A Commentary on the Retirement Gamble Video Research (Essay Sample)

A Commentary on the Retirement Gamble Video
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Institution
A Commentary on the Retirement Gamble Video
Frontline’s Retirement Gamble is a very informative video that uncovers the saddening reality of America’s retirement crisis. From the confessions of the participants highlighted in the video, it is clear that many Americans in their retirement age, or those reaching it soon, do not have enough savings to take them through their retirement years. According to the video, most of these people have not managed to save enough because most 401(k) retirement plans come with high prices that many middle or low-level income earners cannot afford (Frontline, 2013). In addition, most of these plans are sold by brokers who do not put the interests of customers first before their own interests and profits projections. Thus, the video highlights the ways in which the American retirement industry is taking advantage of income-strained Americans trying to save for their retirement while chasing their American dreams.
I support the existence of cheap and transparent retirement plans, but I think that this video is biased and one-sided. Yes, it shows various flaws in the retirement plans, but it does not give any solutions to the crisis. For instance, the video highlights the experience of people who do not have enough retirement savings. However, it does not feature the opinion of someone who has been able to accumulate enough savings despite the existence of this many flaws. I believe that this video would have been more powerful if it gave a two-sided story by not only highlighting the flaws in the system but also by providing several opportunities people are struggling with to save for their retirement that could be further utilized to accrue enough retirement savings. Many participants in the video confess that they do not know what to do to save themselves from the crisis; yet the video does not take any responsibility of showing them what they can do in their situations (Frontline, 2013). Therefore, this video fails in that it informs the viewers that the system is broken, but does not offer solutions or recommendations that solve the crisis. This makes the video less objective.
I do not want to be a judge, but I know most people would agree that individual Americans have a primary role in successfully planning for their retirement. It is easy to blame high prices on retirement plans, but I think that the reckless or unwise income spending habits and choices of Americans have led to this crisis too. For example, as I was watching the video, I noticed that some participants featured in it were using Apple laptops in their kitchen, had flat-screen TV’s and other extremely expensive equipment in their houses (Frontline, 2013). I believe that most people who have been able to save for their retirement have put limitations on the...