In not having much sympathy with a couple on £45k plus per year having some benefits cut?

[ssd]

There is loads of this on the news just now about how "middle income" families will be having some child tax credits cut and might be paying more tax. They news are showing what to me looks like comfortable off families having to do with a bit less. Is this really so bad? I know an income of £45-£50k per year might not be much in central London but will keep you in style in parts of the north, but how bad will it be? So people might have to change jobs/give up the second car/holiday at home instead of Spain every year? SO WHAT? There are plenty of us living on less than £25k a year who have had to cut back since having kids and take this as a fact of life.

I know MN is made up of mostly middle earners and I'll get pelters for this, but I don't really care. Anyone I know on a middle income can afford to give up some things _ its called life.

Thats a good idea bronze. Where is your thread?

knew I really should put feet up..

well I've started it now geek here

My latest is I am now consistently making my own bread. I worked out I could save about £90 over three months so bought a bread maker with the last of my birthday/christmas money.
We have a fresh loaf every day, a lot less waste and it tastes far nicer not to mention being cheaper

oh crap wrong thread. Im confusing myself
ignore ignore

But buying a breadmaker is a luxury.

to some it might be. at use of petty sarcasm

at tedious smuggery "well I earn way more than most of you, but I'm happy with my lot, me"

tedious smuggery? Or just honesty? Surely I couldn't just BE happy and grateful for what I have? I must get more bitter and bitchy eh!

far more smug to make silly sarcastic comments about a breadmaker being a luxury, when it surely is for some.

Fanjo not sure if thats at me or you as I said earlier I feel lucky.
We have a lot less money than some on here but more than others. I feel lucky and grateful not sure thats smug. Should I be complaining then?

I have not yet had time to red all of this,so apologies if this has been said, but want to point out that 45,000 is a lot of money if you have low mortgage, one child, no debt, but is nt a lot of money if you have 4 children, car loan, mortgage etc. It is not always possible to downsize - children have to have bedrooms etc or move. A house can cost a lot without necessarily being worth a lot, particularly when no one is buying. Working hard and paying shitloads of tax should not be penalised. I dispute this idea that Britain has no money. Make the MPs pay back what they have cheated from us, remove us from illegal, immoral wars, stop ploughing money into a Europe that no-one asked us if we want to belong to and independently audit the NHS and everywhere else that the govt squanders our money and I be we have plenty to pay for CB and CTC. Pay MPs what they are worth and they will owe us money. Oh, I forgot, they already do!

Rant over.As you were

So you are saying that cutting back from 45K is no different to cutting back from 20K?

"There are lower salaries than £20K so those people must have a good bit of fat to trim too, no?"

Sorry for spelling mistakes. Was too busy ranting and forgot to check before posting

bronze..oh, I'm sure it's at me, but for much the same reasons as you are thinking!

"Surely I couldn't just BE happy and grateful for what I have?"
You'd think, but apparently you need to come onto this thread and keep lecturing people that modest arrangements they have made for themselves and their families are luxuries.

The point is, and the one I was making with the breadmaker, is that EVERYTHING that isn't the bare minimum to scrape by can be construed as a luxury once you get into this competitive pooring thing (and you don't have to be poor to do it, it's even more distasteful from people who aren't poor).

Ordinary, working people SHOULD be able to afford some luxuries. In fact, our entire economy (probably too much) depends on it.

I love the way moving house is talked about like an easy option??

It costs money to move, money up front which some people even earning £45k a year dont have just sitting about. Plus should children just be uprooted from Schools for what could be a short ish term problem?

I havent met anyone with a household income of £45k or above that has moaned about having cuts. The people I have spoken to see this as doing their bit towards the deficit.

"So you are saying that cutting back from 45K is no different to cutting back from 20K?"

No, I'm not saying that at all.

Just following the logic of the post I was quoting from, which appears to be that if other people earn less then you are earning too much and must cut back.

but the breadmaker post wasnt even supposed ot be on these thread. It says so straight underneath so hows that being smug on here?
Why the hell is it getting dragged into this argument
ffs

Well, skidoodly - I personally find it distasteful that people claim to be "struggling" when they have a decent income, but just live up to that income. I believe some people really ARE struggling and would never refer to myself as "struggling" because I spend my money..when some people don't have any.

If that makes me "distasteful" and "lecturing" to you, then I really don't care tbh.

bronze - skidoodly just used the breadmaker thing to have a pop at ME, don't worry.

bronze I made a joke about the breadmaker and now it is part of this thread too , I certainly wasn't saying that you were smug.

no, no she was saying that I am. Off to be somewhere else, reasoned debate is one thing but swearing and throwing personal insults at me is just base, as someone rightly said earlier.