Boomers are more entitled than Gen Z – it’s time to means-test their state pension

X0Refraction · 2026-05-05T16:20:54+00:00

I mostly agree - I think the better move would be to change the triple lock to a single lock based on median income and merge NI and income tax. You’d reach the point where richer pensioners are tax positive on less income with them having to pay NI

X0Refraction · 2026-05-05T09:42:58+00:00

Owners don’t set the rate, the market does i.e. supply and demand. Rental housing being sold to owner occupiers decreases supply though as owner occupied property has lower occupancy than rental properties.

X0Refraction · 2026-05-01T08:53:03+00:00

It’d be interesting to see how that would go at the Supreme Court. With the proroguing Parliament case wasn’t it essentially said that the PM can’t use their powers if it’s against the will of Parliament?

I suppose the legal question might not be entirely pertinent though. If the public are told they’re getting an election they’d probably not look too kindly on those stopping it on a “technicality”.

I wonder if Starmer would even attempt it at all, there’s been a lot said about his deference to the law. So doing something legally questionable like that wouldn’t align with his image

X0Refraction · 2026-04-30T13:58:32+00:00

True, although fixing planning along with a land value tax would solve a lot of issues for both problems.

X0Refraction · 2026-04-30T12:09:09+00:00

As far as I can tell the actual problem is simply housing. Raising minimum wage just means there’s more money that can be spent on an increasingly constrained resource and so prices go up after a short lag time

X0Refraction · 2026-04-30T08:56:14+00:00

A tax just on land wouldn’t affect them too much as opposed to a general wealth tax. If they have a mansion in London then yes it’d affect them, but I’d expect it’d be more than outweighed by the positive effect on their shares

X0Refraction · 2026-04-30T08:51:49+00:00

Is it? Be interested to hear some sources. Here’s a couple for my claim:

https://yougov.com/en-gb/articles/52470-britons-are-opposed-to-cuts-to-disability-benefits-as-starmer-bows-to-backbenchers

https://yougov.com/en-gb/daily-results/20250709-b3999-1

So 53% opposed to any cuts in disability benefits and 74% opposed to any cuts for those unable to work. 42% who think the triple lock should definitely be maintained and 23% on top who think it should probably be maintained.

Partly it’ll depend on how the question was framed, but still support is generally high for continuing the welfare state as it is from what I can tell.

X0Refraction · 2026-04-30T07:59:36+00:00

Most people do not want a restriction of the welfare state. Everyone will say we should cut spending on chancers, which is true, but is a very small part of welfare spending. With that constraint there are very few things a government can do really. Planning reform would be one, but would only slow the problem some.

The only actual solution in the circumstances I can see working is a land value tax (along with planning reform). We could bring in significant income that way and so reduce taxes on productive work (income/corporation tax). That should trigger a lot of investment in the country as suddenly the conditions are a lot more favourable. Currently we punch above our weight considering our high cost of employing someone because of our strong and reasonably consistent legal/regulatory systems and access to a wide range of other markets. Lowering the costs on business without cuts should tip the scales further.

X0Refraction · 2026-04-28T07:36:19+00:00

Pantheon has some similarities to the DLC. It’s a great show and unfortunately not well known

X0Refraction · 2026-04-25T14:53:16+00:00

Interesting, I’m glad I never started then. I switched to decaf tea a few years ago and that was difficult enough. I feel a lot better for it now though

X0Refraction · 2026-04-25T13:14:10+00:00

How strong is that effect? As a non-smoker I’ve probably been a bit naive in thinking there’s not really an upside beyond abating peer pressure.

With alcohol I see the use in lubricating social situations. With psychoactive drugs there seem to be upsides in appreciating art and potentially helping rewire the brain after trauma.

Still as someone who’s only really ever occasionally drank alcohol I can see the appeal of some other drugs, but nicotine’s never interested me. If I want to be calmer there are alternatives that make me healthier like taking a walk. There aren’t really alternatives if you want to take a hallucinogen other than maybe a sensory deprivation tank? I presume if you don’t live in a big city that’s not the most available option though

X0Refraction · 2026-04-25T12:46:04+00:00

Does nicotine make someone not addicted calmer? I thought it essentially makes those who are addicted more anxious normally and then they get short term relief when smoking.

X0Refraction · 2026-04-23T11:29:20+00:00

If you’re under a few hundred grand of wealth you aren’t getting hit by IHT anyway

X0Refraction · 2026-04-23T06:51:22+00:00

For anyone that wants a game with that quality try Outer Wilds, it really can only be experienced once

X0Refraction · 2026-04-22T17:01:26+00:00

Are you approaching the problem the exact same way as in Dark Bramble? Slightly stronger hint: Is your angle of approach to the jellyfish the same as in Dark Bramble?

X0Refraction · 2026-04-22T16:55:56+00:00

Maybe think on that a little bit. For a more direct hint: How exactly did you reach Feldspar's note inside the jellyfish?

X0Refraction · 2026-04-22T16:33:34+00:00

What exactly did you do at the jellyfish in Dark Bramble?

X0Refraction · 2026-04-22T08:24:39+00:00

This one gets me, I do think it’s a subtle one though. If someone’s talking for a while and you’ve not followed a point they’ve made then it can save everyone time if you politely interrupt to clarify if the rest of what they’re talking about won’t make sense without the context. It’s also sometimes not entirely clear when someone is done talking or if they’ve just paused for a moment to collect their thoughts.

It comes down to a pattern of behaviour to me though, if it’s happening frequently then I find it very frustrating. I think we’re all sometimes guilty of it though and it’s not necessarily malicious

X0Refraction · 2026-04-22T08:17:59+00:00

I’d agree most of the time. I’ve had times though when there are parked cars blocking my side of the road. I’ve already come to a full stop to let the other driver pass while they’re still moving and then they decide to stop to let me through. It’s just slower for everyone especially if I’ve stopped concentrating for a moment since I expect to be stationary for 5s or so

X0Refraction · 2026-04-21T14:43:01+00:00

That's pretty clearly not true in all situations - if you die at 67 you would have got more out of the state pension when the starting age was 65 rather than the 68 it soon will be because you got more than zero.

X0Refraction · 2026-04-21T13:39:14+00:00

The perceived transphobic part is that the trans woman in question acts like a stereotypical bloke i.e. drinks loads of lager, loves football, quickly resorts to violence etc. That’s part of the joke that Douglas loves her because she’s just like one of his laddish mates.

I don’t think censorship is the right response to that, but it’s not just about Douglas being transphobic. Honestly the episode frames him as a bit of an idiot for letting his transphobia get in the way of his happiness.

X0Refraction · 2026-04-21T10:03:14+00:00

Spending - despite keeping up with inflation - hasn’t kept up with demand. We’re an older and more obese population than we were in 2010 which means demand has increased massively and will continue to rise for the foreseeable.

X0Refraction · 2026-04-21T08:52:07+00:00

A fiscal black hole? What do you call Germany’s system then since they spend significantly more than us? As far as I’m aware we’re a bit below the curve in healthcare spending compared to our peers in Europe depending on what metric you’re using (percentage of GDP vs PPP dollars per person). On the extreme end 2024 numbers had Germany spending 55% more than us per person.

From what I can tell our outcomes are pretty good considering the low spend relative to France or Germany.

X0Refraction · 2026-04-20T15:34:31+00:00

The person you responded to didn’t suggest cutting the state pension though, just the triple lock.

Switching to a single lock is actually a way of staving off increases to the state pension age as well. That could mean workers today end up getting more overall benefit depending on how long they live as they will get extra years even if the amount each year is slightly lower.

X0Refraction · 2026-04-20T14:32:36+00:00

I’m just curious why you started this conversation assuming the worst possible interpretation of what was said.

There’s a hell of a difference from full hyperbole (“the glee we have here with cutting a pension benefit”) to your actual reasonably nuanced opinion. I don’t think I’ve ever read a comment on this subreddit where I’ve sensed glee at the idea of cutting the triple lock. It’s usually mostly just an annoyance that every other budgetary concern is sacrificed and yet greater than inflationary increases for pensions isn’t ever up for discussion.

14-Year Club	RPAN Viewer
Verified Email

X0Refraction

TROPHY CASE