am afraid we are in for a very bad ride, made perhaps irreparably worse by the 25 years of almost unbroken idiocy here in the USA.

everyones.

As for the future ... it is as it always has been a very fragile yet fearsome thing.
The only thing about it we can control is our attitude towards it. I choose to engage it passionately with the few years I have left (DOB 1942).

people care about anymore.

I doubt I'll see 61.

Unfortunately, they've been stopped by the Repugs in charge. We need to keep working to change that.

It's not "stopped by the Repugs in charge".

Just look at DU-- how much concern do you see here?

Have you noticed how any post on poverty sinks like a rock?

Have you seen how few ever bother to respond to pleas for calls during budget votes, etc.??

No, unless most who post here are Repugs, it's DEMS who can't be bothered.

I'm sick of having that blamed on the RW!

"We need to keep working to change that."

I have absolutely NO HOPE that even if a miracle happens, and the Dems control Congress and take the presidency, that anything will change about poverty. It just isn't a "sexy issue".

Look at all the posts asking for what our priorities are if we are in power come Jan-- how many replies do you see mentioning poverty???

Hmmmm?

...to care about the poor. That crap needs to end NOW. We need a new New Deal, not culture war crap.

It really does hurt when the party has left you behind, and literally doesn't care whether you live or die.

I can't even begin to express how much that hurts.

Very seldom do I get even acknowledgement of that, let alone caring, so I very much appreciate your words!

to my heartfelt words.

This is the kind of isolation that drives voters away.

I hope you think about that.

The entire outlook for our retirement has changed dramatically over the past 5 years. I'm not so worried about ourselves as I am for our kids. What they may face terrifies me.

some affirmation-based illusion to continue. It's weird. Not like I have anything against it...

I may be going the top but this election is FOR ALL OF US.

I will likely be homeless when I retire. Hell of a thing to have to look forward to.

CNN announced onetime 6-7 days ago that gas prices would be going up but no other mention of it played again in newspapers or other media anywhere, then this morning I noticed the price change overnight and figured lower gas prices weren't helping Bush/GOP and raising the prices AFTER the election would make it appear obvious government was involved afterall.

who are getting close to retirement.

I saw the 'bleak' word before I posted and that is the first word I thought of when reading the OP.

I have no idea if I will ever see any Social Security that I have paid into for the past 35+ years and am still paying into. My IRAs took a devastating nosedive in 2001 and have not even begun to recover. What do I have to look forward to? The life of the homeless? Living paycheck-to-paycheck doesn't give one much hope.

and a man 75 told me "You're in the prime of your life, there's plenty of time for bitching ( about your age)later" Seize the day my freind.....your still above the ground!:toast:

Recently my husband’s employer made a blanket statement that there will be no pay raises this year, and the company is going to reevaluate salaries. So now we’re fearful of a pay cut.

and when you get older you add to that, regrets, and learning how to live with them. Learn from your mistakes, change, and work to change what you can and learn to live with the rest.

Was forced out of my (primary) profession 15 years ago, even if I could get back into it - my last platform was decomissioned 8 years ago. Forget getting into the things I really know how to do.. too old, no paperwork (diploma) to back it up. Haven't held a full time in 10 years, Social Security will be non-existant, insurance is the same. I've told my better half that if I go loopy or get sick, just drive me out to the desert and leave me a few bottles of water and an umbrella and I'll take my chances. I've got ideas for a business, but the local I'm we're in dosen't fit... so I keep going till I can't....

It took me 3 months to pay off the summer A/C bills and I set it at almost 80 degrees. I have had the heat on and off for almost a month now. Terrified to get my first gas bill. What do I do? Set the thermostat at 40 degrees? Wear a coat, hat, and gloves in the house?

I remember my mom being freaked out about Watergate...but, I was 18 and not really concerned.

I remember being really scared when Carter won...because I hadn't voted and didn't know what would happen.

I remember being shocked when a gallon of gas went from 23 cents to 38 cents almost overnight. I didn't pay much attention to Carter at the time (I was kind of a hippie), but I always liked him.

I remember voting for Reagan the very first time I voted, in 1984. I was told to by my husband.

I remember buying my first home in 1985 at 12% interest.

I remember sitting out the 1988 election because I couldn't stand the negative ads. I blamed this on the Republicans. (and still do)

I remember passionately voting for Clinton. And feeling engaged for the first time.

I remember being confused why so many people hated Hilary. I thought she was a great partner

I remember being so mad that Bill purjured himself to the grand jury.

I remember arguing 2 years before the next election that Gore wasn't "sexy" enough to be our candidate

I remember meeting W in 1991 at a social event and actually thought he was kind of charming. (ugh)

I remember being blown away that W beat Ann Richardson for governor.

I remember being blown away that W beat Gore

I remember being blown away that W beat Kerry

I remember being blown away that so many people are so easily manipulated by Karl Rove.

I am so very very discouraged by the state of our union. But realize I do what I can and pray a lot. As far as the future, do you know financial advisors no longer factor in social security? I've worked at a good salary my whole life. I'm a CPA for pete's sake. But a significant part of my retirement planning included social security............I guess not any more. Too bad I don't have any Republican kids to support me. Guess I'll work until I die. Sigh.

I wish that Dems would stop buying into the media lie that Bush "beat Gore and Kerry".

my point was that I couldn't believe this could happen in America. Sorry I didn't write it correctly

If next Tuesday's elections produce the result I hope, perhaps we can begin the process of recovery. But at 71, I can't think of any "good old days" that I'd choose to go back to. The only hope we have is in the future.

is fine I'm not that worried but I'm glad I don't have children because I would be literally sick to my stomach about their future.

i have a 30 yr old daughter; that's who i worry about.

Luckily, my house is paid off and I have a reasonably good job. Tuition costs are gonna drive back into debt over the next 5 years but, what the hay, you can't take it with you. As far as our political/economic future, I think Republicans are on their last legs. They are playing a losing hand...they know it and we do too.It starts next week, but I think we'll reap the real benefits in 2008. Then the real work begins.

as a public HS teacher. I see our future every day. Our society has been in decay for over 25 yrs. Parents no longer parent, either because they are working too many hrs. for too little pay, or they are more interested in themselves than their children. A very large number of kids are raising themselves or are being raised by grandparents who are ill-equiped to deal with teenagers & our techno world. Media has run rampant w/sleaze at all hrs of the day, much of it targeted toward our youth. NCLB is placing more "responsibility" on the schools w/increased demands on what the children are expected to learn, while we are getting kids who don't have even the basic social skills. Many are emotionally & psychologically disturbed, yet we are supposed to "fix" them. While no effort is being made to insure parents are doing their job as parents. Schools have not failed our youth, parents have. Oh, and with no more money to "fix" these kids. NCLB places us in a no-win situation,......but the testing companies are making a killing.
I feel like crying every day when I see what has happened to our youth. They are not motivated to do much of anything. Most are in no way equiped to deal with the world after school.

There is no maturity left in this country; few responsible adults left. We will be in a no-return downward spiral if we give the Reds another 2 yrs. to destroy our way of life further.

how sad is that? My sister was a teacher (she's retired now) I think the disintegration of the family really has contributed to our nation's problems.

Even if the Repubs don't steal this election, the damage they've done in the last 6 years is going to take years to undo. The economy is in the toilet; Asia and the oil-producing countries own us. Corporations suffer no consequences for moving good jobs overseas. Very soon there will only be retail jobs left to sell greedy Americans stuff made in other countries.

Our international image is destroyed, thanks to Bush and his neo-cons.
The military is stretched beyond its limit. There's no health care for millions of people. I could go on and on, but I'm preaching to the choir.

Every day seems to draw my husband and me closer to the idea that we'll retire permanently to the house we're building in Panama (ready early 07)
when our youngest graduates high school in 08.

we have to do something to cut population growth. The earth just can't sustain another billion people, and another, and another forever.

We just have one kid so we've done our part.

I wasn't in college now....he innocently asked my "why?" so I rattled off corporate America, less health insurance, fewer pensions, the "chew em and spit em out" mentality that has goten even worse than when I was working.....I think I depressed the poor guy.

We chatted about the pathetic state of campus activism...(I was at Cornell with all the anti-war stuff and the taking over of the Student Union)...Told him I was disappointed that Cornell wasn't at the vanguard of SOMETHING....

I guess I need to bookmark it.

Maybe I can come up with something intelligent to say. Give me time.

There are alot of points of view here , thank you for that .

I worry where I'll be in less than 3 months , things and money and a job are not going well for my wife and I , however this is a long story .

Personally I feel sick for so many people who suffer after all the years of doing the best they could with a good conscience since these are the ones here who usually suffer the loss . THe homeless and the people who were affected by Katrina and all others who were affected by the bush crime family , I makes me feel sick to see this happen to our country and the good people in it .

This is the sort of thing that very rarely makes the news and this is the shame and sad part .


I may have some hope but it is not for me , it will take decades to fix this mess and some things will never change , my hope is that the young people who have caring parents and hope themselves and a ggod heart for humanity do not get stuck holding the worst bag in history .

I can;t say it's fair to compare today with any other time period because it is not the same for many reasons , it's just not the same . one example is you could get a fair job and work your way up without a giant bank account . There are many other reasons , too many to list .

I don't like the future prospects in this country

I don't much like the future prospects on this planet

I'm optimistic for the future. I think this is primarily because I will not go down without a fight.

I'm a 30 year member of the ACLU. They have been filing lawsuits and a blizzard of FOIA requests to uncover at least some of the Bush crime family activities. If you don't belong - sign up!

Our generation has so much experience to lend to today's struggles. I took my wife to her very first visit to New York this April to volunteer for the big peace march. Well over 300,000 came to protest the war. I was one of the peace marshals directing traffic and it felt great to be making a contribution. If you don't volunteer - sign up!

This week I sent in my contribution to the local group organizing to go to the Stop The SOA rally in November. I can't take the 24 hour bus rides any more, but I'm sure a young person will be grateful for the free ticket. An old friend, also 56, crossed the line last year and spent 4 months in federal prison for his witness. If you can't attend - help someone else attend!

There is so much good work to be done to save our country and the world. Let's get started.

Last summer at Camp Casey, in the evening when the worst heat had passed, Joan Baez sang Joe Hill. I'll bet many of the folks on this thread can sing this from memory even if they haven't heard it in 25 or 30 years. Don't mourn - organize!

This election has literally made me ill - not a good thing when you can't afford health insurance. (Pass the Kaopectate, please.) I'm trying to be optimistic, but it's difficult.

As hell. The old curse "May you live in interesting times" seems to apply here. Daunting is probably a better word for how I feel the future struggle will be. But I'm alive so I'll struggle and fight along with the rest of you. I don't think our citizenry is a lost cause.........yet.

At the rate this administration is going, what is the US going to look like in 20 years when I can finally possibly think about retiring? Very scary.

My daughter and son-in-law are 35.
It's those three, especially my grandson, that I worry about.
Things probably won't get drastically worse before I'm no longer part of it.
Kind of a slow, downhill slide for the next few years.
We should have started 20 years ago working on alternative energy sources and global warming.
We were too busy building mega-corporations and making a killing in the market.

Sorry for the doom and gloom, but you youngsters sure as hell have your work cut out for you.
I'll keep doing what I can for as long as I'm here, but the next generation is going to face some tough times, no matter what.

and I'm doing everything I know to do to do that, it's looking OK. I lost all my savings and had to use all the money in my retirement accounts following a long illness, followed closely by my husband being out of work for 14 months. I won't get to retire as I wanted to but at 51, I'm seriously thinking of going to nursing school -- a profession in which there seems to be no age discrimination because there are so many unfilled positions.

but I am for my kids and grandkids.

I haven't had a full-time job since the 90's, nor group medical. I don't expect I'll ever have a halfway decent wage job again.

Fortunately, due to an inheritance I don't have to live on my wages alone. If it weren't for that I would be in dire straits.

I don't have children and I'm glad I don't. I feel for younger people. It seems to me it's much harder for a young person just starting out now than it was a few decades ago. There are far fewer "good" jobs. I've known some 20-something college graduates who've had to start off working retail or fast food, and eventually lucked out through connections or serendipity and got a "good" job. I know there are many who don't.

I hope Medicare and SS are still there for me when I qualify, but I'm not holding my breath.

and it has only gotten worse since!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=270x424

politically. As I grew older, I noticed the world getting smaller through advancements in travel and technology, and I grew complacent for I naively thought this would bring about more information sharing, better education, and increase justice throughout the world. After the fall of the Berlin wall, I thought, great, no more idiotic conflict over eastern and western ideology. Maybe even the usual gunboat diplomacy and abuses of Latin America could eventually cease. I admit now, I was terribly wrong. Political extremeness from the right or authoritarian strains increased. Understanding began waning for outright greed and ideology became even more strident. Now at age 50 when I thought I would be concentrating on my two sons, one who is autistic which carries its own advocacy battles, here I am again fighting tooth and nail against something I underestimated, a gullible public manipulated by a dishonest government I never seem to be more amazed with.

Hey,

Just over a year from now I can retire at a lower middle class income level, and plan to do so. But at 53 I have little faith that Social Security will kick in on schedule, and even less confidence that health care will be affordable. You can still get catastrophic hospitalization insurance fairly cheaply, but any kind of coverage for doctor visits, prescriptions, or dental care will be out of the question.

At the local level I look forward to rewarding and useful involvement in community affairs, and feel a sense of belonging. But at the national level, society has become so polarized, discourse so vituperative, that it will take at least as long to repair the damage brought by Bushco as it took to inflict it. My biggest worry for the future is rightwing domestic terrorism fueled by rhetoric of Limbaugh, Coulter, Hannity, et al, if Democrats take Congress now and the White House in 2008.

CYD

My health failed, and that's a major mistake in today's world.