Shannon Sharpe and his podcast partner Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson are conflicted about whether $375,000 is enough money to last someone comfortably for a lifetime.
The lively discussion on the Nov. 14 episode of the “Nightcap” podcast centered on a news story about a Wisconsin man who tried to stage his death, abandoning his family but leaving them with a $375,000 life insurance policy while he sought a new life in Central Asia.
How Much Do You Need To Live
While Sharpe and Johnson had the impression that the man faked his death to enrich himself, he actually intended for his family he was leaving behind to benefit from the insurance policy as he lived his second life elsewhere, the Green Lake County Sheriff’s Office said this month.
Regardless of the details, Sharpe — seemingly without making a distinction between relative differences in the cost of living in the United States and other locales — claimed that $375,000 isn’t enough to survive on, which, Johnson, who is known to penny-pinch, fiercely countered by saying that someone could if they lived frugally.
“I’m trying to figure out… he thought Ocho, how long do you think 375 [was gonna last?] Was it going to get another job?” Shape said.
“It depends on his lifestyle, depends on how he lives, 375 could be a fortune to some people,” Johnson argued.
Sharpe extended his line of argument by saying that if the man spends $20,000 a year he, who Sharpe noted is in his mid-40s, would have no money left within 20 years. He added that the average salary in the U.S. in 2023 was around $59,000.
Johnson, when asked if he could live off $20,000 a year, he said, “s**t yeah, I’d make that b*tch stretch.”
Sharpe quickly shut down the conversation I say, “No, you cannot.”
Although the hosts did not reveal the name of the man, the timing of the episode indicates they were referring to Ryan Borgwardt, a family man from Wisconsin. He has been missing since Aug. 12 and sent a text to his wife while kayaking on Green Lake the day before his disappearance, according to The Associated Press.
The Dodge County Sheriff’s Office in Wisconsin held a conference on Nov. 12 to announce a series of discoveries related to the case of Borgwardt.
Authorities have determined that Borgwardt fled to Canada, intentionally lost his passport, and left a digital trail indicating he was attempting to escape to Eastern Europe to start a new life. The investigation also revealed Borgwardt took out a $375,000 life insurance policy in January.
Borgwardt had transferred other funds into a foreign bank and was in talks with a woman from Uzbekistan to presumably start a new life in Central Asia. As of this week the 44-year-old man has made contact with American authorities and revealed he is safe, but little else.
