those numbers make me feel like
:okay:

What I would like to see is the statistic of average consumer spending over the past 20 years given into account of inflation. I cannot say for certain, but it seems like personal spending has increased a lot.

Just think 20yrs ago there was no internet, cell phones or really any decent TV service. Now people are spending so much cash on electronics and going out for dinner I wouldn't be surprised if it has increased 1000%

okay may be not the best priorities...self-entitlement is debatable but to say poor work ethics is a stretch IMO.

Bravo, some great responses guys!

Society is always full of chumps who complain about this or that and falsely believe that things were easier in the past. In my view, they are just chumps, plain and simple.

I was born in the 80's and I remember my dad's mortgage rate was around 17% LOL, that's as much as credit cards charge! But hey, easy times right?

Boobs who think "things were cheaper back then" don't seem to understand inflation (or perhaps they do and just want to make excuses). You cannot compare 1980's prices with todays prices without adjusting for the inflation that has taken place. And I'm talking about real inflation numbers, not the nominal (re: severely underreported) rates posted by governments. Oh and there's also this little thing called a housing bubble that affects prices.

I find that people who have a habit of making excuses always like believing that "all those other people" have advantages that they don't have (in Vancouver, these bums' favourite excuses seems to be "rich asian kids"-as if there are no kids of upper middle class people elsewhere lol).

At the same time, underachievers always conveniently fail to point out the advantages that they have that other people of other times/places don't have. Advantages like living in one of the wealthiest and freest countries in the world, or having access to all the useful information in the world (think wealth creation) at their fingertips. But alas, lemons are lemons for a reason. They will bitch about their "problems" to other lemons while the successful are busy earning their success.

back then you could forget about a mortage and horde all your money into investments with the sky high interest rates, then when the interest rates dropped down you'd have a pile of cash to buy a house with.

at least you didnt have to deal with shitty dubstep, and the sheep that love it

My dad herded cows and never went to school....worked his ass off to put 4 kids through school and I never thanked him yet...

Now that I'm a dad with only 1 kid and know how it feels, And I've had it EASY.

Fuck I'm tearing up now...

:okay:

How many Fins are billionaires?

im from winterpeg and my parents say the exact same thing.

my dad used to tell me that when companies are laying people off, some people actually volunteer because you were still able to pay your mortgage with your EI.

my parents house was just over 24k.

My parents also told me that back in 91' places in downtown used to cost 60k only hahah

whats up with people talking about work ethics, did you even read the article? its about how prices have risen more than salaries, by more than inflation

Here you go:
http://i45.tinypic.com/nznggg.jpg

It's taken out of my ECON textbook. RFlush is right. As you guys can see the gap between income and consumption has closed in quite a bit since the 80's.

Mind blowing some of the posts coming out about "Work ethics". It's also funny that the assholes that are posting this are sitting at home sucking from their parent's tits.

Productivity has gone UP, not down, quit spewing that bullshit propaganda.

The truth is our government, and the baby boomer generation have failed our generation. The system has already been rigged and jeered out of this generations favour, fact is all of us will have it harder than our parents did, plan and simple. Inflation has risen at a MUCH HIGHER rate in relation to wages, that is a simple fact.

It's almost mind blowing at one point where a household could have a single income coming in, with the wife staying at home. Nowadays, having a family is a serious financial burden, it's one of the main reasons I have no intentions of having children. To lose the combined income from my spouse would be an unimaginable financial hit.

The system is fucked. Housing prices will have to fall at some point, I am a firm believer of this fact. The current trend we have going on in the US, and to a lesser point the US, simply can't go on forever here. Something is going to have to give, and eventually it will.

It's kind of sad reading some people's posts on this stuff. You would think we people as a whole would want to see society and the quality of life for all improve. We know that societies eventually fail when wealth accumulates too far at the top. I guess it's human nature in the end though isn't it?

why r u thinking like a capitalist?

I'm going to get my $1.39 jr chicken now :(

Cry more.

Lower interest rates since the late 1980s have discouraged saving and encouraged spending (cheap money/credit.)

Cash is no longer a sound investment strategy. Playing stocks is, but unfortunately, most people don't have the knowledge and risk tolerance to make the gains that they would have made from cash in the 1980s. You basically need to make 7-9% on your money to outdo inflation (real inflation which includes fuel increases) and only a small minority get these returns on a consistent basis. The transfer of wealth to the stock market is one reason why the gap between the rich and poor has grown.

I plan on moving out of Canada.

I'm not rephrasing what the article said, I'm saying what I feel about the topic of the current generation vs previous.
Glad to know you have such a in depth knowledge of my financial situation. First off, I am no where near rich yet. Second, I can guarantee you I had a poorer childhood compared to you and greater student loans. Sorry an immigrant family like mine all made something of ourselves though, please accept my apology. And coming from anything but a upper class background, it pains me that SO many people like you feel that rich people shouldn't have a say in issues because their rich. Because majority of rich people are just gifted a money tree by God right? Keep your jealousy in check, it's not a good color on anyone.

You're comparing apples to oranges.
Vancouver is nowhere near what it was 30 years ago.
As cities grow, advance; they get more expensive. Why? People will flock to good things, and thus drive the price up. It's simple supply and demand.
If you can't afford to live in Vancouver, it's not the government and economy failing you, it's you not realizing or willing to accept that to obtain the level of success you want, that you need to move. If you don't want to move, you need to reevaluate your expectations.
Being BORN somewhere, does not mean you have the right to live and succeed in that city.
Life isn't a gym where you can pay a bit extra at the beginning when you join, in order to lock in the same monthly payments for life.

I'm not arguing that the government and baby boomer generation have some responsibility in the current climate.

But a increase in productivity now, is not solely indicative of work ethic. Ever hear of technology and greater choice of worker for example?
Saying that "work ethic" is fine because productivity has gone up. I don't even know how to respond to that. :fulloffuck:
Please pick up a book.

Most people who don't think there's anything wrong with the "work ethic" with the majority of younger people/ entry level workers; clearly have lower standards because they themselves have a shit sense of work ethic and accountability.

And once again, people who live with support from their parents/rich people can't have a good work ethic?

And please direct me to a parental "tit" I can suck on, would help me relieve a lot of monetary stress.

To compare...

http://www.bcrealtor.com/images/bkcan_75.gif

edit: Yah, the high interest rate was because of high inflation back then.

http://www.bankofcanada.ca/wp-conten.../07/chart2.gif

^dafuq

dat 15%+ interest rate

There'll always be excuses. This part never changes.

Do you want a society that creates happiness or one that creates billionaires?

If I am the billionaire, I would be happy as fuck :fullofwin: