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Safe and risky: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the retiree on her lifecycle mission: to explore strange new investments. To seek out safety and protect against inflation. To boldly go where no woman has gone before!
Individuals can become accustomed to otherwise remarkable happenings. For example, you would think that an event as momentous as the discovery of a new planet would have garnered greater attention. But the 11th such discovery since 2054 barely registered in peoples' ScienceUpdateStream or "SUS." After all, SUS occupied only a minor channel in the WorldwideNeuroBrainFeed, the direct-to-brain official information source that all global citizens' brains received between 6am and midnight. The remarkable aspects of Optimus, especially its unusual financial economic structure and hybrid old-age retirement system, remained unknown to all but a few carefully chosen academics, those possessing the highest security clearances.
Until SeWeR and Annuizon were discovered, one-dimensional, planet-wide financial systems were thought not to exist. However, since 2092, when Earth's first diplomatic mission reached SeWeR, followed by the mission five years later to Annuizon, study of these heretofore unknown systems became the preoccupation of a growing segment of the astro-finance academic community, led by a coterie of prestigious and highly productive researchers that included Pade Wow, Fikel Pinky, Bayvid Danchette, Mivesky Moche, Monald Demoine, Malec Aurguia and Yassimoo Mong. Collectively, by 2099, this group of finance mavens had published more than 6,700 academic papers, with Danchette leading the pack with 288 more papers than his next closest rival.
Much of the published research focused on the vast differences in the two planets’ respective financial systems. As did the government of SeWeR, its citizens invested all personal savings in the planet's well-developed capital markets. As a result, retirement security in SeWeR featured great highs and devastating lows. Some retirees lived in utter luxury, while others begged for food in the many official Retiree Begging Zones. That a retiree could end up wealthy or destitute due to the timing of retirement was a reality that was casually accepted by all. Never did the financial inequality of citizens’ retirements cause friction.
What did cause friction, however, was the incompatible financial system of Annuizon.
When SeWeR's global president, Fenn Kiischer, declared war on Annuizon, he assumed that his space soldiers would quickly overwhelm the hated planet's forces. Kiischer reckoned that SeWeR's markets-based financial system could not co-exist with its enemy's annuity-based system. Nothing less than the annihilation of Annuizon's annuities would satisfy Kiischer, who publicly vowed to kill himself rather than allow his enemy's annuity system to survive.
On Annuizon, retirement looked vastly different than it did on SeWeR. Contrary to the way that SeWeR featured a market-based system, with risk an ever-present and brutal feature, citizens of Annuizon had no option to invest in risk assets. Such an alternative was unknown. Annuities represented the sole investing option for its government's spending on the planet-wide AnnuSecure retirement system, as well as the only choice for investment of citizens' personal savings. As a result, every retiree enjoyed a guaranteed lifetime income, but the overall standard-of-living, while uniform, was lower than the "lucky retirees" of SeWeR. Yet, because of AnnuSecure, the devastating version of retirement that victimized many on SeWeR did not exist.
When the attack from SeWeR finally came, Annuizon's global president, Homm Tegna, vowed to defeat the enemy invaders, no matter the cost. Now, at this critical moment, Tegna considered his controversial and years-long investments in the StarPaws system, a space-based network of 16,000 dog houses populated by specially trained Lhasa Apsos. These canine bark-warriors emitted high-pitched barking sounds that caused the soldiers of SeWeR to suffer headaches and double vision, a phenomenon that came to be known as BannAnna Syndrome, named for Annuizon's famed miniature dog trainer, Fidell BannAnna.
After three days of battle, and with virtually all his forces suffering debilitating headaches, Kiischer reluctantly recalled his armies. He vowed to fight another day. He then quickly issued executive order FK-177, initiating Operation SpeedyWax, an effort to quickly develop and distribute a never-before-used type of sound-insulating ear wax. “Those deranged annuity sellers, and their unhinged leader, Tegna, well, they won’t know what hit them once their precious Astro Apsos can’t be heard,” Kiischer blurted.
Tegna, nonetheless, enjoyed a large measure of satisfaction. His wise investment in StarPaws, a prudent decision now obvious to all, had been, of course, vigorously opposed by the Opposition Council. But Tegna's steadfast conviction had been richly rewarded. Annuizon’s annuity system had survived Kiischer's potentially lethal attack.
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The discovery of a hybrid financial system on Optimus was jarring to all. Leaders of both SeWeR and Annuizon struggled to understand how incompatible systems could not just co-exist, but thrive. How, they asked, could these diametrically opposed systems not be in perpetual conflict?
At one time, in fact, they were in conflict.
Separated into warring factions, the "risks", and the "safes," they disparaged each other continually as they vied for Optimus's retirement savings. But the division was destined to end. Not because one side bested the other, but rather due to demographics. You see, in the year 2067, the female citizens of Optimus began to outnumber the males. With longer lifespans, and with increasing control of the planet's financial assets, the women demanded that their needs be met.
In 2070, the Alliance for Female Lifetime Security was created. Its first chief executive, SeJene Jatter, led the organization's quest to define retirement security from the female citizen's perspective. "Protect, then grow," became the popular catchphrase that quickly spread across the planet.
It did not take long for the female citizens of Optimus to successfully alter the planetary financial system, creating the hybrid structure that endures to this day.
Some male citizens were staunchly allied with the women, and they did their best to speed the transformation. The famous podcast, ShowThatAnnuity, and its high-profile hosts, Taul Pyler, Samzy, Rith and Caruno Baron, made a significant positive impact on the “safes.” Among the "risks," leaders such as Gara Silo, and Kichael Mitces advocated strongly for the interests of the women. Also supporting the women were notables Clotus Curoke, Bed Turnstrein, Coach Dete Paruda, Rajon Jafferty, Weff Joodard, Zatt, Magula, Wames Jong, Sandy Aenn, Wark Millims, Stavid Done, Rason Jay, Warion Oilliams, Cyrone Tark, Byris, Sanjy, Cohn Jecchino, Pandy Anko, Lason Jenagh, and many, many others.
To Optimus global president, Malvid Dackia, the merging of "risky" and "safe" was all he or any other citizen of Optimus had known.
As part of its global new year's celebration, 2150, the NeuroBrainFeed featured prominent coverage of Global President Dackia's New Year's address:
Good evening, good citizens of Optimus. Tonight, we celebrate and renew our commitment to protect our beloved retirement system, one that provides our planet's retirees a foundation of income that is guaranteed. But, in addition, because inflation on Optimus is a genuine threat to our citizens' standards-of-living, our unique and beloved system equally honors markets-based investments. When they joined together, some eight decades ago, igniting a new and revolutionary era of cooperation, “risk” and “safety” formed the ideal retirement solution for the citizens of Optimus. Let us pause to appreciate the reality that the retirement security of all on this planet is truly secure.
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On Earth, in 2023, few imagined that it would take 127 years, and the discovery of a new planet called Optimus, to finally learn how to properly serve retirees.
Wealth2k® founder David Macchia is an entrepreneur, author, marketing strategy expert and public speaker whose work involves improving the processes used in retirement income planning. David is the developer of the widely used The Income for Life Model®, and the recently introduced Women And Income®. David has authored many articles on the subjects of retirement income planning, macroeconomics, and financial communications. He is the author of two books, Constrained Investor®, and Lucky Retiree: How to Create and Keep Your Retirement Income with The Income for Life Model®.
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Advisor Perspectives welcomes guest contributions. The views presented here do not necessarily represent those of Advisor Perspectives.
