Recent posts

#71

Off the Record / Re: Quo Vadis GOP?

Last post by Caliga - April 18, 2024, 12:50:48 PM

They are still somewhat common to see in rural Kentucky, a state which did not secede, largely stayed loyal to the North with the exception of some of its southern reaches, and was repeatedly invaded by the Confederacy.

#72

Off the Record / Re: [Canada] Canadian Politics...

Last post by Jacob - April 18, 2024, 12:49:26 PM

The CPP is well run, so I think you'll be fine.

I would be less sanguine if my pension got pulled into an Alberta run plan, but even so it's probably fine.

#73

Off the Record / Re: 2024 US Presidential Elect...

Last post by grumbler - April 18, 2024, 12:47:03 PM

I've long decided that trolls and idiots should be treated the same way, ignored.  Neither one will ever admit that they were trolling/wrong, so it really doesn't matter to me which it is.  It saves a lot of mental effort.

But it is so much fun egging them on to see how stupid they can sound.  It doesn't matter for entertainment purposes whether they actually are stupid or just pretend to be stupid.

#74

Off the Record / Re: Quo Vadis GOP?

Last post by grumbler - April 18, 2024, 12:40:02 PM

Agreed, but like it or not, they are the legitimately elected government of Mississippi.

I can understand the Loser State honoring the Loser Country, but I see Confederate battle Flags in states that didn't even bigly lose a war.

#75

Off the Record / Re: Quo Vadis GOP?

Last post by HisMajestyBOB - April 18, 2024, 12:09:00 PM

I don't get the infatuation with an organization known mostly for being supported and run by a bunch of losers.

Agreed, but like it or not, they are the legitimately elected government of Mississippi.

#76

Off the Record / Re: [Canada] Canadian Politics...

Last post by Barrister - April 18, 2024, 11:54:38 AM

Yeah I drop some money into a spousal RRSP, but don't actively contribute to an RRSP for myself.

If my government-run pension plan goes tits-up I'd be completely screwed.

#77

Off the Record / Re: Brexit and the waning days...

Last post by Gups - April 18, 2024, 11:37:00 AM

Thought you guys would be interested in this LinkedIn post by Chris Young KC who is a leading planning silk, particularly on new settlements and urban extensions. (NPPF = National Planning Policy Framework). As he says point 6 is the key to overriding local authorties in thrall to the NIMBY vote. If Labour can do this, it will be a quick and cost-effective way of unblocking planning for house building.

The Labour Party has said it intends to make changes within weeks of taking office. So how do they do it?

Answer - Through the NPPF and appeal decisions.

People responding to yesterday's post asked "can a new government amend planning legislation that quickly. Doesn't it have to go through Parliament etc?"

The answer is no. National politicians like to think everything is about legislation. That's because it's their day job.

God knows we have enough of it in the planning system. Endless reform. Politicians keep producing new legislation. They tell us changing it will fix everything. Only it doesn't. Most of it just creates uncertainty.

The real answer lies in the NPPF. The NPPF is what drives housing delivery.

So what is needed is:
1. Mandatory housing targets which properly reflect need.
2. Mandatory targets for the delivery of affordable housing.
3. Every local authority required to meet its need.
4. Review Green Belt, to stop it being used as an excuse not to deliver homes
5. Local plans to be produced on time with the right numbers.
6. Serious sanctions if local authorities do not do all of the above.

It really is as simple as that. And Labour plan to do this.

There needs to be housing targets which properly reflect need. That means higher targets across the country. Not just piling it all into the biggest cities, where there is no hope of it being delivered.

Don't get me wrong, I promote lots of tall buildings in London and other major cities. And I see the merit in Build to Rent, as a vital way of addressing the immediate housing needs of younger people.

But more housing is needed in the shires. It is this which best delivers affordable housing. Labour will change the standard method, so it delivers 300,000 effectively.

But the real key to all of this is No6 in the list.

There have to be effective sanctions.

Only yesterday Tory MP Simon Clarke described the penalties for a local authorities not having a local plan as "trivial". He's right. It's just a shame he didn't say that when he was the Secretary of State for Housing.

How will Labour get their message across?

The NPPF was issued in 2012, when the Government really did want to boost significantly the supply of new homes. To back up it's message, Eric Pickles issued a series of dramatic recovered appeal decisions, including 350 homes on a greenfield site at Worsley in Manchester. The Inspector recommended refusal on the basis it would "seriously degrade" the character of the area (para 21). But Eric rejected that, concluding housing delivery and an up-to- date plan were simply more important.

He then reversed his own previous decisions to refuse permission for both Richborough Estates and Fox Land's big greenfield sites at Sandbach in Cheshire.

Appeal success rates then shot through the roof.

Labour Shadow Ministers know about this.

Expect to see decisions like this from October.

#78

Off the Record / Re: TV/Movies Megathread

Last post by viper37 - April 18, 2024, 11:36:13 AM

Zack Snyder Has Plans For at Least 6 'Rebel Moon' Movies

The first one was a success.


Zack Snyder's Rebel Moon Part One quickly became a hit despite mixed reviews, setting the stage for a potential cinematic epic.



I guess at some point, I will have to see that.

#79

Off the Record / Re: [Canada] Canadian Politics...

Last post by viper37 - April 18, 2024, 11:34:19 AM

So I've actually heard it argued that RRSPs are in some ways not a great investment vehicle.

So any money you put into an RRSP isn't taxed - but is taxed as income.  The RRSP is taxed though when it is withdrawn - again as income.  But if, while in the RRSP, the value of your investments say triples, you'd eventually be paying three times as much tax once you finally withdraw it.  (There's all kinds of calculations about the time value of money and the like, but the basic point stands).

The thing is, for people my age (and Josephus' age), RRSP was all that was available to us when we began saving.  The idea was that you would max out your RRSP, then you would seek out other investment opportunities.

People with a pension fund usually had an equivalency factor, so they had less to invest in a RRSP.


Nowadays, you have TFSA and at least in Quebec, the employer is obligated to offer a collective retirement plan.

So you do have something when you retire, other than your government pension (CPP or RRQ).

For people like you, on top of this, you have your employer's pension fund, probably quite generous since your entire career was as a public servant.

When you retire, you will have a significant taxable income.

As such, maximizing your RRSP now is not the wisest move.

You could still invest a little to drop your tax bracket by a notch, but not too much because it is added to your significant retirement income.  Or for any remaining amount, taxable to your heirs (not your spouse though).

The wisest move is to maximize your TFSA.  And for the younger generation, to mazimize their FHSA along that.

Once that is done, you can invest in RRSP.


If you maximize all of these every year, you should seek a financial planner.

#80

Off the Record / Re: Brexit and the waning days...

Last post by Tamas - April 18, 2024, 11:25:54 AM

He's had the whip removed. And has also been suspended from his role as an "unpaid trade envoy to Colombia"....

Colombia