Originally Posted by
No coincidences
It's funny that you mention this: I have a 401(k) account, and not that I'm ready to pull the plug on the entire thing, but I'm starting to think it's an overrated practice to contribute as much as I do to it. Let's face it: since about '98, the stock market hasn't been the investment that we all believed it would be. I see what the Dow is today, but given inflation, I just view it as an inflated number more than anything else given the value of the dollar today and in the future. It's kind of like following a home run hitter's numbers during the steroid era.
I'm not going to cash it out, but I'm wondering if setting a decent % aside monthly for your 401(k) is something the government and in-the-box "experts" want you to do because it helps inflate the stock market and keep their own investments afloat. I understand the concept of compound interest, but that's assuming the economy is growing along with it, which it isn't. A regressing economy isn't going to put your 401(k) in the shape you think it will be in 5, 10 or 20 years down the road. I think you need to be more creative with your investments than blindly dumping money into an entity like this one.