The Greek government should introduce a pension equity tax. Pensions
deemed to be excessively generous should be taxed and the proceeds
used to pay the pensions of the needy. This would work like Obama's
tax on "Cadillac Health Plans". For example, a hairdresser who
retired at 50 istead of 67 would have to pay for the extra seventeen
years. SUch a tax can be used to bring EU pensions in line with each other.



- = -
Vasos Panagiotopoulos, Columbia'81+, Reagan, Mozart, Pindus, BioStrategist
http://www.panix.com/~vjp2/vasos.htm
---{Nothing herein constitutes advice. Everything fully disclaimed.}---
[Homeland Security means private firearms not lazy obstructive guards]
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On May 5, 2:11*pm, wrote:
The Greek government should introduce a pension equity tax. *Pensions
deemed to be excessively generous should be taxed and the proceeds
used to pay the pensions of the needy. This would work like Obama's
tax on "Cadillac Health Plans". For example, a hairdresser who
retired at 50 istead of 67 would have to pay for the extra seventeen
years. SUch a tax can be used to bring EU pensions in line with each other.

On May 5, 10:23*pm, ADR wrote:
Greek wages and pensions are nowhere near parity
in the EU. *They are well below the median.

Therein is the problem why the market baulked.
You can not tax what people do not make - unless you make people
replace earnings with debt which is not likely since we are post 2008
rather than in the la-la-land of housing ATM machines as in other
countries. German & French banks do not want a default due to
recapitalisation cost, which is nothing to say of exposure to Spain.

UK investment opportunity equally getting difficult.
UK corporate bonds finally looking shaky after a remarkable recovery,
UK strategic bond looking to struggle, UK gilt looking titanic and UK
index linked gilt looking a bit sickly... seems the UK is going to
have its own north sea period.

Cash nearly 0%, UK bonds too risky. Euro appears to be stuck in a
norwegian fjord about now with Soros circling.

ADR wrote:
On May 5, 2:11 pm, wrote:
The Greek government should introduce a pension equity tax. Pensions
deemed to be excessively generous should be taxed and the proceeds
used to pay the pensions of the needy. This would work like Obama's
tax on "Cadillac Health Plans". For example, a hairdresser who
retired at 50 istead of 67 would have to pay for the extra seventeen
years. SUch a tax can be used to bring EU pensions in line with each other.

I would agree on such a plan if there was such a thing as a "generous
pension" in Greece (for enough people, anyway). Let me say that in
Greece worker own contributions to pension are extremely high (twice
the level of the US).

Cite?


Greece allowed persons to retire after 35 years of employment. For
those working since the age of 15, yes, 50 would have been the age.
But the pension at that time is extremely limited. Even after 35
years of contributions at levels twice as high as the US, pensions for
low paid persons may not be any higher than 400 euros a month. It is
not bad if one's spouse is still working, but for a single person it
is non-livable pension.

Cite?


Greek wages and pensions are nowhere near parity in the EU. They are
well below the median.

Cite?

Unless you want us to take you on your word, which I certainly won't.