[nine_zeros]

> Age-appropriate risk management becomes increasingly important as your investment horizon shortens.

As you appear closer to retirement, make sure you invest in Bonds or other fixed income. It won't beat inflation but it will prevent you from draw-downs exactly when the market is down.

[velcrovan]

Call me crazy, but since the DOGE hatchet-wielding started, I've redeemed all my US bonds. I just don't have confidence that the people needed to keep TreasuryDirect running will still have their jobs if/when I need to redeem them in the future.

[nine_zeros]

> Call me crazy, but since the DOGE hatchet-wielding started, I've redeemed all my US bonds.

Not crazy given the incompetence in American political leadership.

BUT, if US treasuries default, your savings accounts, agency, municipal, state, international bonds, stocks - all will fail immediately.

Your literal checking account is backed by treasuries under the hood by the bank. Widespread bank runs will be likely. And even if you are at the front of the line in a run, you will not be able to withdraw $100k in actual dollar bills because banks don't have them in vaults like the old days.

[velcrovan]

What I'm hedging against is the possibility that technical issues at TreasuryDirect, and ensuing uproar, will temporarily prevent me from redeeming bonds at a time when I cannot afford to wait for a resolution.

maybe I am wrong but I view this as a very separate scenario from the US formally stating that it will default, which I agree would cause problems I'm in no way prepared for.

[nine_zeros]

Yes, you are right. A savings account will be a hedge against technical/short term UST bond redemption issues.

[timtom123]

What did you have nothing but TBills, TIPS? Not quite sure what you have where you could just sell them. But, ya, bit silly as your money is still in USD. Nothing is happening to US bonds or there are bigger problems and all your investments are at risk.

[horsawlarway]

I think this is an under appreciated comment. Almost all of our market data is predicated on a US government that places a huge emphasis on repaying its debts.

The current government is full of people who think it's clever, rather than short-sighted, to fuck people over.

It's not a joke that our credit ratings as a nation are slipping. It's real risk that those federal bonds may stop paying out.

[Yeul]

Many Americans aren't saving for retirement. If Repubs cut SS the riots will start.

[Bluecobra]

Good point, the website looks like it's 25+ years old so who knows what is running under the hood to keep it going.

[velcrovan]

It's actually improved a lot since I started using it in 2016, but yes. Your session breaks if you use your browser's "Back" button. It used to require you to enter your password by clicking around on an on-page keyboard, I would always open dev tools, "edit as HTML" the read-only password input and paste the password right in from my password manager.

[nh23423fefe]

Are you going to post in the future when your panic is shown to be irrational?

[velcrovan]

Sure. Of course, if anyone had described what DOGE is doing 1 year ago, they would have been similarly dismissed. I wouldn't say what I am doing is "panicking" or "irrational", I would just say I'm hedging against turbulence that may well prove temporary but which might come at a bad time for me personally.

[RivieraKid]

Even a high-yield savings account should beat inflation on average. Such account has an interest rate similar to the Fed rate which is set to be above the expected inflation in normal economic conditions when the Fed is neither supporting nor slowing the economy.