Just curious who the British Economy is doing, considering no one can afford to purchase anything from them.

We don't make things to sell to people any more - we move money around.

Also it's only the USA who's currency has collapsed - most of our trade is with the EU and the euro is strong.

In all fairness to use the word collapsed when describing the US currency is a bit too strong...many observers said that last summer the dollar would fall to $1.50 to €1; as a matter of fact it had a bit of a rally....

These things indeed come and go and has to do with many complex factors...in many respects some will tell you the American economy is very very strong...unemployment is down among other things....as I said in my post above, one can argue whether the current policies of the US administration are good or bad...the point is one doesn't necessary use the strength of the national currency as an indication whether the economy is doing well or not. And in 2 short years, there will be a new administration perhaps with different economic policies. That remains to be seen.

Is free medication included in the British health care system? If so, why isn't audere taking his?

May I say having a 2 Euro for $1 doesn't mean it matters to Europeans.
It doesn't help anyone over there. Their gas prices are twice more than in US still.
So what good does it do for Europeans who don't travel to US? Not much.

I posted this on the airlines website, but I think you guys should see this, too.

Round trip travel from MIA to CDG, dates, June 17-June 25. Prices: $1460 BA, $1482 AA, $1483 AF.

Travel reverse round trip: CDG to MIA, same dates. Prices: $696 BA, $699 AA, $835 AF.

Looks like the airlines want us to get use to the fact that the U.S. dollar is only worth half of the British Pound.

I think there is an airline conspiracy.

We leave for london in about 6 weeks. Since the exchange rate was about 1.96 when we started planning we've just been multipling by 2 anyway. I agree, Life is short enjoy it while you can!

Is free medication included in the British health care system? If so, why isn't audere taking his? >>>>>

I am - it has side effects.

xyz123,

What are your thoughts long-term about the dollar vs the euro? I have read some websites talking about how "this time it is different", that the dollar may never come back again.

Do you believe this, or do you think it is just part of the historical cycle where the dollar is currently down but in a few years it will probably be back up again? I'm curious on your thoughts. Thanks in advance.

Well, good thing a bunch of the museums are free in London. Guess it'll be porridge and tea for meals. But we aren't putting this trip off for another year! And, hey, it'll make our prior week in Paris look affordable!

4 years ago my partner wanted us to go to Iraq and we put it off and have regreted it ever since. Think we may not get there at all.

So yes I think you just have to go

>it's only the USA who's currency has collapsed...

Nonsense, phooey.

It's the GBP that's collapsed.

In 1972 1 GBP = $2.50

You guys still have a long way to go.

((I))

The gold standard was £1 =$4.

But the pound dollar rate is only going one way for the next few years.

The $2 pound is fading... yesterday $2.06 and still rising it seems - $3 pound can't be far behind?

And I saw this AM that the petro price is set to hit one pound per litre soon so that means any driving will be pricey.

Each year I do a 10 night trip to Great Britain. I pay for my flight and rail pass in $'s, hence no change. I stay in 35 pound B&B's costing me about $70. So I will pay this year $73. Lets see, max of $30. more. Think I can handle that. Oh, forgot, I came back with 244 pounds which should cover part of other expenses. I really look forward to my trips and an extra $200 or so is not going to change my plans. Of course I am an old guy, saved my money and can afford to spend what ever I want.

rogerdodger - my case about the same

22 pound B&B with breakfast that lasts me most of day.

the rising pound and esp the $2 barrier is mainy psychological in real terms - a few % higher.

It costs a lot more now to go to Europe from the US than it cost mewhen I first went in 1970 and that is to be expected.

EVERYTHING costs more now than it did in 1970 and that's to be expected, too.

In phony dollars, of course.

But in terms of what people earn for an hour's work, most goods and services are at their all-time lowest prices.

Robes, do you honestly think that people worked as hard in the 1970's as they do now?

Some work then was a lot less complex than it is now, too.

and now the really hard work - manual labor is paid much less than it was in the 70s in real dollars and the easy work - white collar is paid much more

and CEOs, though they work as hard now as in the 70s - really hard usually - they get paid about ten times as much now in real dollars and that's obscene IMO.

It just makes the mental math so much easier, dontchathink?

:O

>..they get paid about ten times as much now in real dollars and that's obscene IMO.<

Why should anyone's compensation be subject to moral evaluation?

Isn't paying a football player who breeds dogs for fighting over $100M just as obscene?

Bill Clinton gets about $250K per speech and Rudi Giuliani gets about $100K plus expenses. Are these rates obscene?

It costs about $4 to extract a barrel of crude oil from Saudi Arabian fields, yet the price is nearly $80/bbl. Isn't that obscene?

Etc, etc, etc....

((I))

>The $2 pound is fading... yesterday $2.06 and still rising it seems - $3 pound can't be far behind?<

OTOH, the GBP is $2.00 this morning.
See http://tinyurl.com/3xlap3

((I))

>..they get paid about ten times as much now in real dollars and that's obscene IMO.<

Why should anyone's compensation be subject to moral evaluation?

simple - CEOs are slashing blue collar jobs and outsorcing them - outsourcing jobs at home to non-union operations or ones that pay much less (GM + Delphi)

thus they are lowering wages for the workers and then getting huge bonuses or golden parachutes - taking from poor and giving to rich and i just find this obscene.

As for other examples OK - bball player is not displacing other bballplayers, etc.

Just fat cat CEOs - actually i'd pay them all as much as they want and have a steeply graduated income tax after a certain level of say 300,000$/yr and up.