Forum Archive Index - April 2000

[Nick Kearney <nk@xtra.co.nz>]

ril wrote:
> 
> As Oliver says, you wouldn't pay good cash for a post-graduate degree in
> New Zealand. New Zealand universities are for skill based training in
> book-keeping, engineering drafting, lab techicianship, medical
> technicianship, architectural drafting with a dollop of what ever
> party-line social programming the current government demands.
> 
> I don't feel contempt for NZ; Just really sad at what has happened to
> it. It was one of the best countries in the world up until about the
> mid-eighties. Now it is impoverished (or nearly so) and no-one laughs
> any more. Life's too short.
> 
> More than happy to return to NZ but only if someone lets off a nuclear
> war-head in Europe and I can't find a subterranean cave to hide in and
> someone forces me at gunpoint to get on a non-stop flight back and I
> don't have a parachute and a way of opening the cargo door in mid-air.
> 
> There are hundreds of thousands of us now (expatriate kiwis) and growing
> every day. Most of us are qualified or highly qualified because we can't
> count on the welfare systems of our new homes.
> 
> It was becoming hard to make a decent living in New Zealand for a lot of
> these expatriates. The stockmarket and property markets yielded few
> investment opportunities which didn't have a lot of risk attached to
> them.
> 
> There is a very good article on thestreet.com about Buffet's investor
> weekend and his thoughts on the future of equities over the next 15
> years. It may therefore be that seeking a higher salary abroad is a
> qualified kiwi's best chance. Remember that with the ongoing
> depreciation of the Kiwi ruble you really don't have to save that much
> in the US or England to have a nice little nest egg to retire on in New
> Zealand.
> 
> Just don't feel you owe anything to your country. That obligation CEASED
> when the government started charging for everything; when they let your
> parents suffer because they couldn't get operations, when your children
> can't get an education without paying megabucks for it, when no
> legislation was introduced to stop monopoly companies (banks, oil
> companies, telecom companies) ripping you off, when your sports teams
> charged you to watch them, when your police no longer protect etc etc.
> 
> You get my meaning.

You've been there so long you now sound like one of them (winging
pom!!).

Ha Ha Ha.  See,  I can laugh.  That just proves that I haven't lost my
sense of humuor.

It's always greener on the other side of the fence I guess.  I've had
two stretches in London and loved them both.  Unfortunately when it came
round to summer it wasn't easy to pack my bag and drive off to Piha for
the day and have an ice-cream in the sun afterwards.  London is good if
you want to fly to Europe to sit on a decent beach.

Winter is great in London too(I mean you can fly to Europe again to sit
on a beach or ski!!).  I used to love the pubs etc at night but at the
end of the day money isn't everything.  Just because you can make loads
more in one country shouldn't be the sole reason for living there.  If
you have a graduate job here (Law/Commerce/Engineering/Medicine etc) you
will make a packet.

Sure it takes you a while to pay off a loan but that didn't stop me.  I
just love the thought of dying owing the government a truck load of
money and owning nothing. (Thank You trusts!!).  Probably won't happen
but home is where the heart is.  If your heart is in London then stay
there.  

You are right when you say there more expats there.  Just goes to show
what Muldoon said years ago was true.  "It increases the IQ of both
countries"

Cheers.  Happy investing.

NK



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