-L. wrote:
jmcquown wrote:
Yeah, BUT, IRA's are funds set aside pre-taxes. When I got my
partial distributions I had them withhold tax. I also talked with
my tax advisor AND with an IRS Rep. I'm unemployed, my sole income
is ME and I have medical expenses so I allegedly qualify for partial
distributions without the penalty for early withdrawal. We shall
see next year.

I'm still sorry to hear you got hit so hard. That sucks. They
really shouldn't tax retirement savings, IMHO.

Jill

I don't have any problem with it. Look at how many people can't
afford an IRA at all...it's pretty much a luxury.

It's not a luxury. I've paid into the Social Security system for 25 years
but it's doubtful I'll get enough back to be able to live on the "pension"
they give me in 20 years. The IRA I have was a 401K provided by my employer
but the money that went into it came out of my blood sweat and tears.

I had it "rolled over" into an IRA when I lost my job a year ago. Again, I
paid into that fund with my own hard-earned money; it came out of my
paycheck. It's *my* money. I have no problem paying taxes on it. But you
should be able to use it when needed without being hit with a double-whammy
called a "penalty" for early withdrawal *after* electing to pay the taxes on
it up front when you need to use some of it.

Jill

I don't really understand why people complain about having to pay
taxes at the end of the year when they have underpaid. Your
witholding is under your control and it's not that difficult to
figure out how much you should have withheld, to break even.

-L.