Each year, I try to give a little perspective on what we just went through and where we may be going. This year, I am making it a little more fun by setting it up so you can check on the success of my 12 predictions (find them in bold italics throughout) when I wrap things up next year in 2018. My goal is to have an accuracy rating of 85% or better. Vote whether you think I am going to hit that mark by sending me an email no later than 1/31/17 with your guess of “Yes”, I made it or “No”, I failed. Every person that guesses correctly will win a book from my library of financial tomes. Here’s hoping I score well…on some things anyway!
Annual 2017 Year Ahead Predictions and Retrospect
The new year is upon us and we all have hopes and dreams for what lies ahead. However, no look ahead can hold water without an acknowledgement of how we arrived to where we are. As the old saying tells us, ignoring history will doom you to repeat it. Set your 2017 goals higher, better or more attainable than those of 2016, but remember to remember.
We learned from yet another Olympics, no matter how bad you want something, no matter how much you plan, no matter how much people are relying on you to be successful, a bad plan and execution will leave you with horrendous outcomes. Don’t pollute the waters of your own best goals with poor planning and execution. Make your 2017 goals possible with good, timely decisions and reasonable expectations. Chances are, people are relying on you too. I predict we will see a continued refocus of folks on their own well-being as evidenced by an improvement in the unemployment rate.
2017 will be a year in which we will have learned how to better insulate our electronic selves from issues such as email hacking, leaks, secret tapes and fake news courtesy of social media outlets that make Wikipedia look like Encyclopedia Britannica. Or maybe not. Maybe we have become so dependent on the likes of Alexa that we will come to embrace a constant electronic ear in our homes which can readily monitor our every word for later use (use for what one could wonder here). Read Orwell’s “1984” for further clarification. I predict sales of such devices will skyrocket.
We saw another long list of celebrities pass on to their reward. From international bad guys like Castro to legitimate tough guys like Muhammad Ali to beloved entertainers like Frank Sinatra, Jr., Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds, they all first passed through the fabric of our reality before passing on. The latter two showed just how powerful family connections can be. All of us that suffered losses of our own will look to 2017 as a time of healing. No prediction here…just well wishes.
Who could have imagined the passing of one Antonin Scalia would play so heavily in Presidential politics? Now, with the election over, 2017 will see a raucous remedy to the vacancy issue his massive presence left behind.
Never before have we seen such a running together of celebrity and politics. Hopefully, 2017 will see entertainers relegated back to the role for which they exist…entertaining, not preaching. This is not to say anyone could and should not have an opinion on such matters. I would simply hope these folks take 2017 as an opportunity to get over the upset that most folks in the real world don’t care that much to be told how to think by entertainers. Those living happily in the basket with the other deplorables would rather you go make jokes and blow up imaginary movie scenes.
The year of 2017 will usher in a new POTUS and hopefully a healing from the campaign that left the country, nay the world, in shock. Even with Brexit setting the tone, the media failed to recognize the realities of how people feel. As such, most became part of the story instead of reporting on it. Many tried to create the narrative and to the dismay of many others, some have yet to relent. Failure to accept the results (count challenges, EC challenge, violent protests) has left us looking to a 2017 inauguration that could shape up to be as contentious as the campaigns.
That would be a terrible tone to set for the new year. Let’s show the world we are better than that. After all, we are supposed to be the model of Democracy to which others aspire. I predict the inauguration will go off as intended and the country will begin to rally behind its new President.
The mainstreamers (media) have also continued to push their 2016 narrative, never missing a chance to turn horrible events such as what happened in Orlando into political fodder. Few have had the courage to report on such inconvenient facts such as, of the 762 murders in Chicago in 2016, over 80% were gang related despite the presence some of the strictest gun laws in the country. So much for asking criminals to obey the law. Here’s another pesky fact: with the over 350 million firearms currently owned by Americans (the highest in history), the last 20 years has seen an overall drop in gun related deaths by half. I can think of no other subject matter with positive results like these that could be so widely unreported or misreported.
Regardless of your perspective on this issue, wouldn’t it be amazing if we could see reporters and celebrities alike, just do their jobs and let us formulate our own opinions. My prediction for 2017 is this won’t happen.
2017 will see a rise in interest rates despite the negative impact that will have on our rapidly increasing National Debt. We will also see dramatic changes in our relations with countries such as China, Russia and Israel.
With the red line in the sand being obliterated on a daily basis by Islamic terrorists that have virtually no regard for any human life, we will begin to call them what they are and see a renewed focus in our efforts to obliterate them and their cause. The civilized world has no choice.
We all hope to see a vast improvement in the Veterans Administration’s medical system and an improvement in the way we treat our active and retired military overall. It is something we owe them and it is a matter of national pride. I predict a massive overhaul of this system will begin with tremendous results.
With over 10,000 people per week turning 65 years of age, we need to see some serious tax reform in 2017. Not to mention reigning in the costs of the ACA, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security without hurting people. Whew! Those are a few little things, huh?! I predict the repeal and replacement of the ACA will be among the top stories of the year with the balance making headlines at least twice each.
Life is more expensive than ever and 2017 will do little to change that. 2016 showed a continuing trend of folks heading to the safety of products like Fixed Indexed Annuities. $60 billion dollars worth, to be precise. Why? With everything just mentioned, people need to focus on safe, no risk growth and try to take care of themselves. 2017 will continue to put the onus on us for such. The days of big government coming to the rescue are numbered. The flight to safe products has only just begun. I predict 2017 will match or exceed the $60 billion seen in 2016.
2017 will be a year of hope and/or fear depending on your political proclivity. It will hopefully be a year of coming together as a nation. We are all patriots and must come together for the good of our country.
Despite looking forward to 2017 as my first full year domiciled in FL, I will also predict another Patriots win…the Super Bowl.
Probably will be the most controversial prediction in this whole piece!
Happy New Year!
Greg
Annual 2017 Year Ahead Predictions and Retrospect
The new year is upon us and we all have hopes and dreams for what lies ahead. However, no look ahead can hold water without an acknowledgement of how we arrived to where we are. As the old saying tells us, ignoring history will doom you to repeat it. Set your 2017 goals higher, better or more attainable than those of 2016, but remember to remember.
We learned from yet another Olympics, no matter how bad you want something, no matter how much you plan, no matter how much people are relying on you to be successful, a bad plan and execution will leave you with horrendous outcomes. Don’t pollute the waters of your own best goals with poor planning and execution. Make your 2017 goals possible with good, timely decisions and reasonable expectations. Chances are, people are relying on you too. I predict we will see a continued refocus of folks on their own well-being as evidenced by an improvement in the unemployment rate.
2017 will be a year in which we will have learned how to better insulate our electronic selves from issues such as email hacking, leaks, secret tapes and fake news courtesy of social media outlets that make Wikipedia look like Encyclopedia Britannica. Or maybe not. Maybe we have become so dependent on the likes of Alexa that we will come to embrace a constant electronic ear in our homes which can readily monitor our every word for later use (use for what one could wonder here). Read Orwell’s “1984” for further clarification. I predict sales of such devices will skyrocket.
We saw another long list of celebrities pass on to their reward. From international bad guys like Castro to legitimate tough guys like Muhammad Ali to beloved entertainers like Frank Sinatra, Jr., Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds, they all first passed through the fabric of our reality before passing on. The latter two showed just how powerful family connections can be. All of us that suffered losses of our own will look to 2017 as a time of healing. No prediction here…just well wishes.
Who could have imagined the passing of one Antonin Scalia would play so heavily in Presidential politics? Now, with the election over, 2017 will see a raucous remedy to the vacancy issue his massive presence left behind.
Never before have we seen such a running together of celebrity and politics. Hopefully, 2017 will see entertainers relegated back to the role for which they exist…entertaining, not preaching. This is not to say anyone could and should not have an opinion on such matters. I would simply hope these folks take 2017 as an opportunity to get over the upset that most folks in the real world don’t care that much to be told how to think by entertainers. Those living happily in the basket with the other deplorables would rather you go make jokes and blow up imaginary movie scenes.
The year of 2017 will usher in a new POTUS and hopefully a healing from the campaign that left the country, nay the world, in shock. Even with Brexit setting the tone, the media failed to recognize the realities of how people feel. As such, most became part of the story instead of reporting on it. Many tried to create the narrative and to the dismay of many others, some have yet to relent. Failure to accept the results (count challenges, EC challenge, violent protests) has left us looking to a 2017 inauguration that could shape up to be as contentious as the campaigns.
That would be a terrible tone to set for the new year. Let’s show the world we are better than that. After all, we are supposed to be the model of Democracy to which others aspire. I predict the inauguration will go off as intended and the country will begin to rally behind its new President.
The mainstreamers (media) have also continued to push their 2016 narrative, never missing a chance to turn horrible events such as what happened in Orlando into political fodder. Few have had the courage to report on such inconvenient facts such as, of the 762 murders in Chicago in 2016, over 80% were gang related despite the presence some of the strictest gun laws in the country. So much for asking criminals to obey the law. Here’s another pesky fact: with the over 350 million firearms currently owned by Americans (the highest in history), the last 20 years has seen an overall drop in gun related deaths by half. I can think of no other subject matter with positive results like these that could be so widely unreported or misreported.
Regardless of your perspective on this issue, wouldn’t it be amazing if we could see reporters and celebrities alike, just do their jobs and let us formulate our own opinions. My prediction for 2017 is this won’t happen.
2017 will see a rise in interest rates despite the negative impact that will have on our rapidly increasing National Debt. We will also see dramatic changes in our relations with countries such as China, Russia and Israel.
With the red line in the sand being obliterated on a daily basis by Islamic terrorists that have virtually no regard for any human life, we will begin to call them what they are and see a renewed focus in our efforts to obliterate them and their cause. The civilized world has no choice.
We all hope to see a vast improvement in the Veterans Administration’s medical system and an improvement in the way we treat our active and retired military overall. It is something we owe them and it is a matter of national pride. I predict a massive overhaul of this system will begin with tremendous results.
With over 10,000 people per week turning 65 years of age, we need to see some serious tax reform in 2017. Not to mention reigning in the costs of the ACA, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security without hurting people. Whew! Those are a few little things, huh?! I predict the repeal and replacement of the ACA will be among the top stories of the year with the balance making headlines at least twice each.
Life is more expensive than ever and 2017 will do little to change that. 2016 showed a continuing trend of folks heading to the safety of products like Fixed Indexed Annuities. $60 billion dollars worth, to be precise. Why? With everything just mentioned, people need to focus on safe, no risk growth and try to take care of themselves. 2017 will continue to put the onus on us for such. The days of big government coming to the rescue are numbered. The flight to safe products has only just begun. I predict 2017 will match or exceed the $60 billion seen in 2016.
2017 will be a year of hope and/or fear depending on your political proclivity. It will hopefully be a year of coming together as a nation. We are all patriots and must come together for the good of our country.
Despite looking forward to 2017 as my first full year domiciled in FL, I will also predict another Patriots win…the Super Bowl.
Probably will be the most controversial prediction in this whole piece!
Happy New Year!
Greg
RSS Feed