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A Political Thread pt. 2

It's fine to be hacked off that times are a bit tough. And sure an ageing population loves sticking it to the youth, which is really disappointing. But setting it against the context of human history, it's still a comparatively great time to be alive in a democratic nation with a developed economy. It'll take more than a temporary rise in inflation and a period of economic stagnation to change that.

[Stereotypical Scotsman]
There are huge savings to be made if you shop around. I get my broadband for £19 per month, phone for £4 per month (with levels of data, calls and text I'd never use) and I've never desired satellite or streaming services. Whereas many will routinely pay £30, £20 & £40 per month for the same. Which is £67 more per month or £810 more per annum than me. Stuff like that adds up quickly.

Most I've spent on a car was under £7k for a 4 year old twin turbo Skoda VRS - (a car so fun that when the engine died from me thrashing it all the time a guy still drove up from Coventry to buy my dead car for over £1k). My first house was incredibly basic in an area of deprivation (but it had a huge garden with fruit trees and I worked out it was on a safe stretch of the street that people wouldn't cut through to go to and from the shops and pubs and the homeless shelter around the corner had just closed - so I only ever had to pick one used syringe out of my garden hedge in all my years there and never personally saw anyone physically attacked in my street (unless you count an alcoholic sending a ladder through his also alcoholic brother's living room window, but that was more comedic than anything else).

Everyone is unwittingly so ultra consumerist and conformist these days, buying crap they don't need, spending over the odds, keeping monthly subscriptions going for stuff they don't really use, obsessing about location, location, location of where they live and making all sorts of renovations that are non-essential. Just do your research and learn to appreciate and enjoy life while living within your means rather than fretting about 'keeping up with the Joneses'.
[/stereotypical Scotsman]

Sure I had lucky breaks like free Uni and a maximum bursary (a pittance) and being able to live at the parental home while getting to a decent Uni. During Covid I decided to become a part time worker (already thinking of cutting back my hours more) because I've put myself in a position where I don't need to work 5 days a week (and free time has always been my number 1 priority in life). I don't think I've ever earnt above UK average earnings and I've never had any sort of significant inheritance, but I was a debt free home owner by the age of 30. This is nothing financially extraordinary if you think about your long term priorities and work towards it.

I admit it'd be harder for me to pull this off if I was in my mid-20s now, but I'm pretty sure I'd still make it, maybe a few years later. If you young turks spend an afternoon identifying what is truly essential to you, what you can happily make compromises on and planning a financial route towards what you want in life then you'll give yourself every chance. You don't have to be as non-materialistic as me (I appreciate I'm a bit of an extreme example). As long as unemployment is low there is always hope and with the slump in immigration its probably never been easier in human history to safely experiment and change your location and/or occupation in a way that benefits you. There are so many jobs in so many sectors that simply cant be filled that you can also end up skipping a step on the promotion ladder. At my work one young guy was due to start with the organisation in a fortnight's time and he has already been offered a promotion to a different job at my level before his first day working with us.

If I was in my late teens or twenties and didn't have ties I'd be seeing if I could get a job where I could work remotely in somewhere nice but affordable like Portugal. Home ownership is a lot more cost effective but is a bit of an albatross around the neck. That's the only thing I regret about not having been born a bit later. You didn't really have globetrotting freelancers back in my day.

*goes off rambling to himself for another 3 hours until the nurse comes to change his bedpan*
 
But setting it against the context of human history, it's still a comparatively great time to be alive in a democratic nation with a developed economy.
Aye but i wasn't alive during the bubonic plague so I'm not that fussed about their quality of life :p

I don't see the point in comparing historically, all I can see is rent, food bills, energy bills etc. etc. skyrocketing since I left uni, with no end in sight
That my Grandparents grew up with an outhouse and no internet doesn't really factor into that

Never understood the "We had it tough so you should have it too" mindset - we should be moving forward not dragging people down
 
Aye but i wasn't alive during the bubonic plague so I'm not that fussed about their quality of life :p

I don't see the point in comparing historically, all I can see is rent, food bills, energy bills etc. etc. skyrocketing since I left uni, with no end in sight
That my Grandparents grew up with an outhouse and no internet doesn't really factor into that

Never understood the "We had it tough so you should have it too" mindset - we should be moving forward not dragging people down

Well my intention was more "We had it alright and you can too".

The 24hrs news media is hysterical. Difficulties are often magnified out of all proportion. I'll grant you that rents are bad (not in all places), energy bills are bad (for how long?) and I still haven't really seen food prices go up all that much other than when eating out.

Unemployment is incredibly low. Interest rates are still very low by any objective standard. We've had a prolonged period of wage rises roughly matching inflation. Workers rights are still just about intact.


"You've never had it so, okayish"

I'm someone who thinks anyone born around now stands a good chance of being completely farked in multiple ways during their adult life as I suspect we'll still be dicking about with fossil fuels and ignoring technological progress that would make life easier. But if you are in your 20s I think you'll still squeak into the nice post-WWII period of relative comfort and opportunity.

Of course I apologise to anyone experiencing hardship that isn't spending lots of money on luxuries and thinks I'm talking out of my backside.
 
Honestly, whilst a good soundbite, this is a big part of what is wrong with politics atm.

Surely we should encourage our politicians to learn and evolve, as well as change their mind and policy - we shouldn't want any politician who hasn't changed their mind (or won't admit to it) since they were 15 - that's just not intellectually healthy or politically healthy.

Agree - if there were rational thought in the original position which was then superseded by more rational thought based on new information for the new position.

Not changing tack simply because its the politically expedient thing to do.


For instance; there now should be more politicans convinced Brexit is a mistake than there were campaigning for remain. The evidence accrued since the referendum and even more recently witnessing the fallout across various industries and borders is compelling.

Yet, if someone dared to say Brexit is a mistake and should be reversed ASAP... expect them to be shouted down (in no small part by the tycoon led papers who are covering their bosses from EU anti tax evasion laws no doubt).
 

A fair sum but not enough for this ******* imo. He knowingly spreads falsehoods and conspiracy in full knowledge his supporters are as batshit insane as he is and he caused the grieving families of mass school shooting victims to receive death threats and harassment off the back of his bullshit and he essentially suffers the equivalent of maybe 2 or 3 months income (at least if figures about what his company rakes in are the be believed). Disgusting. The man is an absolute **** and this is frankly barely a punishment for him. For anyone going "but muh free speech", free speech does not include spreading baseless lies that lead to death threats and harassment of innocent people.

The ******* should be brought down but he won't, he'll get on air, call it a witch hunt and likely raise funds from his ******* idiot, mouth foaming bunch of degenerates that support him so he personally barely suffers and will continue as before.

****. This is the sort of bullshit that make me fume at the world. If you have enough money, you just get what is to you a relatively slap on the wrist. A mild inconvenience for destroying peoples lives. Absolute ******* ******* and the same to those who support him.
 

Just more evidence of what an absolute dangerous moron Trump was and still could be.


Talking of another Moron who has given up.
 
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It's really getting embarrassing now

How else are they going to strip us of our rights?

Right to peaceful protest has gone.
Right to strike is on its way out.

Once those have gone, then maternity/paternity leave, holiday entitlement, paid sick leave, job protections and minimum wage will all be in the firing line.
Not to mention those pesky animal welfare and "safe for human consumption" laws, building reg.s etc etc.

JRM has spent 2 years looking at all this. The closest thing to a palatable law to ditch is to measure the distance between road signs in yards rather metres (and either come up with the same distance, or spend a vast amount of money on a vanity project that can be claimed as a "win" despite no odybat all actually winning anything.
I bet he's found tonnes that would be unpalatable (to Joe Bloggs) to repeal, but that they'll repeal anyway (because it appeals to the landlord/CEO classes)
 
How else are they going to strip us of our rights?

Right to peaceful protest has gone.
Right to strike is on its way out.

Once those have gone, then maternity/paternity leave, holiday entitlement, paid sick leave, job protections and minimum wage will all be in the firing line.
Not to mention those pesky animal welfare and "safe for human consumption" laws, building reg.s etc etc.

JRM has spent 2 years looking at all this. The closest thing to a palatable law to ditch is to measure the distance between road signs in yards rather metres (and either come up with the same distance, or spend a vast amount of money on a vanity project that can be claimed as a "win" despite no odybat all actually winning anything.
I bet he's found tonnes that would be unpalatable (to Joe Bloggs) to repeal, but that they'll repeal anyway (because it appeals to the landlord/CEO classes)
Or we could ditch yards completely and fully transition over to metres, leaving only miles and pints and the units Brexiters can desperately cling to for no sensible reason. Hell I work in engineering and when we do designs for roads, all the design info is in metres and kilometres. Speed limits are all converted into an approximately similar KPH, no doubt in the expectation that one day we will join the rest of the world when we can stop trying to be contrarian and thinking we are gods gift to humanity.
 

Talking of another Moron who has given up.

He'll be in the huff because he didn't get his wedding party at Chequers and is now checked out. No more tricky decisions - only things that he thinks will boost his legacy.

This leadership contest has been the worst I have ever seen. Sunak getting more desperate and both trying to play to the Tory membership leaving the country stuck with a leader whose toff pleasing policies have no mandate from the electorate. I wish one of them one would commit to a policy that says any future PM found to have broken the law must resign - not code or convention - an actual ******* Parliamentary rule.

JRM is minister for Brexit opportunities - is that money making opportunities for himself or the country? Their time is up and I hope they get booted out in two years.
 

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