DHonks

Just made the switch to DTV Stream a few weeks ago. Will have to trade login credentials with a family member for access to NFL Network (with someone who has YTTV, so they can access Bally Sports WI during Brewers season), but I've been happy with it so far. I wish the interface (through Roku) were a bit more user-friendly, but it's functional. Just pay the $120 for a box or buy one for less off eBay. It provides a worthwhile experience, much better than Roku or Apple TV

I liked Direct tV stream, but with no more brewers games on there, it doesn't seem to be worth 90 bucks for me. i hope ballys does come out with an app next spring and I can get closer to cutting the cord completely. I've used Directv Stream since it was DirecTV Now. I really love the service...the channels are the exact same as DirecTV (same numbers), packages the same or similar, but I can have it in more than one location (unlikes FCC rules for cable and satellite). So it allows someone to use their package in a vacation home. Additionally, I don't rent any cable/satellite boxes or have to pay for HD or a DVR. I really like the ease of use of the remote and the streaming box, and the MLB At Bat app has had my old Apple TV collecting dust for over a year.

I agree with all of that, but we haven't really seen sustained inflation. We've seen one data point. Every report for the last few years has warned of potential inflation, but it's come in less than the low-end of the desired range (2%). The Fed and Treasury have pointed out that too low of inflation has been one reason that lower and middle class workers have seen their wages decrease in REAL dollars. With moderate inflation like the Fed's general target of ~3%, employers are more likely to pass along COLAs to those workers or risk losing them. That's in addition to the typical raises that they may be giving. Now when inflation is in the teens like in the 1970s, that's when a worker's COLA never has a chance to catch up. While a worker gets an annual adjustment, the rest of the year they have fallen behind and paid more. The Fed and Treasury have pointed out that when inflation is low like it has been for many years, employers don't feel pressure to adjust wages. So while inflation might have been 1.5%, it wasn't big enough to draw the attention (on a personal note, selfishly I'd love a COLA...jealous of my teacher friend in Utah that gets a COLA in addition to any pay raise). And is fuel more expensive these days? It depends on when we compare it to. I don't know about in Wisconsin, but in AZ it's cheaper than it was for most of the 2009-2015 time period. I'm filling up for around $3/gallon, which is about 10-15% lower than a decade ago. It's more expensive than when prices plunged about 3-5 years ago due to the fracking boom and OPEC's decisions to try to outcompete the US firms by driving prices into the ground

not sure why that's the case. We haven't had significant inflation since the early 80s when the Fed cured it with the manufactured recession. Inflation isn't necessarily a bad thing. Moderate inflation can lead to wage increases and is a byproduct of a growing economy. Virtually no inflation like the last several decades has been problematic, as employers haven't been giving COLAs and workers have been subtly falling behind each year. I don't buy that the current issues are really inflation. Rather I feel we're dealing with supply and demand imbalances brought upon by shifting consumer habits, low interest rates, and a manufacturing sector that was shut down for much of 2000. For the last 10 years we've been hearing that inflation was coming, and it hasn't. One gov't report isn't a trend, it's a data point.

I've owned Apple most of the time since 2012. It's been very good to me. I sold some at $136 recently, but purchased some at $122.50 today. My next limit order is $117.50.

Still loving AT&T TV. Only issue is one month we ran into our Cox internet cap. But that’s just one of 12 months.

My understanding is that the Treasury is launching an effort to go after people collecting capital gains from cryptocurrencies. They believe they've missed out on a massive amount of money due to people not reporting capital gains. Additionally governments have some reason to be skeptical of cryptocurrencies, as they've become the preferred currencies for North Korea, drug cartels, and terrorist organizations. Governments don't like that things aren't as traceable or controllable, but that's kind of the point of crypto.

Ordered it for my condo in Montana and we were told 80mb speeds initially, pushing towards 200 by the end of summer. Tech guy is hooking it up this week. I can report back then

This is misleading. It assumes the person is taking their deferment and sticking it into the IRA/401k/457b/403b. I would argue that's not the case. Most people probably figure out what they can afford to put into their account and do so, probably without thinking "ooh, I can stash more money because it's tax-deferred."

not true at all. If you look at a calculator that does this, it all is dependent on your tax situation. If your tax rate is the exact same at the time of contributing and when withdrawing, they will result in exactly the same amount of money. However, I think nearly everyone agrees that taxes will not be going down long-term...if anything they may go up. Therefore, it's better to pay the taxes at a lower rate now than later in life at a higher rate. Even beyond that, it's nice to look at the balance in my Roth 403b and know that the balance is what I'll get, whereas the balance in my 403b will lose a chunk to the gov't--that's the emotional/optical aspect.

I'd take him back in a heartbeat. He's had a little success in the big leagues at times. He's young. He's a nice depth piece.

I get it, but there's also no box rentals. So if you finance several "Osprey" boxes the first year, the price increase is negligible.

I was already at 15% at a teacher, but when I applied for the new 25% offer, it never updated. Maybe I'll try again

To support what I've said, using this is saving me around $1800 over having DirecTV in two locations. Maybe I'm different from all of you, but I love the cable/Satellite experience. What I hate are poor customer service, box rental fees, HD fees, DVR fees, and that I had to pay for service in two locations. Yes, I'm still using a giant telecom company, but I love that I can use one service in both locations, pay no box rentals, HD fees, DVR fees, etc.

that's kind of what I wanted. Everyone I know that's tried YouTube TV has liked the price (until lately) but hated the interface. I tried DirecTV NOW a few years back and loved the price and packages, but hated the interface. What I love with AT&T TV is that I have no box rental fees, I can split one package between two locations, I get the exact same channel numbers as DirecTV. For someone with a home and condo, it amounts to massive savings but still gives the overall feel of cable/satellite.

Are you outside of the Brewers' media market? I get MLB.tv so it looks like I'll get every game this year EXCEPT those being played by the Brewers. Yep, in AZ

still loving AT&T TV. I get all the channels as Directv, but cheaper. The box works nicely. And I'm using the Android TV app for MLB extra innings instead of the Apple TV I've used for about 10 years

Get AT&T TV, one box in each location. I use it to have one service for both places I spend time. Saves a ton of money over the old days of having Directv in both spots.

It's not by chance in the Whitefish Lake or Flathead Lake area, is it? I just got back from there. It will not be the last time I go there. You got it...awesome spot we found twenty years ago. Better weather than WI, mountains, low humidity, milder winters, very few mosquitos, friendly people. Has the best parts of Wisco, and none of the drawbacks.

I’m really excited for our property in Montana. We’ve been paying full price and been lucky to get 3mb speeds, our neighbors down the street are stuck with DSL. Starlink is promising roughly 80mb speeds. Or my in laws in Texas who get 1mb DSL. They’ve been yearning for higher speeds for years. I don’t think anyone in cities will downgrade to Starlink...it’s not for them

Starlink is supposed to go live in WA, ID, and MT within the next few months. Really hoping that works well

6.2% + 6.2%= 12.4% for Social Security And yes, when the alarm bells started ringing a decade ago, we could have made minor changes that would have bought the current structure decades of viability. It will always exist, but in 2034 it will have enough for only 2/3rds of its current projected payouts since the Trust Fund will be drained. Heck, today we could still make minor changes to make it viable. I warn my students that if they are living off Social Security checks, they did something wrong. $5/paycheck into a retirement account starting at age 20 would yield over $50k at retirement. They get excited and want to know what $20 would do, or $50. Since they all make $12/hour, it's easy to think of skipping one fast food meal or one Starbucks per pay period. While it made minimal impact for stimulus, Obama's SS tax cut hurt the viability a little. I believe we dropped our portion from 6.2 to 2.2% for a year or so. Maybe it impacted the longterm projections by a few months or years, not much in the greater scheme of things.

Regarding pension vs 401k, one very important point is being missed. Taxes. You can have a Roth 401k and pay no taxes on it later in life when you need it. Pension income is taxed, of course. Beyond that though, having direct control is the most important thing- and that's why I far prefer 401k to SS or pension where someone else has the account. regarding 401k/403b/IRA vs Roth versions, one key is to understand that depending on your current and future tax rates, the regular or the Roth version could be better for you. If your income tax bracket will be higher later in life, pay the taxes now with the Roth.

And the investment returns of defined benefit plans fail short of funding promises. Public Pensions in most states--including Minnesota (as mentioned)--are really a ponzi scheme. Like I said, they're good for us workers, but will come back to bite future workers and taxpayers down the road. Courts have also ruled that cities and states (Illinois in particular) cannot retroactively change the benefits in order to make the systems more viable long-term. This isn't just pensions, as many consider Medicare to be a gov't sponsored ponzi-scheme as well. The common denominator in these options is politicians that won't be around when the programs go bust

I hear teachers in AZ talk about how they used to contribute 5% of their pay to our pension in the 90s. Next year it will be 12.22%, despite pay increases the contribution rate goes up every year. Sadly much of the pension promises fall on younger workers, robbing these low wage newbies of money they need right away. But it's better than the alternative, as most would never fork over 12% of their salary to a retirement plan at age 24. I try EVERY year to get people so sign up for one of our 403b offerings, and many don't see the point of even $10/pay, even though I show them the spreadsheets. The main benefit to a pension is that a person doesn't have to be accountable for their future...it's just there for them