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Effects of Austerity Cuts part 58

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nickgusset Flag Shizzlehurst 26 Jun 15 9.43pm

Quote legaleagle at 26 Jun 2015 9.25pm

That's a not untenable point of view,but avoids IMO the actual point about "austerity" now,

The question is,if you buy the overwhelming need to cut the defecit argument that is (and there is more than one valid point of view on that), how you do it.

A few (far from exhaustive) general choices/options:

Emphasis on cutting the public sector,and state provided "services/benefits?

Cut things like massively expensive nuclear weapons and what goes to the royal family?

Higher and progressive taxation,including inheritance tax?

Really act to close tax avoidance loopholes?

Attack benefits recipients?

Act to tax multinationals appropriately?

Or protect and nurture the "wealth creators" to encourage "trickle down"?

Seek to reduce or increase inequality in the process?

A mixture?

Edited by legaleagle (26 Jun 2015 9.40pm)


trickle down economics is a fallacy imho

 

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legaleagle Flag 26 Jun 15 10.02pm

Personally,my humble opinon on that point concurs with your's fully.

I outlined options (austerity max/austerity lite, other ways forward) as opposed to expressing my personal preferences on any particular option.

The "received wisdom" the spinners spout is that there is only the option/s utilised since 2010...

 

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nickgusset Flag Shizzlehurst 27 Jun 15 10.18am

[Link]

Justice system could grind to a halt as lawyers take unofficial action against cuts to legal aid.

That tosser Gove is in charge, I can't see him budging.
As usual, the worst off are affected by these cuts as they won't get any financial support for legal representation.

 

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View Johnny Eagles's Profile Johnny Eagles Flag berlin 30 Jun 15 8.17am Send a Private Message to Johnny Eagles Add Johnny Eagles as a friend

Quote nickgusset at 26 Jun 2015 9.43pm

Quote Johnny Eagles at 26 Jun 2015 9.45am

It makes me laugh how everyone still talks about "austerity".

National debt:

FY 2015 £1.36 trillion
FY 2014 £1.26 trillion
FY 2013 £1.19 trillion
FY 2012 £1.10 trillion
FY 2011 £0.91 trillion
FY 2010 £0.76 trillion

Net borrowing (ie, the deficit)

2015: 87,3
2014: 98,5
2013: 119,7
2012: 113,4
2011: 134,9
2010: 153,5


The government is nearly a trillion and a half in debt. If you add household debt (1.5 trn) then the country is about 3 trillion pounds in debt. Household debt went up by 240bn last year.

The government is paying £43bn a year in interest on its debt. Households are paying around £60bn a year on interest repayments.

If that's "austerity" then what are you going to call it when interest rates rise, taxes go up, the next financial crisis hits and nobody is willing to lend Britain any more money?


Who are we in debt to exactly?

Depends which debt you mean.

The government owes money to:
- The Bank of England
- Banks (foreign and domestic)
- Investors (foreign and domestic)
- Foreign governments

"Investors" is a broad term, covering everything from sharp-suited hedge fund b*stards to pension funds. (Except the teachers' pension fund which is UNFUNDED - just thought I'd slip that in there )

Households owe money to:
- Banks
- Financial Services companies

Who in turn owe it to the above list.

As Greece is finding out, if you have LOTS of debt, it stops being your problem and becomes the problem of the people to whom you owe the money.

UNLESS you ever want to borrow money ever again. Then credit-worthiness becomes quite important.

 


...we must expand...get more pupils...so that the knowledge will spread...

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View johnfirewall's Profile johnfirewall Flag 30 Jun 15 12.50pm Send a Private Message to johnfirewall Add johnfirewall as a friend

Quote legaleagle at 26 Jun 2015 8.54am

Barnardo's estimate that the majority of kids living in poverty have someone in the family in work...

Lets be consistent...

"Why should the taxpayer feed your kids?"

"Why should the taxpayer educate your kids?"

"Why should the taxpayer treat your kids if they fall ill?"

If you can't afford to pay for your kids' food,education and healthcare in full at market rates,don't have any....


Blimey.


That's more an argument to reward those who actually work if anything.

 

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View chris123's Profile chris123 Flag hove actually 30 Jun 15 1.27pm Send a Private Message to chris123 Add chris123 as a friend

Quote nickgusset at 27 Jun 2015 10.18am

[Link]

Justice system could grind to a halt as lawyers take unofficial action against cuts to legal aid.

That tosser Gove is in charge, I can't see him budging.
As usual, the worst off are affected by these cuts as they won't get any financial support for legal representation.

Michael Gove gets things done.

 

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legaleagle Flag 30 Jun 15 8.20pm

Quote johnfirewall at 30 Jun 2015 12.50pm

Quote legaleagle at 26 Jun 2015 8.54am

Barnardo's estimate that the majority of kids living in poverty have someone in the family in work...

Lets be consistent...

"Why should the taxpayer feed your kids?"

"Why should the taxpayer educate your kids?"

"Why should the taxpayer treat your kids if they fall ill?"

If you can't afford to pay for your kids' food,education and healthcare in full at market rates,don't have any....


Blimey.


That's more an argument to reward those who actually work if anything.


No,its an argument about following the logic through of a poster's proposition that parents be totally responsible for meeting the costs of their kids' "basic" needs (regardless of the parents' situation) with no help/subsidy from the taxpayer because they "gave birth" to the kids.

Edited by legaleagle (30 Jun 2015 8.22pm)

 

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View johnfirewall's Profile johnfirewall Flag 30 Jun 15 8.39pm Send a Private Message to johnfirewall Add johnfirewall as a friend

Quote legaleagle at 30 Jun 2015 8.20pm

Quote johnfirewall at 30 Jun 2015 12.50pm

Quote legaleagle at 26 Jun 2015 8.54am

Barnardo's estimate that the majority of kids living in poverty have someone in the family in work...

Lets be consistent...

"Why should the taxpayer feed your kids?"

"Why should the taxpayer educate your kids?"

"Why should the taxpayer treat your kids if they fall ill?"

If you can't afford to pay for your kids' food,education and healthcare in full at market rates,don't have any....


Blimey.


That's more an argument to reward those who actually work if anything.


No,its an argument about following the logic through of a poster's proposition that parents be totally responsible for meeting the costs of their kids' "basic" needs (regardless of the parents' situation) with no help/subsidy from the taxpayer because they "gave birth" to the kids.

Edited by legaleagle (30 Jun 2015 8.22pm)

This is probably covered in more depth in the 'boob job' thread but some people are more responsible than others when it comes to considering the implications of reproduction.

I don't want to see people having to work 7 days a week and still not manage to feed their kids. Neither do I want people to have 12 for free.

 

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legaleagle Flag 30 Jun 15 8.45pm

Yes,but lets not miss the overriding point of the kids themselves, who are blameless,rather than a minority of parents who might act in an irresponsible and out of order way.

Do we think as a country every kid should be guaranteed a certain minimum level of "sustenance",healthcare and education etc regardless of their parents' financial situation or behaviour.Kind of basic "equality of opportunity" stuff. Maybe some disagree with it.

Edited by legaleagle (30 Jun 2015 8.48pm)

 

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View johnfirewall's Profile johnfirewall Flag 30 Jun 15 9.04pm Send a Private Message to johnfirewall Add johnfirewall as a friend

Quote legaleagle at 30 Jun 2015 8.45pm

Yes,but lets not miss the overriding point of the kids themselves, who are blameless,rather than a minority of parents who might act in an irresponsible and out of order way.

Do we think as a country every kid should be guaranteed a certain minimum level of "sustenance",healthcare and education etc regardless of their parents' financial situation.Kind of basic "equality of opportunity" stuff.

Not really, no. We had a welfare state for decades, where people gave careful consideration to whether they were actually going to be able to provide for a child. Why should working parents now struggle to pay for the result of the thoughtlessness of others?

What you're talking about is taking care of other peoples kids but we're the ones working while they're babysitting.

I'm not saying let them starve but the message you're giving is wrong.

 

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Tom-the-eagle Flag Croydon 30 Jun 15 9.12pm

Quote legaleagle at 30 Jun 2015 8.45pm

Yes,but lets not miss the overriding point of the kids themselves, who are blameless,rather than a minority of parents who might act in an irresponsible and out of order way.

Do we think as a country every kid should be guaranteed a certain minimum level of "sustenance",healthcare and education etc regardless of their parents' financial situation or behaviour.Kind of basic "equality of opportunity" stuff. Maybe some disagree with it.


Edited by legaleagle (30 Jun 2015 8.48pm)

Agree with all your points Legal, but on the flip side - are we actually helping these children by allowing them to grow up with roll models who often have no sense of personal or civic responsibility.
I know this is feeding a stereotype but most of these people never break the cycle. Most of these children do crap at school, on leaving school find themselves in and out of work, get themselves in a bit of trouble, fall or get someone pregnant as teenagers, get themselves a council flat and benefits and then start the whole cycle over again. I completely agree that ALL kids should be given access to education and health etc, however I’m not sure that just by paying for them that we are truly helping them. We really do need to break this cycle because there is an under-class (yep I know I will get slatted for using that term) who are out breeding the rest of society. These kids need positive roll modals, they need to be given dreams and aspirations (not just to grow up and get a pit bull), but most importantly they need to see that you have to work for everything in life and not expect to get handed it.


 


"It feels much better than it ever did, much more sensitive." John Wayne Bobbit

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legaleagle Flag 30 Jun 15 9.51pm

Well,Tom,I don't think the answer (and I think you agree) is to deprive kids of the basics to give them an opportunity ...

How you encourage kids to grow up a certain way and utilise opportunities (especially where there are very negative role models with power over their everyday lives) and "break the cycle" is perhaps a complex question for its own thread and certainly one worthy of more than any glib answers I could come up with on the spot...

Also,you raise questions of things like the state possibly separating kids from a parent and/or intervening in other ways when you say "allowing them to grow up" with negative role models and that's another related whole big topic on its own.

As with most things,a system (whether the legal system or "benefits" system) allows some people to take the piss.Generally,that's not a reason IMO to fundamentally change a system that legitimately provides a more level playing field/helps others legitimately.The system hasn't been invented yet that I've come across which offers protections/legitimate help for the many but is incapable of abuse by the minority.

 

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