Turnbull rolls over "again" to the ultra right
The "average wage" is $80 000 per year....... I don't know too many people on 80k......
@ yorkessurfer Yeah totally agree, but when he does get a go he seem too soft and beats around the bush
afraid of being politically incorrect or offending someone, we need a Keating to pull a few rabbits out of his hat and hairs out of Abbotts arse.
Too true old-dog, I'd prefer Shorten to have a bit more mongrel in him. The only thing I can think of is that he is trying to steer the narrative towards a more civil political climate? I wasn't a huge fan of Shorten either in the beginning but I'm warming to him as a better alternative Prime Minister to the current moron?
In breaking news a survey revealed today that 76% of morons resent being compared with Tony Abbott.
from sheepdog
The "average wage" is $80 000 per year....... I don't know too many people on 80k.....
you cleaely dont know too many average people...(me neither )
from yorkesurfer
.After less than 30 seconds the host announced that they were breaking away from that to a live feed from Japan where for the next 3 minutes there was silence as a bell was struck periodically to a static overview of a ceremony commemorating Hiroshima? I thought WTF?
because unfortunately three minutes silence is more engaging than shorten.
as old dog points out the opposition leader should be having a field day with the hypocrisy that abbott is peddling at the moment, unfortunately labor have left their run too late, which means we're stuck with shorten...which in turn unfortunately means there's a good chance we're stuck with abbott!!
someone's gotta liven him up, all these advisors and experts around him, and the supposedly left wing abc and we get nothing, give shorten a crack pipe, a fire cracker up the bum, brazillian coffee....anything..... abbott should be a sitting duck
from tonybarber
The aim here is that Hockey is proposing to reduce income tax for low to middle income earners
what the fuck are you ralking about tony?
I think it was actually a guardian arricle but there was absolutely norhing about low and middle income earners, well maybe middle income earners depending on how you define that, people on $150k is that a middle income earner??
then there was the talk of stopping bracket creep.
according to budget analysts wasn't bracket creep the only (wishful thinking) mechanism hockey had to start the long haul back to surplus?
tonybarber your posts become more ridiculous by the day...its like being in topsy turvy land reading your stuff
dare I say I told you so...
tonybarber you selfish froot loop
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/aug/24/kiribati-president-says-aus...
yes sypkan, it seems quite strange that there has not been constant pressure applied from within all factions of the labor opposition? obviously a decision has been made to wait until election date is announced and then they think their pr unit can do the job. Not a strategy I would be putting all my bikkies on as they are showing their ineptitude now to call the govt to accord for the australian people and the undercurrent of the upper labor crew skimming the union fees will still leave a sour taste in aussies mouths.
all in all, the australian public are getting short changed. Vote the Donkey, least you can pin the tail on it.
Sypkan…have you noticed that it seems to be mainly Kiribati affected by climate change which, as you know, is something modelled over the next 50 years. Not sure if you have been to the Maldives but except for tsunami affects there is no real talk of ocean levels rising. We should add to this that ocean levels are rising and falling depending on where you are, making this an area for more research. The proposed tax changes are aimed at all since they are trying to manage bracket creep but as mentioned this is only part the tax system and the debate is about the bigger picture. truthfully, this is a common call from both sides of politics - hence a bit of a furffie. Wouldn't take much notice of it really. ABS will have details on average wage earnings.
Tony Barber, no soup for you
Wrong again Tones .... Maldives government very concerned about sea levels.
Back to coal ...... The Alcoa coal mine and power station in Anglesea (Victoria) was switched off last Friday. Alcoa tried to sell the mine/power station as a going concern but couldn't find/get a buyer. The divest movement will continue to grow.
Anyone see Q&A last night and the tweet tag AbbottLovesAnal? Filthy but very funny in the traditional of the great Australian piss-take..
floyd wrote:Anyone see Q&A last night and the tweet tag AbbottLovesAnal? Filthy but very funny in the traditional of the great Australian piss-take..
it's happened before
(by the way, ain't Hildebrand a complete fuck-knuckle?)
Yes, Joe Hildebrand is a complete fuck knuckle
i think yorksurfer is probably right (I hope) regarding labor tryi g to raise the tone of oz politics. but I dont think it's working for them.
I think you're right too daverave about labor waiting for the election to be called. again not sure that'll work for them either because as you point out they're just givi g this impression of ineptitude. also stop playing tbe political games, australia needs them to be strong in opposition and do their fucking job, because they really cannot count on winning the election, a good opposition is a good opposition, regardless of election outcomes, and thus is where they are not building the public's confidence.
and old dog is right too. we need a bit of mongrel, Keating managed to be mongrol without lurking in abbotts gutter, you can do both.
and tonybarber, well....
Well Sypkan, yes your right we absolutely need a good opposition - critical for our 'good' democracy. Granted we are in a bit of turmoil with our choices. But my key point has been and is that if you have corruption (as in Labor, now and in the immediate past) then you can piss any good policies out the window. May relate, one day, my mates story as a truck driver delivering cement and tell of his stories re the union. Shorty is a problem and thats the problem we all have. Maybe listen to Martin Ferguson and see what he says.
"Maybe listen to Martin Ferguson and see what he says. "
Tony/Donny...
@sypkan-Labor could have attacked Abbott a lot harder since they lost the election but it should be remembered that until recently opposition parties used that time to regroup and formulate policy so when they do get returned to office they can hit the ground running.
After the hung parliament in 2010 Abbott's strategy was a departure from that as he went into an almost continuous 3 year election campaign in the vain hope of forcing an early poll. It didn't happen. And lo and behold when the Coalition were finally returned to office they were totally unprepared for running the country.
It's been a policy free zone since then and Abbott has had to go to lobby groups like the IPA for ideas. We all know how well that has gone down.
I just hope Shorten is keeping his powder dry until closer to the next election and will go in hard when it counts?
Abbotts battlers are North shore lawyers on $100+k. The so called average wage on which they base so much policy is a cruel joke that only benefits those at the top. If you had a pool of 100 people and 99 of them earn nothing but one earns $10 million then their average wage is about $100,000. It should be based on the amount most people earn which would be closer to 50k. Just another way for them to shaft the average punter and make it seem like we're all rolling in dough.
Abbott was like a broken record on Labors great big tax on everything , now his preferred option is to raise the biggest tax on everything (GST) by 50% and include fresh food. The well heeled would barely notice but those already struggling would go under. Luckily the prick hasn't got a majority in the Senate or we'd be rooted.
Why are you lefties so envious of others success? Abbots so called battlers are paying the lions share of tax old dog .
The 20 per cent of Australians on the lowest incomes pay no net income tax. They are entitled to income support through the pension, unemployment benefits, parenting benefits and other allowances. But they don’t pay income tax.
The next 25 per cent of Australians pay hardly any income tax, on average, about $1500 a year or $30 a week. These two groups, representing 45 per cent of the population who file tax returns, pay under 4 per cent of the income tax in this country.
So who pays income tax? Middle and higher income earners carry the income tax system. Those earning above $80,000 pay two-thirds of the income tax collected in this country. The 2 per cent of Australians on incomes above $180,000 really make up the revenue by paying 26 per cent of the country’s income tax.
High income earners are not the problem. It would help if we had far more of them.
With more high income earners, tax collections would increase and help pay for all the benefits and services the poor rely on. Income tax is the greatest source of revenue for the commonwealth government. The second largest source of revenue is company tax. It shows the same pattern.
There are over 800,000 companies in Australia but it is 1000 companies that pay 60 per cent of the company tax. It is the big companies that make up the bulk of the government’s company tax receipts. The only other major source of revenue is the GST
The trouble with the idea that we can tax the budget back into balance by soaking the rich is there just aren’t enough rich to go around. The government raised income tax by 2 per cent for top taxpayers in last year’s budget. This measure will raise $3 billion over 3 years and reduce the budget deficit by less than 3 per cent over that period.
In taxation it is more effective to raise small amounts from a large number of people than large amounts from a very small proportion of people. Raising the GST by 2 per cent would raise 10 times the amount that raising the top tax rate by 2 per cent will raise. That’s because everyone pays the GST and only 2 per cent of taxpayers are on the top income tax rate.
Peter Costello
Regarding the above, once again I reckon the economic health of a country can be measured by the strength and the breadth of the middle class. I think Australia is doing pretty well in that regard which in turn supports grocers very valid point.
I used to joke with my old boss that around lunchtime on Wednesday, I was finally earning money for myself such was the amount of tax I was paying. Wasn't complaining though, saw it as rent for being fortunate enough to be living in that beautiful country of ours and was well aware that there were/are many people less fortunate than me. It did gall me though that there are a small minority of people out there taking the piss who have neither the desire nor the inclination to try and better their circumstance.
Out of my hands now though, I'm busy minimising my tax in another country:)
Too true Grocer and Zen.
Despite the realities stated in black and white such as in a Grocers post , many people would still have you think this country is struggling because people that are paying as much as 49 cents in every dollar they earn still aren't paying enough tax.
Just read that it was Abbott that approached the US seeking increased presence in Syria rather than vice versa - could someone please knock this fuckwit out and throw him in the stocks.
It's like he hates Australia.
Blowin...your comment seems to contradict what the Libs state. Could you place your source for this ?
Going into Syria is totally different to going into Iraq. BTW how much tax is fair tax ? Is it better to just pay a wage and pay tax on what you buy ? That way you control how much tax you pay ?
I support an increase in the GST and applying it to all goods and services with no exceptions so long as the negative impacts that this would cause on those who can least afford it are looked after.
However, I support this only if its part of a proper review /change package of the taxation system.
The GST is paid to the states so any increase will not help the federal budget.
Just like its fair enough we pay GST on imported "on-line" goods and services for equity reasons its also fair enough the government looks at many of the taxation rules and concessions that favour high income earners ignored in grocer's comment like: negative gearing and capital gains tax concessions on houses, concessions on superannuation and family trusts tax concessions to name a few. In a former job I was amazed to find the legal ways very high income earners with family trusts were able to reduce their income "on paper" to such an extent that they paid very little or no tax and qualified for all sorts of government benefits.
The government should also tackle in a fair dinkum way tax avoidance by multinationals.
When talking tax in Australia always remember we are a low taxing country compared to the vast majority of OECD countries (look it up). People see taxes as evil but they are good so long as they are collected fairly and spent wisely, herein is the problem.
Floyd, you might be overlooking the fact that previous governments both Liberal and Labor have had ample opportunity to close these loopholes but for reasons that are quite obvious have chosen not to do so. Negative gearing and family trusts, self managed superannuation and other means of tax minimisation are not the sole domain of the conservatives. While it is within the law and to quote the late Kerry Packer, you'd have to be an idiot to not try and minimise your tax, that's the way it is. I agree with him because quite frankly he objected to the way it was spent and to a degree, so do I.
I think you really only see the very tip of the ice-berg, the truly wealthy and you have a real axe to grind with them. The vast majority of middle income earners may have an investment property, shares or some other financial mechanism in place that in the long term makes their retirement a little more secure. I still think that you feel that all this was just handed to them. Sheepdog says he doesn't know many people on 80k+ pa. I know lots of them and with the exception of one person I know, every single one of them have worked their arses off to get where they are.
And I disagree, I think Australia is a very high taxing country if you take out small, Scandinavian countries.
hey zen, I agree both side of politics have long known about and ignored the need to take action on tax loop holes. In many ways we need a new way of thinking to solve these problems, perhaps what we are seeing emerge on Spain might be the answer, no easy solutions.
No I do not think that middle income earners have it handed to them, most of us are very hard workers but some of us with proper accounting and legal advice have an opportunity to minimise tax and maximise government benefits. I have seen this first hand. People earning 200k via a company and family trust paying next to no tax by distributing the income to trust members - parents and children and thereby qualifying for youth allowance to pay for the children's university course. I have also seen trusts used to drop taxable income to levels where genuinely wealthy people qualify for the full (means tested) government benefits.
I want to see more wealthy people in the country not less so I'm not blinded to this us/them argument. But what I want is equity and fairness. There is ample independent studies that show how the wealthy gain most from negative gearing and superannuation concessions .... at a time when people living on welfare are doing so below the poverty line!!
zen, it all comes down in the end to what sort of country do you want. You quote the Scandinavian countries .... interesting that, again independent studies have shown those high taxing countries are also the happiest! Funny about that.
Aussies are doing ok. Consistently ranked highest in quality of life or HDI indexes.
Also remember, those that are minimising their tax also spend the most as well which has a flow on effect. This adds to your argument that an increase in GST would be the right thing to do.
Those that have more money to spend usually buy more and what they do buy is usually of higher value therefore contributing more.
Look, it's an endless argument and for the record I think Abbot is a cock-head but his predecessor wasn't much better.
tax- firstly, it has a pr problem- income tax- change it to Community Contribution Scheme- even people on benefits must pay it, over certain income, people get to say where 25% on that contribution gets spent, top tax bracket they get a list of choices.
the scandanavian countries zen and floyd mention also know that they are contributing to making their communities function, where as here, tax is like being ripped off not something that helps.
tax fraud- two weeks after i wrote to pollies and tax commissioner about multinational pharma and their tax payments, tax commissioner comes out talks about investigation into them, then two weeks of advertorial by pharma about the benefits they bring to aussie community finalised by may have to take sector elsewhere, production costs etc etc, the nothing else said.
tax loopholes cant be explored when pollies and mate are doing loop the loop through the hoop.
zenagain wrote:Floyd, you might be overlooking the fact that previous governments both Liberal and Labor have had ample opportunity to close these loopholes but for reasons that are quite obvious have chosen not to do so. Negative gearing and family trusts, self managed superannuation and other means of tax minimisation are not the sole domain of the conservatives. While it is within the law and to quote the late Kerry Packer, you'd have to be an idiot to not try and minimise your tax, that's the way it is. I agree with him because quite frankly he objected to the way it was spent and to a degree, so do I.
I think you really only see the very tip of the ice-berg, the truly wealthy and you have a real axe to grind with them. The vast majority of middle income earners may have an investment property, shares or some other financial mechanism in place that in the long term makes their retirement a little more secure. I still think that you feel that all this was just handed to them. Sheepdog says he doesn't know many people on 80k+ pa. I know lots of them and with the exception of one person I know, every single one of them have worked their arses off to get where they are.
And I disagree, I think Australia is a very high taxing country if you take out small, Scandinavian countries.
Agree Zen,
And don't forget, those that set themselves up better for their later years will be less burden on the welfare system as they're more likely to be self-funded. Therefore requiring less tax to be paid by future generations.
Welfare should be there to help those that need it... not to be abused by those claiming it as their birthright. If everyone had good intentions, the system would work. But in Australia, finding ways to exploit the system (both to avoid tax at one end, or get a free ride at the other) has become a national sport.
So its welfare cheats that have the system!in disarray is it Kaiser, can you post some of the numbers behind this claim mate?
kaiser says ... "But in Australia, finding ways to exploit the system (both to avoid tax at one end, or get a free ride at the other) has become a national sport". ..... Spot on there.
On welfare payments and those working hard and getting the rewards and those just plainly exploiting it ..... one question. What sort of country do you want? A dog eat dog one or one where the burden is fairly shared as are the rewards?
One final point .... many of us have been lucky to travel and into 3rd world countries. The thing that strikes me about my travels is how happy people can live with very little and where a sense of community order (mostly) overrides the individual.
"There are over 800,000 companies in Australia but it is 1000 companies that pay 60 per cent of the company tax. It is the big companies that make up the bulk of the government’s company tax receipts."
Oh......? The big companies ey, like shell, apple, bhp...righto.
Yep let's increase the gst and slug the poorest again, they should just eat/do less and stick to cheap garbage. What about including education and health in the gst too? Keep the poor out of services altogether.
zenagain says he knows heaps of people earning over $80,000 a year and that most middle class Australians are doing ok with investment houses and the like.
It's always good to hear how well the little Aussie battlers in that working class heartland of Main Beach on the Gold Coast are doing? Thanks for your perspective zen.
davetherave wrote:tax- firstly, it has a pr problem- income tax- change it to Community Contribution Scheme...the scandanavian countries zen and floyd mention also know that they are contributing to making their communities function, where as here, tax is like being ripped off not something that helps.
I posted somewhere previously about framing debates. With regards to 'tax', how's this frame (from George Lakoff...I've changed the reference to Australia):
"Taxes are what you pay to be an Australian, to live in a civilized society that is democratic and offers opportunity, and where there’s an infrastructure that has been paid for by previous taxpayers. This is a huge infrastructure. The highway system, the Internet, the TV system, the public education system, the power grid, the system for training scientists – vast amounts of infrastructure that we all use, which has to be maintained and paid for. Taxes are your dues – you pay your dues to be an Australian".
An interesting view on 'framing debates'.
http://www.jrmyprtr.com/know-how-to-frame-your-issue/
And to (mis)quote Bill Clinton, "it's NOT all about the economy, stoopids!"
C'mon Sheepy. I bloody well wasn't born there and like I said before, been working since I was 14. From a working class background in which my parents worked their bums off to give me more than they had. My brothers and I were not spoilt, we were taught the value of a dollar and what can be acheived with a solid work ethic.
manbat wrote:Yep let's increase the gst and slug the poorest again, they should just eat/do less and stick to cheap garbage. What about including education and health in the gst too? Keep the poor out of services altogether.
well actually a GST on education and health would probably hurt the well healed more given all those private school fees. i don't fear the GST if it has proper safety nets to help those who can least afford the tax. this is where hockey is dumbing down the debate coz he isn't talking about review of the tax system he's just cherry picking the GST
Manbat/ Floyd, it's more of an attitude or cultural thing, not really a numbers thing. I think the several comparisons to the smaller Scandinavian countries is pertinent. There is more of a village mentality, where everybody who can chip in... does. Where the majority are working towards a common goal. That being said, the infrastructure burden is nothing like what we have in the world's biggest island nation.
There is no doubt this is one expensive mofo to run. The class divisions, lack of cohesion and constant search for an easy way to be given a buck are eroding the chance to have a productive economy. Poor leadership, being stifled further by a rabid media, and a populace expecting the system to work the same way it did in the 50's... what hope do we have?
floyd wrote:manbat wrote:Yep let's increase the gst and slug the poorest again, they should just eat/do less and stick to cheap garbage. What about including education and health in the gst too? Keep the poor out of services altogether.
well actually a GST on education and health would probably hurt the well healed more given all those private school fees. i don't fear the GST if it has proper safety nets to help those who can least afford the tax. this is where hockey is dumbing down the debate coz he isn't talking about review of the tax system he's just cherry picking the GST
Sure if it was applied exclusively to private education and health but slippery slope I say.
Hey zen I think you should have directed that last comment at me not sheepy. Sorry for baiting you but my point was we often base our perspectives on the environment we are surrounded by when growing up.
The start of this thread was a comment by floyd about the demise of the car industry under the Abbott government. I started work at 15 doing an apprenticeship at Holden. I used to ride my bike from my middle class Adelaide suburb down Port Road to the scummy North western suburbs around Port Adelaide. It opened my eyes to a different world.
I can't help but wonder if Abbott had not withdrawn the $500 million of car industry assistance promised by Labor when he won government whether the car companies could not have ridden out the perfect storm of a high Aussie dollar and changing consumer demand?
By investing in the latest technology and producing more marketable car models, and with the lower Aussie dollar the whole industry could have been suddenly more viable? Guess we will never know?
The truth is that this government by abandoning the car industry and lying about the submarine project has shafted my home town big time.
This is my perspective on this but maybe I'm a product of my environment too?
Apologies to sheepy, sorry yorkes I meant to address it to you.
I agree 100% with everything you say. I had relatives at the Ford factory at Broadmeadows. Same scenario .
It's tough and I don't think you can lay total blame on just one side. Both are complicit. For too long we have relied on mining, agriculture and tourism at the expense of what was once a very viable manufacturing sector.
Most folk I know are around the 40 to 50k area full time.... And I know alot of people not full time, but subbing or working casual....
Zen.... You have to take into account the cost of living here....
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-04-17/australia-tops-the-global-charts-f...
"Sydney and Melbourne have both cracked the list of top 10 most expensive major cities to live in at fifth and eight respectively, while Sydney had actually been in the cheapest 10 only 14 years earlier."
So in 2001, Sydney was in the top ten CHEAPEST cities to live in, in the world.... Under the stewardship of John Howard with his home owner grants, negative gearing, middle class welfare, then with Rudd and Gillard sitting on their hands, and now with the Abbott, the worse government I have ever seen, we are the most expensive country in the world...... I don't drink, but 50 bucks for a carton of beer is criminal........... And $1 000 000 for a shitbox average house in Sydney is monty pythonesque... Many say "we've never had it better"..... If being up to ones eyeballs owing a mortgage of 800k, or leaving Uni' owing 150k is "never having it better", then I've missed something......
when I bitched about hockey talking about tax cuts I'm not bitching about the rich, I'm bitching about how can you possibly talk about tax cuts (for anybody) with the budget as it is? it's ideology that makes a conservative government talk about high end tax cuts in the current situation, not practicality. and the counter argument goes that rich people pretty much have all the money they need so tax cuts do little to benefit the economy. whereas more money for low earners means lots of people with more expendable income spending. lots of little money from a wider base of many which means much more money, like grocer pointed out regarding tax
I generally agree with everything zen and grocer said because I see both extremes. I have friends on well over $100 000, but when I return to my ghetto I am surrounded by friends on welfare. some of these are rorters with little appreciation of how hard some have worked to improve their lot, some are genuinely doing it tough because their environment and circumstances don't facilitate much else.
sometimes I work extremely hard, sometimes I extremely dont work, its complicated. but one's surroundings have a lot to do with it. someone getting $80 000 in sydney is hardly a rich person, it's almost a necessity. in the nineties I couldn't get a job for six months in my ghetto, but after just two weeks in sydney I had two jobs (low paying) but I needed both to have a life. I hate to think what I'd need for a good life in sydney now!!
I take shatner and daves perspective on paying tax, irm happy to pay it therefore I do little to minimise my tax....yes I am a fool. but the country and incomes have changed significantly recently with the extremes becoming more extreme. I also have negatively geared friends who have worked hard to build some wealth, but a recent article about hockey's cosy little financial and residential arrangements showed most people benefiting from negative gearing are more in hockey's class rather than the hard working mums and dads we are lead to believe are benefitting from it.
regarding australia doing alright, that's questionable, in the past I've never had an issue getting basic services and I have felt reasonably equal in the services I am entitled to. I recently had a good work week and payed over $800 dollars tax, in the same week I had to wait two days just to see a GP, payed a ridiculous amount for some medicine, and was put on a three month waiting list to go to hospital for an unrelated illness that kinda needs looking at now. australia doing alright? doesn't feel like it around here
while i payed a ridiculous amout of tax, and a ridiculous amount for medicine, couldn't get the services I needed, wealthy friends with businesses, nice cars, nice houses, share portfolios and a propensity to reduce taxable income, see the GP for free and enjoy token prices for medicine through health care cards. .there is no incentive to be a below average income earner trying to do the right thing
Re' bombing Syria.... Who asked who.... who said what... Who fuckn cares........ We know the real reason... Right?
Look, guys, I'll admit my views are a little bit skewed because when I left Australia 10 years ago I was in pretty good shape financially. I had a good job, nice car, fuel card, company Amex, phone and was on a pretty good salary. I came back for a holiday a year later and not much had changed. Two years after that 2008 I brought my girlfriend (now my wife) back to show her my area, try some Aussie tucker and to pat a kangaroo. It was like being smacked in the face. The prices had gone through to roof- everything, food, transport, accommodation, leisure, real estate, cars you name it. It seems like prices had doubled in just a couple of years. On subsequent trips it seems even more expensive. I don't think we paid less than $50 for any sort of meal for two including take-away.
Anyway, life in Japan. I live in the country so I can only compare here. Tokyo is much more expensive. Japan has very little inflation and in fact prices have hardly risen since I came. Japan was very expensive 10 years ago. Now, it is positively cheap compared to OZ. The minimum adult wage here is about $8.60 an hour. The average salary is about $2500-$4000AUD per month excluding twice yearly bonuses which are a cultural thing here. Most people do ok on that. Most houses are single income with most women being stay at home mums and focussing on the kids (read putting intense pressure on the kids to excel at anything).
A house can be bought in this area for about $100k for a fixer upper to $300k for something built brand new. There is no such thing as the first home owner grant. After the tsunami here you can understand that beachfront land is pretty cheap- ha ha. Houses do not appreciate in value. You will rarely make money in real estate. Rents seem to remain constant with what I would consider price fixing.
Education is free and lunch is provided. Class sizes are bigger and schools don't seem to be as nice as Oz schools, quite utilitarian really. Most parents fork out extra for extra- curricular clubs and extra tuition. The whole cram school industry is a multi-billion dollar industry which is what I have built my business on.
Food is cheap, plenty of competition both in supermarkets and restaurants. Eating out is cheaper, the average set lunch will run you about $8.00, a decent dinner about $15.00. Of course there are expensive options and super cheap options but you can smash a Ramen or Soba set for less than a tenner. A pint of beer is about $4.50 and a packet of ciggies (I don't smoke) the same. Can of Coke or bottle of water $1.25. Fruit is very expensive though, seafood very cheap.
Clothes are cheap, new pair of jeans about $50 pair of Nike or Asics sneakers about $70.
Cars are cheap to buy but expensive to keep. I have a Subaru Outback and my wife drives an A4, to keep them both is very expensive. Fuel has come way down but the average price for a litre is about $1.40. Diesel is very cheap $1.15 a litre, go figure? Insurance, government charges and tax are very expensive. Tolls on expressways are crazy expensive- looking at about $15.00+ per 50km.
Healthcare is very good but I pay a lot. I don't bother with private as the system is very good and very efficient. I pay about $200 per month in national healthcare but that includes dental. There is always a co-payment and at the moment I go to an ENT specialist twice a week to get my ear cleaned and it costs me $3.00 each time. A check at the dentist costs me $5.00 and the last filling I had replaced set me back $20.00. A hospital stay will be about $50 a night and there is an expectation for families to contribute to the care, it's hard to explain.
Leisure can be up or down, a new surfboard will be $1200+ and a wetty closer to $500. In winter I practically live up the mountain snowboarding and a lift ticket will be about $45.00 on the day or cheaper if bought in advance like I do. Lunch up there once again will be a tenner. But a return day trip will cost me $75.00 in stinking tolls though for about a 300km round trip. But, I checked the price of a lift ticket at Perisher this year- $128!!! No wonder Niseko and Hakuba are so popular.
Transport is expensive but very efficient and to the second, no delays but they won't wait for you either. The Japanese don't mind standing on transport, it's a fact of life.
The Japanese couldn't give a fuck about the environment and there are some really questionable practices here. They have what is known as a develpment priorty that takes precedence over all else. The beaches and the ocean are a resource, nothing more. With the exception of expressways, roads are pretty crappy and litter is everywhere. They are poorly maintained and footpaths are overgrown and covered with weeds until they have the bi-annual mass clean-up. Australia is very neat and pristine compared to the non-tourist areas of here.
Anyway, I could go on. I'm just wondering how this campares with back home? I'm coming back for a week end of October so will probably see for myself. I love Australia and miss it but by the sounds of things it does seem to be sliding back a bit.
Just thinking about the lost 3 years of the Abbott Government. No agenda, no policy.
The CEO of the Commonwealth Bank, former Treasury Head, the current head of the Reserve Bank and leaders of industry heads are all screaming for government action/reform meanwhile in Abbott-Land ....... zzzzzzzzzz
Interesting info on Japan, zen. Seems Japan is still in recession - maybe Aus is heading that way !!
Still many Japanese surfers on the Goldie. The pricing you mentioned is difficult to compare as many maybe subsidised. I suspect oil, petrol, diesel is, as I believe Japan imports its fuel. I am sure you will find major changes. My mates go there for skiing and confirm what you say. Great skiing.
@grocer, I might be a lefty but I certainly don't envy anyone , I am as happy as a pig in shit sitting here in my lounge chair with panoramic sea views throwing down a grease burger and Corona. I too have worked hard and paid a shit load of tax all my life. I cant disagree with anything you said but I guess my point is that everything Abbott does seems to help those that need it least. There are a lot of good hard working people out there slogging their guts out on low wages who are struggling to make ends meet , They will never own a home let alone an investment portfolio. I guess Abbott would say that they should have gone to Uni and got a decent job, but not all people can be doctors or lawyers and someone has to do the low paid jobs like retail, hospitality, aged care etc. etc. These are the people I'd go in to bat for as quite often they are worse off than the welfare bludgers. These are the people who Abbott seems to want to punish. Then again what would I know.
No-one got anything to say about the loss of the car industry under a government and high viz Tony that promised to create 1,000,000 jobs?
Slumber away ........