• Norah - She/They@lemmy.blahaj.zone
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    4
    ·
    edit-2
    1 year ago

    It depends, some things are more expensive here. But for an example, Baldur’s Gate 3 retails at US$70 in the states, but US$57 (A$90) here. A brand new iPhone 15 Pro costs US$200 more here however.

    The high end for a public school teacher is US$87k. But public school admin pays a lot more. The starting salary for an Assistant Principal is US$96k, and goes all the way up too US$147k on the high end for a Principal.

    Finally, while we absolutely have a housing crisis going on, rent is still a lot cheaper here. I live in a three bedroom house in the suburbs of Melbourne. We have a backyard big enough for a few chooks, a dog and a cat. It’s a half hour’s train ride into the city centre. Our rental laws mean the landlord basically couldn’t say no to the animals. He also can’t terminate the lease without cause, and has limits on how much and how often the rent can be increased. We pay US$1260 (A$1955) a month. From what I’ve seen, it can cost $2000/month for a small apartment in a comparable city in the US.

    Speaking of Unions actually, we have renter’s unions here that will help if you’re being fucked over and agitate for better rights. I pay A$12/year in dues and they’ve helped me out a few times when I’ve had a landlord trying to break the laws.

    Sorry for the whole rant, I just have had people reply similarly before in a way that feels a bit dismissive. Thanks for the apology, and have a great day/night :)

    Edit: Oh yeah, there’s also not having to spend money on essential medical care, that makes a big difference too.

    • Prophet Zarquon@startrek.website
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      1 year ago

      I think I agree… but I’m sorry, I’m not used to using those items as a commodity value scale…

      Can you express that as 18650 cells, please?

        • Prophet Zarquon@startrek.website
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          1
          ·
          1 year ago

          Aw man, that’s just enough difference to make me notice.

          Now I’ve got a weird question purely out of curiosity: Do you know of any makers of black denim cotton work jeans, in loose fit that isn’t stretch knit?

          Wrangler & Levi seem to have decided that black jeans which fit over one’s thighs, are not important enough to make in all sizes anymore… ?

          • Norah - She/They@lemmy.blahaj.zone
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            1
            ·
            edit-2
            1 year ago

            You: likes star trek enough to make it part of your identity

            Also You: goes into a worker reform community to start shit, wastes people’s time as if you’re a Ferengi

            Are you one of those Star Trek fans that hates how Queer they made Discovery too?

            • Prophet Zarquon@startrek.website
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              1
              ·
              1 year ago

              What shit did I start? I agree 100% with the sentiment of this post’s OP: Teachers moving to corporate marketing jobs just to get a survivable wage, is a tragedy of first order. The people who do our societies most vital work are not rewarded anywhere near commensurate with the importance of their work; hence my reading of this post.

              I was joking about needing 18650 cells as a point of reference for pricing… mostly. I really don’t have any sense of the prices of those other commodities you mentioned. Regardless, based on what you said, it seems like Australian teachers are better off than here, but still grossly undervalued?

              And no, I hated the musical episode of Strange New Worlds because it wasn’t up to my expectations based on their invoking of Buffy The Musical, but I loved most of Discovery & Stamets is freaking gold. I didn’t really think they could top the engineering hijinks until Tig Notaro as Jet Reno was introduced. She’s a treasure.

              I have had good luck finding what should be basic essential goods from overseas brands, when the major US brands stop making them. I was unironically, seriously, asking if you or anyone here could suggest a brand of jeans that still comes in loose fit black, as that’s literally all I can wear to work & need them for life as well. Sorry to derail the topic; I was leery of that, but Australia has good stuff sometimes so I figured I’d risk it!