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France overrun by les rosbifs?


Logan
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[quote user="KathyC"]

Yes, of course I think my views are sane, why would I hold views that I think insane? I thought Jond's analysis was thoughtful and backed up by supporting evidence,which is more than can be said for many of the knee jerk (or should I say "wallet jerk") reactions that are exressed here.What many people appear to be complaing about is that France seems to have systems in place to protect people from exploitation. One's views on this are, naturally, going to be coloured by whether one sees oneself as an exploiter or an exploitee (if such a word exists).[/quote]

KathyC, if you want to say something, why not just say it?

What is all this stuff about people (presumably anyone who doesn't agree with you) being hell-bent on exploitation?   Tu éxagères!

You appear to have a chip on your shoulder, something about rich Brits, maybe?   Do you see us all as nasty capitalists against the super socialist French state or something.   The bad news is that if you can afford to move from Britain to France, you're no different. [:D] 

Or no, worse....... you're surely not going to go down the "the French are SO non-materialistic" line, that French people are so very happy with so very little?    [;)]

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Hey Russie,I live here in France and my second house is 200m round the corner,and when I have finished it,it will be for rent,but as not a gite.There is a different between living here and having a holiday home as holiday homes tend to stick together and rely on the other brits to provide servives for them and so the area looks like it is being over run by les rosbifs.
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And don't they just love to stab each other in the back when they fall out? I have never seen so  much backstabbing and gossip as with a group of "older" brit folks when we first came here, they just sort of came out of the woodwork and landed on us and all they did was moan about each other. I can tell you I was very glad when most cleared off back to the UK eventually and left us in peace with those who wanted to make their lives here.
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[quote user="SaligoBay"][quote user="viva"]

I don't think France has such aspirations any more.

[/quote]

You are kidding, aren't you?

Haven't you noticed that the news is followed by the DOM-TOM news?   These far-flung places are regarded as part of France.  They're colonies by any other name.  Funny how Britain isn't allowed any, but France is?

And what about Chirac's posturing a month or so ago, about keeping up France's nuclear force because France is such an important international presence?

 

[/quote]

Also the UK still seems to feel it has to play the role of a super power rather than a country that globally has had its day, I don't think France has such aspirations any more.

You split my sentence ![;)]  I was really aiming to say that France selects what conflicts it  does / does not get entangled in a little more carefully than the UK, the UK seems to commit far more in the way of troops pro rata to its size than many other countries at great cost to the taxpayer as well as the servicemen. France hasn't seen the need to match the UK in this respect. Probably some wag will now bring up WWII .

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Ty Korrigan wrote:

[quote]

May I ask how the French define 'poverty'..?

 Because the U.K version seems rather 'Rich' to me...[/quote]

I believe that the official definition of poverty is based on a proportion of the average wage. Therefore the richer the "average" family is, the more families fall below the poverty level. To me, the figures seem to show that the average wage in UK is higher than that in France. I thought that was well known anyway.

I recently heard someone on television define poverty as "not having enough money to do what you wanted"!

Regards

David

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[quote user="LaBucherie"]

I believe that the official definition

of poverty is based on a proportion of the average wage. Therefore the

richer the "average" family is, the more families fall below the

poverty level. To me, the figures seem to show that the average wage in

UK is higher than that in France. I thought that was well known anyway.

[/quote]

Given that the GDPs and populations or France and the UK are the much

the same, I would hazard that the average wages are not disimilar -

anyone know for sure? In any case, cost of living tends to follow

average income, so gains on the swings can quite easily be erroded on

the roundabouts.

Definition of poverty varies from nation to nation (well it would, wouldn't it), but UNICEF define poverty as being:

"households with incomes below 50% of the national median income"

On this basis, they give child poverty figures of:

France 7.5%

UK 15.4%

US 21.9%

Therefore the richer the "average" family is, the more families fall below the poverty level.

Not so. Norway has the highest per capita GDP in the world (I think)

and a staggeringly high wages, yet manages to have child povery rates

that are very low (3.4%). Norway (and other Scandinavian / Nordic

coutries) have been described as having economies based on the

principle of "wealfare capitalism" - I have to say they seem to be

doing rather well on it.

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I agree that the “average income” has little to do with the numbers of people in the “poverty band”. It must be more to do with the distribution of incomes rather than the actual amounts. Thus for example, if everybody earnt £10000 (nobody higher, nobody lower) then nobody in the poverty band. However, if half the population earnt £10000 and the other half £1000 then despite the “average income” dropping, half the population is now in the poverty band. It’s got to be related to the number of people at different salaries rather than the salaries themselves.

I am not familiar with the French support system for low income, the unemployed, etc. so cannot make UK/French comparisons but I do this the UK is becoming less and less of a “caring society”. Seems to be continually cutting back help here and there to save money. Only today the news contains an item about proposed cut backs in care for the elderly “… But it is claimed that the proposals would also sharply reduce the number of patients eligible for free NHS continuing care.”.

Ian

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"

I agree that the “average income” has little to do with the numbers of people in the “poverty band”. It must be more to do with the distribution of incomes rather than the actual amounts."

 

You are correct. That's why they specify those below the median income, ie the point halfway between the richest and the poorest, not the mean (average).

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I wondered how long it would be before someone brought up the UK,that aside average income does not take into account state hand outs,so all the averages are not a true base on which to interprite household income which at the end of the day is what each household as to spend.
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I am sure that I read (and equally sure that I shall be corrected if I have imagined it) that the nation whose ex pats (I hate that expression) are in greatest numbers in France are the Portugese. Also there are more Germans than british living here. Can anyone verify the facts. As for France being overun with brits there are 600,000 on the costa brava alone!
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Now I belatedly understand what trolls and glove puppets are – should there not be a term for an individual using three identities. Bouffon, KatieKopyKat and Twinkle all seem to speak with one voice. The same one as Outcast and Mr Opas?

 

The relentlessly get-personal posts are unpleasant.

 

---

 

I would like to say how much I applaud Viva’s first post on this interesting thread.

 

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[quote]

"You are correct. That's why they specify those below the median income, ie the point halfway between the richest and the poorest, not the mean (average)."

My God, Dick! Are you this exciting in bed?[:S]

[/quote]

 

Mod hat on - That is quite far enough on the personal post front, you may think it vastly amusing, however others do not. Please respect ALL the other members of the forum, some of which may not share your sense of humour nor the hi jacking of discussions .

We all enjoy a little levity from time to time, please just choose your moment more carefully

Mod hat off

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[quote user="le bouffon"]I wondered how long it would be before someone brought up the UK,that aside average income does not take into account state hand outs,so all the averages are not a true base on which to interprite household income which at the end of the day is what each household as to spend.[/quote]

Is this English?

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[quote user="viva"]Oh I would rather have Thatcher back than suffer any more of Blair and his crew.[/quote]

This is where we part company Viva.

As a foreigner in Britain during the Thatcher years, I felt like a 2nd class citizen, was told several times that I should go bug*er off back to France, that I was a bloody French scrounger, that I was paying less tax than a Brit (I was earning £19 a week at the time!)...

I remember where I was when she left and I remember how I rejoiced!

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