In part 2 I described how my interest in golf became fascination, which was one step from addiction! This article describes the final slide into addiction.
The second tee of Stirling golf course at that time faced what was to us a huge crater filled with thick rough. It was a severe challenge for a 10 year old to drive over, with only a narrow path through the rough on its left edge leading to the fairway beyond.
The right edge was guarded with gorse and broom bushes and, of course, that was where most beginners who managed to avoid the crater itself ended up, as we tended to either aim left and/or tried to force the shot with too much right arm, which led to the inevitable slice. However, there were compensations in ending up in the crater or amongst the gorse, as that was where balls were to be found, apart from our own, thereby saving some of our precious pocket money.
Having negotiated the crater, the hole was quite straightforward. A broad fairway led to a green situated part way up a rise. As beginners, we merely hacked our way around the course without paying much attention to how the ball behaved as long as it eventually went into the hole!
However, after a while our competitive instincts began to kick in and we started to compare scores to see how few strokes we needed to get the ball into the hole, which after all was the object of the game. We began to take notice how the ball behaved as we struck it in certain ways.
The first observation was that if we tried to leather the ball to get it over the crater by hitting it as hard as we could with our right arm, as was natural for a right handed person, it tended to take a fairly sharp left to right turn, ie fade or slice. This was compounded if we aimed to the left to try to avoid the crater by following the path. This was a puzzle and was our first intimation that golf was counter intuitive, although we had no words for it at that age. We had played hockey and a good swipe with lots of right arm worked well with a hockey stick, so why didn't it work with a golf club? It took quite a while to discover that the left arm was the key to keeping the shot straight; the right arm was merely along for the ride.
The next problem was deciding how to attack the green. Should one try to pitch the ball onto it or play a chip & run shot?
We soon discovered that much depended on the time of day and the season. In winter, particularly after frost, the ball would react as if the green and its approaches were concrete! Consequently a chip & run was the way to go. In summer, the approaches would be fast, but the green & its surrounds soft, particularly in the morning after watering, so a pitch shot was the answer.
You will recall from my second article that the clubs used were a half set, with the Mashie-Niblick being equivalent to a 7 or 8 iron, often with a flange which made it similar to a wedge to play. However, around the green one had to learn to play it with a very open face to get it to stop quickly. It was very easy to fluff a shot by trying to play it too softly.
The final problem was how to putt the ball into the hole. Should one use a wristy stroke, which was common in those days, or play it stiff-armed, which we heard was the modern method?
The grass used on courses in those days was often the same as that on the fairways, just cut shorter on a more prepared surface with good drainage and a watering system. Consequently it had a definite grain which affected how the ball ran, both as regards speed and direction, ie how the ball took any break. We discovered that a wristy stroke on the green was not as effective as a stiff armed one.
As the above demonstrates, we learned a lot in the first few weeks of play. Some came to the conclusion that golf was a stupid game and reverted to the team games that were encouraged. A few of us decided that there was a lot more to the game than we had first thought and began to take a serious interest in it.
That was the final step into addiction for me, as the more I played the more I discovered I had to learn, and the more I learnt about the game the more I discovered about my own character and abilities, and after 52 years I am still learning!
My next article will cover some tips and tricks I have picked up over the years which have helped ease my addiction.
Wednesday 23 September 2009
Friday 18 September 2009
Phobias & How to Overcome Them
I've had a phobia about wasps ever since I was stung twice as a kid, specifically the European variety, which are far nastier than the generally tolerant native ones in Australia, so I know how scary a phobia can be.
Although I can control my reactions to some degree, I know other people may not be able to & may suffer severe reactions when they encounter their trigger, be it a spider, snake or whatever.
Until comparitively recently, the only known cures (& some of them were only partial) were hypnosis or desensitising by massive exposure to the cause of the phobia.
These days, other methods are being discovered/trialled with some success.
Tapping is one method & you can check it out at http://www.tryitoneverything.com/cmd.php?af=1032271,
Another I've just come across is at http://62c1d8vcm0m-en5848o9sbh5y0.hop.clickbank.net/ or http://tinyurl.com/nawzfd
Although I can control my reactions to some degree, I know other people may not be able to & may suffer severe reactions when they encounter their trigger, be it a spider, snake or whatever.
Until comparitively recently, the only known cures (& some of them were only partial) were hypnosis or desensitising by massive exposure to the cause of the phobia.
These days, other methods are being discovered/trialled with some success.
Tapping is one method & you can check it out at http://www.tryitoneverything.com/cmd.php?af=1032271,
Another I've just come across is at http://62c1d8vcm0m-en5848o9sbh5y0.hop.clickbank.net/ or http://tinyurl.com/nawzfd
Free Private Label Rights and Master Resale rights Products
I'm never sure if giving away free items really helps get people to visit your site, or if they merely encourage tyre-kickers!
I've downloaded my share of free stuff, some of which I've found quite useful, whilst some is just awful rubbish, but I suppose that could be said of items you pay for too!
One benefit of getting free items is that they are free, so after you have downloaded them, you can take your time to open them & check them out, then send them on to targeted groups.
You may even learn some useful tips & tricks from them yourself, although if they are being given away you'd have to ask yourself if they are still valid in today's rapidly evolving internet scene.
Anyway, I came across this site which has over 220 Free-Products including a vast assortment of Private Label Rights and Master Resale Rights Products which I found interesting. See what you think; you've nothing to loose:
http://tinyurl.com/ktvvq6
I've downloaded my share of free stuff, some of which I've found quite useful, whilst some is just awful rubbish, but I suppose that could be said of items you pay for too!
One benefit of getting free items is that they are free, so after you have downloaded them, you can take your time to open them & check them out, then send them on to targeted groups.
You may even learn some useful tips & tricks from them yourself, although if they are being given away you'd have to ask yourself if they are still valid in today's rapidly evolving internet scene.
Anyway, I came across this site which has over 220 Free-Products including a vast assortment of Private Label Rights and Master Resale Rights Products which I found interesting. See what you think; you've nothing to loose:
http://tinyurl.com/ktvvq6
Wednesday 9 September 2009
Money Management
Following from my last blog on fiscal management, I came across an interesting article which helps with personal financial discipline, something that seems to have gone by the board for many people for many years, as the banks have encouraged profligacy with their easy issuance of credit cards and many parents have failed to educate their children in money management & thrift.
I have seen several similar suggestions, but this is probably about the simplest to implement & I reproduce it below.
The Five Account System, by Stuart Goldsmith (www.stuartgoldsmith.com)
Now I want to tell you about a powerful but simple idea for controlling spending and building wealth. This idea is so simple, that when you read it you're likely to dismiss it as 'too obvious'. Please don't. I use this exact idea myself and have done for many years. Also, American Guru Frederic Lehrman has such firm belief in this idea, that he tours the world lecturing on the subject. By the way, check out his excellent audio series 'Prosperity Consciousness' available from Nightingale Connant. Superb stuff.
The idea runs like this:-
The human brain is not terribly good at handling big projects. If you say to your subconscious 'go get a million pounds', it will really flounder because 'one million pounds' is not a concept easily grasped by the brain. It's just too big a number. Too big a project.
However, the brain is very good at doing lots of smaller manageable tasks in a serial fashion.
“Open a savings account and put £50 in it” is a task you can easily do. No problem.
Going back to our theme of discipline, a command such as: “Save for thirty years and you can retire independently wealthy” is just too much for the brain. It cannot really contemplate five years, let alone thirty. The task is just too huge, and this is why people don't bother. They say to themselves “Heck, I know that thirty years of saving will make a lot of money, but thirty years is a long time and anything could happen. I'll spend it all now.”
Alcoholics are not told: “You must give up drink and for the rest of your life - you cannot ever touch another drop.” No. The 'rest of your life' is just too big a project. Instead they are told: “Forget the rest of your life. Don't think about it. The trick is not to drink today. Stay sober one day at a time.”
One Small Step
So the trick is to realise that the brain can't handle big projects and to break these big projects down into bite-sized pieces. This is the way any large project gets completed. “Put a man on the moon!” is a ludicrous command to the average brain. It's utterly impossible to contemplate the enormity of such a task. The only way to handle it is to start cracking it down into smaller parts and putting teams of people to work on each task.
Thus 'propulsion systems', 'human environment', 'medical', 'food and water', 'navigation', 'power supply' and so on are all set up as separate tasks. Then, within those groups, the tasks are broken down even further. Eventually, you have tens of thousands of manageable tasks such as: “Build a 12-volt power supply which can deliver 3 amps continuous, weighing not more than 0.5Kg and occupying a space of 10cm x 5 cm x 4.5cm”. Now that's a task which any electronics engineer can comprehend and get cracking on. But “Put a man on the moon”? Forget it! I don't know how to do that!
Okay, here's how to apply this to your spending and savings habits. It's called the 'five account' method. It works. Please don't dismiss it. Give it a try.
To operate this system, you must set up five accounts at your bank or building society (or even both - it doesn't matter where the accounts are located). Here are the five accounts:
1. Income Account.
2. Cheque Account.
3. Financial Independence Account.
4. Large Purchases Account.
5. Cash Account.
Here we are using the ability of the mind to handle small units/projects. We are breaking up our finances into manageable chunks. There are rules associated with each account, and of course, each account has a specific purpose, hopefully suggested by its name! Typically, accounts 3, and 4 would be Building Society 'deposit' accounts, and accounts 1, 2 and 5 would be normal bank accounts or Building Society 'current' accounts.
Here are the rules:
Income Account
This has just one function. It's the account into which you pay all the money you receive from all sources. Your pay cheque, the cheque for selling the car, your second job salary, gifts of money, whatever. Every penny you receive gets paid into this account and nowhere else. This also makes your accounts and tax computations easy. Just look down the statements for this account, and all your income is listed. The only function of this account is to receive your income, and to distribute it, by standing order, to the other four accounts. No money leaves this account apart from payments to the other four accounts. You do not have a cheque book on this account. Most importantly you do not have a 'cash-card' on this account. It is impossible for you to go to the bank and withdraw money from this account. That's done automatically by standing order, to the other four accounts. I hope I have made myself clear.
Cheque Account
If you have a bank account already, this is the sort of account you will have. It's a 'current' account with a cheque book. That's all. The difference is that at present, your salary cheque (etc) is probably paid into this account. That's now changed. The only income into this account is by transfer from the Income Account. The cheque account is for paying bills. You do not write cash cheques or cheques for any other goodies on this account. You do not have a ‘hole in the wall’ card on this account.
Here's how it works. When you get a bill, you lay it to one side in a pile. A bill is just a request for payment, it is not an actual payment until you have paid it. When you have a suitable pile of bills you have to pay, you add them all up. Let's say the total is £391.62p. You write out a slip to transfer exactly this amount from your income account, into your cheque account, pop it in an envelope, and mail it to the bank. Obviously you can do this on line too. You then write out exactly £391.62 in cheques to pay the bills, and mail the lot. Any bills which are paid by standing order also go through this cheque account so you have to allow for these. Better still is to pay all utility bills by cheque. This gives you total control. You will never be overdrawn.
Cash Account
To stay solvent you must decide how much cash you need a week, and then never spend more. To determine this, look back over your cash withdrawals for the last six months. Decide if you could live on less. Come up with a sensible figure. Let's say it's £150 a week. Now set up a standing order to transfer £150 a week from your Income Account to your Cash Account.
Your Cash Account will have an ATM cash card, and nothing else. When you need cash, you go to a hole in the wall, use this card, and withdraw cash. If you need more cash £150 is transferred. Guess what? This is called discipline - having a limit on the number of sweeties you can withdraw from the jar at any one time, and not just using the card to withdraw the gas bill money or the rent because you 'need a few quid' to spend on whatever trash you think you ‘need’ right now. Sorry to sound harsh. Been there, done that.. Set it up so that you can't get cash from any other account apart from your cash account. This is to stop temptation. Making sense so far? It's a powerful system, I don't mind telling you.
Now you must sit down and decide two things:-
a) How much you can afford to save each month. This should ideally be 10% of your net income. Don't say 'no way'. I never met a person who couldn't save 10% of their income, no matter how little that income was. You can always live on 90% of what you earn.
b) How much you want to allocate each month towards saving for large purchases. This means T.V. dish-washers, holidays, furniture etc. I suggest another 10%, leaving 80% of your salary to split between the cheque account and the cash account.
Let's say you have decided on 10% and 10%. Set up two more standing orders. The first one transfers 10% from the Income Account to the Financial Independence Account. The second transfers 10% from the Income Account to the Large Purchases Account. This should happen automatically, each month after your salary has cleared. You don't have to take a monthly decision to save, it's done for you. If you had to take a monthly decision to save, that decision would ALWAYS be: “I can't afford to save this month because of x, y and z. I'll start next month.” So make it automatic. Also, these standing orders come out FIRST, immediately after your pay cheque (or whatever) has been paid in. You save first and spend what's left.
Why? Because there's never anything left if you spend first and then try to save.
Large Purchases Account
This is what its name suggests. Whenever a large purchase comes up, look at this account. If there's enough money to buy the item, then go for it. This is what the account is for, to spend on large purchases. The money in this account is not for saving, or paying bills.
It's for spending on goodies. So spend it. If there's not enough money in the kitty, then forget it, you can't afford the item. No debate. No argument. You can't afford it. How do you know you can’t afford it? Simple – there’s not enough cash in the account. Go away until you have accumulated enough in the account.
Compare that to what most (undisciplined) people do when faced with a large purchase. They buy it anyway. They use the electricity, rent and gas money and then hope that 'something' will turn up. Or they buy it anyway and pay for it over months or years with money which they have already allocated for other things. In other words, they are spending their salary several times over and 'hoping' that 'it will be all right'.
Sad.
This account is usually a Building Society account with a 30-day withdrawal notice. That makes you think for a month before spending the loot - so no impulse purchases! You withdraw the money in cash, or counter cheque made out to the store/person you are buying the item from.
Financial Independence Account
This is the best and most exciting account. The purpose of it is to make you independently wealthy at some point in the future. Make this a Building Society Account with the longest possible withdrawal notice (120 days?) and the highest interest rate. The trick here is that you never withdraw the money from this account! Never. No excuses, no exceptions, no emergencies. Consider this money to be gone forever. You'll get interest on this account. At first it will be pitiful. Leave it to build and build. Eventually, you will get enough interest to 'buy' you a week of life! Then enough to 'buy' you a month of your life back (e.g. interest equivalent to one month's salary). Then a year, then several years. Eventually you will be able to give up work altogether.
If you get a sudden windfall of money, put half of it into this account, and do whatever you like with the rest.
Okay, that's the idea. Simple, huh? But very powerful. It's not just for the poor and needy.
I use this system myself. Everyone needs to set limits on their spending. It doesn't matter how much you're earning, you can always dream up ways of spending until there is nothing left.
Please, please consider using this system. It's a bit of a pain to set up, but not that tricky. You could do it in an afternoon. The sheer thrill and power of having your finances under precise control has to be experienced. I promise that if you operate this system you will be happier and more wealthy.
It takes discipline, though....
About the only thing I would disagree with him is in the last paragraph, which advocates leaving savings in the Financial Independence Account. My feeling is that when savings reach a reasonable amount, they should be used to generate additional wealth by investing them in shares, property or some other medium, but that is another subject!
I have seen several similar suggestions, but this is probably about the simplest to implement & I reproduce it below.
The Five Account System, by Stuart Goldsmith (www.stuartgoldsmith.com)
Now I want to tell you about a powerful but simple idea for controlling spending and building wealth. This idea is so simple, that when you read it you're likely to dismiss it as 'too obvious'. Please don't. I use this exact idea myself and have done for many years. Also, American Guru Frederic Lehrman has such firm belief in this idea, that he tours the world lecturing on the subject. By the way, check out his excellent audio series 'Prosperity Consciousness' available from Nightingale Connant. Superb stuff.
The idea runs like this:-
The human brain is not terribly good at handling big projects. If you say to your subconscious 'go get a million pounds', it will really flounder because 'one million pounds' is not a concept easily grasped by the brain. It's just too big a number. Too big a project.
However, the brain is very good at doing lots of smaller manageable tasks in a serial fashion.
“Open a savings account and put £50 in it” is a task you can easily do. No problem.
Going back to our theme of discipline, a command such as: “Save for thirty years and you can retire independently wealthy” is just too much for the brain. It cannot really contemplate five years, let alone thirty. The task is just too huge, and this is why people don't bother. They say to themselves “Heck, I know that thirty years of saving will make a lot of money, but thirty years is a long time and anything could happen. I'll spend it all now.”
Alcoholics are not told: “You must give up drink and for the rest of your life - you cannot ever touch another drop.” No. The 'rest of your life' is just too big a project. Instead they are told: “Forget the rest of your life. Don't think about it. The trick is not to drink today. Stay sober one day at a time.”
One Small Step
So the trick is to realise that the brain can't handle big projects and to break these big projects down into bite-sized pieces. This is the way any large project gets completed. “Put a man on the moon!” is a ludicrous command to the average brain. It's utterly impossible to contemplate the enormity of such a task. The only way to handle it is to start cracking it down into smaller parts and putting teams of people to work on each task.
Thus 'propulsion systems', 'human environment', 'medical', 'food and water', 'navigation', 'power supply' and so on are all set up as separate tasks. Then, within those groups, the tasks are broken down even further. Eventually, you have tens of thousands of manageable tasks such as: “Build a 12-volt power supply which can deliver 3 amps continuous, weighing not more than 0.5Kg and occupying a space of 10cm x 5 cm x 4.5cm”. Now that's a task which any electronics engineer can comprehend and get cracking on. But “Put a man on the moon”? Forget it! I don't know how to do that!
Okay, here's how to apply this to your spending and savings habits. It's called the 'five account' method. It works. Please don't dismiss it. Give it a try.
To operate this system, you must set up five accounts at your bank or building society (or even both - it doesn't matter where the accounts are located). Here are the five accounts:
1. Income Account.
2. Cheque Account.
3. Financial Independence Account.
4. Large Purchases Account.
5. Cash Account.
Here we are using the ability of the mind to handle small units/projects. We are breaking up our finances into manageable chunks. There are rules associated with each account, and of course, each account has a specific purpose, hopefully suggested by its name! Typically, accounts 3, and 4 would be Building Society 'deposit' accounts, and accounts 1, 2 and 5 would be normal bank accounts or Building Society 'current' accounts.
Here are the rules:
Income Account
This has just one function. It's the account into which you pay all the money you receive from all sources. Your pay cheque, the cheque for selling the car, your second job salary, gifts of money, whatever. Every penny you receive gets paid into this account and nowhere else. This also makes your accounts and tax computations easy. Just look down the statements for this account, and all your income is listed. The only function of this account is to receive your income, and to distribute it, by standing order, to the other four accounts. No money leaves this account apart from payments to the other four accounts. You do not have a cheque book on this account. Most importantly you do not have a 'cash-card' on this account. It is impossible for you to go to the bank and withdraw money from this account. That's done automatically by standing order, to the other four accounts. I hope I have made myself clear.
Cheque Account
If you have a bank account already, this is the sort of account you will have. It's a 'current' account with a cheque book. That's all. The difference is that at present, your salary cheque (etc) is probably paid into this account. That's now changed. The only income into this account is by transfer from the Income Account. The cheque account is for paying bills. You do not write cash cheques or cheques for any other goodies on this account. You do not have a ‘hole in the wall’ card on this account.
Here's how it works. When you get a bill, you lay it to one side in a pile. A bill is just a request for payment, it is not an actual payment until you have paid it. When you have a suitable pile of bills you have to pay, you add them all up. Let's say the total is £391.62p. You write out a slip to transfer exactly this amount from your income account, into your cheque account, pop it in an envelope, and mail it to the bank. Obviously you can do this on line too. You then write out exactly £391.62 in cheques to pay the bills, and mail the lot. Any bills which are paid by standing order also go through this cheque account so you have to allow for these. Better still is to pay all utility bills by cheque. This gives you total control. You will never be overdrawn.
Cash Account
To stay solvent you must decide how much cash you need a week, and then never spend more. To determine this, look back over your cash withdrawals for the last six months. Decide if you could live on less. Come up with a sensible figure. Let's say it's £150 a week. Now set up a standing order to transfer £150 a week from your Income Account to your Cash Account.
Your Cash Account will have an ATM cash card, and nothing else. When you need cash, you go to a hole in the wall, use this card, and withdraw cash. If you need more cash £150 is transferred. Guess what? This is called discipline - having a limit on the number of sweeties you can withdraw from the jar at any one time, and not just using the card to withdraw the gas bill money or the rent because you 'need a few quid' to spend on whatever trash you think you ‘need’ right now. Sorry to sound harsh. Been there, done that.. Set it up so that you can't get cash from any other account apart from your cash account. This is to stop temptation. Making sense so far? It's a powerful system, I don't mind telling you.
Now you must sit down and decide two things:-
a) How much you can afford to save each month. This should ideally be 10% of your net income. Don't say 'no way'. I never met a person who couldn't save 10% of their income, no matter how little that income was. You can always live on 90% of what you earn.
b) How much you want to allocate each month towards saving for large purchases. This means T.V. dish-washers, holidays, furniture etc. I suggest another 10%, leaving 80% of your salary to split between the cheque account and the cash account.
Let's say you have decided on 10% and 10%. Set up two more standing orders. The first one transfers 10% from the Income Account to the Financial Independence Account. The second transfers 10% from the Income Account to the Large Purchases Account. This should happen automatically, each month after your salary has cleared. You don't have to take a monthly decision to save, it's done for you. If you had to take a monthly decision to save, that decision would ALWAYS be: “I can't afford to save this month because of x, y and z. I'll start next month.” So make it automatic. Also, these standing orders come out FIRST, immediately after your pay cheque (or whatever) has been paid in. You save first and spend what's left.
Why? Because there's never anything left if you spend first and then try to save.
Large Purchases Account
This is what its name suggests. Whenever a large purchase comes up, look at this account. If there's enough money to buy the item, then go for it. This is what the account is for, to spend on large purchases. The money in this account is not for saving, or paying bills.
It's for spending on goodies. So spend it. If there's not enough money in the kitty, then forget it, you can't afford the item. No debate. No argument. You can't afford it. How do you know you can’t afford it? Simple – there’s not enough cash in the account. Go away until you have accumulated enough in the account.
Compare that to what most (undisciplined) people do when faced with a large purchase. They buy it anyway. They use the electricity, rent and gas money and then hope that 'something' will turn up. Or they buy it anyway and pay for it over months or years with money which they have already allocated for other things. In other words, they are spending their salary several times over and 'hoping' that 'it will be all right'.
Sad.
This account is usually a Building Society account with a 30-day withdrawal notice. That makes you think for a month before spending the loot - so no impulse purchases! You withdraw the money in cash, or counter cheque made out to the store/person you are buying the item from.
Financial Independence Account
This is the best and most exciting account. The purpose of it is to make you independently wealthy at some point in the future. Make this a Building Society Account with the longest possible withdrawal notice (120 days?) and the highest interest rate. The trick here is that you never withdraw the money from this account! Never. No excuses, no exceptions, no emergencies. Consider this money to be gone forever. You'll get interest on this account. At first it will be pitiful. Leave it to build and build. Eventually, you will get enough interest to 'buy' you a week of life! Then enough to 'buy' you a month of your life back (e.g. interest equivalent to one month's salary). Then a year, then several years. Eventually you will be able to give up work altogether.
If you get a sudden windfall of money, put half of it into this account, and do whatever you like with the rest.
Okay, that's the idea. Simple, huh? But very powerful. It's not just for the poor and needy.
I use this system myself. Everyone needs to set limits on their spending. It doesn't matter how much you're earning, you can always dream up ways of spending until there is nothing left.
Please, please consider using this system. It's a bit of a pain to set up, but not that tricky. You could do it in an afternoon. The sheer thrill and power of having your finances under precise control has to be experienced. I promise that if you operate this system you will be happier and more wealthy.
It takes discipline, though....
About the only thing I would disagree with him is in the last paragraph, which advocates leaving savings in the Financial Independence Account. My feeling is that when savings reach a reasonable amount, they should be used to generate additional wealth by investing them in shares, property or some other medium, but that is another subject!
Wednesday 2 September 2009
Thoughts on Fiscal Policy
There has been a veritable storm of comment, criticism, blame and finger pointing over the current economic crisis, so I thought I'd put my simple tuppence worth in!
It is some time since I studied economics, but it seems to me that everything that has transpired stems from plain greed. That greed is at all levels of society in many countries and is compounded by corruption, ignorance, stupidity and/or lack of common sense at senior levels of government and bureaucracy over many years.
The fact is that, since World War II, society generally has been suborned gradually by talk of rights with little mention of responsibilies.
I recall when I was a lad in 1956, I was taken to a bank in Scotland to open an account, mainly for my pocket money and any monetary gifts I was given for birthdays etc. The bank manager sat me down and talked to me very earnestly about the virtues of thrift and how saving was essential if I was to get ahead in my life. When I went to draw money out on holidays, I was always ushered into his office for a chat about how I was getting on and what I wanted to draw my money out for. If I admitted to requiring it for inconsequentials such as going to a film or a show, I was made to feel that was decidedly not thrifty!
Fast forward to 1980 in Australia when I went for a housing loan. Little questioning was done before the loan was approved, even though I was newly married with a relatively small income.
Similarly, at school, little mention was made of our rights; we had none it seemed. The emphasis was all on our responsibilities, and very onerous they were, often driven home by a few strokes of the cane!
Some years ago, during the recession of the 1990's, I saw a mug on which was printed Abraham Lincoln's (1809-1865) fiscal policy. It seemed to me that it was so relevant at the time and that it has become even more so today, that I reprint it below in the hope that politicians and public servants may learn something, (although that is probably a vain hope).
"You cannot help men permanently by doing more for them than they can do for themselves.
You cannot build character and courage by taking away man's initiative and independence.
You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
You cannot prosper by discouraging thrift.
You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than you earn."
How much has been forgotten or cast aside in 150 years.
It is some time since I studied economics, but it seems to me that everything that has transpired stems from plain greed. That greed is at all levels of society in many countries and is compounded by corruption, ignorance, stupidity and/or lack of common sense at senior levels of government and bureaucracy over many years.
The fact is that, since World War II, society generally has been suborned gradually by talk of rights with little mention of responsibilies.
I recall when I was a lad in 1956, I was taken to a bank in Scotland to open an account, mainly for my pocket money and any monetary gifts I was given for birthdays etc. The bank manager sat me down and talked to me very earnestly about the virtues of thrift and how saving was essential if I was to get ahead in my life. When I went to draw money out on holidays, I was always ushered into his office for a chat about how I was getting on and what I wanted to draw my money out for. If I admitted to requiring it for inconsequentials such as going to a film or a show, I was made to feel that was decidedly not thrifty!
Fast forward to 1980 in Australia when I went for a housing loan. Little questioning was done before the loan was approved, even though I was newly married with a relatively small income.
Similarly, at school, little mention was made of our rights; we had none it seemed. The emphasis was all on our responsibilities, and very onerous they were, often driven home by a few strokes of the cane!
Some years ago, during the recession of the 1990's, I saw a mug on which was printed Abraham Lincoln's (1809-1865) fiscal policy. It seemed to me that it was so relevant at the time and that it has become even more so today, that I reprint it below in the hope that politicians and public servants may learn something, (although that is probably a vain hope).
"You cannot help men permanently by doing more for them than they can do for themselves.
You cannot build character and courage by taking away man's initiative and independence.
You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
You cannot prosper by discouraging thrift.
You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than you earn."
How much has been forgotten or cast aside in 150 years.
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