Christmas bonus - gone!!

aare

DT100 wrote: »

So are you saying that those that flip burgers for a living are retards?

D'you want fries with that remark?

OF COURSE he doesn't, he is quoting someone else. :rolleyes:

Princess Jade

Dole should become Community Wages. Pay people to work.

End of.

J
xx

aare

Princess Jade wrote: »

Dole should become Community Wages. Pay people to work.

No problem...so find them work to do...as long as you are giving them enough money to live on (and enough time off to find real work, of course! ).

Start by firing most of FAS and creating a new system staffed by the mentally competent and ethically adequate to do this properly and efficiently.

Hagar

Princess Jade wrote: »

Pay people to work.

Great idea, what exactly will they do? Sweep the streets, clean the canals, cut the grass, clean the hospital grounds? The public service unions are hardly going to let them take work from their members are they?
There is no money in the coffers for capital projects so there is no work there. I suppose they could turn up at the Dáil every day to fill the empty seats and make the place look busy. Other than that I can't think of anything. Please share your ideas.

carlybabe1

partyatmygaff wrote: »

Ah now dont get me wrong, Im not saying make kids starve to death or wear rags. No presents is not the end of the world, I grew up in the celtic tiger, sadly I never really got to experience any of the positve aspects of it (I hope you get what I mean in regard to presents etc).
Pensioners deserve every penny, they worked hard all their lives, this is the least we can give them and the disabled are not able to work but are entitled to live, I never said they shouldnt have children either.

Kids have to learn that not everyone can afford presents and that its not all about getting presents, they might be miserable or down for a few days but they'll understand when they're older(I did)

Are you serious :eek: really :eek: there is no excuse for not getting presents for your kids at xmas, NONE. Unless its something rediculous like pride. Thats scandalous, i would never leave my kids go without, if it meant siddling into a pawn shop with my jewellry/ scuttling into charity shops or the vincent de paul I'd do it, pride certainly wouldn't result in my kids being left without

aare

Hagar wrote: »

I suppose they could turn up at the Dáil every day to fill the empty seats and make the place look busy.

That one has my vote...as long as it doesn't contravene the Geneva Convention re:Mental Torture.


Seriously, it isn't the worst idea in the world handled right...you could set up a database for people to request workers for things they can't handle...from little old ladies whose garden needs an overhaul to people who need a dog walker and let claimant volunteer to do those things...it could actually save people LOADS of money.

I think a lot of claimants would be happier that way as long as the transport costs didn't leave them out of pocket...and the person being served could cover those...

Could we do that?

Seriously...

partyatmygaff

DT100 wrote: »

So are you saying that those that flip burgers for a living are retards?

No not at all, if I said that I would be calling myself a retard too as I applied for a job today in McDonalds and burger king(Im still in secondary school so heh, no pride lost ).

Are you serious really there is no excuse for not getting presents for your kids at xmas, NONE. Unless its something rediculous like pride. Thats scandalous, i would never leave my kids go without, if it meant siddling into a pawn shop with my jewellry/ scuttling into charity shops or the vincent de paul I'd do it, pride certainly wouldn't result in my kids being left without

Yes and yes really, there is an excuse for not getting presents and its not being able to afford it, its not pretty and its not nice but sadly its the harsh realities of life that millions around the world suffer.
Im not saying dont ever give kids presents as I remember when I was a kid how jealous I was of all the other kids and how I used to feel so down on christmas but I learned to accept it and never blamed my parents for it but surely it would make sense to not get a present one year in order to survive for the next year. If you can afford it (And im not talking about skip every single bill in order to buy presents type of "afford it") then go and buy as much as possible, Im not begrudgingly saying that "If I didnt get anything no one else should", really im not, Im saying that do your very best to get presents but dont let it ruin you financially.
Whats better, A few presents on christmas day and a warm home etc and a bitter cold january and february, or just passing by one christmas and hoping that the next will be better to make up for it.

Presents aren't what make christmas actually christmas, theres alot more to it than how many or what presents you get and kids need to learn that whether its a harsh lesson or not.

aare

partyatmygaff wrote: »

No not at all, if I said that I would be calling myself a retard too as I applied for a job today in McDonalds and burger king(Im still in secondary school so heh, no pride lost ).

Hey...you ROCK...:D

...and I am seriously gobsmacked by what a thoughtful, realistic, old head you have on those young shoulders (I thought you were a hothead in your 30s!)...

I just KNOW you are going to "make it though the fire" and then some...

I REALLY wish you didn't know this stuff so young though:

partyatmygaff wrote: »

Presents aren't what make christmas actually christmas, theres alot more to it than how many or what presents you get and kids need to learn that whether its a harsh lesson or not.

partyatmygaff

aare wrote: »

Hey...you ROCK...:D

...and I am seriously gobsmacked by what a thoughtful, realistic, old head you have on those young shoulders (I thought you were a hothead in your 30s!)...

I just KNOW you are going to "make it though the fire" and then some...

I REALLY wish you didn't know this stuff so young though:

Thanks for that, hope you and everyone else gets through this !

aare

partyatmygaff wrote: »

Thanks for that, hope you and everyone else gets through this !

Oh I will...if only cos it's awful hard to keep a bad thing down.

Quartet

carlybabe1 wrote: »

Are you serious :eek: really :eek: there is no excuse for not getting presents for your kids at xmas, NONE. Unless its something rediculous like pride. Thats scandalous, i would never leave my kids go without, if it meant siddling into a pawn shop with my jewellry/ scuttling into charity shops or the vincent de paul I'd do it, pride certainly wouldn't result in my kids being left without

Well I can think of some reasons eehhh....

Not being a Christian! & not celebrating Christmas

Being a christian & celebrating the way it is meant to be (a religous festival!)

Not wanting to run yourself and your children into debt

Giving your children love & care instead of materialistic possesions

Presents arn't the be all and end all of everything....

aare

Quartet wrote: »

Presents arn't the be all and end all of everything....

But they will be, unless everybody cuts the attacking and gets a sudden flashback to how warmth, compassion and kindness feel...

Because RIGHT NOW they are just about all any of us have in the bank...and we should be clinging to them for dear life...

*shadow*

As a child you don't ever realise wheather your family is well off or not, I remember one christmas in particular in which I woke up to the most amazing barbie house ever, I spent hours and years playing with it, only later did I find out my Dad had built it, he took the wood from work, Mum saved up for months to buy the paint for it and every week she would buy one piece of furniture for it, We were't on the dole but by the time we had paid off bills ect we were in a worse off state than someone who was on the dole, despite all that I remeber it as a great christmas..ok the hot water tank stopped working and our neighbour had to buy us a bag of coal for christmas so we didn't freeze but my parents put on a brave face and My brother and me didnt care we had gotten only a couple of presents because we were bought up to realise christmas is about so much more than that. Twelve years on the only present I still have from my childhood is that Barbie house. It's not easy but it is possible to make something out of nothing, and it also teaches you to appreciate the true value of money.

aare

*shadow* wrote: »

It's not easy but it is possible to make something out of nothing, and it also teaches you to appreciate the true value of money.

Thank you for bring such tender, loving beauty here to share with us all.

partyatmygaff

*shadow* wrote: »

As a child you don't ever realise wheather your family is well off or not, I remember one christmas in particular in which I woke up to the most amazing barbie house ever, I spent hours and years playing with it, only later did I find out my Dad had built it, he took the wood from work, Mum saved up for months to buy the paint for it and every week she would buy one piece of furniture for it, We were't on the dole but by the time we had paid off bills ect we were in a worse off state than someone who was on the dole, despite all that I remeber it as a great christmas..ok the hot water tank stopped working and our neighbour had to buy us a bag of coal for christmas so we didn't freeze but my parents put on a brave face and My brother and me didnt care we had gotten only a couple of presents because we were bought up to realise christmas is about so much more than that. Twelve years on the only present I still have from my childhood is that Barbie house. It's not easy but it is possible to make something out of nothing, and it also teaches you to appreciate the true value of money.

Couldn't of said it any better myself

Very good show of what christmas should be about.

Richard Dower

OK...which one of you called me a bum? :mad:

Pollythene Pam

My father is an old age pensioner, who unlike most people who post on boards paid tax in Ireland for forty-fiive years.
He could not afford to pay into a private pension fund, so he is left to survive on the state-pension.
How does the government repay him for forty-five years of tax-paying, they take away his bonas at X-Mas.
Sure. Take it from the rest, but leave the pensioners alone.
They've paid their share.

partyatmygaff

Pollythene Pam wrote: »

My father is an old age pensioner, who unlike most people who post on boards paid tax in Ireland for forty-fiive years.
He could not afford to pay into a private pension fund, so he is left to survive on the state-pension.
How does the government repay him for forty-five years of tax-paying, they take away his bonas at X-Mas.
Sure. Take it from the rest, but leave the pensioners alone.
They've paid their share.

That is fair enough, I dont really agree with pensioners having the bonus tooken off either but for people claiming Jobseeker's it is not needed at all.

DT100

Partyatmygaff......I had my friday eyes on when iread your first post about the fliping burgers...having read it again....I see what you were saying.....My mistake.....sorry.:)

sunnyside

aare wrote: »

Seriously, it isn't the worst idea in the world handled right...you could set up a database for people to request workers for things they can't handle...from little old ladies whose garden needs an overhaul to people who need a dog walker and let claimant volunteer to do those things...it could actually save people LOADS of money.

I think a lot of claimants would be happier that way as long as the transport costs didn't leave them out of pocket...and the person being served could cover those...

Could we do that?

Seriously...

I love that idea. But would there be some sort of personal security issues with it? 99% of people would be totally genuine but if it was a state run thing wouldn't garda checks, etc be needed. Just in case you sent for someone to cut the grass or paint the kitchen but ended up getting murdered. Same risk applies when you call somebody from the golden pages though.

When someone organises it, I'll use it. It really is a good idea but if people get jobs done for free isn't that bad for the economy?

Hobbes

wow golden pages runs the risk of having your family and pets slaughtered. :rolleyes: Why not just board up your doors and windows and not go out.

re: the bonus.

What amazes me is that people seem to think that doleys are some kind of magical money pit that once the money goes their it is gone for good.

The bonus normally goes towards having a good time around the holiday season. So the money is spent, it keeps others in jobs by paying their wages in getting goods and services from them.

But the holiday season has been a bit of a rip off for a while now. Shops intentionally raise the prices so you can get your sales (ie back to normal prices).

I think people need to start dictating when they celebrate. Have your christmas in January much cheaper.

aare

sunnyside wrote: »

I love that idea. But would there be some sort of personal security issues with it? 99% of people would be totally genuine but if it was a state run thing wouldn't garda checks, etc be needed. Just in case you sent for someone to cut the grass or paint the kitchen but ended up getting murdered. Same risk applies when you call somebody from the golden pages though.

When someone organises it, I'll use it. It really is a good idea but if people get jobs done for free isn't that bad for the economy?

I thought about that, but, when all is said and done, FAS place people anyway, without Garda checks...and this would just be a more competent system, placing people without wages, and all the work doesn't have to be in private homes...

A few days book keeping, stocktaking...whatever...

You can say that people getting jobs done for free is bad for the economy...but, at present, people can't afford to get some jobs done at all, and, often, unless job A is done, job B cannot be done...and so on...and little old ladies, who can't even turn over their own weeds ,won't be spending too much in the garden center any time soon.

Handled the right way it could, in effect "prime the pump" and get things moving again...might even be the difference that keeps a few businesses alive...

...as well as keeping a few people feeling alive and friendly...

Quartet

Hobbes wrote: »

re: the bonus.

The bonus normally goes towards having a good time around the holiday season. So the money is spent, it keeps others in jobs by paying their wages in getting goods and services from them.

But the holiday season has been a bit of a rip off for a while now. Shops intentionally raise the prices so you can get your sales (ie back to normal prices).

I think people need to start dictating when they celebrate. Have your christmas in January much cheaper.

I agree - a change in attitude about what we spend and where we spend it would be a good move.

Having to save - even a small amount in order to celebrate means will result in a more responsible attitude to where the money goes.

Plus now the Xmas bonus is gone - there will be a need to plan & budget so that there is a little extra if and when it is needed....

Dublin Mama

What is Christmas bonus payment from Social Welfare? Never heard about it...I guess was too busy working :eek:

Boskowski

Dublin Mama wrote: »

What is Christmas bonus payment from Social Welfare? Never heard about it...I guess was too busy working :eek:

It's like in the real world. It's a bonus you get when you attained all your annual doley goals. Like you were particularly good at not doing a thing.

97i9y3941

alot of working people wont be getting xmas bonus so welfare ppl should not complain

Idbatterim

Look im sick and tired of listening to this **** of hitting the poorest section of society most bla bla bla! the ones who earn the money are the ones getting screwed they are actually contributing, how are you getting screwed if you contribute nothing! And im not talking about people who would like to work or are seeking work! Im talking about the lowlives who have creamed off the system for years! I think that for people who have just been made redundant the the social welfare should be at double or so the normal rate for atleast 6 months, so as to give people a chance and avoide going from one extreme to another!

97i9y3941

doubt i ever see it doubled anyway,they can barely afford to pay for it anyway,also i thaught it was backwards move by bertie during the boom times to increase payment,that was just bizzare

thebman

Fred83 wrote: »

doubt i ever see it doubled anyway,they can barely afford to pay for it anyway,also i thaught it was backwards move by bertie during the boom times to increase payment,that was just bizzare

Well it had to keep pace with the increase in the cost of living.

They should have made it harder for people to stay on it long term then though. They could still do it now but it is a harsher move now given there aren't actually jobs for them now. Not saying I'm against it, I'm not but it is a harsher move now.

Increases above the cost of living and allowing people to claim for years when they've not made an attempt to get a job is basically a vote buying exercise and should be exposed as such.

Just like if it isn't decreased in the next budget.

97i9y3941

yes but during berties reign i found it bit odd since there was plenty of work out there at time so he woundnt had needed to increase it