Question: I'm 40 years old, and according to an online calculator I used recently, I should now have $900,000 saved to assure a comfortable retirement. I'm guessing I have only about $100,000 (I'm afraid to look). What is the best way of making up the $800,000 gap over the next 25 years? --Jeff, Canton, Michigan
Janie Lambert has lost one family member to gun violence and another to suicide. After all she's been through, she feels conflicted about whether or not gun control is the solution to gun violence.
Armed with signs reading "no taxation without deliberation" and "stop bankrupting America," tens of thousands of people spent national tax day at organized "tea party" demonstrations across the country, protesting what some view as excessive government spending and bailouts.
Tax day is an annual stress test for millions of Americans, but Wednesday's Internal Revenue Service filing deadline may be the toughest one yet for many who can't pay their mortgages or rent, let alone a big tax bill.
Jim Vincent loved everything about his 1972 Plymouth 'Cuda. The purr of its V8 engine. The way the sun danced off it after a spit-shine wax. Whenever he revved the engine, he also thought about his father, who first brought home one of the muscle cars more than 30 years ago.
Question: My wife and I hope to retire in five to seven years, but our retirement accounts got clobbered recently. We now have approximately $180,000 in cash that we need a game plan for. Can you help? --Pat C., York, Pennsylvania
Question: I'm 40 years old, and according to an online calculator I used recently, I should now have $900,000 saved to assure a comfortable retirement. I'm guessing I have only about $100,000 (I'm afraid to look). What is the best way of making up the $800,000 gap over the next 25 years? --Jeff, Canton, Michigan
Janie Lambert has lost one family member to gun violence and another to suicide. After all she's been through, she feels conflicted about whether or not gun control is the solution to gun violence.
Armed with signs reading "no taxation without deliberation" and "stop bankrupting America," tens of thousands of people spent national tax day at organized "tea party" demonstrations across the country, protesting what some view as excessive government spending and bailouts.
Tax day is an annual stress test for millions of Americans, but Wednesday's Internal Revenue Service filing deadline may be the toughest one yet for many who can't pay their mortgages or rent, let alone a big tax bill.
Jim Vincent loved everything about his 1972 Plymouth 'Cuda. The purr of its V8 engine. The way the sun danced off it after a spit-shine wax. Whenever he revved the engine, he also thought about his father, who first brought home one of the muscle cars more than 30 years ago.
Question: My wife and I hope to retire in five to seven years, but our retirement accounts got clobbered recently. We now have approximately $180,000 in cash that we need a game plan for. Can you help? --Pat C., York, Pennsylvania
As American families try to stretch their food budgets during the recession, some are turning to the backyard, rather than the grocery store, as the place to look for produce.
The Red River began to recede Sunday after rising to record levels, but officials cautioned residents not to let their guard down, especially in the face of an approaching snowstorm.
In getting the nation's economy back on its feet and pursuing an agenda aimed at keeping it there for the next 40 years, the White House has to do two things at once: implement effective policies and keep the public behind the president long enough to keep implementing them until they work.
Question: I'm trying to decide whether to participate in my company's 401(k) plan. I'd like to start contributing to it, but given what's going on in the markets and economy, I'm afraid this is just not the right time. Or is it? --Rudy H., Pearland, TX
Everyone's trying to cut their budget this year, from the White House to big corporations to ordinary citizens. For many Americans, this means making big changes and going without things to which they've become accustomed.
Question: Like many people, I've seen the value of my 401(k) drop considerably over the last year. I am invested for the long haul and am willing to ride out my current losses hoping for recovery. But I'm wondering whether I should re-direct my current and future contributions into my 401(k)'s money-market option until the economy settles. Do you think that's a smart move, or should I just continue investing my new contributions into my current fund allocations? --Mike, Baltimore, Maryland
Tracy Dupire of Worthington, Indiana, loves to drive her 2002 Ford Mustang convertible with the top down when the weather is nice. She's always had an American car and hopes she always will.
Anita Dunham's first heart attack started with a mysterious pain in her arm -- and, suddenly, the 34-year-old felt as if she couldn't breathe. After she got dressed, she could barely speak because the pain was so great in her arms and chest.
Barbara Rademacher of Rogers, Arkansas, has found that she loves to document events on camera. Now, she's turning the camera around and focusing on improving herself for 2009.
Optimistic chants of "change" and "O-bam-A" morphed into angered shouts of "Let us in!" outside the security gates to the inauguration. These folks had tickets, and they wanted in.
By many eyewitness accounts, when US Airways flight 1549 crashed into the Hudson River, it looked like a completely normal landing -- except it was in the water.
The last eight years In the United States have included momentous events including the September 11 attacks, the Iraq war, Hurricane Katrina and an economic recession.
The bodies of seven of eight snowmobilers missing after Sunday's avalanches in southeastern British Columbia have been found, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said Monday.
It was one of the most surreal images in American history: A river, so fouled with industrial waste that it caught fire and burned. In June 1969, Cleveland's Cuyahoga River become the poster child for the birth of the modern American environmental movement.
With an outdoor display of 150,000 Christmas lights, Bob and Raquel Cox saw their electric bill increase $400 last December. This year, the couple expects to pay an even larger bill: They strung 210,000 lights outside their Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, home.
Firefighters will need at least until midweek to get control of wildfires that have destroyed more than 900 homes and other structures in Southern California, a Los Angeles County Fire Department spokesman says.
Solomon Brown of San Jose, California, is one of the millions of voters who helped elect Barack Obama to be the future president. He's also one of the voters in California, Arizona and Florida who cast ballots in support of same-sex marriage bans that got considerable support in each state.
Tuesday night's victory for Obama had supporters all the world over jumping, dancing, and cheering in the streets. iReporters in cities around the globe captured the excitement of the election outcome.
Memories of salvaging and stealing to avoid going hungry are part of the legacy of the Great Depression. Some iReporters say they can't help but look at the current economy and feel the past holds lessons for the present.
CNN.com readers around the world celebrated Sen. Barack Obama's presidential victory over Sen. John McCain Tuesday night. For most of them, the historic significance of Obama's win was the most important part of the election.
In an election where accusations and acrimony were flung back and forth for months, a wave of calm and civility washed over millions of Americans who lined up to vote Tuesday.
In this high-stakes election, Americans are making use of every available opportunity to get the word out about the candidates and issues. For some, that means making Halloween political.
Officials are close to lifting the evacuation orders for thousands of people that fled raging wildfires that have torched more than 20,000 acres of Southern California terrain, Los Angeles mayor said Tuesday.
Ten days after passage of its $700 billion bailout of the financial sector, the U.S. Treasury has announced that it will implement this program, in part, by giving banks $250 billion in return for shares of their stock.
Faced with a nationwide financial crisis, a volatile stock market and rising unemployment and inflation rates, many Americans are making changes in their personal spending habits.
Amid all the partisan cross talk on iReport.com, one plea that keeps coming through is for presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama to stop attacking each other and directly address the issues.
Apple shares fell sharply Friday morning after an erroneous Web report saying founder and CEO Steve Jobs had suffered a heart attack. Shares quickly recovered after it became clear the rumor was not true.
Hundreds of CNN.com users stayed up late Thursday or got up really early Friday to share their thoughts on the vice presidential debate, and for many, it wasn't lack of sleep that was contributing to the yawns.
Congress and the White House are trying to hammer out a $700 billion plan to bail out Wall Street and prevent an economic collapse, but iReporter Margaret Lopez thinks she has a better idea.
The financial crisis on Wall Street is casting a huge shadow over the presidential race, with the candidates abandoning the campaign trail and rushing to the White House for an emergency meeting.
Catherine Konradt wrote "Goodbye" on an iReport.com post as she was packing to move from California to Arizona to live with her mother. "Both my husband and myself have master's degrees and can't find a job to save our lives."
People around the world who are unable to visit Ground Zero and pay their respects to September 11 victims can still find solace in contacting others through the technological wonders of their home computers. Especially if they're willing to venture into a virtual world.
Bristol Palin, the 17-year-old daughter of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, became the center of the media spotlight this week after her pregnancy was revealed.
Soaring gas prices, nearing a national average of $4 per gallon, are causing long-distance commuters to burn holes in their wallets along with the fuel in their gas tanks.
When Sen. John McCain's running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, announced that her 17-year-old unmarried daughter was pregnant, the news prompted a big response from the iReport.com community.
So what is Congress doing, anyway? That was a common refrain in a handful of questions posed to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in the first Digg Dialogg interview Wednesday night.
For some Americans, the recent fighting between Georgia and Russia has recalled days of the Iron Curtain, bomb shelters and hiding under desks. Those Cold War memories are especially intense for some iReporters, U.S. veterans who served under the constant threat of nuclear war.
Two days after Tropical Storm Fay first hit Cape Canaveral, Florida, Louise Mills decided to attempt to go to church, having stayed in her condo since it started. That's when she realized she was stranded inside. "As far as we know, we can't leave our condominiums to get to [Florida state road] A1A because the police are blocking it."
Vacation season is nearly over, and kids are returning to school with the telltale tans and smiles that mean they had a wonderful and relaxing holiday.
Through the haze of a blurry amateur video, you can clearly make out the waving flags and crowd of chanting people outside the Russian Embassy in Tbilisi, Georgia.
When you hear the name "Indiana Jones," you think of an archaeologist carrying an idol and dodging a giant boulder. When you hear about "Dow Jones," you might wonder if it's up or down that day. However, in this case, Indiana and Dow Jones are siblings, 12 and 7 years old, respectively.
G.I. Joe slowly invaded Jeff Patton's cubicle in Salt Lake City, Utah. First it was action figures, then lunch boxes, then comics from a collection that had overflowed from the senior inventory control coordinator's home.
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