Man, sit down because I gotta tell you what I found out from one of my boys, who knows a thing or two from a research center, and I was left speechless. That's how it is with us, bro: you work like a horse, put money aside for a rainy day, and in the end you're still left with a swollen lip. A study by the APSAP Training Center, between August last year and this June, says it clearly: over half of Romanians have used up all their savings or have no reserves left in the last year. That is, 39.1% had to dip into their pockets, and 15.1% are completely at zero. Only 22.5% managed to put aside a modest sum, and 4.9% are actually saving more than before - poor them, probably haven't heard of inflation. 18.4% say their income and expenses match, meaning the money runs out exactly when the month ends. And I know this well, bro: Mioara counts the Lidl receipt like it's the stock exchange, and it's useless to put 50 lei aside because the bills come and you find yourself with nothing to pay the maintenance.
And now, wait to see the sweetest part: eight out of ten Romanians consider taxation excessive. Only 20.2% think fiscal policy is heading in the right direction. That is, exactly those who pay the most - the middle class, people like me and you - feel the state is skinning them alive. Not that they wouldn't want to contribute, bro, but let's be serious: you pay 21% VAT on everything, excise taxes on gas, cigarettes, electricity... and what do you get in return? Broken roads, dilapidated hospitals, teachers paid 3,000 lei. The rift between the taxpayer and the state is like between Mioara and my mother-in-law: they just don't get along anymore.
Average incomes no longer guarantee financial comfort. The largest category of respondents, 25.1%, earn between 5,001 and 7,000 lei net per month. And even they are struggling, bro. The VAT increase to 21% and successive price hikes have brought them to their knees. Me, with my 2008 BMW, I feel like every full tank costs me as much as a meal out. And what do you do? You don't go to Fane's terrace anymore, you stay home and drink canned beer from Lidl.
The dissatisfaction extends to the relationship between the state and the private sector: 71.9% of respondents believe state institutions do not encourage private business at all. Almost two-thirds see no progress in combating the underground economy. That is, those who work honestly and pay taxes are the suckers, while the "smart boys" evade taxes and drive around in new Audis. And then the state wonders why money isn't coming into the budget.
The perception of the European Union is more nuanced: almost 45% believe the changes imposed by the EU are beneficial, and 33.8% consider some measures are against citizens' interests. That is, we're not anti-European, but we're not stupid enough to swallow anything. I, for one, say it's good we're in the EU, otherwise we'd be like Moldova, but it's not okay for them to take us for fools.
While we struggle to put a penny aside, Minister Dragoș Pîslaru announces he has finalized technical negotiations with the European Commission for the latest modification of the PNRR. Romania keeps the full non-reimbursable funding, over 20 billion euros, and has avoided major risks of financial corrections. The adjustments target projects in infrastructure, health, energy, digitalization, education, local development, and environment. Pîslaru says the most important stage follows: implementation by August 31. Good, bro, but until then I still have no money for vacation. I wonder how much of that money reaches us, and how much gets lost with the local barons. In Argeș, for example, where the PSD rules, probably some of the money goes to Topoloveni, for plum jam. But me in Berceni, I haven't seen any new bridge.
And to warm us up even more, the first heatwave of summer is coming. Yellow code on Saturday and Sunday, between 12:00 and 21:00, in Crișana, Banat, Maramureș, western and central Transylvania, and western Oltenia. On Sunday, maximum temperatures reach 36 degrees, and the temperature-humidity index will exceed 80 units. That is, you die of heat, but rest assured, the state has allowed us to melt at home, because we don't pay too much for electricity, right?
At least one good news: Romania ranked first at the Balkan Junior Mathematics Olympiad, in Buzău. The national team won 12 medals: five gold, five silver, and two bronze. One of them, Andrei Nemțișor, from "Costache Negruzzi" College in Iași, got the maximum score. Romania finished first with 202 points, followed by Bulgaria with 199. Bravo to them, bro, these are the future. Maybe Brian will get there too, if he drops TikTok and learns math. But until then, I'm going to explain to Mioara that we have no money for expenses, because inflation ate it. And don't forget: who pays? Still us.
