Nation in denial

DerKaiser said:
If someone doesn't understand that a 5 - 6% cut in net pay will pale into insignificance in terms of what is to come they have no right to criticise government policy
Click to expand...

This is part of the problem..we haven't a clue what's to come. We have conjecture and rumour but no hard facts. I suspect our leaders have some hard facts but they are unwilling (or unable) to share them with the rest of us. Why don't they lay the cards squarely on the table so that we know what's ahead of us?
 

How do you think some people here know that we have a €20bn public finances gap? The government told us, and we heard it.

So we know something about what is ahead of us: expenditure cuts and tax increases on a massive scale. But, as OP said, we are in denial.
 
That's only part of the picture/problem. We still don't know our exposure to the banks. As well as that, some economists are saying that the government picture on public expenditure is too conservative.
 
1c tax on text messages would raise say €75million
So 10c tax could raise €0.75billion
Allow for less usage, call it €0.5billion
 
Carrying on from that DerKaiser, how bad do you imagine things will get. Anyone care to hazard any guesses??
 
jasconius said:
1c tax on text messages would raise say €75million
So 10c tax could raise €0.75billion
Allow for less usage, call it €0.5billion
Click to expand...

Add on a 1c tax for posts to bulletin boards and, more particularly, social networking sites, and you're going back towards €1.0bn!
 
PaddyW said:
Carrying on from that DerKaiser, how bad do you imagine things will get. Anyone care to hazard any guesses??
Click to expand...


I will be honest and suggest that nobody really wants to suggest a figure or outcome . . . .

The truth is nobody knows, but most fears the worst. . .

Hey, we could be out of this in three years or twenty years (is it any crazy then saying we could be bankrupt in 2009!!!).

To be honest Paddyw . . . .

I personally think that alot depends on how we, as a nation, can respond to the tyranny of the self interested . . .

Just ask yourself, who has anything to gain, from anything that comes from most of the things that we can all associate from most government departments . . .

Honestly, ask yourself, who really benefits from this strike campaign . . . Oh, the average Joe, who hasnt been heard for the last 20 years . .
 

Who !?

You're up early PaddyW.
 
Early riser, up almost an hour at that stage... my 11 hour days dictate to that!
 
Although many will say that those marching and constantly threatening about strikes are only looking for the rich to get hit as well, I don't believe this.

We always hear about the willingness of this population to take a bit of pain to get us out of this mess. I think we may have overestimated the willingness.

As soon as cuts/changes were made (necessary cuts/changes) then everyone started complaining. Many are now taking to the streets and I think that a summer of strikes and more marching is also on the way. I just feel that these people can't accept the fact that they have to pay more. But I'd love to know how they expect the country to operate if it doesn't do these things?

Simple answer - it can't. These cuts must happen. And they will probably get worse in the next 12 months too, and so will the complaining.

I do feel that the Gov is going to come down hard on the rich/super rich in the next budget. And this will be welcomed if it happens. But we all need to accept that getting angry about cuts and marching on the streets serves no purpose. We have to take the pain, and lets hope that everyone suffers.
 
Just realised we are worrying over nothing.
The government has it all under control.

[broken link removed]
 


I agree with you DerKaiser that the goivernment will have to make substantial cuts to save this country.

However I believe that forces outside of control will ultimately lead to our demise.

President Barack is hell bent on destroying the US dollar like Prime Minister Browne is destroying streling.

The bail outs are failing and the stimulus packages won't work. Already AIG is calling for a third bailout package of 60 billion.

Both the American and British fed and central banks are beginning to print billions if not trillions of paper money. This will devalue there currencies and eventually lead to hyperinflation which will lead to price controls which will lead to food lines which will lead to riots.

If we don't have any money we will not be able to pay our public servants or our social welfare recipents.

The middles classes will be wiped out and they'll be utter economic ruination.

That's all folks.
 
I disagree. Much of the resistance to the pension levy is the fundamental unfairness of targeting one particular group of workers, when the Govt has many other options available. Eliminating mortgage interest relief for landlords and reducing the cap tax relief for pension contributions from €150k to €100k per annum would bring in the same amount as the pension levy, but the Govt took (yet again) what they percieved to be the easy option.
 
And all those things may yet happen Complainer. Many non public service workers have already been targeted, maybe not by the goverment, but by having their pay cut. Yet I don't hear them complaining, all I hear is how happy they are to still have a job and a regular income.

I expect a pay cut any day soon. I'm not going to complain, I'm willing to take the pain if it means that I still have a job at the end of the day. I also expect increased taxation, I won't complain, even though most of the extra tax I pay will (quite possibly) go towards footing the wage bill of those particular group of workers who have been unfairly targeted.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register