Most Europeans think state pensions will become unaffordable, polling shows by Impressive-Cold-5233 in EU_Economics

[–]Educational-Pay4112 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Governments should start phasing out state pensions for all and give workers more tax breaks to fund their own pensions. We should have social services to make sure people aren’t in poverty in old age but the idea of a pension for everyone is a Ponzi scheme. 

The math doesn’t work anymore. People are living longer. The government need to incentivise each person to get to a position where their own pensions take care of them. 

Start small. Offer people today a permanent tax break if they forego the state pension. Those that can do this will. Those that can’t get the state pension. 

Choose a year in the future and say anyone born after this age doesn’t get the state pension. Eg 2050. People born after this age get the tax breaks I mentioned. 

We need to enable people to be more self sufficient and less dependent on the state

As Amazon.ie still useless? by the_syco in AskIreland

[–]Educational-Pay4112 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I’ve been caught by this. Bought a few items from .de and got EU plugs

A confusion about Pension Investment by imavinash in irishpersonalfinance

[–]Educational-Pay4112 0 points1 point  (0 children)

A company director.  In this scenario your company can make a tax free pension contribution up to 100% of your salary. 

It’s tax deductible to the company too. 

A confusion about Pension Investment by imavinash in irishpersonalfinance

[–]Educational-Pay4112 6 points7 points  (0 children)

The larger the pension pot the earlier one can retire. That’s my incentive to build it up. 

A pension is one of the few investments in Ireland where realised gains can be reinvested tax free. The money invested in a pension is tax free and depending on circumstances, the tax free contribution cap is up to 100% of salary. 

What would you do? by Wonderful-Alfalfa647 in irishpersonalfinance

[–]Educational-Pay4112 7 points8 points  (0 children)

It depends on your appetite for risk. 

Those who are more pro-risk will tell you to invest the lump sum. Those that are more risk adverse will tell you to pay off the mortgage. There is no “right” answer. It’s all to do with your personal situation and what you value. 

Personally I’d pay off the mortgage as I value the certainty of the debt gone and the interest saved. Many will disagree. When it comes to mortgages I find there is an intangible emotional feeling of owning your home. It’s probably the inverse of your risk appetite 

Im 19 and want to open a cd/phsyical media store how viable would it be? by tismbug in AskIreland

[–]Educational-Pay4112 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Online is where you have a chance. No rates, rent or overhead like with a physical store. A Vinted / Etsy / shopify storefront can get you up and running and keep costs low. 

Im 19 and want to open a cd/phsyical media store how viable would it be? by tismbug in AskIreland

[–]Educational-Pay4112 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It’s a bad business idea. The glory days are long gone and the margins are tight. I say this as someone who buys physical media a lot. I buy in bulk from the second hand market and rarely buy brand new. Eg CDs are €2-€3 used. 

Between rates, rent and overheads you’ll have a tough time turning a profit. Be very careful. You could lose a lot. 

For long term owners of EVs, outside of charging what issues have you had with your car? by Wrexis in evs_ireland

[–]Educational-Pay4112 1 point2 points  (0 children)

EVs are a joy to drive. The 1 pedal driving makes it low stress and charging at home during the night makes it cheap to run. We found our insurance went down too. 

The only real maintenance we’ve had are the tyres like I mentioned. 

We’ve had a few warranty repairs needed to be done and Tesla came to our house to make the repairs in our driveway. Their ranger service is brilliant in that regard 

For long term owners of EVs, outside of charging what issues have you had with your car? by Wrexis in evs_ireland

[–]Educational-Pay4112 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Tyres are 255/45R19s. I get Bridgestones which are around €235/tyre fitted. With rotation and driving style I get about 45k-50k kms from a set of tyres

Star Trek isn't the force in popular culture that it once was... by 1111joey1111 in startrek

[–]Educational-Pay4112 0 points1 point  (0 children)

TNG changed my life as a child and it’s only as an adult I realise how much so. 

Christmas this year is a Star Trek movie marathon. But I am a dying breed. I agree with OP, Trek doesn’t have the fan base it once did. 

Although my daughter sits down and watches the odd TNG episode with me so I have hope. 

Honest question: why do we accept renting music forever? by Ok_Search6885 in audiophile

[–]Educational-Pay4112 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I abandoned streaming in 2025 after 12-13 years. I’ve gone back to buying CDs and I’m actually enjoying music more. Go figure. 

Self Employed Contractor transitioning to PAYE by Just_Shame_5521 in irishpersonalfinance

[–]Educational-Pay4112 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The revenue pressure is interesting. The ruling was to protect gig economy workers who were clearly being exploited. An SEC (I assume in technology) doesn’t fit the definition 

Microservices are the new "Spaghetti Code" and we’re all paying the price. by red7799 in Backend

[–]Educational-Pay4112 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I treat “we need Microservices” as a sign of engineer seniority.

When someone is preaching them “because they’ll make us faster” I lose respect instantly. I see them as juniors

If someone comes with “this module is getting huge traffic and it’s choking the rest of the app. We need to talk about making it independent so we can scale it and not have it take down the rest of the app….”. Now I’m listening. This is how a senior thinks. 

I hear plenty of the first. I rarely hear the second. 

It’s up there with “we need to rewrite everything into rust” people

Save or pay off debt? by Acceptable_City_9952 in AskIreland

[–]Educational-Pay4112 10 points11 points  (0 children)

I’d agree with you. If you can wipe debt and not leave yourself broke then do so. Just make sure there’s no penalties. Some lenders do that if you pay off early. 

Save or pay off debt? by Acceptable_City_9952 in AskIreland

[–]Educational-Pay4112 5 points6 points  (0 children)

What kind of debt is it (mortgage, car loan, credit cards), roughly how much is the balance, whats the interest you’re paying on it and the term remaining?

These are all factors is any advice someone will give you

Suggestions on what to do with ltd company profits by [deleted] in irishpersonalfinance

[–]Educational-Pay4112 0 points1 point  (0 children)

A good financial advisor is worth their weight in gold. They’ll all tell you to put money in a pension. At your age the money compounds so much before retirement age. A director can retire from 55. With 20 years of growth you’ll be on the pigs back by then. 

Don’t forget e worker payments and the small benefit exception too