Gnads wrote on May 21^st, 2020 at 5:54pm:


I doubt that I have paid close to enough income tax in the last 24 years to cover the yearly income of a McDonalds store manager -- Heck, perhaps not even enough to cover the expenses of a part-time customer service person on the grocery checkouts. So, I doubt that I would be covering the costs of funding a retiree on a pension for very long into their retirement. That is not the point.

And to answer your question about receiving government allowances: Yes, I have had received government Youth Allowance and Newstart Allowances for the last 21 of the 24 years that I have worked. But, I can be forgiven for being on the partial dole for that amount of time, seeing that I have worked and have had to contend with a mental illness for the last 15 years. I have also worked full-time hours where the most I have earned was about 1700 inside a week. But the full-time hours only lasted 5 of the 24 years of my working life. So, it is not like I am some kind of parasite. I will start feeling that way if I give up my job or can't afford my retirement in my old age.

You have to admit that the Baby Boomers have had a pretty sweet ride over the last 70 years. Only the elder part of that generation had to worry about the idea of conscription into the army for the Vietnam War. And I suppose only the prolonged recession we had in the late 1980s and early 1990s was something that I would not want to endure. Beyond those issues, I could not imagine that the BBs were having all that much trouble with financial stress or home affordability, etc. Yet, we are now going to have to put up with most of them not able to afford retirement because they are too young to have had to save up enough super or are just entitled to the pension and a longer life expectancy than their parents.

And it is not like I have not done anything for this country that should exclude me being labelled a "parasite" on society. I will be the one to decide when that label should be affixed to me. As for BBs paying for dole bludgers, that must have been back in the days when getting the dole was so easy. In high school, we would joke about just going on the dole for years and wait for our opportunities with work. But, the reality was that we could not become "professional students" or hand in job search forms about a list of places we could work. We now have to do mutual obligation studies. If you were not in university or TAFE, you were doing some form of training. As such, and I wish I had tried this 20 years ago, I can work in the hospital or the aged care (pffft!) industry. And if I reacquire my motivation to learn information technology, probably something applicable indoors (but, not with my current attitude as stated).

Old people are retiring after having years working in a job that was guaranteed for them after completing year 10. My generation has had to stay on to finish high school, and then do some sort of tertiary education in a field that is screaming for employees.

My uncle retired from the mining industry a few years ago. He had the sense to invest in renting out homes. And now that he has retired, he decided to sell off a few homes (including one to my brother) and just rent out a few other homes to supplement his retirement savings. Mum worked in a white-collar job since her early 20s. But she has progressed so far that she has also gotten a 6-figure yearly salary. From what she tells me, she has enough savings to keep going until her 90s.

Actually, after 10 minutes of typing this, what is your point? I doubt that you do much more than I do. And off the record, you would have not have been as constructive as I.

Ye Grappler,

I will have to tell you my motivation behind my choice of words on this topic. I have basically done nothing considerable in terms of a job. I went to high school. Studied as casually as I could to get through school. And I did not even have a casual job until I was 17 years old... post-graduation. Since then, I have studied at university and TAFE on and off since 1997. Perhaps doing a couple of courses in TAFE and a couple of degrees in university (one of which was only half-way finished). So, I perhaps have about 25 years of full-time formal and voluntary education under my belt. Basically, I am overeducated/underemployed. And since 2010, I have been half-heartedly looking for work, whilst working part-time and a few months worth of full-time work.

Basically, I hold a bit of a grudge against the older generations who could walk into a full-time job after finishing high school at age 15. Dad happened to get an apprenticeship at 15 and then got his full-time work at 18. Mum finished high school, and got her own traineeship for a few years until she graduated. Now, both worked full-time jobs until I was conceived. Mum had to give up work whilst she had me and my two siblings. Then she went back to work and made her way in seniority up to a good-paying job. She is now considered invaluable along with her colleagues.

Meanwhile, I get stuck in a casual job so long that I am not really employable by the time I turned 25. And 16 years later, I can only say that my TAFE courses and traineeship has been the only thing to make me employable in a job that I will get for people around my age and employability -- and I don't mean fry-cook or taxi driver. As far as the community is concerned, I have not paid much in tax. And I will probably be seen as a parasite if I can qualify for the pension. My superannuation is so modest, that I might only be able to afford to retire for 10 years before it runs out. I don't expect to live beyond 75, so that might not be such an issue.

And whilst I cannot say that I deserve a pension more than other people, I doubt that we really need to be paying for people who retire before they turn 65 years of age. Plus, with the extended life expectancies seen in the last 30 years, I would expect those people who want to retire at 65 to keep working until they are at least 70. I want to keep working for another 30 years before I retire. But, I would only consider working if I am physically able to keep working. I expect that of anyone born after 1960. Dad actually gets my respect for continuing his working after retiring from his job a few years back. Like I said, he works part-time now. That's after working 47 years full-time (longer than I have been alive).

As for "certain ethnicities" getting paid more than the general public: I have actually heard a politician tell me in very uncertain terms that certain ethnicities get paid more in welfare per person than other ethnicities. And that does not take into consideration the higher unemployment rates among that ethnicities. Makes you wonder if that $60 billion in extra help money consists of $20 billion in extra welfare payments and $40 billion being pissed up against the wall for one reason or the other.

You just proved my point.

What you've written is purely assumption.... & in places laughable.

I've retired. So I guess I am now doing as much as you've done for most of your life = SFA.

After 46 years of shift work I'd say you haven't even scratched the surface at being constructive or comparable.

I'm buggered if I know how being unemployed more than working, being a fat couch potato when you're young, siring children indiscriminately & thinking you're a Don Juan is being constructive.

I think your attitude then & now is why you haven't held a steady job. I don't think you've ever wanted one.

No one had or has a guarantee of a job.

You using your mutual obligations for collecting the dole as an example of how tough you're doing or were doing is a joke.

Money for nothing & your chicks for free ey?

Your Uncle & your Mum have worked for what they have or will have in their retirement ... are you jealous?

Do you express your anti-Baby Boomer thoughts to them?

Bet you can't wait for Mum to retire to get her super ... I bet you expect her to hand you some.

Valkie wrote on May 27^th, 2020 at 5:51am:




Hi Valkie,
There were many times in my job that I created far more GST tax
for the Govt. than I ever got paid myself.
I wish I could have got a 10% bonus on the value of every job I did -
I would have $millions in the bank.
I also want to retire early so I can at least get some of my money back.

Grappler Truth Teller Feller wrote on May 27^th, 2020 at 8:56am:


Like those 10 to 14 hour days I did as a casual some years back? Or do you mean that I do not know what an 8 or 9 hour shift is like? I really am not that naive.

The grubberment lied to me right though my years of gainful employment.

They told me that if I worked and paid taxes, i could retire at 65 with a pension.

Well, they lied, now it's 67, but more fool them, I'm pulling the plug at 62 and using up enough of my super to be eligable for my wistfully deserved pension.

But these younger generation don't like it.
They think I'm getting something I don't deserve.
They base this on themselves, and I agree, they don't deserve anything.

I started work at 15............they stay at home, "studying" until they are well into their 20s
I moved out of home and started a family at 20..........they don't like the idea of families, they are too selfish
I saved and scrimped to by my first home, working 3 jobs to get a deposit.........they hold their hands out and demand, beg and cry for money.
I purchased second hand cars, furniture,  even clothing to save money........they want everything new, new cars, new everything.
I taught myself to repair, service and look after my possessions.......they just go out and buy new stuff and complain when the car breaks down.

They say we had it easy, that houses were cheap.
Bull shite
I got married on a tradesman wage of a princely $84.00 a week.
From that I paid $32.00 rent and about $20.00 tax, leaving me a wonderful $32.00 to feed, and cloth a young family.

Later when we were ready to consider buying a house.
They were around $180,000.00 and above.
My wage then had risen to a managers wage of about $150.00 a week, do the math.
Banks wouldn't give you a loan without a good deposit, and no one I know ever got the "first home buyers grant".
To be eligable for this grubberment grant, no bank would touch you because you didn't earn enough to pay a loan back.
Probably public serve us employees had special deals which made it work, but us working stiffs go no leeway.

In my other jobs, I was taxed at the top rate, because you couldn't just add all your earnings and get a tax on the lot.
You were taxed max amount for any jobs you did and could only claim on one.
Cash in hand was hard to get, but great when you could.

Cars were expensive, even second hand cars cost several months wages.
Not quality either, mot cars were very unreliable using points and distributors, carboys and some very primitive engines.
They weighed a ton, very heavy and they were very thirsty.
Repairs were invariably expensive, unless you did it yourself, many learned young how to fix the car.

The roads were even worse than they are today (yes that is possible)
Our family used to travel from Sydney to the central coast for holidays.
8 to  hours was quite common, one lane roads and broken down cars taking their toll.
That same trip now can be done in 1 and 1/2 hours most days.

Technology didn't exist.
No computers
My first couple of cars didn't even have radios.
Air conditioning ?  What's that.
Mobile phones yeah, right.
We didn't even have a phone in the house, we used the phone box on the corner.

We lived from week to week, most times going without because we had no money.
Never had a holiday, once I was married, count afford one.
Overseas travel? A dream, nothing more.
I was 19 before I had my first restaurant meal.
23 before I stayed in my first motel.

Life was tough, but we were tougher.

Not like the poor little pussies today who cry if their internet is down.

Valkie wrote on May 27^th, 2020 at 7:15pm:



We had it tough - not like these pansies now: