Discontent #9 food, energy, transport, cost of living, society etc

[candyland_]

Look in an old persons trolley next time you’re food shopping.They always have about 8 bottles of red wine I’m in there buying the basics and they are down the alcohol aisle

They also had a life where they were able to pay off their mortgage young, many got very good pensions etc.

Many I know bought their houses for pennies and they are now worth close to 500k. It’s insane.

 

[Thetruth123]

Big pack of lean mince £6:30 I used to bitch when it was £4.50

it’s literally every week everything is going up
A big shop for my family if 5 used to be £120 now it’s minimum £200 nothing drastically different!! I really can’t comprehend how families on benefits or low incomes are doing it and I feel I still don’t get everything I need!

 

[jackolantern]

Food prices are getting terrifying and they seem to be getting worse every week. Meat especially, we really are going back in time where only the rich can afford good quality food. Not even good quality really, just not diabolical.

 

[pixxyy]

I did this before & have had a new shop since then so I cant compare previous shops.
But my latest Tesco was £76.26 Today it's £93.47 thats how much it changed since Nov 14th

 

[bowtiesarecool]

Had the in-laws over this evening for their usual post-holiday cuppa (their holiday, not ours ).

They moaned the house was cold. Had to calmly explain that the thermostat was set to 17 degrees which is more than adequate, and sadly all we can afford if we want to make it through the winter. We simply put an extra layer on (Amazon oodies in our case) or get the dog to sit on top of us to warm up!

Not my fault they'd come from their sauna of a home, and don't need to worry about bills. Their idea of saving money was instead of getting their usual monthly box of wine from Laithwaites, they got the 25% off 6 bottles at Asda

 

[cesarea-tinajero]

Speaking of cars..
Every single day my 32 year old friend complains that they can’t afford to move out of their parents house. They don’t have any bills other than their phone and car insurance/car tax and they don’t contribute towards any of their parents bills or pay rent to live there.. They’ve just dropped 32k cash on a second car. At one point they had owned 3 cars. Why one person needs 3 cars I will never know but it’s crazy to me that they constantly go on about not being able to afford to live. Stop buying cars then

32k is house deposit money!

 

[JLXRD]

Does anyone else feel like they are trying to cover the governments inaction with a lot of stories about the migrant crisis? So that the focus pulls away from them and the blame can be placed on migrants and refugees?

It seems very conincidental timing that this is now such a focus when we are now apparently facing a 2 year recession that will go into the next election.

 

[Yel]

I wish just once you'd hear "housing is too expensive" rather than the issues being blamed exclusively on people not being paid enough.

You fix housing and so many other issues are fixed. But neither labour or the Tories did anything other than keep it rolling out of control. The benefactors are the financial institutions and speculators. As much as people like the idea of how much their house "earns" each year as it makes them feel rich with paper gains, it does so much damage to the whole of society.

 

[ladygardener]

In theory, I don't mind paying higher taxes if I knew the public services were there for me and others when needed. I've been reading about Nordic countries who pay high taxes but have free university education, excellent free healthcare, good public services, accessible social services etc and I love the sound of it, but I just don't see the UK going down this route. After todays budget, I feel like the majority of PAYE workers will be working hard, living smaller more miserable lives and benefitting very little from the taxes we pay. Feel a bit defeated by it all tbh.

 

[Yel]

Boomers on the radio going on about people on over 50k being really rich and they can just ditch one of their sports cars and manage just fine

50k really isn't that much when average house price is about 300k and rent is super expensive.

50k is a lot if you bought your house for buttons ages ago and have small outgoings.

 

[JOHN1967]

People who can't afford to keep pets, shouldn't. No point complaining that they have no money to feed themselves.

I would love a baby elephant, but I can't afford the upkeep.

 

[emmer_moans]

Leo hasn't earnt the right to make comments like that. Fair enough if he'd given up the yachts and jets 10 years ago and in all areas of his been a model green citizen. Maybe then he could lecture the rest of us. But yet another super privileged person with do as I say, not what I do.

Plus he isn't British so why is he making comments about London transport system and policy? Does he live here? He can afford to Uber everywhere, most British families don't have that luxury and will be trapped outside the ULEZ zone. Families having to pay 12.50 a day to go to work, school etc... Leo has no idea.

 

[penny1992]

All these posts are reaffirming my choice to not have kids. Bloody hell.

 

[Westcoasthippydreamgirl]

I’m going to sound like a twat here but I wish old people would shut up saying they can’t afford to put the heating on. They were giving over £1000 this year including the warm home thing they get every year.

It’s parents and every body else that haven’t got the money to heat their homes.

They also had a life where they were able to pay off their mortgage young, many got very good pensions etc.

 

[heretoreaditall2019]

Also re “not all pensioners” - yes obviously no one’s suggesting that, but it’s a bit like male privilege or white privilege in that just because you’re white or a bloke doesn’t mean you’ve got untold riches and an amazing life, it means you’ve not had to overcome the *systemic* barriers put in place by white supremacy and patriarchy. Similarly for OAPs, no one is saying it was easy and I think we forget just how poor the country was mid century especially in this era of hyper consumerism, but what we’re saying is that you didn’t have to pay for your education and it was possible to run a family home on a single median salary and you could buy a house for a significantly smaller multiplier on ur annual salary and there were final salary pensions etc etc etc etc!

 

[Yel]

Leo hasn't earnt the right to make comments like that. Fair enough if he'd given up the yachts and jets 10 years ago and in all areas of his been a model green citizen. Maybe then he could lecture the rest of us. But yet another super privileged person with do as I say, not what I do.

 

[heretoreaditall2019]

Oh agreed @heretoreaditall2019 my mother (born in the 60s) and my grandmother (born late 30s) both worked full time out of the home through necessity. Two working adults in the home also

Neither myself or my mother had extravagant upbringings. All of my clothes as a child were second hand or third hand. There was no over consumption. It was necessary to pay the bills and put food on the table. My father worked a full time job, a part time job and my mother worked full time.

So I dont think its a relatively new thing at all

Also what I can’t understand is we all know a woman who’s been completely shafted by her husband? Even those married to very high earners living in gated communities end up like any other single mum because it’s only ever ur husband’s money. Why on earth would anyone voluntarily put themselves in such a precarious situation if they don’t have to?

 

[candyland_]

Just a quick trip to my local ALDI this morning. Noticed these prices:

Pasta sauce was £0. 59p. Now £0.74p each.
Olive oil 1L used to be around £2.30 . Now £3.99
Pasta used to be £0.59p Now £0.72p
Sunflower oil £1.09 Now £2.30

Morrisons are even worse.
They used to do a 69p frozen pizza that my daughter liked.. it’s now £2.20
My dairy free butter was 90p to £1.10. It’s now £2.25
Diced chicken was £2.40 it’s now £3.49
Tinned veg has all gone up by about 10p. Tinned sliced carrots used to be 20p now 35p
Curry paste was £2 now it’s £2.89

I could go on and on. Everything in that shop has skyrocketed.

 

[Chocolategoggler]

God it’s depressing, there are colleagues at my place who are using food banks, we have usual support as you’ve all mentioned & they did bring a pay rise forward.. but I wonder what else employers can do that Will make an impact, other than the usual waffle, and saying speak to Managers etc, when it’s often them feeling pressures also.. 🥹

I don't think some people realise that managers can be going through hell but have to show a straight face at work.
An ex boss of mine supported me through an illness and unbeknown to me she was going through hell in her family life at the same time. She was so lovely to me and I felt so bad for her when I found out down the line.

 

[Yel]

Talking of cars a guy at work said the other day that a headlight needed replacing in his car and it would cost £2000. That wasn't even a main dealer but a "cheap" price for it. Apparently it's all a sealed unit so needed a whole new light thing rather than just replacing the bulb. Don't think it's a super expensive car either - more a midrange. It's not that long out of warranty and he's now on the hunt for a reconditioned unit for a bit over half the price. So many people with newer cars seem to spend a fortune keeping them running.

This stuff should all be modular and universal. But of course it isn't so they can rip you off. Apparently with the new iPhones each part is hard coded to only work with that phone. So even swapping screens / cameras etc of two identical phones won't work. Making it so only apple can service your phone, and charge a fortune. Criminal.