Are you referring to corporate welfare, which dwarfs social welfare?
One of the first steps in eradicating the Age Pension
- Thread starter Mr. Fabulous
- Start date
Are you referring to corporate welfare, which dwarfs social welfare?
Do you have any evidence to back this up? I can tell you with absolute certainty that many of the self funded retirees I know all have their hand out.
My parents never had their hands out for anything as self-funded retirees. I'm curious Mr Fab what self-funded retirees are holding their hands out for?
I know my parents somehow were entitled to a senior card (not THE senior card), but something that allowed them to pay a little less for prescriptions than if they didn't have it.
Everything else came out of their own pocket, including the $500K entry fee (five years ago) when my dad had to go into care, and then it was another $750 per week on top of that from his own funds for the same care that the person in the next bed got for nothing more than the majority of the pension (with nothing much to spend it on anyway once you get to those places, except maybe a haircut).
It annoyed the crap out of my parents, but what is the alternative. I am very proud that they were clever enough, and worked hard enough not to be eligible for any pension, but most of their friends spent all their money on ciggies, hair treatments, holidays etc, and then when the salary stopped, they complained the pension wasn't enough to live on comfortably :roll eyes:.
We greedy investors won't get any pension, are subsidising renters, keeping the government in funds with stamp duty and land tax, look after our money... but I'd rather do that than have to rely on the pension in my dotage.
My parents too--they have worked hard all their lives and gone without, paid their taxes and yet received not one iota from the government in any form. They now have a seniors card, which helps with all their prescriptions--that's all. They would never dream of expecting anything from the government. I can't speak for all oldies though.
I don't understand this? The only people who may need welfare from the 'cradle to the grave' may be people with disabilities who require constant assistance, otherwise EVERYBODY has the opportunity to support themselves.
If we begin teaching this in school curriculum it may dissolve the feeling of some of the populace who 'believe it is their right to be supported'.
I do believe this needs to be reigned in also, but how does a liberal government (please don't let this thread turn into another liberal vs labour'a'thon) who must be seen to support big business change this?
The Age Pension they can get ( as tiny as it may be) and the concessions that come with it.
Mum's friends and rellies who are SF retirees retired 20 to 30 years ago with what was, in those days, a nice nest egg returning much higher returns than they get today. Those who are still alive have given away a lot of the capital to their kids and grandkids and otherwise drawn down the capital and now have nothing left.
a) Not enough jobs
b) Not everyone is as motivated
Go to countries with low welfare and high rich-poor gaps and you'll see heaps of barbed wire fences and SMG-toting guards.
That's entirely their own fault for making poor financial decisions.
Then they are not true "self funded" retirees and must fall below the asset level.
I have friends who are fully SF'd and don't receive a cent off the government, even tho they are full time carers of three school aged grandchildren
Lizzie, we're talking about them getting *maybe* 40 or 50 bucks a fortnight from the Age Pension. The majority of the time, they apply to get the concession cards and whatnot. It's not for the pension itself.
No; wrong.
Didn't you hear the stats?... the economy is swimmingly, and there are 100,000 jobs created every month.
Update;
just announced on ABC news this morning; there is "an alarming increase in customers who are unable to pay their utility bills"
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Note - it's adjusted taxable income...
http://www.humanservices.gov.au/cus...seniors-health-card/adjustable-taxable-income
I believe if you qualify for the card you will also get other benefits depending on where you live. Discounted council rates, discounted car rego, free/discounted long distance rail travel, discounted land line phones, etc etc.
Loads of my tenants are pensioners! Don't go to hard on them! 
