Interest rates

[j.sabourn]

She’s lucky she didn’t lose her Damehood if it had been a criminal charge she would by rights have lost it. JS

[Keith Tindell]

The old school chums, and back scratching here is just as bad as ever it was. I should think its a certainty that this lot of University chums are going to be leaving their jobs next year, but Daddy with his connections will be lining something nice and soft well paid job, ah well, come the revolution. the next lot in, are no different, us peasants just have to suck it up.

[Rodney Mills]

Trying to give you an explanation of how our Social Security benefits work would be like me explaining a chinese fire drill.* I think it's intentionally done the way written under the codex of "Bullshit baffles brains"

I don't think*I'm a stupid person.* I made my*living the*later*years of employment, composing and understanding contracts, which*were written by attorneys, and accountants employed by the major oil*companies,*military, construction companies, etc. etc. Looking for loopholes*or errors in a contract so we could get a change order and up the price of our services.

But the writers of our S.S. leave me bewildered.* Following is one of the opening paragraphs of the S.S. explanation of how to calculate*your pension:
**
"Primary Insurance Amounts.The OIA is the sum of three separate percentages of portions of the AIME.* While the percentage of this PIA formular*are fixed by law,* The dollar amount is the formula*change annually*with changes in the national average wage index these dollar amount, called "Bend Po[nts,"* govern the percentage of the AIME....." (snooze!)

Consequently, one is forced to go to the nearest S.S. office to get them to figure out how much one would receive*each month .

However, the clever bastards who wrote that crap outsmarted*themselves.* The clerks employed*are on our side. My friends and I were helped through the maze, and they showed me I had chosen the wrong path and amended my*claim, so I received*about $50.00 a month more.* I said to the clerk on the side "You've cost the government money, buddy."* he told me the money wasn't "theirs" it's ours and you paid in for it."

Anyway, I'll give you the basics" You can receive a S.S. payment at age at age 65 and a reduced payment at 62 or an increased one at age 72.

The maximum monthly check is $3,200, based on 35 years of premium*payments paid by payroll deduction which are deducted monthly out of a base salary (based on year 2021) 0f $142,300. 00 P.A..* The deduction stops once you have paid through to $i42,300.* If you make more than that, you don't pay for the balance of that year.

The minimum monthly payment for retired low earners is $1,066.50 per month.

I came into the states at age 23, I retired at age 47, this was the time span of my contribution into the system.*

Due to my earnings, I always paid in at the maximum level.* My first job was as a hotel cook. it took me 11 months to pay the maximum in to the plan.* Two years later I was a head chef of a hotel, earning a good salary and reached my annual payment in say 9 months.* Then I became managing director and paid off in say 7 months this carried on and when I was President and CEO I paid it off in 5 months.* In other words, short of the first year or two I earnt greater than the top rate.* However I did not work the 35 years required to get the top rate at today's rate.* I get, based on my earnings and the years I subscribed, $1,745.00 per month. This is adjusted annually by the government's determination of inflation.* Which is a market basket of items, In addition I receive $830.00 from my late wife's teachers pension. $98.00 from mu UK pension.* And monthly interest on my savings and investments.* Should I run short I withdraw from my savings.

My wife and I planned on an income stream to last her*to age 120. sadly she didn't make it.* What is left when I kick the bucket will be shared between her niece*and my son.

I'm not sure if this answers the questions that quite a few of you asked, but our social security system is not the same rate for everyone, the more you put in the more you collect up to the maximum benefit.

If my wife was still alive she would have got an extra $300.00 a month over my teacher''*widower's benefit plus*about $1.400. a month social security pension. These ceased the day she died.

Cheers, Rodney.

[j.sabourn]

Rodney as we used to say as kids , that’s as clear as muck. However you have tried to educate us into the ways of your government thank you, apparently they seem to have succeeded in baffling me ok, it must run in the blood stream of most governments having the same motto , keep them guessing. Cheers JS

[James Curry]

I think the ex pats system for old age pension is very unfair, in Oz it is frozen at the same amount from when you leave i believe, but in the states i have read that they get the yearly pension rises from the uk pension ?, perhaps Rodney could inform us if that is so. My brother-in-law complains bitterly how much his tap pension pension has lost in the 20 years he has been there, and as you say, paid full whack in to it, very unfair.

Keith, the UK state pension is frozen at the rate when you left the UK if you live in the USA. If you live in the EU the increase in UK state pension follows the increases that happens in the UK.

It used to be if you were an expat and lived abroad you lost your right to vote in UK elections after 15 years , that has now been revoked and the law now states you can vote for life, WHY? When you make a foreign country your new home why should you have a vote for life. So all the POMS in Oz and holders of British passports can now apply for a postal vote I assume.

[Des Taff Jenkins]

Why I would want to vote in the English elections, I don't know. I have not received a penny from the UK Govt since left there in 57, nor has my wife. Why are places that fought against Britain in Europe treated more favorably than the Commonwealth of Aus who stood by the UK through two world wars. my view is that my family who nearly all lived into their 90s cost them to much in pensions.
LoL
Des

[j.sabourn]

#32 I can think of one instance which adds fuel to your statement Keith .0ne of the members of your House of Lords, a well known author of novels many on Horse racing . Was a persistent kerb crawler in his car and was arrested by the police. The subsequent bad publicity did nothing to his lifestyle , think even his wife stood by him. So maybe that too is considered not breaking any criminal code. Then looking at a famous jockey losing his OBE for false Income Tax Claims , now that is a different story and really considered criminal. JS

[happy daze john in oz]

Yes, as said the concessions vary from state to state here in Oz.

But the State pension is indexed twice a year, March and September.

The increase is inline with the inflation rate and the minimum wage.

We do on special occasions also get an additional increase if there is a sudden spike in inflation, we had one last year.
Biggest problem is the twice a year increase in excise on fuel and grog, but we do have a container scheme now running here in Victoria,
Been collecting bottles and cans for over 12 months now, time to cash in at 10 cents each.

[j.sabourn]

Watch you don’t become liable to more tax then John . Abaneezi is going to have a lot of bills to pay in the immediate future , and may consider you a good chance of meeting all these extra expenses that his treasurer is going to be demanding . JS

[James Curry]

#37 John the guy that wrote about horse racing was Dick Francis and he was also a successful jockey. He at one time was a jockey to the Queen mother and raced her horses. He was not a Lord.

Think it is Jeferry Archer the lord you may be referring to. He was Baron Archer of Weston-Super-Mare.
He was a high profile politician until he got caught out for a few dodgy actions.

Found this about him .
He invited the Beatles to attend a charity event for Oxfam.
The critic Sheridan Morley, then a student at Merton, was present and recalled the occasion

At the interval I went to the toilet, and there beside me was Ringo Starr. He asked if I knew this Jeffrey Archer bloke. I said everyone in Oxford was trying to work out who he was. Ringo said: 'He strikes me as a nice enough fella, but he's the kind of bloke who would bottle your piss and sell it.
Probably sums him up to a T