| France Riots 23:10 - Oct 17 with 905 views | Southamptonfan |
Riots across many French cities. Riots in Albania, Italy, Greece, Belgium and Portugal. The world is in chaos. High costs of living across many countries in the EU, not just here. People can't afford their own homes. The services are not coping. Diesal and petrol is a crazy price. Countries in debt. Spending billions on wars that are nothing to do with us. Not sure rejoining the EU will make anything better. Europe certainly doesn't seem to be awash with money. [Post edited 17 Oct 23:16]
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| France Riots on 00:21 - Oct 18 with 790 views | Gennaro_Contaldo |
Trump and Putin and their shtty wars have done wonders for the world economy. |  |
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| France Riots on 00:34 - Oct 18 with 776 views | Southamptonfan |
| France Riots on 00:21 - Oct 18 by Gennaro_Contaldo |
Trump and Putin and their shtty wars have done wonders for the world economy. |
Yep, totally unnecessary wars. | |
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| France Riots on 00:55 - Oct 18 with 753 views | Joiedevivre |
But Alistair Campbell says without the undemocratic 0.1% growth machine EU we’re missing 6% economic growth based on dodgy pre-Brexit “predictions”  |  | | |
| France Riots on 01:03 - Oct 18 with 739 views | Joiedevivre |
Honestly though, the debt (long term) is the biggest issue - alongside fuel (short term) - which we face, which you’re right to point out. Our government’s just kick the can down the road to steal that awful cliche.
There was a piece in the economist the other week on this. Will the bond market burst I believe it was titled. Very interesting reading. Britain is one of the worst for this sort of fallacy, whereby we can go on spending whatever we want without increasing taxation. One example would be how Labour wants a care service. Paid on debt. They’re completely unserious.
As a young person, the idea of a welfare state geared towards a much smaller base (the young, based on lower birth rates) paying the older, much larger group, is terrifying. Either the young will eventually be taxed heavily or we’ll be paying a mountain of debt - greater than even thinkable currently - in my future. It’s depressing. [Post edited 18 Oct 1:06]
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| France Riots on 07:55 - Oct 18 with 528 views | jopreston |
Another very important factor has been missed; the elephant in the room. The mass migration and movement of people from Africa and Asia in the Europe has put welfare and services under far too much pressure to fast and thus it all starts to collapse. Do Gooders and Virtuous types will flatly deny this but it is 100% fact. Our systems and infrastructure cannot cope with this many people coming in and taking benefits, hospitals are strained, housing is full. |  | | |
| France Riots on 08:33 - Oct 18 with 487 views | Jellybaby |
| France Riots on 01:03 - Oct 18 by Joiedevivre |
Honestly though, the debt (long term) is the biggest issue - alongside fuel (short term) - which we face, which you’re right to point out. Our government’s just kick the can down the road to steal that awful cliche.
There was a piece in the economist the other week on this. Will the bond market burst I believe it was titled. Very interesting reading. Britain is one of the worst for this sort of fallacy, whereby we can go on spending whatever we want without increasing taxation. One example would be how Labour wants a care service. Paid on debt. They’re completely unserious.
As a young person, the idea of a welfare state geared towards a much smaller base (the young, based on lower birth rates) paying the older, much larger group, is terrifying. Either the young will eventually be taxed heavily or we’ll be paying a mountain of debt - greater than even thinkable currently - in my future. It’s depressing. [Post edited 18 Oct 1:06]
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Controlled demolition of the fiat currency. If you have any money put it into something tangible. | |
| I wholly disapprove of what you say and will defend to the death your right to say it. |
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| France Riots on 09:35 - Oct 18 with 403 views | saintmark1976 |
| France Riots on 01:03 - Oct 18 by Joiedevivre |
Honestly though, the debt (long term) is the biggest issue - alongside fuel (short term) - which we face, which you’re right to point out. Our government’s just kick the can down the road to steal that awful cliche.
There was a piece in the economist the other week on this. Will the bond market burst I believe it was titled. Very interesting reading. Britain is one of the worst for this sort of fallacy, whereby we can go on spending whatever we want without increasing taxation. One example would be how Labour wants a care service. Paid on debt. They’re completely unserious.
As a young person, the idea of a welfare state geared towards a much smaller base (the young, based on lower birth rates) paying the older, much larger group, is terrifying. Either the young will eventually be taxed heavily or we’ll be paying a mountain of debt - greater than even thinkable currently - in my future. It’s depressing. [Post edited 18 Oct 1:06]
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Government Debt :-
We currently have the second lowest Debt to Gross Domestic Product Ratio of the G7 advanced economies at just less than 100%. Current highest Japan at just over 200%, lowest Germany at just over 80%.
At the end of the Second World War our figure was just over 250% yet we managed to build the N H S and millions of houses for public occupancy. We also owned and had control over our basic needs such as Water, Energy, Railways and Telephones.
Makes you wonder what went wrong in the meantime doesn’t it ? [Post edited 18 Oct 9:44]
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| France Riots on 12:03 - Oct 18 with 217 views | Ifonly |
| France Riots on 09:35 - Oct 18 by saintmark1976 |
Government Debt :-
We currently have the second lowest Debt to Gross Domestic Product Ratio of the G7 advanced economies at just less than 100%. Current highest Japan at just over 200%, lowest Germany at just over 80%.
At the end of the Second World War our figure was just over 250% yet we managed to build the N H S and millions of houses for public occupancy. We also owned and had control over our basic needs such as Water, Energy, Railways and Telephones.
Makes you wonder what went wrong in the meantime doesn’t it ? [Post edited 18 Oct 9:44]
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It's true that we had massive debts after WWII, but you can't really compare the country at that time to now. Everything is so different e.g.:
- The "NHS" means something completely different now to the 1950s version. In the 50s healthcare was about 3.5% of GDP. Now it's 11.5%. If we only spent 3.5% of GDP on healthcare we'd solve our financial problems overnight!
- Other spending was also drastically less. In the 50s unemployment was effectively zero and no one was claiming the sick for ADHD.
- Taxes went up, but only to 33% of GDP compared to 37% today. Attitudes to taxes were very different though. People accepted them because there was a spirit of national unity and the country needed to be rebuilt. Today there is no spirit of national unity and if you put up taxes on the wealthy they just leave the country because emigration to lower tax countries is so easy today. That's something that hardly existed at all in the 50s. | | | |
| France Riots on 12:38 - Oct 18 with 184 views | Southamptonfan |
| France Riots on 12:03 - Oct 18 by Ifonly |
It's true that we had massive debts after WWII, but you can't really compare the country at that time to now. Everything is so different e.g.:
- The "NHS" means something completely different now to the 1950s version. In the 50s healthcare was about 3.5% of GDP. Now it's 11.5%. If we only spent 3.5% of GDP on healthcare we'd solve our financial problems overnight!
- Other spending was also drastically less. In the 50s unemployment was effectively zero and no one was claiming the sick for ADHD.
- Taxes went up, but only to 33% of GDP compared to 37% today. Attitudes to taxes were very different though. People accepted them because there was a spirit of national unity and the country needed to be rebuilt. Today there is no spirit of national unity and if you put up taxes on the wealthy they just leave the country because emigration to lower tax countries is so easy today. That's something that hardly existed at all in the 50s. |
I would be interested to know just how much we and other EU countries spend in foreign lands. What are we giving to Ukraine, to the Israel war, Iran war. What foreign aid are we giving?
The people in the UK, France and many countries in the EU feel that they are suffering themselves, and huge amounts of money are going to others suffering, but what about looking after the people in our own countries first instead of being last in the queue?
Ofcourse there are rich people, and people feel they should give more back, be taxed more, but as you say, they have the money to leave the country. They will just get in their private jet to their private island and leave. Immigration is definitely another issue. People feel that as soon as a boats of people turn up on our shores, luxury coaches are waiting hours before they arrive, whizzing past the homeland homeless on the way. Germany have already voted in a far right party in a large sectio of their country. There are a lot of tensions.
Too much is being spent on non necessary things in the NHS as you make reference to. It should be a place for emergency.medicine. Not changing gender, etc.
The petrol prices, well again it is the actions of individual leaders that have made life unbearable for normal.people. Leaders just want to.look good, flex their muscles but have no thought for the people. [Post edited 18 Oct 13:04]
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| France Riots on 12:48 - Oct 18 with 156 views | 1885_SFC |
| France Riots on 00:21 - Oct 18 by Gennaro_Contaldo |
Trump and Putin and their shtty wars have done wonders for the world economy. |
I wake up every day hoping that both of those evil, totally deranged arseholes have been assassinated during the night.
I'm still hoping. |  |
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| France Riots on 12:53 - Oct 18 with 140 views | saintmark1976 |
| France Riots on 12:03 - Oct 18 by Ifonly |
It's true that we had massive debts after WWII, but you can't really compare the country at that time to now. Everything is so different e.g.:
- The "NHS" means something completely different now to the 1950s version. In the 50s healthcare was about 3.5% of GDP. Now it's 11.5%. If we only spent 3.5% of GDP on healthcare we'd solve our financial problems overnight!
- Other spending was also drastically less. In the 50s unemployment was effectively zero and no one was claiming the sick for ADHD.
- Taxes went up, but only to 33% of GDP compared to 37% today. Attitudes to taxes were very different though. People accepted them because there was a spirit of national unity and the country needed to be rebuilt. Today there is no spirit of national unity and if you put up taxes on the wealthy they just leave the country because emigration to lower tax countries is so easy today. That's something that hardly existed at all in the 50s. |
So in your opinion Ifony, what’s gone wrong ? | |
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| France Riots on 13:59 - Oct 18 with 43 views | Jellybaby |
| France Riots on 12:48 - Oct 18 by 1885_SFC |
I wake up every day hoping that both of those evil, totally deranged arseholes have been assassinated during the night.
I'm still hoping. |
They would only be replaced by new warmongers. It's the modus operandus of the ruling classes - propping up the military industrial complex while culling the masses. Has ever been thus. | |
| I wholly disapprove of what you say and will defend to the death your right to say it. |
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| France Riots on 14:06 - Oct 18 with 35 views | Ifonly |
| France Riots on 12:53 - Oct 18 by saintmark1976 |
So in your opinion Ifony, what’s gone wrong ? |
I think the key things are:
- Demographics. We used to have a large number of young and healthy workers supporting a small number of elderly and sick. That's been slowly reversing as the baby boomers, like me, have grown old.
- Climate change leading to expensive energy. Climate change is real but the policy response of our governments, of both types, has put us at a severe disadvantage to other countries by making energy too expensive. Energy is fundamental to economic growth and our taxes on petrol, gas electricity etc. are massive.
- Poor productivity growth, mostly caused by a lack of investment over many years, but particularly since the financial crash 2008. This is widely agreed on by left and right.
- The "housing ladder" and national obsession with home owning. Successive governments have had policies deliberately designed to push up the value of houses, with disastrous results. It's a stupid policy that was always going to end badly. If people saved up to invest in businesses e.g. via pensions or a "national share" instead of houses, we would all be better off. Germany doesn't have an obsession with home owning and is better off because of that.
- "Made in China". I hate Trump but one thing he has right is the damage that China has done by seeking to own the world's manufacturing, leaving millions of people in the west on the scrap heap. The west should have put concerted pressure on China to change policies - and still needs to.
- Values. Young people used to be taught the value of work. Now they are taught about entitlements. Tbf, this is partly because the stupid policies referenced above have robbed them of jobs and opportunities, leading to inter-generational conflict (as in France). [Post edited 18 Oct 14:14]
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