This story is completely shameful. I'm so tired of stories like this that make seniors feel like they had done something terribly wrong to ruin the fortunes of the next generation. Most of us worked as hard as we could our whole lives and received scant benefits from the government. Don't blame us for taking away jobs, blame AI and all the bad decisions made by politicians.
My problem with this "analysis" is that seniors making $160,000 a year constitute what proportion of the population? I agree that the qualifying income level needs to be adjusted downward, but the general picture being painted here in my opinion is that seniors as a group don't need OAS. But a lot do. Even the "wealthy" have to pay inordinately high fees to private companies for levels of care that they can't get in the public system because of overcrowding, and that situation is only going to worsen as the main cohort of boomers needs increasing levels of care. Not everyone owns homes and recreational properties in or near Toronto, Vancouver and other large cities.
I don't much care for schoolmarmish finger wagging from people who aren't familiar with the situations of those who really need public support. I hope we've come further than Dickensian times. I also hope you're able to enjoy some measure of comfort in your life, Wesley; it seems that you bear a resentment and no rationale from me is likely to dissuade you. Good afternoon.
💯 👍. This column is blaming the wrong group of seniors, while our Liberal government gets a free pass as usual. They have caused our economic challenges. The Liberals and every Canadian who voted for them caused this.
It's not clear why the "Missing Middle" continues to aggravate an intergenerational blame-game. Frankly, not everyone in each generation is the same, has the same experiences nor earns the same income.
Also, you two have difficulty understanding what 'debt' actually looks like, how it's calculated or how it's retired or how it affects the economy.
Infrastructure is long-term investments: bridges, roads, Water/Sewer, electrical grids that everyone pays for through various taxes. Infrastructure enables the country to move, work, trade, live. Infrastructure is development in every province/territory and is paid for by multiple generations.
OAS is a pension based on the number of years a citizen has lived in Canada - and limited by income and age.
It's not clear if you have recently spent time in downtown Ottawa, but it was shocking to me how many 'street people' are seniors. I suspect TO is similar as are most cities. The issue is neoliberal economics and monopolies and ever rising cost of living across this country and others. It's not a generational thing it's a governance thing that really took-off with Thatcher/Regan/Mulroney. Have you checked on food banks? Shocking as well.
I could go on, but there is no "Learning" here. I would suggest you take some economics courses or if that's too much - follow the economist Steve Keen. He is also writing a book. Or, just get out amongst the living and see what's actually going on. Talk to some folks on the streets.
I get it ... you crave attention and writing blame-game articles is serving that purpose for you.
The millennial whining and villification of seniors is deplorable by the missing middle. Not all seniors are wealthy. And i remind you that the wealthy seniors are paying more taxes to services which many people exploit. I'd be very interested to know if there's any actual research into the distribution of wealth across the senior population. Or is this just more millennial griping and complaining and shifting blame to seniors instead of where it should rest on the shoulders of bad government policies. Perhaps a little more time spent advocating for changing the policies that put us here. And it isn't just this story by missing middle that misjudges seniors. One article suggested seniors are all lonely and want roommates, therefore should rent out their spare rooms. What a ridiculous statement (made by Sabrina).
I’m one of these older Canadians, and I have fought tirelessly for our younger generation. I worked and paid taxes and into CPP for 45 years. My CPP is $800 a month. A newcomer to Canada who has never worked or contributed a minute of work to Canada can get as much as $3800 a month. Canadians who earn over $90,000 get their OAS payments cut back, so not sure where you’re seeing seniors making $300,000 collecting OAS.
Before we cut seniors benefits - how about our government stop sending our money overseas? Almost every month PM Carney is announcing another $1 billion to Zelensky and Ukraine, who hold more physical gold than Canada does. Right now, Anita Anand is on a world tour giving more money away to countries like Brazil, whose GDP is larger than Canada.
Younger Canadians are facing challenges because our imbecilic Liberal government under Trudeau/Freeland/Carney spent over $600 billion on the COVID scam ($300 billion of which were found by the auditor general to be non-covid)
When PM Carney is flying around the world for photo-ops, and dining like a King spending $100 s of thousands on in flight meals- do not even think of touching our senior benefits.
The list of Trudeau 2.0's blunders is interminable but if ranked by stupidity, undoing Harper's decision to defer OAS eligibility to age 67 is surely near the top of said list.
Politicians' routine semantic subversion of the word “investment"—and the media’s failure to challenge it—severely hinders advocates for responsible stewardship of the public purse.
The comments here certainly prove my thesis that boomers are overly sensitive and thin skinned. Suggestions that perhaps there are structural flaws in our world that tilt in their favour triggers the pitchforks and torches brigade. Every time.
This story is completely shameful. I'm so tired of stories like this that make seniors feel like they had done something terribly wrong to ruin the fortunes of the next generation. Most of us worked as hard as we could our whole lives and received scant benefits from the government. Don't blame us for taking away jobs, blame AI and all the bad decisions made by politicians.
Young Canadian families start to have their Canada Child Benefit decreased at $38,000 of household income.
A senior couple doesn’t start to have their OAS benefit reduced until their household income reaches $160,000.
My problem with this "analysis" is that seniors making $160,000 a year constitute what proportion of the population? I agree that the qualifying income level needs to be adjusted downward, but the general picture being painted here in my opinion is that seniors as a group don't need OAS. But a lot do. Even the "wealthy" have to pay inordinately high fees to private companies for levels of care that they can't get in the public system because of overcrowding, and that situation is only going to worsen as the main cohort of boomers needs increasing levels of care. Not everyone owns homes and recreational properties in or near Toronto, Vancouver and other large cities.
If they need it they should have saved more along thr way. OAS comes from general revenue. Im not interested in paying for that.
I don't much care for schoolmarmish finger wagging from people who aren't familiar with the situations of those who really need public support. I hope we've come further than Dickensian times. I also hope you're able to enjoy some measure of comfort in your life, Wesley; it seems that you bear a resentment and no rationale from me is likely to dissuade you. Good afternoon.
💯 👍. This column is blaming the wrong group of seniors, while our Liberal government gets a free pass as usual. They have caused our economic challenges. The Liberals and every Canadian who voted for them caused this.
Its not the jobs. Its OAS which is a wealth teansfer from young to old.
It's not clear why the "Missing Middle" continues to aggravate an intergenerational blame-game. Frankly, not everyone in each generation is the same, has the same experiences nor earns the same income.
Also, you two have difficulty understanding what 'debt' actually looks like, how it's calculated or how it's retired or how it affects the economy.
Infrastructure is long-term investments: bridges, roads, Water/Sewer, electrical grids that everyone pays for through various taxes. Infrastructure enables the country to move, work, trade, live. Infrastructure is development in every province/territory and is paid for by multiple generations.
OAS is a pension based on the number of years a citizen has lived in Canada - and limited by income and age.
It's not clear if you have recently spent time in downtown Ottawa, but it was shocking to me how many 'street people' are seniors. I suspect TO is similar as are most cities. The issue is neoliberal economics and monopolies and ever rising cost of living across this country and others. It's not a generational thing it's a governance thing that really took-off with Thatcher/Regan/Mulroney. Have you checked on food banks? Shocking as well.
I could go on, but there is no "Learning" here. I would suggest you take some economics courses or if that's too much - follow the economist Steve Keen. He is also writing a book. Or, just get out amongst the living and see what's actually going on. Talk to some folks on the streets.
I get it ... you crave attention and writing blame-game articles is serving that purpose for you.
The millennial whining and villification of seniors is deplorable by the missing middle. Not all seniors are wealthy. And i remind you that the wealthy seniors are paying more taxes to services which many people exploit. I'd be very interested to know if there's any actual research into the distribution of wealth across the senior population. Or is this just more millennial griping and complaining and shifting blame to seniors instead of where it should rest on the shoulders of bad government policies. Perhaps a little more time spent advocating for changing the policies that put us here. And it isn't just this story by missing middle that misjudges seniors. One article suggested seniors are all lonely and want roommates, therefore should rent out their spare rooms. What a ridiculous statement (made by Sabrina).
The comment section here is a good example of why nothing will ever get done on the issue until it’s too late for it to matter.
I’m one of these older Canadians, and I have fought tirelessly for our younger generation. I worked and paid taxes and into CPP for 45 years. My CPP is $800 a month. A newcomer to Canada who has never worked or contributed a minute of work to Canada can get as much as $3800 a month. Canadians who earn over $90,000 get their OAS payments cut back, so not sure where you’re seeing seniors making $300,000 collecting OAS.
Before we cut seniors benefits - how about our government stop sending our money overseas? Almost every month PM Carney is announcing another $1 billion to Zelensky and Ukraine, who hold more physical gold than Canada does. Right now, Anita Anand is on a world tour giving more money away to countries like Brazil, whose GDP is larger than Canada.
Younger Canadians are facing challenges because our imbecilic Liberal government under Trudeau/Freeland/Carney spent over $600 billion on the COVID scam ($300 billion of which were found by the auditor general to be non-covid)
When PM Carney is flying around the world for photo-ops, and dining like a King spending $100 s of thousands on in flight meals- do not even think of touching our senior benefits.
A few thoughts:
The list of Trudeau 2.0's blunders is interminable but if ranked by stupidity, undoing Harper's decision to defer OAS eligibility to age 67 is surely near the top of said list.
Politicians' routine semantic subversion of the word “investment"—and the media’s failure to challenge it—severely hinders advocates for responsible stewardship of the public purse.
The comments here certainly prove my thesis that boomers are overly sensitive and thin skinned. Suggestions that perhaps there are structural flaws in our world that tilt in their favour triggers the pitchforks and torches brigade. Every time.