Forum Archive Index - October 2000

["gcallaghan" <gcallaghan@actrix.co.nz>]

Hi,

 I had quite a chuckle when I read your piece about the Kiwi accountants boarding with you & only being able to afford the water at the restaurant.I thought life has gone full circle.when I was in the U.K. in 1960 N.Z. money had the same value as the English pound ,the difference being my wages were twice that of my english mate doing the same job.We were both mateloes,he in the English navy & myself in the N.Z. navy.Then sometimes he couln't afford enough beer {warm & flat.Somethings never change} I would shout knowing that he was only getting half the money that I was.I can't remember what the Aussie money was worth at that time but I do remember that in 1950 the kiwi money was 25% MORE than the Aussie.A shopkeeper would not accept my Aussie florin {2 shillings}.

What's gone wrong over the years.Well ,each batch of politicans has borrowed & borrowed,thinking we will leave it to the next lot to pay it back.The last politican to try & get the country out of debt was a Labour leader,Arnold Nordmeyer.In 1957 or 58. in his budget he increased beer by a penny a glass & cigarettes by about the same amount.There were a couple of other minor increases but nothing much.The N.Z.. Herald being the tory paper it always has been.{maybe at last it is changing.See todays editorial}called it the BLACK budget & had a wide black border around the edge of the page.

We did have another chance,in 1974 or 5 another Labour government Rowling & Kirk brought in a super scheme which would have pulled us out of the crap.But would you believe it ,we were going to have so much money the evil Socialists or communists as any left leaning person was labelled were not to be trusted with it.{Anyone remember the dancing cossack advert?} I think that somehow it maybe dusted off again shortly.By the way the super scheme was similar to the one that has made Singapore the place it is today.

Gordon C