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Johan Norberg's vital lessons from rise and fall of historic golden ages makes Peak Human a persuasive read

Johan Norberg's vital lessons from rise and fall of historic golden ages makes Peak Human a persuasive read

Do we currently live, to repurpose the words of the great philosopher Leibniz, in 'the best of all possible worlds'? Yes, according to Peak Human, an exemplary book which studies world history through the prism of 'what we can learn from the rise and fall of golden ages'.

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Annuities can be a solid tool for generating guaranteed income in retirement, but they're not for everyone. Despite promises of financial peace of mind, annuities come with some big trade-offs. They're complex, often expensive and restrict access to your funds. Before you tie up your money potentially for decades, it's worth asking yourself if an annuity truly fits your financial situation. In plenty of cases, it might not. Annuities are essentially a bet that you'll live long enough to make the upfront investment worth it. You give an insurance company a lump sum or series of payments, and in return, they promise to pay you income — sometimes for life. The longer you live, the better your investment pays off, because no matter how long you live, those guaranteed payments keep coming. However, if you have concerns about your health or your family history points to a shorter life expectancy, you may be better off keeping your money elsewhere. 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Annuities are for people who already have their basic financial house in order. If you're still working on building up your emergency fund or paying off considerable debt, buying an annuity could make your overall financial situation worse, not better. Why? Because annuities generally require a large upfront investment in order to produce any sort of meaningful income in retirement — think $100,000 and up. Most financial experts recommend putting no more than 25 percent of your savings into an annuity, so you should have plenty of money elsewhere before signing a contract. Because once you buy an annuity, getting your money out can be difficult. Annuity funds are notoriously difficult to access without getting hit with surrender charges and tax penalties. And once you annuitize your contract, meaning you start receiving payouts from the insurer, you may not be able to take an early withdrawal at all. 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