The cost of living... what can we do?

Proof of what most of know already. That politicians think the masses are incredibly stupid.

I wonder who gets to write government advice. I have a vision of loads of Eton educated hooray henrys sat in the golf club bar on a Friday evening, playing posh drinking games, one such game being, see who can come up with the most patronising advice for the peasants. When the game finishes, they shout some abuse at a junior clerk to come and take away their drunken scribblings and get it typed up and published before they can go home, or they'll get a jolly good thrashing.

 

I think the way people needed it all laid out for them during covid kind of suggests some of the people who are out there are pretty stupid.

The advice should have just been, meet as fewer people as possible, but no we had to tell them they could meet 4 but not 5, it just got stupid.

 

Agreed. The masses are really pretty thick.

 

Its a good job we are not the masses.
Its all them other people

 

But none of us members here are

 

In some ways yes. But that's because the state education system is purpose built to keep it that way. Who wants a country full of clever people being like, going around, making informed decisions at election time, sifting through available info to select fact from complete fiction. The state education system has one purpose. To churn out people who are just about clever enough to be employed, and who will do as they're told.

But I do think people have brains in their heads. Most of them at least. It's just a question of what life experiences have filled those brains that's the issue.

 

We'd have to be to have voted them in and not yet voted them out, no? So they've got logic on their side

 

I think more kids go to university than ever these days, where they tend to teach knowledge but miss out when it comes to common sense.
But then I guess you should have learnt common sense before you go to university really.

We have a shortage of people who are "just clever enough to be employed" since we stopped importing them from other countries to do our menial tasks.
Like empting you rubbish bin or cleaning the public loos or working at hotels etc.

Its often the "clever" ones that cant cope with daily life.

 

On the point about university, I think this is a perfect example of the outcome of state education. Universities have their value. But not necessarily for readying people for real life. Some of the bigger name universities conduct a lot of research which ends up in industry. How best to fund this research? Brainwash kids to believe they need to spend 9k per year for 4 or 5 years if they want any kind of career.

In my industry, I see many graduates turn up for interview. They have brains, but they're not filled with anything useful. It saddens me to know they're saddled with a debt the size of a small mortgage and at best we can only offer them a trainee level salary because for the first year or so, it will actually cost the company more to train them up than they can put in as added value from their nonexistent skills. They get promised starting salaries more akin to mid level or senior, but the reality is they'll start right at the bottom. It's just people farming.

That said, I wouldn't want to put anyone off going to uni or recommending it to their young relatives. They'll make good friends there and have a lot of fun, and from an employer's perspective a degree is proof of interest in the subject, even if not actually proof of skill or useful knowledge. I just think people should think carefully about all available options before making their decisions, as opposed to blindly believing the brainwashing that university is the only way to a decent life.

 

Unfortunately I know a few of that type around here, never intended working after they left skool and usually their parents never worked either.
They are usually pretty good a knocking out a few offspring that grow up to carry on the family tradition.

There does seem to be a dying breed that were always there, who worked hard at often not nice jobs, and didn't ask for much.
They were happy with their existence, as long as they had enough money to get by.

These are the ones we seem to have been importing for the last 20 or 30 yrs.

 

I knew some when I was growing up, whole clans of them, not interested in education or work. Mind you some of them were good workers, but didn't see why it shouldn't just be occasional and casual to top the benefits up.
They knew the benefits and council house system inside out and could run rings around some of the officials.
These days they could make a good living as "consultants".

 

When I was unemployed for 3 month 10 yrs ago I had to go to the jobcentre and show them how many jobs I had applied for every week, and tell them how the interviews went Etc Etc.

There was always this hard-core bunch hanging around who just got their card signed and were not interview at all, and they got their money just by turning up once a month, I think, they had me running around in circles applying for this and that, in the end I told them where to poke their measly £75.