Yabby,

I agree that we all have to live within our means. I am also doing that as our family wage has declined some $40,000 as my partner stays home to look after our kid. That was our choice.

But please, spare a thought for the families (and others) that are struggling to pay for basic everyday needs. There numbers are rising and how we address them is a test for any advanced society.

As for other comments, I am not necessarily advocating higher wages and taxes, but ideas that can make a difference, as hard as it is when Australia also needs to remain competitive in economic terms.

Its a matter of economics, throwing more money will not fix the situation that is caused by not having the ability to be able to budget.
Those people need other services, including those that prefer to live on the streets. You have to have an annual budget to work out a weekly budget.
Every income day your utilities payments are direct debited, this includes m/bank private.
All of your other bills are calculated on an annual amount divided into income day amounts,
You then know how much you need to draw each income day.
Then you separate different lots of money into different bill paying envelopes. You then have left in cash, grocery money and pocket money.
Simple.
You then know if your income matches your expenditure.
Two persons on a pension in their own home, should have an excess of around $300/fn.

*There numbers are rising and how we address them is a test for any advanced society.*

Given that Australians are up there as the world's largest gamblers,
blowing something like 18 billion a year on that addiction, perhaps
they need to close down the pokies. Giving them more money won't
fix it.

Yabby,

It must really annoy you that Aust govts keep on adopting policies that help lower income earners. After all, you believe they are all losers and just gamble their money away. They should simply work and study harder.

What world are you living in? You sound very much like one of Reagan's speeches that the US was built on family values and hard work alone.

Keep dreaming. Maybe Aust will return to the relatively heartless society it was a hundred years ago when the wealthy paid little income tax and many more (as a proportion) lived in dire conditions.

But get used to it. Aust govts and Austs show few signs of abandoning a commitment to decency. Just look at Howard, a centre-right govt that knew that people needed greater assistance, although some will argue it was too much geared towards families.

What will happen in the future given our present economic woes? Hard to say, but higher taxes are emerging in the US.

*It must really annoy you that Aust govts keep on adopting policies that help lower income earners.*

Why should it annoy me if Govt helps low income earners help
themselves? I am all for it. OTOH I am also aware that there are
a whole lot of Australians who think people like you are idiots.
They will take every extra dollar that you pay, if all it takes
is a bit of a sob story. They are seemingly far smarter then you
are, for they know how to screw the taxpayer with impunity.

*You sound very much like one of Reagan's speeches that the US was built on family values and hard work alone.*

So because I point out that around 18 billion $ are being blown,
largely by the poor, to benefit the rich who own the gambling
joints, I must be like Ronnie Reagan? Chris, what on earth
is in that pipe you are smoking ?

Yabby

I will retract my comparison of you and Ronnie.

But have you ever thought of the similarity between gambling and housing. We all know that govts do the wrong thing by relying on gambling taxes, but is it also possible that govt by relying on a speculative housing boom also creates misery through much greater home unaffordability. Or is that alright if many make a profit from their second, third, and fourth houses, while others just look on and hope prices oen day come down without a major recession. Maybe govt should just let house prices go to 10-15 times average wages.