Luxury Car Tax Increased

Any car priced over $57,123 here in Australia is considered by the Government to be a luxury vehicle. This is correct in most cases. However in certain cases it is not correct, such as people movers and vehicles that are needed to transfer the diabled and wheelchaired. The previous Government slugged luxury car buyers by putting tax of 25% of the RRP on top of that price.

The Rudd Government has recently announced that they will be increasing this tax from 25% to 33% for vehicles delievered after July 1. So if you want a luxury car, buy it now!

This tax has been described as unfair and unjust by car buyers and the car industry alike. The fact is consumers are already paying GST on cars, so why should they be taxed again? The coalition has threatened to block this legislation in the Senate. It will be very interesting to see what the outcome is from this.

Cigarettes, Ban Them From Being Sold in Supermarkets?

We all are aware that smoking is extremely bad for our well being and health. Let me first start by stating that this post is not an attack at the individual smokers themselves but rather the major chains who are selling them.

There are two initiatives that I would like to see the major supermarkets implement. The first initiative is the most desired. These initiatives will greatly encourage people, particularly young people to not smoke. These initiatives will also greatly improve the health of not only smokers, but people who are around smokers (chain smokers).

Firstly, although unlikely, I would like to see cigarettes being completely removed and not sold at the major supermarkets at all. This would cause great opposition from the major supermarkets as a big chunk of their profits actually come from the sale of cigarettes. However, the benefit of this action would be invaluable to the health and well being of our society. It won't stop smoking. It will restrict it however at those locations where they are not being sold.

The second option would be for supermarkets to be allowed to continue to sell cigarettes but all profits or a percentage of the profits from the cigarettes should be donated to a charity etc such as a cancer research foundation. To be quite honest, I'm surprised a initiative like this has not already been implemented by the Government. Here in Australia, the Government has recently put a 70% tax on alcoholic type 'soft' drinks. I think they need to address smoking as well. It is killing more people than alcohol.

We all know smoking is unhealthy and there are no benefits gained from doing it. So lets do something about it. The major supermarkets are profiting from your addiction. I don't believe it is right.

Let me know what you think of these ideas and if you have any suggestions of your own.

Woolworths Are Evil!

Selfish, Greedy, Evil. These are a few words I use to describe Woolworths. This posting is more personal rather than informative than my usual postings. I have something to admit, I have worked for the company for the last three and half years. After this period of slaving away for this company, I have lost all respect I have for Woolworths.

Woolworths only care about two things: making a profit and keeping the shareholders happy. They will try and get money any possible way they can. They couldn't give a damn about their employees. What they should realise is that we are the ones at the bottom of the chain who are bring in their record billion dollar profits year after year and what do we get in return, nothing! The company has no staff focus at all.

On top of their lack of appreciation for their staff, they are continually trying to over dominate the market by purposely squeezing out small businesses. They do this by putting their prices as low as possible. On occasion some items are Woolworths are priced so low that not even they are making a profit on those items, in fact they are incurring a loss. This is a tactic the company uses to squeeze out small businesses.

I encourage everyone to stop shopping at Woolworths and Coles and to support smaller businesses who are hurting the most. By continuing to shop at Woolworths and Coles, you are supporting them and encouraging these companies to continue what they are doing. Personally, I couldn't care less if people don't shop there. I'm still going to get paid at the end of the day. I certainly have no incentive to encourage people to shop at Woolworths. If I was earning a commission on every sale on the other hand than my story would be different.

Would love to hear what you guys think of Woolworths and even Coles too!