A Boomer who is facing an impoverished future

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GENERATION DIVIDE

A Boomer who is facing an impoverished future

I am sick and tired of articles about Baby Boomers which suggest that most are wealthy, self-funded retirees living off the income from their property portfolio and using negative gearing to avoid paying tax (Comment, 30/6). Just as I am sick of stories about smashed avocado-eating Millennials, wasting their money on holidays promoted by influencers and goat’s milk frappes.

Many older Australians are doing it tough, along with the younger people locked out of the housing market. Antoinette Lattouf says “some Boomers are not home owners. Some have not flourished”. Gee, thanks for that.

In my experience, a great many Boomers – myself included – have not only “not flourished” but are facing a dire, impoverished future since employers avoid hiring people over the age of 55. The enemy is not one generation or the other. It’s a neoliberal financial system that has been deliberately skewed to advantage a very small sector of society at the expense of everyone else.
Christopher White, Hawthorn

All generations need to care about each other

Antoinette Lattouf has a point about the unreasonable expectation that struggling younger generations support ageing Baby Boomers. We do need to get creative about taxes. But I am disappointed whenever I read an embittered outburst about wealth and privilege as if none of us ageing folk care about future generations. We need to assume we all care about each other if we are to talk and find positive solutions. In today’s climate of blame and misinformation, that is not easy.
Susan Mahar, Fitzroy North

Little evidence that we want equality and equity

Antoinette Lattouf is correct. We Boomers should, if able to, pay for the care we need as we age just as we paid for our needs in our younger days. Many of us tried desperately to make things more equitable for everyone by voting for Bill Shorten’s proposed changes to negative gearing, franking credits and capital gains at the 2016 election. Unfortunately the majority of the country, of which Boomers were not the majority, voted for the Coalition.

Yes, some Boomers have used all means available to be legally classified as not being well off. However, not all are wealthy. Individuals’ life experiences within all age categories are different and so are their financial circumstances. Some of us paid for our tertiary education. Some could afford to buy a home despite 17per cent interest rates, some could not. Those who could have benefited from an exponential increase in the value of their homes. The majority of women did not have access to childcare and did not have compulsory superannuation. One of the largest growing groups of poor and homeless are single women over 50. Generally, I do not see much evidence of our society acting for equality or equity.
Jenny Callaghan, Hawthorn

Seeking solutions rather than blaming others

Playing the blame game when life doesn’t play fair is unappealing. It should not be about “who has more” and who needs to contribute more (or less), but how all generations can work together to create a better, more equitable society. A follow-up article by Antoinette Lattouf on how this can be achieved, now that would be worth reading.
Mandy Morgan, Malvern

THE FORUM

The kids will be OK

In her entertaining article, Antoinette Lattouf neglected to ask the question: What happens to Boomers’ fortunes when they die? The answer, of course, is that they mostly go to their children, which probably explains why death duties are not mentioned in the article.
John Blake, Kensington

Hard work not a defence

“I worked my hardest in the public interest” (The Age, 30/6) is not a defence against the charge of corruption. The “unrepentant” Gladys Berejiklian may have worked hard but appears to be in denial about the real or perceived conflicts of interest and self-serving nature of her actions.

Some commentators, including NSW Premier Chris Minns, suggest that Berejiklian’s handling of COVID-19 should be factored in when considering the findings of the Independent Commission Against Corruption. The role of ICAC was not to investigate how hard she worked, or how popular she was, but whether she used her position inappropriately.
Fiona Colin, Malvern East

The need to be pure

I am surprised that the ICAC findings against Gladys Berejiklian were merely those of corrupt behaviour with no recommendation to the Director of Public Prosecutions of criminal proceedings.
Politicians should be held to a higher standard, otherwise what is to prevent them continuing to act corruptly when the consequences seem to be a mere rap over the knuckles? They should be considered like Caesar’s wife – above reproach when it comes to political behaviour, especially for those who hold extreme power.
Robyn Westwood, Heidelberg Heights

Women’s right to be boss

Why would a powerful woman feel she had to take a subservient role to her partner? It starts with praising boys for being tough and girls for being good.
Merryn Boan, Brighton

Trust our MPs? Sure.

Gladys Berejiklian, a good premier, but in the light of recent evidence trying to protect her legacy by refuting it, using that timeless, political, two-step “nothing to see here” dance.
Mary Cole, Richmond

A double standard…

So the state government has caved in over private schools paying payroll tax (The Age, 30/6). But the larger question remains: why should state schools be subject to this tax when the Treasury funds their staffs’ salaries? Is that an efficient and equitable tax? Or a bureaucratic nonsense?
Mike Smith, Croydon

…and unfair funding

I am terribly disappointed and angry that the Andrews government has been unable to resist the pressure from private schools and has now reduced the number of schools which will pay the proposed payroll tax. Remember, state public schools pay this tax. And the appalling underfunding of public schools who cater for all comers continues.
Joy Kitch, Carlton

A generous sacrifice

Great news for low-income families who cannot afford to pay private school fees. The Victorian government mandates they help support (through their taxes) more affluent parents’ children to attend the private school of their choice. Surely the battlers must recognise the wonderful sacrifice they are making.
Ken Feldman, Sandringham

Luring young ’gamblers’

I am concerned that each time I go for a pub meal with my grandchildren, the venue has a children’s area – which is great fun – but there is generally a “toy claw” machine that lures children to beg for coins so that they can play and maybe get a toy. It is a gamble whether they do or don’t, and to introduce them to this at such a young and vulnerable age is upsetting. A young child about 4 was in tears when no one would give him money so he could play. Even though I am sure these machines make good money for the venues, they should not be installed in children’s indoor playgrounds.
Margaret Blanksby, Wandin East

Blessed sleep at last

Re “Party’s over as noise row claims nightclub’s licence” (The Age, 29/6). About 1800 petitioners who have other venues for entertainment probably live elsewhere and sleep soundly in their beds. More than 7000 happy locals who reside within 400 metres of Atet nightclub can now sleep in their homes comfortably. This was a bad idea right from the start. Music to sleep by, it wasn’t.
Angela Forgan, Docklands

Cost of whistleblowing

I am a retired consultant forensic psychiatrist who did much work for the Department of Veterans Affairs and Military Compensation as well as many other clients. At one stage I was blacklisted by The Returned and Services League and I had multiple complaints made to the Australian Health Practitioners Regulation Agency against me by disgruntled claimants who objected to my reports.

However, I have never suffered the appalling treatment meted out to Samantha Crompvoets (Comment, 28/6), the sociologist who was contracted by the Australian Army to undertake a research project on the SAS which led to the exposure of alleged war crimes in Afghanistan. My heart goes out to her and all whistleblowers who suffer because their honesty offends those in entrenched power.
Dr Norman Rose, Kilmore

Putting the fans first

Prince used to do regular gigs in smaller venues immediately after his concerts for the fans who had missed out. Now that is a true artist and someone who cares about all of his fan base. Keep that in mind, Taylor Swift.
Pam Papadopoulos, South Yarra

Chaos reigns supreme

Watching the shemozzle that is the Yes campaign I am, sadly, reminded of my first exposure to US politics in 1992 while I was at business school in that country.

One of the potential Democratic nominees withdrew, citing funding difficulties. When I remarked to my American colleagues, somewhat naively it now seems, that an ability to raise funds was a strange prerequisite for high political office, I was told that if a candidate couldn’t raise sufficient funds to run a campaign, how could they be expected to run the country.

While I am inclined to vote Yes in the referendum, Niki Savva’s opening paragraph (Comment, 29/6) reminds me of my American experience: if the Yes lobby can’t run a successful campaign, how can they be expected to manage the Voice and all that would flow from it?
Jonathan Sanders, Glen Iris

A mea culpa at last

So the White House has discovered that its long-held holy grail, the free market, has got it wrong (The Age, 29/06). Middle-class Australians have known all along that our clones of the US economic advisers gave their advice in a self-serving gesture. Now it has all come home too roost. It has always been a plain home truth that unless we create more than we consume, economic prosperity cannot flourish.
John Marks, Werribee

Courtesy and care

Justine Toh speaks of chivalry lucidly (Comment, 27/6). Courtesy can be equated with chivalry which is also not controlling or sexist. I am an elderly woman but if I arrive at a door first, I hold it open for other people. If I am tottering with a bulky package and someone helps me, I thank them.

If I walk down a corridor and a man puts his arm on my back (a la Paul Keating) as my boss used to, I feel uncomfortable. And patronised. If I fall and someone helps me, I thank them. My former father-in-law held my hand when we crossed the street. I saw that as showing care for another person. Or perhaps it was pragmatic as neither of us was steady on the feet.
Rosalind McIntosh, Camberwell

Generosity and kindness

A huge thank you to Daniel Flynn and his team for producing his Thankyou products to help the fight against global poverty (The Age, 30/6). A wonderful initiative for a wonderful cause.
Cynthia Pollak, North Caulfield

AND ANOTHER THING

Credit: Illustration: Matt Golding

Berejiklian

To all those who are blindly defending Gladys Berejiklian, I have four words: She quit. She knew.
Philip West, Jan Juc

Berejiklian has left the door open to a legal challenge. Gladys, you’re dreaming.
Lou Ferrari, Richmond

A self-confessed “goody two-shoes?” Glad, you are gone.
Ian Gribble, Point Lonsdale

Nobody knows like Gladys knows.
Mary Mandanici, Preston

Well, Scott Morrison, the kangaroo court has certainty jumped on your close friend, Gladys Berejiklian.
Michael Brinkman, Ventnor

Berejiklian’s supporters are almost Trumpian in their denial of the facts.
Peter Bennett, Clifton Hill

Gold-plated Gladys? Fool’s gold.
Ken Mcleod, Williamstown

Politics

Australia plans to import greenhouse gases from Asia (29/6). This is madness. Don’t we have enough carbon pollution of our own?
Joy Hayman, Surrey Hills

I wonder when a political, business or community miscreant will simply say “mea culpa”.
Iain Carmichael, Richmond

Peter Dutton doesn’t want the military to be “distracted by things that happened in the past”. So does he no longer support Anzac Day?
Denis Liubinas, Blairgowrie

Furthermore

Thanks, VicRoads (30/6). I quite like my new name.
Ron Noonan, Lake Wendouree

Vale Victoria Market as we know it.
Reg Murray, Glen Iris

Samantha Crompvoets (28/6) and people like her deserve the medals. But they end up as casualties for telling the truth.
Andrew Barnes, Ringwood

Gambling ads may be banned in three years? Wanna bet?
Deborah Morrison, Malvern East

I’m looking forward to everyone getting back to work once all those tickets for Taylor Swift are sold.
Craig Tucker, Newport

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