From the Australian:
One in four households relies on welfare benefits while one in seven is spending more than it earns, as increasing cost-of-living pressures bear down on families.
Click to enlarge
Of the nation’s poorest households, one in 10 went without meals and 7.3 per cent could not afford to heat their homes in winter during 2009-10, according to a six-yearly snapshot of spending by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Australians are having to spend more than half their income on the basics – housing, food and transport – as the soaring cost of living bites into spending on life’s luxuries. One in eight households could not pay their bills on time.
The ABS household expenditure survey reveals that households are under as much financial stress now as in the lead-up to the 1998 east Asian economic crash.
The “financial stress” afflicted some of the nation’s wealthiest people, with almost one in seven high-earning households failing to pay bills on time and 8.8 per cent seeking financial help from friends and family.
The ABS survey reveals that government pensions or benefits are the main source of income for one in four households, which get by on an average of $557 a week.
The typical Australian household spent $1236 a week on goods and services in 2009-10 – 38 per cent more than was spent during the previous survey period, in 2003-04. Prices rose by 19 per cent, which the ABS said indicated “a rise in real living standards”.
Half the spending was on food, housing and transport.
Now I really have heard it all.
Price rises = “a rise in real living standards”?!?
What a complete and utter load of doublespeaking bullshit.
Now, if the ABS had said “a rise in disposable income indicates a rise in real living standards”, then possibly there’d be some truth in the statement.
But to try and argue that price rises equates to rising living standards, is so utterly nonsensical as to be nothing less than delusional.
Why do we continue to allow our government bodies to so blatantly lie to us like this?
Barnaby Is Right 
Thank you for having the courage to speak out.
The entire world is under stress. The same delusional bureaucracy made the same decisions worldwide.
Climategate was the first visible tip of this dangerous iceberg (monster) that had grown out-of-sight since 1971 [1].
Our current dilemma: The integrity of science was compromised for the benefit of society in 1971. Can the integrity of science be restored without damage to society in 2011?
With kind regards,
Oliver K. Manuel
Former NASA Principal
Investigator for Apollo
1. “Deep, historical roots of Climategate” (2011)
Click to access 20110722_Climategate_Roots.pdf
I agree with the criticism of the ABS, as figures can be manipulated,and those on the economy aspects surely are, with retail so flat small businesses are fighting just to survive— but I do still see wasteful spending by some people whenever I’m in the supermarket.
Maybe if they worked out their week’s meals and made a sensible list they could manage their money a little better.
But it must be hard to have to prioritise your needs and omit some comfort just to get by financially
That said, my sister has nothing but an Age Pension for her livelihood at over 70, and recently has had a Smart meter installed.
Although she is a smart money manager and never wastes a dollar, I dread the outcome for her forthcoming -increasing–bills
I refused to accept one when they came knocking at my door to install it.
I think the rises in utilities over the past 4 years has been criminal. eg cleaning out the receipts drawer, I found that a Telstra Home Line cost has risen $40 in exactly 24 months, and that means it has doubled.
We have been infected by the Green disease at every level and it will get much worse under a CO2 tax.
PhysOrg.com is helping. See news stories and comments on the AGW scare, Earth’s real heat source – the Sun, politicians spreading propaganda, and crippled science:
1. Switching from coal to natural gas
http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-09-coal-natural-gas-global-climate.html
2. Heavy element ejected in violent solar eruptions
http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-09-chief-urgent-action-climate.html
3. Smiling politicians campaign for AGW scam
http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-09-chief-urgent-action-climate.html
4. Black holes
http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-09-team-elusive-black-hole-radio.html
The oldest scriptures again confirmed:
“Truth is victorious; Never untruth!”
With kind regards,
Oliver K. Manuel
it will all be ok once the mining companies start paying their taxes, don’t worry about it.