They say “in the long run, we are all dead.” It’s a grim statement, a warning that, while long-term planning is wise, you don’t want to plan for a future that will may not arrive. It can also be a false spur to non-planning. Hey man, in the long run, we’re all dead, so why worry?
The Economist has an article this week titled “In the long run, we are all broke.” It is a warning to plan for the aging of populations. I worry that the economy surrounding me will crumble. I try to behave responsibly and rationally but it’s difficult when I know that people around me are racking up long-term high-interest debt and buying high and selling low and loving it.
Yesterday, organizing and cleaning, I found an envelope of reciepts and expenses from the summer of 1996. I had a list of every tank of gas, every meal, and every hotel I stayed in, from Charlotteville to Tuscaloosa to Natchitoches to Eau Claire and back. When did I get so neurotic about money? Sometime before 1996, I guess.
Secretly Ironic 