Times are tough all over

[jinx]

Originally Posted by SG

It is a different culture here. We pay higher taxes, so hard working people will take help that's offered without the same stigma as in America. Yes, council housing did get a bad name in the end, but certainly things like child support and state pensions are seen as rights, not welfare.

If you're all happy with the system you've got in place, well I think think it's fantastic.... although I wonder if so many hard working people would need help from social programs, paid for by taxes, if their taxes weren't so high. The hoops you have to jump thru to get the help have to cost a percentage of those taxes eh, making it more expensive than if you'd kept your money and bought what you needed yourself?

Also, it seems like the word welfare is a hot button of sorts... why is welfare bad if social programs are good?

Originally Posted by Dana

As a single woman with absolutely no DIY knowhow nor indeed a desire to acquire such, being able to phone the landlord when the boiler breaks down, or the lock on the front door starts sticking, is a definate plus.

I hear what you're saying but.... why is it easier to call the landlord than calling the boiler repair man yourself? Or is it the money.... you think you're saving on repairs by renting? Does real estate not appreciate over there? Of course everything is afu right now and I have no idea what our current house is worth compared to what we paid for it (especially since its listed as 2 seperate properties on those house-value websites)..... but our first house, purchased when I was 23, increased in value about $10K per year that we owned it. That's a lot of boiler repairs..... and potentially a lot of money put away for retirement.