I remind Mr Moran that many pensioners have private medical insurance though they struggle to meet the costs.

I remind him that many pensioners have been in a health fund for fifty years or more where they have rarely used it. Where is the incentive for those who have paid all their lives for nothing by remaining healthy?

He need not allude to the generous 30% discount afforded to pensioners by Mr Howard some years back. In a very short time after that announcement, the private medical fees increased by 30%.

I have affluent friends who refuse to pay for private medical insurance. The privately insured pensioners are included in those who must "prop" up these wealthy spongers.

Since the author made his way to this country only in 1974, he would hardly be an expert on the way these hard-working pensioners once lived their lives to raise their families.

I suggest he does some research on the bludging young folk who choose not to work.

These are the ones who continue to have babies with many different partners and receive huge payouts from Centrelink. Others manage to obtain a medical certificate declaring they are bi-polar, have a bad back or are drug induced schizophrenics.

Then you have the charming young men who go on the dole to avoid paying child maintenance or the young estranged mothers who just shack up and provide their children with yet another "daddy."

Do some research on the "single parent syndrome" Mr Moran and let us know how many aged pensioners received handouts when they were young men and women.

My mother was deaf and profoundly blind and raised two children alone without the benefit of government handouts. No Homeswest for us - no siree!

She truly deserved her pension in her senior years!

Do not attack the aged. Go after the cheats and crooks Mr Moran and the cartels with whom you associate. Back off from those who have worked hard all their lives, paid their taxes and are entitled to a pension and the trivial subsidies that accompany that pension.

Alan ,
Why should you and your government spend money on your parents and grand parents?

Answer : Because they are old ,that's why .

"The elderly are benefiting because they are growing in voting power but why should they be any more eligible than the young, the newlyweds, the middle aged and so on?" The sad fact of economics is opportunity cost. We CANT do everything at once that we want to. So, if the oldies get a bigger slice this time, then that's fine with me. I'm due to get tax cuts apparently, so that's my slice this time around.

As for the Transition to Retirement Pension, the author had better read up on the tax rates. Currently the marginal rate at $100,000 is 40% (or 41.5% including medicare levey), not the 46.5% the author states. Secondly the TRAP is available from ages 55-65. Those under 60 are still taxed on their pension from super (although at lower than normal rates), whilst those aged 60-65 get the pension tax-free (BTW this is their own money, not the Age Pension, that we are talking about). On top of all that, how many pension-age people do you know that earn $100,000 a year? I know a few, but certainly no-where near the majority. What does this mean? It means that while the concessions are available, its not a high percentage of people that can take advantage of them, so the overall cost to the tax pool is not nearly as high as some would have you think. Look back at the aim of the policy too (very easily forgotten) - its designed to help people cut down their work hours, and pump up their OWN superfunds, keeping off the age pension for longer (and thus costing the taxpaying worker less in the long-run).

Hitler?

Well yes in away.
The title of this thread is socially divisive.
The beginning of the 'slippery slope'.
Each generation contributes in different ways to society.

How many institutions, charities, community services, child care, kid's monitoring/help progammes, fund raising, service organisations etc., run by the Smith family,View, Meals on Weels, BoSL, SVDP. etc would simply collapse without volunteers from the 'retired' workforce.

I find it offensive that it has to be even justified in terms of cost or "usefulness."
and as the previous posted said: "How much is it really costing you anyway"?

Who built the infrastructure of this country after WW2?

It is not the oldies fault that Howard wants a 50 BILLION $ fund for his pension, 10 billion in Spanish boats, an illegal Iraq war,USA 'paper' planes that don't fly; navy helicopters that won't fly over water;$60M tea money for Chevron/Mobile,government advertising propaganda, millions in empty 'detention centres' (sic) etc., etc., etc.,
In the end it is all about what you think is valuable and worthwhile. A matter of priorities.

There will soon be two types of Age Pensioners, those born before
1946, and those born after, the teeming Baby Boomers. we old
oldies are being penalised because of the innumerable BB,s.
an insignificant number are now penalised by the Income means test
having such a low cut off,then equivalent to 40% tax at $100 a week
income! Oldies with sufficient initiative and energy to do creative
work should not be penalised for trying to improve their living
standard. We paid taxes for 40+ years. The pension was considered
a right, not a privilege until the Economic Rationalists took over,
after 1982
we need a genuine Social Democratic party without the environmental
baggage or the LLR baggage of the CEC.

I thought that every tax dollar I have been paying over the years has been put into a little shoe-box in Canberra with my name on it - and when I retire, the Government will pay it all back to me in fortnightly installments called a "Pension".