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November 10, 2008
Which planet are politicians living on?
Mausi sometimes wonders, it can't be Earth, that's for certain. Now that the worldwide financial crisis is affecting national economies German politicians have come up with a brilliant idea to encourage people to spend real money instead of keeping it under their pillows and mattresses: buy a new car and get exemption from vehicle tax for the next one or two years depending on the type of car. Beg your pardon? That way one would save perhaps about 200 Euros a year. One could easily get that kind of bonus when buying a new car at any time not just now. Do politicians really expect us to spend twenty or thirty thousand Euros on a new car just to save 200? A German TV channel has carried out a survey among more than 11000 people and the vast majority flatly denied to buy a new car under these circumstances.
The politicians probably thought encouraging people to buy a new car would really help German economy because it is heavily dependent on the automotive industry. But they'll have to do a lot better than that. If they want people to spend more money they could lift the tax load a bit here and there. Mausi could give them lots of examples... First, of course, reduction of the number of politicians whose pensions we all pay for! Ah well, who would listen to a cat?
Mausi has read on the internet today that car dealers in other countries are equally desperate to increase their sale numbers. A dealer in Britain has offered cars on the internet for half price and sold a few. He then offered two cars for the price of one - and had 22000 people applying for that offer. Isn't it funny how we tend to think that getting one item at half price is not worth bothering whereas we must at all costs try getting two items at half price even if we only have use for one of them?
Posted by Mausi at November 10, 2008 09:26 PM
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