This isn’t exactly news, but the numbers make for some sobering reading. It’s about the devastation done to 401K retirement plans and how some are eating what’s left of their retirement in emergency withdrawals. Consider this not-very-rosy (and implausible) scenario for recovering the average 25 percent losses of the last year:

Still, retirement experts warn that it could take a while for workers to recoup their losses. A $100,000 account that has declined by roughly a quarter can return to its original level in two years, if a worker contributes as much as he or she can to the 401(k) while the employer matches half of that amount and the market gains 8 percent each year, said Steve Utkus, director of Vanguard’s Center for Retirement Research.

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George Bush wanted to do this for Social Security. Don’t ever forget.

 

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