Budget and Regression

Last week’s budget was so hideous as to be virtually unspeakable. I couldn’t get to the rally on the weekend because of my bourgeois need to get Pearl’s sixth birthday party organized. However, I did some brief number crunching.


According to the ABS, the mean disposable household income per week in the 2011-12 financial year was $346 for the bottom quintile (20%) and $581 for the second quintile (next 20%). People are a lot poorer than it seems. The average full-time wage is quite high, but so many people work part-time or are unemployed or retired or disabled that the mean incomes are much, much lower than you imagine.


I have listed the percentage of household weekly income which is represented by the proposed $7 fee to see a doctor. As you can see, it ranges from 2% for the poor down to 0.3% for the top earners. This would be the very definition of a regressive tax. Which, by the way, is bad.

Lowest - $346 - 2%
Second lowest -$581 - 1.2%
Average - $793 - 0.8%
Second highest - $1,057 - 0.6%
Highest - $1,814 - 0.3%

My bourgeois life

Pearl’s party went well, I think. I always get incredibly nervous before parties and it is even more nerve-wracking hosting a child’s party because you can’t tell when someone is going to have a melt down or give voice to power plays which would be left implicit at adult parties.


Pearl really enjoyed it and liked showing off her bedroom to the girls from school. She also enjoyed running about in the common area at those times when it was not raining too hard.


Most of the kids enjoyed themselves (not sure about a couple of introverts from school who seemed a bit overwhelmed). Pearl was very polite, even when she received three copies of the same Forget-me-not Fairies book.


My favourite food: rainbow fruit salad. How cool is that?





Pearl’s favourite food: Marshmallows.


My favourite present that Pearl received: The Rosie the Riveter picture book.


Pearl’s favourite present: A flying fairy.


My greenest achievement that was not noticed: Instead of plastic I used china plates (20cents each from the op shop).


My greenest achievement that was (unfavourably) noticed: One of the girls commented that there was very little in the party bags. True, because what I included was a fair trade woollen finger puppet rather than plastic junk.