News and Views NOVEMBER
The news this month has been filled with speculation, investigations and all sorts of agenda! Find out what the highlights have been!
Crash Test Dummies…
House prices fell for the first time in two years in October this year sending fear through millions of home owners already hit by rising mortgage repayments and more expensive borrowing. The mortgage market is now at a seven year low with the number of house moves down 30% on the same time last year. The IMF report on the global economy also calculates that UK property is overvalued by 40%. The slump in the US housing market and the fallout from Northern Rock have knocked consumer confidence and many who have banked on ever increasing prices to fund their retirements are getting extremely anxious.
What We Think
The UK housing market may level off in response to a relatively small increase in interest rates but over the long term prices are still likely to rise. That’s why these “sell and rent back” offers dressed up as a cure-all for poor anxious home owners are as good as fraudulent. The companies offering these “amazing” deals win twice: they purchase a property that over the long term will still increase in value and they have live-in tenants to fund their own borrowing. The home owners conversely lose their asset and pay for the privilege. And all because of a lack of confidence! Let’s keep the faith, believe the future is spelt G.R.O.W.T.H. and scare off these wolves in sheep’s clothing.
Smacks Of Common Sense…
The Government came close to introducing an all-out ban on smacking children last month following persistent lobbying from pressure groups like the NSPCC. The move stirred widespread debate, which even the MP George Galloway felt compelled to enter on Question Time, commenting that he did not see the need for smacking when raising his eyebrows was enough to deter his children from misdemeanours. But he was also probably wearing a lycra gym suit and doing cat impressions at the time, enough to scare anyone into doing what he says.
What We Think
It’s funny how the anti-smacking campaigners also shout loudly about failing parents and irresponsible youth. One reason why parents have authority in the home to train their children right from wrong is that they still posses the ultimate deterrent in discipline. Corporal punishment has been taken away from schools and now teachers have very few ways of deterring children from rude and offensive behaviour. The last thing our society needs is PC kids telling their parents their rights when they have abused their responsibilities. It’s time to be less PC and use more CS – common sense! We're not advocating violence or bad tempered smacking - we're advocating real believerism in our kids and a good dose of discipline o they understand that everything in life has consequences - before the real consequences causes irretrievable loses in our childrens lives.