Jim Mellon - Pro Brexit

[WordIsBond]

Why is significantly raising retirement age morally dubious? People used to die a few years after retirement on average. Raising retirement age is necessary to make retirement sustainable. However governments and businesses should look at some kind of tapering off of the weekly hours people work and a tapering in of retirement entitlements, so there is no longer a cliff edge.

There's an implied social contract. People have worked for decades with the expectation that they will retire at 65. We've now bumped it a little higher, gradually.

It's one thing to tweak it by a year every decade or so. It's another to just bump it up to 73-75, which is what you'd need to do to return to a sane balance.

UK life expectancy is 81. If you have been promising someone with average expectancy a 15 year retirement, and he's 55 and put in 30 years paying into the system, you can't just tell him, 'Surprise, it's only going to be 7 years, we changed it to retirement at 74, you aren't working 11 more years, you are working 20.'

Tell him sorry, we're broke, it's going to have to be one more year, and he might not be happy, but there's always risks. But yes, I'd consider it morally dubious to undercut someone who's been paying in with an expectation and then drastically change it.

I'd also consider it morally dubious to just change it for young workers. You can't ask them to work 50 years to support a 15 year retirement for those over 50 right now and then only give them a seven year retirement.

So, morally, I think you have to increase retirement ages gradually. I also think you need to put a lid on state pension increases. The triple lock may have played great politically but economically/fiscally it was a disaster.

[WordIsBond]

Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries

Yes, dear old Dad, in the tradition of Hippocrates (which brings us back on topic to Greece, BTW) used elderberry for medicinal purposes, and when your wife is a hamster, you'd rather smell the elderberries than the alternatives, so he put it on thick. I'm not sure why these facts should bother you.

[WordIsBond]

I have my money where my mouth is, and my Greek portfolio is doing well.

You aren't living there or trying to find a well-paid job there.

[BlasterBates]

You aren't living there or trying to find a well-paid job there.

Are you ?

Doesn't look too bad

Jobs in Athens - Greece - for English Speaking Professionals

Just need to get off your backside if you want a job.

[WordIsBond]

Are you ?

LOL. Obviously not, but I'm also not talking about how great things are there. It's one thing to invest and have investments do well, it's quite another for conditions to be great for people living there. I doubt the average Greek person would measure his happiness with the political and economic scene by whether or not outsiders are doing well on their Greek investments.

[BlasterBates]

LOL. Obviously not, but I'm also not talking about how great things are there. It's one thing to invest and have investments do well, it's quite another for conditions to be great for people living there. I doubt the average Greek person would measure his happiness with the political and economic scene by whether or not outsiders are doing well on their Greek investments.

You need to check the correlation between profitability and pay.

Unfortunately a lot of Eurosceptics have little understanding of economics.

[BlasterBates]

LOL. Obviously not, but I'm also not talking about how great things are there. It's one thing to invest and have investments do well, it's quite another for conditions to be great for people living there. I doubt the average Greek person would measure his happiness with the political and economic scene by whether or not outsiders are doing well on their Greek investments.

The Greek company I invested in, increased the number of employees by 10% last year.

So not only am I making pots of money as they grow the company, so are my employees. You see I'm doing something to help the Greek economy whereas Eurosceptics just stand on the sidelines slinging mud.

[woohoo]

Unfortunately a lot of Eurosceptics have little understanding of economics.

I did say I wouldn't engage with you in this discussion, because you lack the ability to understand simple things. But just had to say coming from you the statement above is priceless.

You are the poster that keeps on giving.

[BlasterBates]

I did say I wouldn't engage with you in this discussion, because you lack the ability to understand simple things. But just had to say coming from you the statement above is priceless.

You are the poster that keeps on giving.

..ah so you're back in the discussion, but no rebuttal, just a flailing around rather aimlessly.

I think the value of my Greek portfolio says it all really.

[WordIsBond]

You need to check the correlation between profitability and pay.

Unfortunately a lot of Eurosceptics have little understanding of economics

You need to check the correlation between talking-point skepticism and Euroskepticism.

One does not have to be a Euroskeptic to think Greece is still in serious economic difficulty. The EU assistance has neither been a total disaster (there do begin to be signs of life) nor a success to brag about (it's still a mess). The only reason anyone would argue either of those positions is to bolster a political point of view.