Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 19, 2017 17:15:33 GMT
The problem is, I am always terrified by anyone who thinks they KNOW the answers.
They're the real issue.
Rog
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Post by lollygagger on May 19, 2017 17:27:55 GMT
Pension funds. I was about to rant about their ownership and demand for profit from UK shares leading to crap working conditions and pay at the bottom of the heap and this benefiting the lucky ones with cushty pensions, but...
I thought I should do a little research first. According to the office of national statistics, back in the early 1990's UK pension funds owned above 30% of UK quoted shares but by 2014 that had fallen to about 4%. This lack of backing- what's going on? Have they bailed out of UK? Have pension funds that were once in excess of their needs been raided to the extent that there is fuck all left to invest?
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ted
Junior Member
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Post by ted on May 19, 2017 18:08:39 GMT
Pension funds. I was about to rant about their ownership and demand for profit from UK shares leading to crap working conditions and pay at the bottom of the heap and this benefiting the lucky ones with cushty pensions, but... I thought I should do a little research first. According to the office of national statistics, back in the early 1990's UK pension funds owned above 30% of UK quoted shares but by 2014 that had fallen to about 4%. This lack of backing- what's going on? Have they bailed out of UK? Have pension funds that were once in excess of their needs been raided to the extent that there is fuck all left to invest? There have been some new rules that mean they have to put the money into government bonds because they are "safer". But these bonds pay hardly any interest so most companies now have "pension deficits" and can't afford to pay pensions as before. And guess who loses out?
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Post by lollygagger on May 19, 2017 18:41:33 GMT
I've just had an idea for a pension system that would also support pubs. The tax from your pint goes into your personal pension. The pension fund invests in more pubs. Sorted!
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Post by lollygagger on May 19, 2017 18:43:43 GMT
And betting -half your losses into your pension.
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Post by JohnV on May 19, 2017 18:49:50 GMT
The problem is, I am always terrified by anyone who thinks they KNOW the answers. They're the real issue. Rog I cannot agree more ........ people who KNOW they are right are the most dangerous people that exist.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 19, 2017 18:54:30 GMT
The problem is, I am always terrified by anyone who thinks they KNOW the answers. They're the real issue. Rog I cannot agree more ........ people who KNOW they are right are the most dangerous people that exist. Are you sure you are right about that?
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Post by JohnV on May 19, 2017 19:10:23 GMT
I cannot agree more ........ people who KNOW they are right are the most dangerous people that exist. Are you sure you are right about that? silly buxxer
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Post by naughtyfox on May 20, 2017 5:41:32 GMT
Good comments from lollygagger. I have dug out my Black List from under the papers on my desk and amended my original comment beside his name to '-actually sensible bloke'. I shall investigate Terry Pratchett's books this weekend.
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Post by naughtyfox on May 20, 2017 11:19:21 GMT
I'm getting a copy of 'Reaper Man' for starters - airport/flight reading...
Shortsighted management has forced another "downsizing". This time the victim of layoff is Death himself, "retired" by the Auditors. He does his job efficiently and he doesn't sass the boss. He's just become "too involved" with those due to receive attention from his infinitely sharp scythe. The Auditors want a firmer hand on the reaping blade. On the street with time on his hands, Death decides he's going to spend it. Wandering the Discworld, he "gets his feet under the table" as hired man at Miss Flitworth's farm. Although a bit confused about eating and sleeping, he's able to respond with resolute affirmation when she asks, "Can you use a scythe?" He demonstrates a harvesting technique only Pratchett could devise. With Death no longer performing his role, strange events result. Unconfined, the life force manifests itself in bizarre ways. Death, visible to wizards, fails to arrive at an appointment. In consequence, Windle Poons is subjected to various indignities. His colleagues have a prejudice about zombies. Not having actually died, Windle decides to "get a life". Over a century of breathing doesn't necessarily mean you've been living, and Windle, like Death, decides to see something of the [Disc]world. His colleagues, uncertain as to why Windle's still upright and subjected to some mild indignities of their own, seek the cause of unusual manifestations. If you're new to the Discworld, all this must sound pretty grotesque. Death "fired" only to become a reaper on a spinster's farm? Wizards who can see him and know precisely when he's due? Take heart, this isn't a bleak version of the Merlin legend, nor a Stephen King horror story. It's Terry Pratchett, a writer with an unmatched talent for looking at the world we live in. He peers deeply at how life works. Then with countless deft twists, restructures our globe into a flat Disc. The Disc's filled with novel ideas and even more unusual people, but on second glance all seem terribly familiar. Death isn't a killer, for example. He's only there to collect lives when they're due to end. Unlike the tax man, he only arrives once, and he's terribly, terribly good at his job. To those familiar with Pratchett, this book should receive high marks. All of Ankh-Morpork's finest are here - even Sergeant Colon makes an appearance. While enlarging on the cameos Death's played in other Discworld books, Pratchett nearly lets Miss Flitworth walk away with this one. But it's Sal Lifton who does that - the Small Child who recognizes Bill Door as a "skellington" as she ponders how he can eat or sleep. For it's Sal who personifies why Death's been put out to pasture [sorry!]. What that implies about Death's philosophy of life [sorry, again!] and how all this reflects Pratchett's own views becomes vividly clear when the "new hire" appears. As with many modern managers, the Auditors have acquired a labour saving appliance. Pratchett's great genius is many-leveled. A light skim of any of his books is to experience high mirth rates. His talent for quirky description and one liners you seek ways to use in conversation is matchless. But a few months later, Reaper Man may arrive unbidden back in your hand. "There's something else", you may muse, going back to seek it. More jewels will be discovered, the witticisms skipped over revealing things of deeper value. You will then discover why this reviewer considers Pratchett as one of today's most valuable philosophers. And who rejoices seeing his children with PTerry in hand. If there's hope for survival of this species, it will be people like Pratchett conveying human values to people who need it most - the next generation. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]
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Post by lollygagger on May 20, 2017 12:06:05 GMT
I'm getting a copy of 'Reaper Man' for starters - airport/flight reading... Shortsighted management has forced another "downsizing". This time the victim of layoff is Death himself, "retired" by the Auditors. He does his job efficiently and he doesn't sass the boss. He's just become "too involved" with those due to receive attention from his infinitely sharp scythe. The Auditors want a firmer hand on the reaping blade. On the street with time on his hands, Death decides he's going to spend it. Wandering the Discworld, he "gets his feet under the table" as hired man at Miss Flitworth's farm. Although a bit confused about eating and sleeping, he's able to respond with resolute affirmation when she asks, "Can you use a scythe?" He demonstrates a harvesting technique only Pratchett could devise. With Death no longer performing his role, strange events result. Unconfined, the life force manifests itself in bizarre ways. Death, visible to wizards, fails to arrive at an appointment. In consequence, Windle Poons is subjected to various indignities. His colleagues have a prejudice about zombies. Not having actually died, Windle decides to "get a life". Over a century of breathing doesn't necessarily mean you've been living, and Windle, like Death, decides to see something of the [Disc]world. His colleagues, uncertain as to why Windle's still upright and subjected to some mild indignities of their own, seek the cause of unusual manifestations. If you're new to the Discworld, all this must sound pretty grotesque. Death "fired" only to become a reaper on a spinster's farm? Wizards who can see him and know precisely when he's due? Take heart, this isn't a bleak version of the Merlin legend, nor a Stephen King horror story. It's Terry Pratchett, a writer with an unmatched talent for looking at the world we live in. He peers deeply at how life works. Then with countless deft twists, restructures our globe into a flat Disc. The Disc's filled with novel ideas and even more unusual people, but on second glance all seem terribly familiar. Death isn't a killer, for example. He's only there to collect lives when they're due to end. Unlike the tax man, he only arrives once, and he's terribly, terribly good at his job. To those familiar with Pratchett, this book should receive high marks. All of Ankh-Morpork's finest are here - even Sergeant Colon makes an appearance. While enlarging on the cameos Death's played in other Discworld books, Pratchett nearly lets Miss Flitworth walk away with this one. But it's Sal Lifton who does that - the Small Child who recognizes Bill Door as a "skellington" as she ponders how he can eat or sleep. For it's Sal who personifies why Death's been put out to pasture [sorry!]. What that implies about Death's philosophy of life [sorry, again!] and how all this reflects Pratchett's own views becomes vividly clear when the "new hire" appears. As with many modern managers, the Auditors have acquired a labour saving appliance. Pratchett's great genius is many-leveled. A light skim of any of his books is to experience high mirth rates. His talent for quirky description and one liners you seek ways to use in conversation is matchless. But a few months later, Reaper Man may arrive unbidden back in your hand. "There's something else", you may muse, going back to seek it. More jewels will be discovered, the witticisms skipped over revealing things of deeper value. You will then discover why this reviewer considers Pratchett as one of today's most valuable philosophers. And who rejoices seeing his children with PTerry in hand. If there's hope for survival of this species, it will be people like Pratchett conveying human values to people who need it most - the next generation. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada] You can read any book in any order, but the characters do develope through the series. Reaperman is great, but the character Death has a long previous history and if you know him already it's a better read. There isn't a bad Discworld book.
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Post by naughtyfox on May 22, 2017 6:38:59 GMT
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Post by lollygagger on May 22, 2017 7:23:47 GMT
Seriously though, please don't vote conservative (unless you normally do), they're destructive enough with a small majority - even in a coalition! The part of society the Tories represent doesn't really need representing, they have the power anyway no matter who gets in.
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Post by Telemachus on May 22, 2017 7:48:05 GMT
The part of society the Tories represent doesn't really need representing, they have the power anyway no matter who gets in. You have this idea that Tory voters are wealthy and powerful. Which is completely wrong. Lots of "working class" people, lots if ordinary middle classs people, vote Tory because they are the best option for sensible operation of the economy. This is why they have a majority. It is not because the majority of people in the country are "rich and powerful" - obviously. There may be arguments not to vote for the tories but yours isn't one of them.
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Post by Mr Stabby on May 22, 2017 7:55:04 GMT
The part of society the Tories represent doesn't really need representing, they have the power anyway no matter who gets in. Which is completely wrong. Lots of "working class" people, lots if ordinary middle classs people, vote Tory because they are the best option for sensible operation of the economy. I think the main reason people vote Tory is because the Tory controlled media tells them to.
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