Mark Gardner is the pen name of a retired software engineer who considers himself lucky—in work, in money, and in life. He writes under an eponym to preserve his privacy and to reflect, candidly, on what comes after “enough.”
I’m with Richard on this one. I’ve read the lyrics twice and still can’t figure out what Mick and Keith are trying to tell us about the difference between $2.3 million and $5 million. 😄 My best shot: You’ve accumulated enough. You have your freedom. Your remaining scarce asset is time. Go live. Mark, since you were hoping someone would ask, the floor is yours :)
I think Ben’s argument makes sense. If the real goal is to shrink a large traditional IRA before RMDs and the surviving-spouse tax hit, I wouldn’t let the lack of taxable funds get in the way. And yeah, it is particularly useful having year-end withholding treated as paid evenly throughout the year and is a nice advantage over estimated payments. I’d only think about calling IRMAA and lost deductions “noise.” They may well be worth incurring for you, but I’d want your advisors' math to tell you that.
As Richard Quinn has argued many times, this is fundamentally a political problem, not a funding problem. The issues are well understood, the options are known, and gradual changes could fix them. The problem is us. Politicians have learned that frightening voters about what the other side might do to Social Security works better than asking voters to accept reasonable tradeoffs. Seniors are a formidable voting bloc, yet too much of that power gets diverted by fear and misinformation. Perhaps instead of asking which side will “protect” Social Security, we should demand that Congress come together and actually protect seniors. I am hopeful change will come sooner than later.
Milton Friedman famously argued that inflation is “always and everywhere a monetary phenomenon”—too much money chasing too few goods and services. I don’t see evidence of a comparable surge in money supply today. My hypothesis is that much of the recent uptick in inflation reflects an energy-price shock driven by geopolitical conflict, compounded by enormous demand for capital from AI hyperscalers. I expect at least some of those pressures eventually to subside. Kevin Warsh and the Fed cannot end wars by fiddling with overnight rates. So I’ve gone somewhat against the grain here. Rather than avoiding duration, I’ve taken a position in long-term TIPS at a 3+% real yield. My thesis is that as the inflation shock subsides, long-term real yields will eventually retreat from today’s unusually high levels, giving me some capital appreciation from the duration. If I’m wrong about the timing, I’m still holding a Treasury security yielding more than 3% above inflation. If real yields keep climbing, however, there could be considerable mark-to-market pain along the way. Am I catching a falling knife? Time will tell.
We Americans have an odd relationship with government. We complain about taxes and government spending in the abstract, but we really like the programs that benefit us.
You should try Pralana, Boldin, or MaxFI to get a sense of how your tax brackets will look like in retirement and any benefit from Roth conversions at this stage of your lives.
It’s rare to find a real, inflation-adjusted return of 3% with no risk to capital! The last time this happened was back in 2008. If you’re interested in learning more about various scenarios, I recommend reading this article by Bill Bernstein and Ed McQuarrie: https://www.advisorperspectives.com/articles/2026/08/13/long-tips-yield-time-to-buy
Comments
I’m with Richard on this one. I’ve read the lyrics twice and still can’t figure out what Mick and Keith are trying to tell us about the difference between $2.3 million and $5 million. 😄 My best shot: You’ve accumulated enough. You have your freedom. Your remaining scarce asset is time. Go live. Mark, since you were hoping someone would ask, the floor is yours :)
Post: Rich or Wealthy?
Link to comment from October 7, 2026
I think Ben’s argument makes sense. If the real goal is to shrink a large traditional IRA before RMDs and the surviving-spouse tax hit, I wouldn’t let the lack of taxable funds get in the way. And yeah, it is particularly useful having year-end withholding treated as paid evenly throughout the year and is a nice advantage over estimated payments. I’d only think about calling IRMAA and lost deductions “noise.” They may well be worth incurring for you, but I’d want your advisors' math to tell you that.
Post: Sourcing Taxes for Roth Conversions
Link to comment from September 29, 2026
As Richard Quinn has argued many times, this is fundamentally a political problem, not a funding problem. The issues are well understood, the options are known, and gradual changes could fix them. The problem is us. Politicians have learned that frightening voters about what the other side might do to Social Security works better than asking voters to accept reasonable tradeoffs. Seniors are a formidable voting bloc, yet too much of that power gets diverted by fear and misinformation. Perhaps instead of asking which side will “protect” Social Security, we should demand that Congress come together and actually protect seniors. I am hopeful change will come sooner than later.
Post: Will Congress Wait Until the Last Minute on Social Security?
Link to comment from September 29, 2026
Milton Friedman famously argued that inflation is “always and everywhere a monetary phenomenon”—too much money chasing too few goods and services. I don’t see evidence of a comparable surge in money supply today. My hypothesis is that much of the recent uptick in inflation reflects an energy-price shock driven by geopolitical conflict, compounded by enormous demand for capital from AI hyperscalers. I expect at least some of those pressures eventually to subside. Kevin Warsh and the Fed cannot end wars by fiddling with overnight rates. So I’ve gone somewhat against the grain here. Rather than avoiding duration, I’ve taken a position in long-term TIPS at a 3+% real yield. My thesis is that as the inflation shock subsides, long-term real yields will eventually retreat from today’s unusually high levels, giving me some capital appreciation from the duration. If I’m wrong about the timing, I’m still holding a Treasury security yielding more than 3% above inflation. If real yields keep climbing, however, there could be considerable mark-to-market pain along the way. Am I catching a falling knife? Time will tell.
Post: Structuring Bonds
Link to comment from September 24, 2026
Yeah. I think it’s more pronounced here because our unique diversity gives this several different dimensions.
Post: What I think about taxes- all kinds of taxes
Link to comment from September 21, 2026
We Americans have an odd relationship with government. We complain about taxes and government spending in the abstract, but we really like the programs that benefit us.
Post: What I think about taxes- all kinds of taxes
Link to comment from September 21, 2026
You should try Pralana, Boldin, or MaxFI to get a sense of how your tax brackets will look like in retirement and any benefit from Roth conversions at this stage of your lives.
Post: Is a Roth conversion an optimal strategy in my situation?
Link to comment from September 19, 2026
Dan, that is a reasonable assumption.
Post: Target Maturity Bond Funds
Link to comment from September 18, 2026
It’s rare to find a real, inflation-adjusted return of 3% with no risk to capital! The last time this happened was back in 2008. If you’re interested in learning more about various scenarios, I recommend reading this article by Bill Bernstein and Ed McQuarrie: https://www.advisorperspectives.com/articles/2026/08/13/long-tips-yield-time-to-buy
Post: Flipping the Script on Asset Allocation?
Link to comment from September 18, 2026
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Post: Flipping the Script on Asset Allocation?
Link to comment from September 18, 2026