We solve the "problem"* of ageing by working longer, paying more into taxes and pensions and by getting less.
* a healthy old age is not a problem, it is a tremendous pleasure and a benefit to society.
Yes, agreed! I'm 73, roughly as healthy as my father was at 63, and thus have enjoyed an extra decade of healthy working life. Thinking of retiring from full-time work now, though - I don't really need to work and I'd rather pursue a postgraduate history degree (as several of you kindly advised me about). The tradition of working till you're exhausted is, on reflection, not really sensible unless you need to.
Something about Vietnamese food doesn't seem to work in Europe. 50 years after the end of the civil war, one would have expected its widespread diaspora to have had a decent shot at spreading it, as they ended up not only in France but all over Europe. But Vietnamese seems to lag well behind Thai and Korean cuisines, from places which produced no great post-colonial swell of migrants to Europe
Something about Vietnamese food doesn't seem to work in Europe. 50 years after the end of the civil war, one would have expected its widespread diaspora to have had a decent shot at spreading it, as they ended up not only in France but all over Europe. But Vietnamese seems to lag well behind Thai and Korean cuisines, from places which produced no great post-colonial swell of migrants to Europe
Possibly it's just too healthy and fresh.
On the other hand - I can see Filipino food making a splash when it's turn comes. Deep fried fatty joy.
My yearning for a curry - any curry, even fucking french duck gizzard curry - is now virtually homicidal
3 days in remote rural France and I will murder for the taste of chili and garam masala
Look out for French tacos. Nothing like the Mexican version.
Food to die for, or of.
Lots of good Tunisian cous cous restaurants too if you fancy a change.
In almost any British town, even tiny ones, you will find a decent Indian restaurant, a semi-decent Chinese, and a decent Thai
I used to decry this, as denoting the absence of a thriving national cuisine - now I see that it is something to be cherished - as long as we don’t neglect our own developing new British cuisine
I had lunch with a French tourist guy a couple of days ago, and he admitted he had about two curries in his whole life, and he mistrusted spices. He told me his father was very different and went to London a lot “and loves Indian food”
An illuminating conversation
You would think, if it wasn’t for French chauvinism, that every French town there would be a Cambodian and Vietnamese restaurant as we have Indians but they are sadly few and far between.
Their Chinese restaurants have been terrible in my experience although I look forward to arranging a visit to a place called Morlaix in Brittany as apparently it has great (for France maybe) curry houses alongside other nice reasons to go there.
Yes, absolutely!
I actually mentioned this to the French guy. I said “you guys colonised Indochina especially Vietnam, which has one of the best cuisines in the world, why aren’t there Vietnamese restaurants everywhere” and he looked blank, as in:
1. He wasn’t really aware France colonised Vietnam
2. He had no clue about Vietnamese cuisine - good bad or otherwise
Imagine a Brit not comprehending “curry”
Oddly enough - I've been watching (deep breath) an Australian cookery show presented by a Aussie of Vietnamese heritage cooking in the regions of France.
(breaths out)
A decent number of references to Vietnamese dishes that have taken on French aspects. But zero interest or appreciation in the other direction. To a quite noticeable extent.
One of the most memorable Indian curries I’ve had in recent years was in, of all places, Palma Majorca where I got a fabulous takeaway
I couldn’t work it out, then I realised: Majorca is absolutely full of Brits, all the time. They will be demanding decent curry, and providing a knowledgeable market for it. Et voila
It’s come to a strange juncture when expat Brits are improving the local food-scene
On student loan repayments. At 13.5 % the additional interest repayable on a £60k loan would be £8100 per annum. To just be able to pay off the extra increasing interest, at 9% tax rate, someone would need to be earning £90k per year, or be in the top 10% of earners. It is actually best thought of as an extra tax on those in their 30's and under, albeit one that you never grow out of.
What has struck me is that those are subjected to this punitive extra tax show little interest in changing the situation through politics. Unless they make it an issue it won't become one.
The silly thing is we are not a poor country - indeed, there's a huge amount of wealth but it's locked up either in bricks and mortar or in other assets. Keeping saving rates so low for so long has proven to be a big mistake as, to be fair, commentators on both sides of the political spectrum argued.
Is there a viable policy here around releasing wealth and making it work for the country - a public bond or sovereign fund or investment bank funded by the public which could be used to invest in infrastructure or other long term sensible capital projects?
The economic model we followed from the mid 90s to 2008 - the era of cheap food, cheap fuel, cheap money and endlessly rising asset values, came to a sudden end with the fall of Lehmann Brothers and while that wrecked the centre-left's reputation for sound economic management, Covid has now undermined the centre right's record.
The search for a new viable economic model for the 2030s and beyond has begiun - how to reconcile growth and sustainability, how to release wealth, how to create new wealth from a demographically changing population - all these are tough for any party to solve and require thinking outside the usual ideological boxes.
I saw the other day that there is something called UKIB based out of Leeds which is a state backed bank to invest in infrastructure - not sure how much publicity it has received.
I posted something a week or so ago in response to a cyclefree message which I still think would be useful:
I would like to see a govt introduce “national infrastructure bonds” where the revenue is managed by a standalone non-government body and all local councils can apply for chunks of the money with submission of a plan.
The funds generated are absolutely ringfenced for infrastructure and nothing else.
The councils don’t lose funds from their budgets for the day to day stuff but can get a big boost of a hundred million for an essential housing development and ring road, private companies could borrow large fixed sums at a known rate from the pot as well so that they could spread the cost of, for example a new reservoir, over a known period.
The bonds are backed by government at an attractive but not crippling rate and so attractive to overseas pension funds and sovereign funds so has benefit of big government involvement but also big benefit of decisions on spending being removed from big government to a micro level where the local gov or private companies can really see a practical benefit and need.
The cost of servicing this debt has to come out of overall government spending however at least tax payers see that a chunk of this spending is going purely to long term rebuilding of the country which is good for them, their children and their grandchildren.
A nice idea.
It will fail, rapidly, as hundreds of MPs demand money from it for their definition of "infrastructure". The political pressure to divert the money into wage rises ("investing in staff") and gimmicks that can return a quick political profit will be massive.
My yearning for a curry - any curry, even fucking french duck gizzard curry - is now virtually homicidal
3 days in remote rural France and I will murder for the taste of chili and garam masala
Look out for French tacos. Nothing like the Mexican version.
Food to die for, or of.
Lots of good Tunisian cous cous restaurants too if you fancy a change.
In almost any British town, even tiny ones, you will find a decent Indian restaurant, a semi-decent Chinese, and a decent Thai
I used to decry this, as denoting the absence of a thriving national cuisine - now I see that it is something to be cherished - as long as we don’t neglect our own developing new British cuisine
I had lunch with a French tourist guy a couple of days ago, and he admitted he had about two curries in his whole life, and he mistrusted spices. He told me his father was very different and went to London a lot “and loves Indian food”
An illuminating conversation
I have had quite a lot of good Tunisian and Vietnamese food in France, primarily in Brittany and Paris. Chinese restaurants in France are often run by ethnic Chinese from Vietnam.
Hamburg had a lot of good Vietnamese restaurants too.
Something about Vietnamese food doesn't seem to work in Europe. 50 years after the end of the civil war, one would have expected its widespread diaspora to have had a decent shot at spreading it, as they ended up not only in France but all over Europe. But Vietnamese seems to lag well behind Thai and Korean cuisines, from places which produced no great post-colonial swell of migrants to Europe
Possibly it's just too healthy and fresh.
On the other hand - I can see Filipino food making a splash when it's turn comes. Deep fried fatty joy.
(Speaking as a Glaswegian)
Filipino food is the worst Asian cuisine, weird combinations of flavours that just don't work.
We get it at work sometimes as lots of Filipino staff.
We solve the "problem"* of ageing by working longer, paying more into taxes and pensions and by getting less.
* a healthy old age is not a problem, it is a tremendous pleasure and a benefit to society.
Yes, agreed! I'm 73, roughly as healthy as my father was at 63, and thus have enjoyed an extra decade of healthy working life. Thinking of retiring from full-time work now, though - I don't really need to work and I'd rather pursue a postgraduate history degree (as several of you kindly advised me about). The tradition of working till you're exhausted is, on reflection, not really sensible unless you need to.
I am not planning to go on that long, but will work as long as I enjoy it, and can do a decent job. If I get fed up with Blighty, I do have a soft spot for Africa, as does Mrs Foxy.
Something about Vietnamese food doesn't seem to work in Europe. 50 years after the end of the civil war, one would have expected its widespread diaspora to have had a decent shot at spreading it, as they ended up not only in France but all over Europe. But Vietnamese seems to lag well behind Thai and Korean cuisines, from places which produced no great post-colonial swell of migrants to Europe
Possibly it's just too healthy and fresh.
On the other hand - I can see Filipino food making a splash when it's turn comes. Deep fried fatty joy.
(Speaking as a Glaswegian)
Filipino food is the worst Asian cuisine, weird combinations of flavours that just don't work.
We get it at work sometimes as lots of Filipino staff.
I speak as a Glaswegian...
And also, you've possibly never had Laos food with a 'live' chicken heart pricked in front of you so it spurts blood over the table to show it's fresh.
My yearning for a curry - any curry, even fucking french duck gizzard curry - is now virtually homicidal
3 days in remote rural France and I will murder for the taste of chili and garam masala
Look out for French tacos. Nothing like the Mexican version.
Food to die for, or of.
Lots of good Tunisian cous cous restaurants too if you fancy a change.
In almost any British town, even tiny ones, you will find a decent Indian restaurant, a semi-decent Chinese, and a decent Thai
I used to decry this, as denoting the absence of a thriving national cuisine - now I see that it is something to be cherished - as long as we don’t neglect our own developing new British cuisine
I had lunch with a French tourist guy a couple of days ago, and he admitted he had about two curries in his whole life, and he mistrusted spices. He told me his father was very different and went to London a lot “and loves Indian food”
An illuminating conversation
You would think, if it wasn’t for French chauvinism, that every French town there would be a Cambodian and Vietnamese restaurant as we have Indians but they are sadly few and far between.
Their Chinese restaurants have been terrible in my experience although I look forward to arranging a visit to a place called Morlaix in Brittany as apparently it has great (for France maybe) curry houses alongside other nice reasons to go there.
Yes, absolutely!
I actually mentioned this to the French guy. I said “you guys colonised Indochina especially Vietnam, which has one of the best cuisines in the world, why aren’t there Vietnamese restaurants everywhere” and he looked blank, as in:
1. He wasn’t really aware France colonised Vietnam
2. He had no clue about Vietnamese cuisine - good bad or otherwise
Imagine a Brit not comprehending “curry”
It's an interesting question. French Vietnamese constitute a bit over half a percent of the population - so British Indians are about five times as numerous.
Partly cultural assimilation, perhaps? Tends historically to be more complete in France - and the Vietnamese immigrants will have tended to be of the upper rather than working class.
French colonialism in Vietnam was brutal stuff, and their exit a massive national humiliation, so it's not entirely surprising they've forgotten it. Also Vietnam only became a colony in 1850.
Comments
On the other hand - I can see Filipino food making a splash when it's turn comes. Deep fried fatty joy.
(Speaking as a Glaswegian)
I couldn’t work it out, then I realised: Majorca is absolutely full of Brits, all the time. They will be demanding decent curry, and providing a knowledgeable market for it. Et voila
It’s come to a strange juncture when expat Brits are improving the local food-scene
https://x.com/mastronomers/status/1702008351918293474?s=61&t=s0ae0IFncdLS1Dc7J0P_TQ
What has struck me is that those are subjected to this punitive extra tax show little interest in changing the situation through politics. Unless they make it an issue it won't become one.
It will fail, rapidly, as hundreds of MPs demand money from it for their definition of "infrastructure". The political pressure to divert the money into wage rises ("investing in staff") and gimmicks that can return a quick political profit will be massive.
Look at the fun with the Spanish caja.
Hamburg had a lot of good Vietnamese restaurants too.
We get it at work sometimes as lots of Filipino staff.
And also, you've possibly never had Laos food with a 'live' chicken heart pricked in front of you so it spurts blood over the table to show it's fresh.
That's a dish and a half.
French Vietnamese constitute a bit over half a percent of the population - so British Indians are about five times as numerous.
Partly cultural assimilation, perhaps? Tends historically to be more complete in France - and the Vietnamese immigrants will have tended to be of the upper rather than working class.
French colonialism in Vietnam was brutal stuff, and their exit a massive national humiliation, so it's not entirely surprising they've forgotten it.
Also Vietnam only became a colony in 1850.
Wikipedia says they are concentrated around Paris and Marseilles.
Get yourself to the 13th arrondissement.
https://vietnamtimes.org.vn/paris-get-lost-in-13th-arrondissement-the-heaven-of-vietnamese-foods-46669.html