Yes Don, we are in the same boat. The problem is that 'the public dole' itself has been all but eliminated through carefully crafted actions over the last few decades.
On Oct 6, 3:09 pm, Don Johnson <[email protected]> wrote: > I had dreams of an early retirement in the mid 90's. Now I realize > I'll work until I'm dead. More and more of my earned income will be > syphoned off to pay for other's apathy and poor economic choices. I > work for The Greater Good and lately have nothing left to put away for > tomorrow so I may very well end up on the public dole myself before I > finally shuffle off this mortal coil. It's a depressing thought. > > dj > > > > On Tue, Oct 6, 2009 at 6:50 AM, archytas <[email protected]> wrote: > > > My guess is the underlying economics doesn't work and it may be that > > human survival and a decent society is much easier than we have > > recognised. This latter may be the reason 'economics works' - almost > > any mad dross would. I know of no scientific critique in the area > > other than a resignation amongst scientists that the stuff is daft. > > Our traditional right wing party has come out today with the"idea" > > that we should all work longer before we can retire - Doris may be > > right in musing about the world-wide. "All" means 'those less > > fortunate'. Some have already lost good pension entitlements and drop > > there kit every year on a party conference beach to remind us. > > Unemployment in the UK is massive and hidden through people being able > > to claim sickness benefits or disappearing off the screen. > > Truth flew away long ago, perhaps just as we got the means to secure > > it through technology. I've contributed through work most of my life, > > but there is little sign that anything I've built up is really under > > my control and plenty of reasons to rue not being more selfish and > > just made a life in which I could just watch the mess from a house on > > the hill. The human population has risen three times in my lifetime, > > to me a significant fact in our inability to take control of > > evolutionary defaults and change them (with all the moral issues this > > involves). > > I worked in Soho for a while, watching what was a 'good night > > out' (years ago) and just found myself wondering why life is so bad. > > There can seem very little to do because of something central in the > > way we are 'nurtured'. I'm not sure sitting on a Brazilian beach as > > an academic about to pontificate on postmodernism was any less squalid > > - perhaps more so as even as a cop I could sometimes stop some of the > > worst. I'd ask Francis what paid for the financial services > > revolution - but suspect he knows. > > The answers are probably simple and concern smaller ideas than daft > > economics (about which most people know nothing - reminding me of > > church services in Latin). > > > On 6 Oct, 09:06, ornamentalmind <[email protected]> wrote: > >> Nowhere To Fall > > >> Facing the economic crisis in the U.S. > > >> October 2009 By Katie Beran and Celine-Marie Pascale > > >> ________________________________________ > >> Few people will escape the effects of the global economic crisis that > >> has been unfolding since the fall of 2008. While the stock market's > >> steep declines conjured immediate comparisons to the crash of 1929, > >> David Kyvig points out that the broad economic effects of the crash > >> (apart from immediate losses in the market) became apparent only in > >> 1933 when the entire nation was in a depression. The devastation of > >> that depression took 25 years to correct. Notably, only 2 percent of > >> the public owned stocks in 1929, while 50 percent owned stocks in > >> 2008. In this precarious context, it is especially important to > >> remember that in 2007, a year before the stock market crisis, the U.S. > >> Census Bureau reported 37.3 million people were already living in > >> poverty. The announcement didn't make front-page news and no one > >> declared a crisis. No one called for government intervention. > > >> When the stock market crashed in the fall of 2008, stories of layoffs > >> among construction workers, auto workers, factory workers, bankers, > >> and stockbrokers quickly dominated the news. The public faced daily > >> reports of retirement pensions ruined by the crisis and the dire > >> consequences that people in or near retirement now faced. Stories on > >> the foreclosure crisis described a devastated middle class facing cuts > >> to wages, and health care. Still, no one reported on the millions of > >> people who had nowhere to fall—people who never held a job with health- > >> care benefits or pension plans, people who had been working at low- > >> wage jobs doing their best to pay rent and keep food on the table. > >> Millions more now face this kind of severe poverty. … > > >> More at:http://www.zcommunications.org/zmag/viewArticle/22730 > > >> On Oct 5, 3:31 pm, Doris Ragland <[email protected]> wrote: > > >> > Well here as far as Postal Service we did have postal trucks in rural > >> > area's > >> > now if you work for the Postal Service ir rural area's you use your own > >> > vehecial and put a yellow light on top..and some are only part > >> > time...not a > >> > good balance of pay for that person..part time no insurance...part time > >> > on > >> > any Job here in America is less insurance..this is a level of blue collar > >> > people with under average pay and they are hard workers...they have even > >> > cut > >> > retriement out on alot of the big company's here like they used to have > >> > ..now it is the 4-K Plan...used to you work to retriement and you would > >> > get > >> > like at least sixty and over thousands to add to your retriement not > >> > good I > >> > don't think on 4-K it is less but better than nothing..these things are > >> > not > >> > my department in solutions but I can see right now it is less than in > >> > 60's > >> > and 70's so forth..and yes we have the problem of cost in PO and many > >> > other > >> > things...travel expense goes up when it is time to vacation are all year > >> > travel..and just found out here are SS in 1917 seventy-six cents on the > >> > dollar because we have finicial problems is this world wide? It seems > >> > people overcome and probably will keep on living but what quialty? To > >> > find > >> > solutions to this the way it was here seem to work better back in > >> > 60's-70's-it started changing.. > > >> > On Mon, Oct 5, 2009 at 8:20 AM, [email protected] < > > >> > [email protected]> wrote: > > >> > > Well lets take our fine British empire as an example huh. > > >> > > Trains, that Thacher woman privatised them and it has taken ohh what > >> > > about 20 years for the service to come relativly good again, although > >> > > the price I now pay for the privilege of being squesed into the 8:15 > >> > > to London Bridge every weekday morning does seem too much. > > >> > > Health service. A few years back now our hospitals were given the > >> > > option of becoming NHS Trusts, meaning a reduction in the money they > >> > > recive from goverment in return for the more self sefisency and the > >> > > chance to run like a business and make their own money. This happend > >> > > during the time I was working for one such hospital, moral hit rock > >> > > bottom as more and more frontline staff were let go and more and more > >> > > middle managment recruited, one of the reasons that I left. > > >> > > Post Office, well we can see what state that is in right now. Energy, > >> > > likewise(cheating bastards) > > >> > > Privatisation I guess may cost the goverement less, and maybe it > >> > > actualy makes more money for these 'companies' but history since the > >> > > Thatcher era shows us that what this in fact does is makes more money > >> > > for the board of directors, and impacts negativly on service. > > >> > > Privatisation, umm I wonder if it is any sort of chance that it reads > >> > > like privateers? > > >> > > On 5 Oct, 11:57, archytas <[email protected]> wrote: > >> > > > An NHS comes with reds under beds Lee and cleaning services so bad > >> > > > you > >> > > > can never get rid of them! A sensible question might be whether the > >> > > > private sector ever did anything better than the public sector - this > >> > > > seems a bit odd for me to say as I generally loathe Town Halls. Yet > >> > > > much 'comparison' has been done against economies run by mad people > >> > > > (Sino-Soviet etc.) or ones in which the West has had an imperialist > >> > > > hand. CEOs of US companies that would have been nationalised in > >> > > > Europe often said they competed against them in the fear of being > >> > > > nationalised if they didn't come up to scratch. I doubt many in the > >> > > > UK really think our privatisations have done much good - what > >> > > > academic > >> > > > evidence there is suggests considerable harm in surprising areas like > >> > > > 'education' (piling it uselessly into colleges when the big national > >> > > > companies were hands on). Gas and electric prices are now broadly > >> > > > the > >> > > > same across the 6 suppliers. There's no sensible argument about any > >> > > > of this unless you dig deep - much of that frankly hit by the same > >> > > > emoticons as the surface. Doris makes some sense just talking about > >> > > > what actually happens - we could do with more of that kind of stuff > >> > > > to > >> > > > compare systems. > > >> > > > On 5 Oct, 11:05, "[email protected]" <[email protected]> > >> > > > wrote: > > >> > > > > I'm still finding this really hard to understand. > > >> > > > > Why procisly is a health service in which all patients recive free > >> > > > > healthcare, free that is at the point of service, considered a bad > >> > > > > thing for some? > > >> > > > > What are their worries or their fears? > > >> > > > > On 5 Oct, 03:14, Doris Ragland <[email protected]> wrote: > > >> > > > > > I work in the Health insurance for years in US and processed > >> > > > > > claims > >> > > in two > >> > > > > > major insurance company's ..major medical..I think this.. as > >> > > > > > being > >> > > self > >> > > > > > independent in our country > >> > > > > > is good and at one point was very good at a period of time > >> > > > > > here..but > >> > > things > >> > > > > > changed where the company's > > ... > > read more »- Hide quoted text - > > - Show quoted text - --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups ""Minds Eye"" group. 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