Latest news with #Lipp
Miami Herald
24-06-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
They expected stability but cost of living squeezes Florida seniors like no other group
Home ownership in South Florida does not represent the financial stability that it used to — thanks to inflation and, especially, the high cost of property insurance. This hurts the people who need stability the most: seniors on fixed incomes. Even those with a good safety net are feeling the pain — people like George Lipp, 72, who's lived in Cooper City for 41 years. His house is paid off, he receives Social Security benefits and three retirement pensions from different employers. The retired computer programmer loves living in his Broward County suburb with his wife, but he worries about his expenses. 'The only thing that's affecting me is going to Publix and insurance,' he told the Herald Editorial Board. 'I'm just breaking even every month.' Seniors are the often hidden face of the Shrinking Middle — the name of the Herald Editorial Board's series highlighting the difficulty of affording a middle-class life given South Florida's rising cost of living. These are Floridians ages 65 and up who worked their entire lives, saved up, many own their homes, but rising costs are robbing them of the joy and security they envisioned in the later part of their lives. And if South Florida's affordability crisis is hurting Lipp, imagine what it's like for seniors who don't have the same safety net. Think of those for whom $100 in food stamps, which Congress is looking to cut, is what's keeping food on their table every month. Or the older people you may see bagging your groceries and taking up other jobs in their retirement. Owning a home is a symbol of middle-class life. But paying for property insurance is turning that dream into a financial risk that people shouldn't have to deal with in their older age. Renting isn't an answer, either. The median rent in South Florida is $2,440, among the highest in the nation, according to real estate company Redfin. Lipp was recently notified that the total cost for his car and property insurance was expected to go from $12,000 annually to $14,000. Florida's population of people ages 65 and older has been growing, especially since the pandemic, Melissa Nelson, CEO of United Way of Florida, told the Editorial Board. With most of them living on a fixed income, this population is especially vulnerable to housing and healthcare cost changes. 'If a senior is on a fixed income and they don't have housing [costs] that are on a fixed level, that is going to throw their budget out of whack,' Nelson said. 'But even if they do, insurance costs have risen, and that has been really detrimental.' In Miami-Dade County, the annual 'survival budget' — the minimum needed for basic needs like rent and Medicare with out-of-pocket costs — for a senior living alone is $47,200 and $69,750 for two people, according to a new United Way report. The report highlights a growing financial problem for seniors. In 2023 in Miami-Dade, 42% of senior households were what United Way considers ALICE — Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. These are people who live above the poverty line and typically earn too much to qualify for most welfare programs, but don't make enough to cover the basics included in the survival budget. Statewide, seniors had the most substantial increase in Floridians below the ALICE threshold between 2010 and 2023. Another 23% of senior households lived in poverty, meaning that the majority of Miami-Dade's seniors are barely getting by or not getting by at all. That's unacceptable in a state like Florida, a retirement haven that is now increasingly becoming a place only the rich can afford. (Miami's millionaire population has nearly doubled in the past decade, the Herald reported.) The state's lack of income taxes is no longer enough to make it affordable for retirees. 'Florida has not been the most affordable state to live for a while,' Nelson said. 'People are moving to North Carolina for that and other states where there's a combination of what we have: good weather but also lower costs of living.' Florida seniors are being forced to make tough decisions that can put their long-term stability at risk. 'I've seen seniors drop their flood insurance and then have a hurricane come up,' Nelson said. In Lipp's case, he considered foregoing insurance but changed his mind. Instead, he increased his deductibles to keep his premium about the same. Fortunately, he still has choices — a hallmark of what it means to be middle-class. But other seniors are being left behind, their only choice to get by. Click here to send the letter.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
EU imposes sanctions on two pro-Russian German bloggers
EU countries on Tuesday imposed sanctions on two pro-Russian German bloggers for the first time, as part of a new package of punitive measures against Russia over its war in Ukraine. Russian-based bloggers Alina Lipp and Thomas Röper are accused of systematically spreading misinformation about the war in Ukraine and thereby supporting Russia, according to the order. The EU sanctions include travel restrictions, the freezing of assets and a ban on the provision of funds or other economic resources. According to EU sources, the two individuals will still be able to enter Germany, but will not be allowed to travel on to other EU countries. Röper, 53, and Lipp, 31, say that they currently live in Russia. They had regularly attracted attention in the past for spreading false information. According to the EU, Röper runs a blog called "Anti-Spiegel" - in what appears to be a reference to German news magazine Der Spiegel. Lipp runs a Telegram channel dubbed "Neues aus Russland" (News from Russia). In an initial public response, they both asked their supporters to refrain from donating to them for the time being "in their own interest." Lipp wrote on Telegram that she and Röper "are curious to see what consequences the sanctions will have for us." "It's a good thing we haven't had any property in Germany for a long time," she had written a few days earlier, adding they would return to Germany "if at all, on a tank." The EU also accuses Lipp of being in contact with Russian forces in eastern Ukraine as a war correspondent and of spreading war propaganda. She regularly appears on programmes broadcast by the Russian military channel Zvezda. Röper had legitimized Russia's illegal annexation of Ukrainian territories and participated in the campaign for the sham referendums on joining the Russian Federation.
Forbes
22-04-2025
- General
- Forbes
Six Ways To Gain Power And Influence Without Formal Authority
Colleagues discussing a crucial topic. getty Many employees feel stymied at work. They may have lots of ideas, perhaps even better ones than their colleagues and leaders do, but they don't know how to gain traction because they lack hierarchical power. In a recent conversation, Chris Lipp, director of management communication at Tulane University Freeman School of Business and author of The Science of Personal Power: How to Build Confidence, Create Success and Obtain Freedom, shares practical advice for building influence and making a difference even without formal authority. Lipp defines personal power as an internal quality—it's both believing in our own capability to create impact and actually having the 'ability to manifest our values into the world.' Using this power effectively requires avoiding the usual ways that people in low-status positions and people who feel disrespected by leaders or colleagues try to be more successful: 'One is, you'll try to be more likable,' he says. 'Two, you might try to prove how great you are.' Unfortunately, these are merely 'low-power behaviors' that don't make a difference in how others see us. Don't assume you're helpless, even if you have no formally recognized institutional power. Many employees take for granted that their lack of authority means that no one will respond to them, Lipp notes. But action equals impact, so if you change this 'false narrative' by taking action, others are more likely to respond to you as if you do have power. 'Initially, people may be upset and frustrated that you're pushing back,' he says, but 'although the initial response will be, maybe, frustration on the outside, that will alchemize into respect very, very quickly.' Staying quiet may feel safer, but 'silence gives you no status ever,' says Lipp. 'You only get status when you speak up.' And it's surprisingly easy to overlook the influence that's actually available to us. 'So often, when we're in a place that disagrees with our values, we say, 'Oh, that's the way it is,'' and assume that there's nothing we can do,' he explains. Instead, 'break the illusion that you're powerless.' You can raise your profile if you 'take responsibility for what's happening,' especially during standard meetings or work gatherings. One of the most direct ways to gain impact without hierarchical power, according to Lipp, is to align with your boss's vision. To accomplish this, you'll need to figure out first what your boss or other senior leaders actually want and then determine whether you're comfortable committing to those goals and means. By understanding your boss's goals and amplifying their vision, you can demonstrate your value to them. If you become 'their loudest advocate,' as Lipp suggests, they'll begin to trust that you're committed to their success, and you can add value by problem-solving and working toward their desired outcomes. Sometimes what you feel is the right thing to do for a team, project or process is not what your leader wants. Or perhaps your leader happens to be a micromanager or someone who resists other people's opinions. Leaders who overcontrol are often actually acting out of their own fears of being wrong or losing status, so Lipp counsels having compassion for them and trying to 'humanize them rather than demonize them.' The best way to get buy-in and agreement from leaders, even touchy ones, is to show that you're looking out for their interests and helping them, Lipp says. 'If you're going to redirect the leader's focus, you need to communicate that it's in service to the leader and their own goals and their vision.' But be savvy about how you offer your suggestions or comments. 'You don't want to do it necessarily in public, right?' says Lipp. 'Because you don't want to undermine their perceived authority in the eyes of others—that's huge.' Beyond demonstrating formal respect, 'you could formulate the benefits of what you're doing, not just for your vision, but for their own,' he says. One potential positioning he suggests using when speaking with your boss is: ''You will love this!'' It's not enough just to point out to your boss or others what you believe needs to be different. Anyone can do that, whether they're hanging around the watercooler or on Slack. Deliberations and discussions don't have inherent power. 'You need to come in with action plans,' Lipp says. You also need to understand your boss's concerns before you propose a new course of action, but 'don't keep deliberating and hoping they're going to do something deliberate. Get the information you need to make a real action, and then submit that as a plan. That's powerful. Anytime you submit action plans, your voice seems more powerful.' If your boss doesn't agree with you right away, don't simply fold and withdraw. Being turned down provides you with situational data about what works and what doesn't in advancing your opinions and goals. So take rejection as an opportunity to refine your action plan or finetune how you present your proposal. Lipp sees 'getting a 'no'' as 'the first building block on the path to getting a strong 'yes.'' So don't regard loss as 'an ultimate defeat. It's just a test for you to remain intact with your values. It's a pushback that almost everybody who makes change faces at one time or another.' If you're consistent about speaking up—not as a naysayer but as someone who sincerely wants to bring plans forward—Lipp says, 'people will respect you more' because they'll recognize the value of 'your consistent authenticity' and 'your voice.' What matters most is that 'you have to say what's true for you,' especially when it's uncomfortable. As you continue to assess and align with your boss's goals, it's critical to center yourself internally. Be careful not to 'focus on others as your first step,' Lipp cautions, 'because then you're not really connected to yourself.' By staying anchored to your own goals, recognizing that you can affect others by speaking up and proposing actions that others can get behind, you can take pragmatic steps toward making a difference and start to build your own base of power.
