[CTcard]

I would propose that this whole thread misses the point for reasons other than what is a "reasonable" amount of money to live on somewhere.

Retiring at 28 is a pretty big blow to most people's sense of purpose. That's perhaps 60 years of doing ... nothing? The first few weeks would be pretty great, but that's a lot of weeks.

Of course there are all sorts of purposes other than work - and whether they qualify as "retirement" depends upon the details. On top of that, of course the reality is that many jobs do more to put food on the table than bring meaning to life. But one thing we are supposed to get from a Stanford education is the skill to make those things meld.

Though to be sure, neither I nor apparently anybody else here has any idea what Gerhart might wish for himself for the next several decades.

[CTcard]

I would propose that this whole thread misses the point for reasons other than what is a "reasonable" amount of money to live on somewhere.

Retiring at 28 is a pretty big blow to most people's sense of purpose. That's perhaps 60 years of doing ... nothing? The first few weeks would be pretty great, but that's a lot of weeks.

Of course there are all sorts of purposes other than work - and whether they qualify as "retirement" depends upon the details. On top of that, of course the reality is that many jobs do more to put food on the table than bring meaning to life. But one thing we are supposed to get from a Stanford education is the skill to make those things meld.

Though to be sure, neither I nor apparently anybody else here has any idea what Gerhart might wish for himself for the next several decades.