Friday 26 April 2013

How the tax system works, explained in terms of beer so as to keep your attention. ;)

I saw this on a US website and it's obviously not an Obama supporting site in terms of its political positioning. I'm not sure how the figures stack up for the UK system, but I think it's pretty close and that the principles and the effects of reducing tax will be pretty much the same on both sides of the pond. I'm not scoring political points here, just sharing something that I thought was quite interesting:



Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to £100...
If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this...

The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
The fifth would pay £1.
The sixth would pay £3.
The seventh would pay £7..
The eighth would pay £12.
The ninth would pay £18.
The tenth man (the richest) would pay £59.

So, that's what they decided to do..

The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve ball.

"Since you are all such good customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by £20". Drinks for the ten men would now cost just £80.

The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes.

So the first four men were unaffected.

They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men?
The paying customers?

How could they divide the £20 windfall so that everyone would get his fair share?

They realised that £20 divided by six is £3.33. But if they
subtracted that from everybody's share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer.

So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by a higher percentage the poorer he was, to follow the principle of the tax system they had been using, and he proceeded to work out the amounts he suggested that each should now pay.

And so the fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% saving).

The sixth now paid £2 instead of £3 (33% saving).

The seventh now paid £5 instead of £7 (28% saving).
The eighth now paid £9 instead of £12 (25% saving).

The ninth now paid £14 instead of £18 (22% saving).

The tenth now paid £49 instead of £59 (16% saving).

Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But, once outside the bar, the men began to compare their savings.

"I only got a pound out of the £20 saving," declared the sixth man.

He pointed to the tenth man,"but he got £10!"

"Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man. "I only saved a pound too. It's unfair that he got ten times more benefit than me!"

"That's true!" shouted the seventh man. "Why should he get £10 back, when I got only £2? The wealthy get all the breaks!"

"Wait a minute," yelled the first four men in unison, "we didn't get anything at all. This new tax system exploits the poor!"

The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.

The next night the tenth man didn't show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had their beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn't have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!

And that, boys and girls, journalists and government ministers, is how our tax system works.

The people who already pay the highest taxes will naturally get the most benefit from a tax reduction.

Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore.

In fact, they might start drinking overseas, where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.

David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D.
Professor of Economics.

For those who understand, no explanation is needed.
For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible

Friday 12 April 2013

Thatcher - and the protest is happening in order to...erm, what exactly?

Having deliberately kept well out of the furore that erupted following the death of Lady Thatcher this week, I don't intend to stoke up the emotionally charged atmosphere any more by being either gushing or blindly critical here.

Her life (and death) have clearly raised massive issues amongst the population and have, perhaps more clearly than has been the case for the last 20 years or so, revealed the divide between the political left and right in this country.

Or at least the divide that existed during her period in office and which, it would seem, has now been passed on, like some sort of family heirloom, to subsequent generations.

I say this because, if you're honest about where we are now, politically, we have pretty much continued the course that she established during the 1980s. Yes Government is marginally bigger than it would have been under Maggie; the tax take as a percentage of GDP is probably higher than it would otherwise have been, but essentially we don't have the state (for 'state' read 'taxpayer') supporting failing industries any more and, despite what Messrs Crow, Serwotka and Blower (NUT - was there ever a better named organisation?) would like to think, we are no longer able to be held to ransom by over-powerful unelected unions.

The Labour party under Blair adopted most of Thatcher's modernising agenda and that party moved its position politically speaking to one where it was treading on the toes of the Tories. If you think that Labour's current left-right positioning bears any resemblance to where it was when the likes of Kinnock, John Smith, Callaghan and Wilson were at the helm, you might want to stop reading and go and continue your debate with a two-year-old. From Mars.

I think that most of the changes she instigated were needed in order to rescue the country from decades of ineffectual government (on both sides of the political divide); to face the growing reality of globalisation, competition, free-trade and newly emerging economic powers: That some of the strategically important industries (ship-building, automotive, steel-making, energy, utilities) could have been better supported in a smaller but more specialised form (because once some of these skills have been lost they can never be rekindled), which is what happened in Germany where the trades unions recognised that without change and cooperation there would be no major industries or workers to represent.

Sadly the British unions took a more belligerent, short-term, 'fuck you' approach and were, in my opinion, more responsible for the demise of manufacturing industry in the UK than Maggie could ever claim to have been. You don't have to scratch very deeply beneath the surface of the UK's remaining dinosaur unions to realise that echoes of this approach - where efficiency and productivity were unimportant, where the success of the employer organisation was of secondary importance to screwing as much money out of them as possible even if it was unaffordable - are still around, but nowhere near as influential, today, thank God.

So the 'death parties' this week, in addition to showing some of our fellow citizens at their absolute, disrespectful, almost demonic worst (in my opinion), are actually not even about anything substantial. Maggie won the argument. She set the only possible course for the UK if the country was to achieve any kind of stability and prosperity. Does anyone really think that if she hadn't made the changes which took account of the need for our industries and businesses to be competitive on a global stage, that we would be anything other than Bulgaria, or Greece today?

Some might, but certainly not the Labour Party. Which leads me to the unavoidable conclusion that the protests scheduled for her funeral next week are so misguided as to be laughable. Born out of an outdated set of beliefs (that even the Labour Party under 'Red Ed' would find unrecognisable) and inspired by a vitriolic meanness of spirit and the same lack of understanding, generosity and patriotism that got us into the mess of the 1970s in the first place.

In the name of free speech I would defend to the death your/their right to protest (so long as it's peaceful - good luck with that); but I think if one is to commit to making a protest, one should at least have some kind of understanding of the issues involved and that it should represent a valid argument rather than just an excuse to protest without being able to offer any kind of positive alternative. It's not as if there are any issues at stake here; a political ideal or doctrine - or that any changes will come about because of the protest that takes place.

It is, in effect, a protest about something that happened almost 30 years' ago, which cannot now be changed (and nor would either main party wish to do so) and from which most of the rest of us have, happily, moved on and benefitted from. It's an excuse to be nasty and disrespectful to someone who undoubtedly changed this country for the better. Sadly, it's an event that will show that while most of us have moved on, there are still a considerable number of people in the UK who hark back to our 'glory days' as the 'sick man of Europe' (industrial action) and who are part of the problem and the past, rather than part of the solution and the future.

Anyone want to join my protest against the Corn Laws?

Tuesday 2 April 2013

£53 a week?

So having stated that I could, and do, feed a family of three for a week on £53, here goes. There are of course some limitations as you will see, but if you follow this and stick with it for a week you'll feel healthier, probably lose a bit of weight (though that's not the objective) and be better off financially. What's not to like?

OK here's the deal: You have to shop at Lidl or Aldi, usually both and to get as much as possible from these two, otherwise Waitrose, possibly ASDA, but not Sainsbury's, ever. You'll find, from the following recipes that the only things you need to get from Waitrose are arborio rice, possibly some herbs, the blocks of Tofu and root ginger. Everything else you should be able to get from the crafty Germans. The more observant of you will also notice quite quickly that there's no meat on offer, nor alcohol. You could add chicken to some of these without breaking the bank. But absolutely no processed meat, unless you really like horse.

What I've done here is to produce 63 meals, equating to a whole week's worth of catering (3 people, 3 meals a day, seven days in a week). Obviously in the real world, we tend to cook something different each night, possibly have something left over from last week that has been frozen, etc and we tend to have some of the 'stuff' like veg stock, a splash of wine left over (yeah right), etc, 'in'. So the actual week is much more flexible, varied and interesting than I'm showing here, but this is meant to illustrate that it can be done for £53 a week and without being boring. The vegetarian thing is not about principle - we're not vegetarians (although daughter is vegan) - but about health, cost and (for some of us) weight control. In the real world we do have fish in the form of frozen (not battered) fish or tinned tuna or sardines for lunch and maybe a good steak every two-three weeks or so - you really appreciate a nice steak when you ration it rather than having it every night.

So, 21 breakfasts, 21 lunches and 21 dinners - budget is £53. Costings are based on actual receipts.

Breakfast

2 x Cartons of orange juice from Lidl - one small glass each, each day.
Coffee with milk and sugar (optional obvs)
2x 48 packs of own brand Weetabix from Lidle half the price of branded. Have three with hot milk and sugar. all week.

weetabix £3.10 (£1.55 per pack of 48)
Milk 8 pints £4.00
Orange juice, £2.16 (2 at £1.08)
Coffee estimate £2.00

Total (breakfasts) £11.26

Lunch

Pea and potato soup:

2 onions peels and chopped £1.50 (whole bag and covers onions used in other recipes below)
1,600g potatoes peeled & cut into smalish chunks £1.20 (2.5kg cost £1.69)
700g frozen peas £2.00
2 teaspoons of mint sauce £0.25
2 litres vegetable stock £0.20
Bread & butter (olive spread) £1.00

Total: £6.15

Cook onions til soft, add potatoes and stock. Simmer for 12 minutes, add the frozen peas cook for another 5 minutes. Put in the blender and whizz to soup consistency. Back into the large pan, add mint sauce, stir, heat through. Serve with bread & butter. Serves 7 (more like 12 really)

Salad:

Lettuce. baby tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, grated carrot, sliced tomatoes, peppers, black pitted olives (sliced to resemble matchbox car tyres). Dressing of 1 clove garlic crushed & chopped with sea salt, twist of black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon of mustard (Dijon is good for this) two teaspoons of balsamic vinegar and 7 teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil. Mix in a ramekin & dress salad with it. You might add cottage cheese (the devil's work imo, but some like it), or some tuna to eke this out a little. Serves 7

Cost (est) £6.00


Aubergine bake - serves 7

Three aubergines sliced lengthways, brushed with extra virgin olive oil and grilled or dry fried on a skillet to get the 'lines' in the flesh. £2.40
Jar of tomato and basil sauce (Lloyd Grossman is good) £1.80
Jar of green pesto £1.00
3x mozzarella balls £1.50
Parmesan cheese £2.00
Fresh basil £0.60

Total £9.30

Arrange a layer of the part-cooked aubergine slices in a lasagne dish, spoon some of the pesto over and add a layer of sliced mozzarella. Then another layer of aubergine slices. more pesto. Add the tomato sauce all over, then grate parmesan over the whole thing and then slices of mozzarella evenly over the top. Bake for 25 minutes until bubbling, serve with fresh basil and a twist of black pepper.


Evening meal

Mushroom and spinach risotto:

1 pkt Arborio rice £1.00
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil £0.20
bag of Spinnach £1.00
Chestnut Mushrooms £1.30
Veg stock £0.10
2 Onions chopped (see above)
Glug of white wine £0.40
Parmesan cheese £0.30

Total £4.30

Cook onion until soft (5 mins - half way through add the mushrooms), add the rice and cook for a minute, add the wine and cook for another minute until rice has absorbed most of the liquid then start to add the stock a good slug at a time. Stir a bit until stock is absorbed and add more stock. This takes about 20 minutes. With the last slug of stock throw in the spinach and stir well. Serve with parmesan grated over the top (unless you're a vegan in which case leave out).
Serves 7

Three cheese cannelloni

2x Ricotta cheese tubs £2.00
bag of Fresh basil. £0.60
Parmesan cheese (about 2/3 of a wedge) £2.00
Sun dried tomatoes (jar) £1.00
large jar tomato & basil sauce £1.80
2 x buffalo Mozzarella cheese balls £1.00
20 cannelloni tubes £1.00

Total £9.40

Mix ricotta with chopped sun-dried tomatoes, torn basil leaves and parmesan in a large bowl. Then fill the cannelloni with the mixture, fiddly but worth it. Use a large teaspoon and 'tamp down' with the handle as you go. You'll get the hang of it. Then arrange the filled tubes in a large lasagna dish pour over the (heated) tomato sauce, grate a load more parmesan cheese over the top then add the mozzarella slices evenly over the top of the mixture. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes, serve with a few basil leaves scattered over, a twist of black pepper and a smile. Serves 7

Red lentil curry

2x onions chopped (see above)
2x garlic cloves crushed & chopped £0.20
1.5 tablespoons medium curry powder £1.00
Pinch of flaked chillies (optional) £0.20
7oz red lentils (dried in packet) £0.40
3 peppers deseeded and diced £1.40
I aubergine diced £0.80
1.5 pints of vegetable stock £0.10
400ml tin of chopped tomatoes £0.35
chopped coriander £0.60
Flaked almonds £0.50
Brown rice £1.00

Total £6.55

Cook onions & garlic until soft, add curry powder and cook for another minute. Stir in the lentils and veg cook for a minute then add stock and simmer for 40 minutes. Add tomatoes & coriander simmer for 10 minutes, serve with brown rice (which takes about a week to cook) toasted flaked almonds (dry fry in a small pan for 5 mins) on top & twist of black pepper. Serves 7.

And that's it! As I say in reality we have something different every night (via slightly smaller portions than indicated or leftovers etc, although buying to do the recipes means that we throw away almost nothing - everything gets used.

A couple more recipes that are cheap, simple and quick to do, just for variety:

Tofu stir fry

One square tub-thing of firm tofu, drained and kitchen rolled dry, cut in half lengthways and then into cubes of about 1 inch square. £2.00
2 garlic cloves crushed £0.40
Thumb-sized piece of root ginger (don't buy a pack, just break off a bit the size you need) chopped £0.20
pack of Chestnut mushrooms sliced. £1.40
Pack of baby sweetcorn halved lengthways £1.20
Pack of mangetout £1.00
any other veg sliced thinly - carrot, courgette, peppers etc. £1.50
Beansprouts or 'ready for wok' noodles £0.80
pack or jar of any stir fry sauce - hoi sin, oyster (not veggie) chow mein etc £0.75
spring onions £1.00

Total £10.25

Chuck everything except sauce and noodles/beansprouts into a wok for 6 minutes then add the sauce and noodles, cook for three more minutes serve with spring onions on top and chopsticks. The fork and spoon police will almost certainly be in your area when you cook this. You have been warned. ;)

Moroccan Stew

1 onion sliced (see above)
1 garlic clove £0.20
1 Aubergine diced £0.80
8 oz carrots slided £1.00
1 butternut squash peeled & diced £0.90
tsp ground cumin £0.20
tsp ground coriander £0.20
tsp ground cinnamon £0.20
2 tablespoons tomato puree £0.50
1 pint vegetable stock £0.10
pack of firm tofu cubed £2.00
handful dried apricots chopped £1.00
fresh coriander £0.60
2-3 oz pine nuts toasted (dry pan fried for 5 mins don't burn!) £1.00

Total £8.70

Cook onion, garlic & veg in large pan for 5 mins (in veg oil - 1 tbsp). Add spices, cook for 1 minute, add puree and stock, simmer for 40 mins. Add tofu, apricots, coriander, cook for 5 more minutes. Serve with toasted pine nuts on top.

enjoy!

So, based on the above - and I have tried to be quite generous on my cost estimates, based on actual receipts but with odd numbers rounded up.

Breakfasts - £11.26
Lunches - £21.45
Dinners - £20.25

Total £52.96.

You could easily substitute one of the other recipes for lunches or dinners (instead of soup or salad) without breaking the budget. Obviously the risotto and curry are cheaper than some of the others, but I could have just done risotto & curry all week for everything and shaved £15 off the final budget. Not sure what I'm going to do with the £0.04 I have left over from my £53.00 budget. Probably blow it on wine, women and song. ;)