Poverty in UK

[GortonBlue62]

There are plenty of perfectly decent rich people. The problem isn't the people, it's the system. We congratulate super rich people for giving money to charity to pay for the services that can't exist because of all of the tax they avoid (and in many cases, are legally obliged to avoid if they're the director of a company).

Bill Gates is your typical example of a philanthropic rich person. I have no doubt he genuinely cares and attempts to use his vast fortune to change things for the better. And yet how many countries does Microsoft avoid tax in? How many nurses haven't been hired or kids haven't been educated properly because of that? How many Americans have to get into massive debt for an education because the government "can't afford" to fund the universities any more?

The ones like you talk about tend to be smaller scale. The bloke who runs Timpsons is another example. But for every one of them, there are plenty of selfish bastards, and there are plenty of people put into positions where they're obliged to be selfish bastards or lose their jobs.

And the people that are employed by Microsoft and other huge companies have jobs that wouldn't have existed without Gates et al.

Those employees pay tax and spend money in the local communities. Schools (not the local bog standard comprehensive), car dealerships (that double garage won't fill itself), travel agents (trophy wife needs at least three holidays a year), etc.

Even if modern day robber barons were all as bad as you think, I'd say their contribution to society is overwhelmingly positive.

You are aware, I hope, that Bradley Hardacre and Alan B'Stard were fictional characters in sit coms, and that Brass and The New Statesman weren't documentaries?

Anyway I'm going back to worrying about the PL case against us.

 

[horlock_was_super]

"Many can't go there; and many would rather die."

"If they would rather die," said Scrooge, "they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.

Scary that this still ring true today.​

Dickens words would be relevant for almost every single year since he lived.

 

[Saddleworth2]

If you chose to be a nurse or care worker you're not really pursuing riches are you? And I'm making no judgement on people's choices.

If you have a clearly defined goal, which in the narrow context of this discussion is to accumulate great wealth, then hard work is a pre requisite.

Wealth accumulates wealth. Often hard work doesn’t come into it. If you mean it is possible to start with nothing and become wealthy through hard work then I agree it is possible. But no easier than any country that is fundamentally capitalist.

 

[Bill Walker]

And most of that land was originally stolen.
The perimeter of the land owned by the Duke of Buccleugh is 3,000 miles long. He owns about a third of Scotland.

I don't get why people in the UK think it's ok for these entitled few to own all this land in the United Kingdom.
I'm not bothered by the guy in Wales who has a holiday home with 2 jet skis and a Maserati. he could've inherited his parents house to pay for that. I don't mind anyone making money legally with a business, employing people.

Th aristocracy are worth billions, they are born as the Earl, the Duke, the Marquis of bollocks.
It starts with the Royal family and goes all the way down. The Prince of Wales owns 133,000 acres (but he won't fix the roads and he won't allow any farmer to buy his farm or make improvements), and yet most young nurses, teachers or care workers can't afford a terraced 2 up 2 down in a working class town. Let alone the fucking rates and heating bills, It's a preposterous state of affairs.

Surely it's time for a reset with all this unfairness, class system snobbery and land ownership. Starting with becoming a republic and getting rid of titles. Nobody should have a title. Release 20 million acres of Britain for the people who actually deserve a slice of it.

 

[mexico1970]

I don't get why people in the UK think it's ok for these entitled few to own all this land in the United Kingdom.
I'm not bothered by the guy in Wales who has a holiday home with 2 jet skis and a Maserati. he could've inherited his parents house to pay for that. I don't mind anyone making money legally with a business, employing people.

Th aristocracy are worth billions, they are born as the Earl, the Duke, the Marquis of bollocks.
It starts with the Royal family and goes all the way down. The Prince of Wales owns 133,000 acres (but he won't fix the roads and he won't allow any farmer to buy his farm or make improvements), and yet most young nurses, teachers or care workers can't afford a terraced 2 up 2 down in a working class town. Let alone the fucking rates and heating bills, It's a preposterous state of affairs.

Surely it's time for a reset with all this unfairness, class system snobbery and land ownership. Starting with becoming a republic and getting rid of titles. Nobody should have a title. Release 20 million acres of Britain for the people who actually deserve a slice of it.

Mate some people make out that British people live in some Victorian nightmare, it just isn't true. Workhouses and forced prostitution and children sleeping on flea ridden beds not knowing when they are getting their next meal.

 

[Bill Walker]

Mate some people make out that British people live in some Victorian nightmare, it just isn't true. Workhouses and forced prostitution and children sleeping on flea ridden beds not knowing when they are getting their next meal.

Haha, I have plenty of lifelong friends and family in England (and Scotland) I know exactly how they live, some well, some not so well.

So do you think it's fair, I mean the aristocracy owning on third of Britain ? Having enormous wealth while the working class struggle through life.

Kings & Queens have been completely screwing the working class for centuries. It's time it stopped and every time I see the gaumless twats standing outside the palace waving their little flags, hoping for a glimpse of some upper class snobby billionaire **** who wouldn't spit on them let along befriend them, it makes me wanna puke..

 

[Gaylord du Bois]

I preferred the Sex Pistols version.

 

[Deleted member 13905]

Kings & Queens have been completely screwing the working class for centuries. It's time it stopped and every time I see the gaumless twats standing outside the palace waving their little flags, hoping for a glimpse of some upper class snobby billionaire **** who wouldn't spit on them let along befriend them, it makes me wanna puke.

word of the day :)

 

[Stoned Rose]

I don't get why people in the UK think it's ok for these entitled few to own all this land in the United Kingdom.
I'm not bothered by the guy in Wales who has a holiday home with 2 jet skis and a Maserati. he could've inherited his parents house to pay for that. I don't mind anyone making money legally with a business, employing people.

Th aristocracy are worth billions, they are born as the Earl, the Duke, the Marquis of bollocks.
It starts with the Royal family and goes all the way down. The Prince of Wales owns 133,000 acres (but he won't fix the roads and he won't allow any farmer to buy his farm or make improvements), and yet most young nurses, teachers or care workers can't afford a terraced 2 up 2 down in a working class town. Let alone the fucking rates and heating bills, It's a preposterous state of affairs.

Surely it's time for a reset with all this unfairness, class system snobbery and land ownership. Starting with becoming a republic and getting rid of titles. Nobody should have a title. Release 20 million acres of Britain for the people who actually deserve a slice of it.

The Marquis of Bollocks would be a great name for a racehorse.

 

[mexico1970]

Haha, I have plenty of lifelong friends and family in England (and Scotland) I know exactly how they live, some well, some not so well.

So do you think it's fair, I mean the aristocracy owning on third of Britain ? Having enormous wealth while the working class struggle through life.

Kings & Queens have been completely screwing the working class for centuries. It's time it stopped and every time I see the gaumless twats standing outside the palace waving their little flags, hoping for a glimpse of some upper class snobby billionaire **** who wouldn't spit on them let along befriend them, it makes me wanna puke..

I don't think life is fair mate, it will never be fair no matter what system we live under and whoever has privilege, my point on this thread about poverty is that it's highly exaggerated to make it sound like people are genuinely starving and living in workhouses.

Just because someone is wealthy it doesn't mean that I automatically dislike them, this also applies to poor people.

The mantra IMHO of let's make all the rich people poor people is a bad one, most of this furore is caused and promoted by people who have a comfortable life and sneer at the real working class anyway.