Thats the long and short of what I was trying to say. My definition of 'people on low incomes' is not the benefit hoarder PH is far too preoccupied with, but the people who go to work full time for pittance pay. They havent got the time or energy to give a fk what the rich bloke down the road has on his driveway.

Value Added Tax is a regressive tax and the poorest 10% spend more of their income on VAT than the richest 10%. Hardly surprising, thats generally what happens with any form of flat taxation.

As for income tax, capital gains tax, stamp duty and inheritance tax all 'hitting' the higher earners 'hard' I have to agree. Those poor people with low incomes, no capital gains, no money with which to buy a house and nothing to inherit just dont know how lucky they are

Same thing happened here in New Orleans. I had a couple friends who worked in the ER right after graduating from nursing school at Charity Hospital. Thats where the police brought the gunshot victims from the gangs, hood, drug deals, drive bys, etc and used to bring carjacking victims who were inncently shot, until they passed the shoot the carjacker law, and those dropped my aboout 90% in a few weeks. Some old lady was getting carjacked and three guys in different cars in traffic all got out and shot the car jacker. They had trouble figuring out who actually killed it, and after that happened a few more times, it just about stopped completely, except they rewrote the law because they meant you could shoot a carjacker if YOU were the one being jacked, I guess they hadn't thought of that situation. Anyway, I digress, just wanted to throw a funny store into the mix. So anyway, New Orleans was one of the highest murder rates in the country at the time. This was right before Hurricane Katrina. My friends said when the cops brought someone in from a gunshot, and they died, it was counted as a murder. Using some clever accounting, they changed it so that if a gunshot victim came into charity, where the majority of those were taken, if they were alive when they got there, and died in surgery, they cause of death was died during surgery. That and after the mess of Katrina was sorted and populations were moved away because of not enough government housing, the overall murder rate dropped and New Orleans moved right down the list. Before Katrina, they told me on more than a few occassions, they got some people back for being shot 2-3 different times before they finally came back dead.

I think its a bit of both. British people are very class obsessed and there is always jealousy of what someone else has got. Particularly german cars are a target...Porsche will never recover from the 1980s yuppy tag. But also in my experience quite a few people in flash new cars drive VERY arrogantly, Im thinking more RR Sport, Big german saloon type drivers here and that fosters a dislike..If you're driving an old banger and some big shot cuts you up in an expensive german car, its not going to help foster good relations!!....New money type people often seem quite brash and pushy and this comes out in how they behave on the road and towards others...I deal with customer complaints for a large insurer and often the low income people are far more reasonable to deal with than the company director types who can be an absolute nightmare!

generally we're quite a rude nation of people I'm afraid...a little more courtesy on everyone's part would help people understand each other!!

Then there's the fact that the working class folk, i.e. public sector workers are being asked to pay a price for the greed and incompetence of the private sector (bankers) which is fostering a general bitterness amongst normal working people in 2012. But thats another story!!

that is the whole point of what i have been trying to say. irresepctive of whether someone is a genius or a grafter; if they work i don't see why they should prop up millions who don't want to work.

fair point re both governments, but i suspect the ones who choose not to work have an easier life under labour, hence they vote that way.

you have finally said something of sense, thank you.

to have a man running the country who shares his breakfast table with an attention seeking human rights lawyer is a recipe for girding a nation's forward progress.

read my post again...i have no problem with human rights lawyers.

i do have a problem with human rights lawyers who have an ego the size of brazil and a complete ignorance of anything remotely pertaining to utilitarianism.

look for the good for a person and not the group and you often end up with people who have massive sense of entitlement.

i think it's pretty self explanatory mate! problems do arise at work if colleagues / bosses think you have too much disposable income. it's not a nice sentiment, but, realistically, it happens.

Well I've recently had lots of "what a lovely car, I'm really jealous" following my acquisition of a Porsche... Nothing negative though...

Edited to correct sloppy typing - apologies

None yet - the chap over the road with a Beetle collection was delighted

All true, thank you. Of course not PC enough for the apologists, but facts nonetheless.