Struggling With The Cost Of Living?

[ECCOnoob]

1 hour ago, Mister M said:

Well you're a better person than some. 

I think many people of the generation before me were in a fortunate position to have been able to see reward for their hard work; have decent work pensions schemes; were able to buy their homes; and if they were lucky enough to go to Uni not pay a fortune for the privilege. I genuinely don't begrudge people being born to that generation.

I do worry that when I'm older we'll be at the mercy of the likes of Jacob Rees Mogg, who thinks food banks are 'uplifting' 

 

Millions of people still feel like that and are living proof of it.

 

The generations now have benefits and a lifestyle that their predecessor couldn't have dreamt off. There is a very good reason why there are fees for university, and that's because thanks to Tony Blair's policies and every government since, the younger generation treats it as if it's some given right that they will go and it's a routine part of their education life. It used to be a place of selective courses for those with a genuine career path or academic ability - now it is arguable it's become the norm. An extension of adolescence and another buffer to stretch out time before joining the the world of work. In fact those who don't attend uni are often treated as if they somehow left something out.  

 

Then look at how the working world is these days. For the majority of the current generation employees they've got rights and benefits and working practises which would have been unthinkable 30-40 years ago. Look at the working conditions compared to some of the unsafe (if not lethal practises) being done by their predecessors. Look at the advancements in workplace technology, look at expansion in the type of job roles, the changing shifts in society on what people can achieve regardless of their sex or race or background or sexual orientation. Look at the advancements in things like flexible hours, shared parental leave, equal pay, minimum wage levels, maternity allowances, mental health and wellbeing initiatives, agile and home working initiatives..... 

 

Some of us are old enough to remember the days when women stayed at home washing the pots. If they did dare to enter the testosterone world of work, they were there to answer the phone, do the typing, serve lunch, look pretty and make the tea. Ask some young starter now to handwrite a ledger report and total it without a calculator, unload a load of pallets without some nice electronic trug or sack barrow, or manually dig up some part of the road without a 1000 pieces of safety gear....   we have a world where people are making legitimate careers out of of social media performance sitting in their own bedrooms. People making legitimate careers creating art and video content.  They are making legitimate careers trading goods bought online and resold. They are making legitimate careers blogging their own lives and journalling every trivial thing they do to show others who dedicatedly follow them.

 

Thanks to the advancements in globalisation and of course communications, the current generation have a work and social life which far exceeds anything seen before with friends and acquaintances all over the planet. They are constantly connected to their support group, they are constantly engaged, informed and entertained.

 

All of this of comes at a cost which plenty of people seem more than willing to be able to absorb. There is more socialising now than there ever was. The spend in consumer goods is more than ever before.

 

The definition of poverty is beyond all recognition. Yes we all know food banks exist but where is the genuine need.  If they disappear tomorrow what exactly would people do. Would they starve to death or would they somehow miraculously managed to find those extra pennies to buy groceries. The average house, even for someone on modest or low income, has  furnishings and technology previous generations would have had to save months if not years to achieve. There is an abundance of cheap consumer goods, cheap clothing, cheap food broughty by exploiting foreign labour markets. No one seems to care a lot about that as long as a price on the shelf is good. Everyone takes advantage of such things as demonstrated by the fact there are globalised businesses that make billions on the back of it.

 

We have an abundance of cheap credit, buy now pay later schemes all at the click of a button and without having to face a regular third degree from some bank manager or credit officer.   We are buying cars like picking up a dress off the rack. We have millions flying out on a regular basis at least once or twice a year on some bargain basement package tour, something which are predecessors may have only done once or twice in a lifetime. Travel is now for the masses when it was once seen as for the upper class and celebrity set.

 

Genuine grievance about genuine poverty??  or just entitlement syndrome from a society who've  continually been in a privileged position and never really had  to face what on the wider global stage would be considered  be genuine hardship and destitution.

 

Times are tough. Times are difficult. But people get on with it. People adapt. People make their own path.  Others sit on they're behind looking for someone else to continually blame or expect things just to happen for them.

[Gormenghast]

Well said. 

[Mr Bloke]

8 minutes ago, ECCOnoob said:

 

Millions of people still feel like that and are living proof of it.

 

The generations now have benefits and a lifestyle that their predecessor couldn't have dreamt off. There is a very good reason why there are fees for university, and that's because thanks to Tony Blair's policies and every government since, the younger generation treats it as if it's some given right that they will go and it's a routine part of their education life. It used to be a place of selective courses for those with a genuine career path or academic ability - now it is arguable it's become the norm. An extension of adolescence and another buffer to stretch out time before joining the the world of work. In fact those who don't attend uni are often treated as if they somehow left something out.  

 

Then look at how the working world is these days. For the majority of the current generation employees they've got rights and benefits and working practises which would have been unthinkable 30-40 years ago. Look at the working conditions compared to some of the unsafe (if not lethal practises) being done by their predecessors. Look at the advancements in workplace technology, look at expansion in the type of job roles, the changing shifts in society on what people can achieve regardless of their sex or race or background or sexual orientation. Look at the advancements in things like flexible hours, shared parental leave, equal pay, minimum wage levels, maternity allowances, mental health and wellbeing initiatives, agile and home working initiatives..... 

 

Some of us are old enough to remember the days when women stayed at home washing the pots. If they did dare to enter the testosterone world of work, they were there to answer the phone, do the typing, serve lunch, look pretty and make the tea. Ask some young starter now to handwrite a ledger report and total it without a calculator, unload a load of pallets without some nice electronic trug or sack barrow, or manually dig up some part of the road without a 1000 pieces of safety gear....   we have a world where people are making legitimate careers out of of social media performance sitting in their own bedrooms. People making legitimate careers creating art and video content.  They are making legitimate careers trading goods bought online and resold. They are making legitimate careers blogging their own lives and journalling every trivial thing they do to show others who dedicatedly follow them.

 

Thanks to the advancements in globalisation and of course communications, the current generation have a work and social life which far exceeds anything seen before with friends and acquaintances all over the planet. They are constantly connected to their support group, they are constantly engaged, informed and entertained.

 

All of this of comes at a cost which plenty of people seem more than willing to be able to absorb. There is more socialising now than there ever was. The spend in consumer goods is more than ever before.

 

The definition of poverty is beyond all recognition. Yes we all know food banks exist but where is the genuine need.  If they disappear tomorrow what exactly would people do. Would they starve to death or would they somehow miraculously managed to find those extra pennies to buy groceries. The average house, even for someone on modest or low income, has  furnishings and technology previous generations would have had to save months if not years to achieve. There is an abundance of cheap consumer goods, cheap clothing, cheap food broughty by exploiting foreign labour markets. No one seems to care a lot about that as long as a price on the shelf is good. Everyone takes advantage of such things as demonstrated by the fact there are globalised businesses that make billions on the back of it.

 

We have an abundance of cheap credit, buy now pay later schemes all at the click of a button and without having to face a regular third degree from some bank manager or credit officer.   We are buying cars like picking up a dress off the rack. We have millions flying out on a regular basis at least once or twice a year on some bargain basement package tour, something which are predecessors may have only done once or twice in a lifetime. Travel is now for the masses when it was once seen as for the upper class and celebrity set.

 

Genuine grievance about genuine poverty??  or just entitlement syndrome from a society who've  continually been in a privileged position and never really had  to face what on the wider global stage would be considered  be genuine hardship and destitution.

 

Times are tough. Times are difficult. But people get on with it. People adapt. People make their own path.  Others sit on they're behind looking for someone else to continually blame or expect things just to happen for them.

Hmmm...

I totally agree with every word...

... but the sad thing is, few people will read it in its entirety!

[Anna B]

19 minutes ago, fools said:

Socialism always end in poverty.

 

Lefty TV news crews are probably foaming at the mouth in excitement about how many hours they can fill with visits to 'warm places'.

What rubbish. 

We are a Capitalist country and a Tax haven. You can't get more right wing than that without becoming a fascist state.

We have always been Capitalist, and used to use the wealth to help those who needed support. That's called responsible Capitalism and it worked well. 

Socialism is not communism, but it did provide a welfare state for all the people, which was the pride of this country and did its best to make sure that in a rich country no one was left behind in dire need.  

 

But 40 years of Thatcherism with her free market economics changed all that, (including Blair's contribution) and we are now reaping the whirlwind, and look at the state we're in. Capitalism has now morphed into pure Greed, with more money in less hands, and the rich poles apart from the poor.

We look to America now, and the great American dream, which isn't working there either, instead of looking to the Scandinavian countries who seem to have the balance about right. 

Edited July 30, 2022 by Anna B

[fools]

The uni scam (unemployment figure fiddle) will inevitably come crashing down at some point

 

Perhaps these extortionate student loan interest rates and power costs will make a few of them think twice about wasting time on a pointless qualification.

10 minutes ago, Anna B said:

What rubbish. 

We are a Capitalist country and a Tax haven. You can't get more right wing than that without becoming a fascist state.

We have always been Capitalist, and used to use the wealth to help those who needed support. That's called responsible Capitalism and it worked well. 

Socialism is not communism, but it did provide a welfare state for all the people, which was the pride of this country and did its best to make sure that in a rich country no one was left behind in dire need.  

 

But 40 years of Thatcherism with her free market economics changed all that, (including Blair's contribution) and we are now reaping the whirlwind, and look at the state we're in. Capitalism has now morphed into pure Greed, with more money in less hands, and the rich poles apart from the poor.

We look to America now, and the great American dream, which isn't working there either, instead of looking to the Scandinavian countries who seem to have the balance about right. 

Why is it you lefties are always rude.

 

Look at the debt this country is in, the mess it's in, it's all down to ineptitude and socialism.

 

You have vast amounts spent on welfare, and the nhs, and hotels for illegal immigrants, we owe trillions as a country, and you're still blaming thatcher, and want more spending, it's beyond ridiculous.

 

Your proposed pm is wandering around picket lines....love a strike the lefties.

Edited July 30, 2022 by fools

[Gormenghast]

14 minutes ago, Anna B said:

What rubbish. 

We look to America now, and the great American dream, which isn't working there either, instead of looking to the Scandinavian countries who seem to have the balance about right. 

Would you be happy to pay the same amount of tax as the Scandinavian peoples do Anna?

[Mister Gee]

13 minutes ago, fools said:

The uni scam (unemployment figure fiddle) will inevitably come crashing down at some point

 

Perhaps these extortionate student loan interest rates and power costs will make a few of them think twice about wasting time on a pointless qualification.

Why is it you lefties are always rude.

 

Look at the debt this country is in, the mess it's in, it's all down to ineptitude and socialism.

 

You have vast amounts spent on welfare, and the nhs, and hotels for illegal immigrants, we owe trillions as a country, and you're still blaming thatcher, and want more spending, it's beyond ridiculous.

 

Your proposed pm is wandering around picket lines....love a strike the lefties.

A clear warning about the dangers of mixing absinthe with calpol.

[Padders]

27 minutes ago, Mr Bloke said:

Hmmm...

I totally agree with every word...

... but the sad thing is, few people will read it in its entirety!

I always read ECCOnoob's posts without falling asleep.

Always tells it how it is.

The problem is, he will never attain the status of "Forum Expert" while posting such interesting and intelligent posts.

Maybe to get on the bottom rung of the ladder to fame, he could occasionally post some dribble.

[hackey lad]

1 hour ago, Mister Gee said:

Is that what you call that cavalcade of reactionary bobbar?

Is that  one of  Noel Cowards  quotes   ?

[Mister Gee]

51 minutes ago, Padders said:

I always read ECCOnoob's posts without falling asleep.

Always tells it how it is.

The problem is, he will never attain the status of "Forum Expert" while posting such interesting and intelligent posts.

Maybe to get on the bottom rung of the ladder to fame, he could occasionally post some dribble.

That’s not a great heads up, I generally read em sat on’t lav!