I have been on benefits.., and rather than having the money to buy alcohol/lottery tickets.., have lived on toast for weeks on end to feed my kids - and knowing i was feeding them badly at that. I used a social fund loan to buy a part ex car from the local garage when I still lived with my also non working ex.., who drove, cause i have a son with special needs who has a habit of sitting on the pavement rather than walking anywhere. One of the reasons I was given taxi rides to the local child and family health place. Its 40 mins away and half the time we didn't get there before they gave us access to taxi's for the appts (by then my ex and I had split up, I don't drive and can't afford to pay for a provisional - been trying for months to save the money up but something always comes up like bills and food and clothes for two kids).
I went on benefits after weeks of looking for work, paying a childminder I could not afford to lose cause I wouldn't be able to replace her because i was so determined to find work. BUT once u get sucked into the benefits system (and believe it or not.., there IS no credit - except the social fund loan system which I paid back - not even an overdraft if u are on benefits) and have to look at not getting paid for a month on a salaried job - while paying childcare costs and rent for two weeks etc.., knowing u are going to be earning £5 per hour while 'things' sort themselves out (in terms of getting tax credits etc) and it means u can't put even basic food on the table because u are working - u tend to think twice about going to work.
I'm sorry folks, but its not the easy life on benefits u think.
And I guarantee - totally guarantee cause its happened, i would have lost any job I had cause of the fact I need to look after a two year old and a twelve year old with special needs - his special needs are not really bad but I never seem to get off the phone with his school and social workers and health professionals he see's trying to improve his quality of life and make him in the future self sufficient. I hate being called a scrounger.., but in a way I have been. I'd love to not be. U don't know how much.
This is exactly swmbowithattitude what I was trying to impart by my few postings on this subject!
Throughout my work involving a mental health trust, the police, and generally "out there" in real life situations involving REAL families in dire straights, I find NO-ONE who finds life on benefits easy; they are forever desparately seeking ways to pay for their basic needs; food, gas, electric, water rates, let alone clothing there kids on VERY limited income. When they can get "credit" it is either in the form of a "Crisis Loan" from DSS that will be paid back by weekly deductions from their Income Support payments, or from "Provident" loans and the like that charge astronomical interest rates (i.e. Provident 168% APR; and that is one of the lowest!!)
As they are poor they are made poorer by this, and the fact that they often have to pay the highest charges for many necessities (i.e. electric & gas pre-payment meters).
I have been employed for 40+ years, and in my time paid, along with my ex, the highest levels of tax possible due to a very healthy income, with often a great life style. We both worked crippling hours, often over 6 days of the week, whilst maintaining a family and a home, with life never 'easy'. However I would never begrudge any
genuine case their welfare payments and support whilst they are in trouble, especially those who will never be blessed as I was so blessed.
I am not talking about the minority of youngsters who decide to never work, NO! But the genuine weak must be helped by the strong in a good and fair society, and although I am a Conservative in many respects, I do fully subscribe to the Welfare System and certain aspects of Marxist philosophy. We must never again have thousands of starving, homeless, and penniless men, women and especially children on our streets as it was before the reforms of the nineteenth century, and especially during the main years of the Industrial Revolution (1750-1850).
As for the "Capitalist" system that we all work for, just remember that we work hard to earn a crust, whilst those at the top earn a fortune from our sweat. When we fall ill, often due to our working and general life conditions, "their" system, hospitals, doctors, nurses, etc., is in place to repair you, with some welfare assistance, and once better throw you back into the "cycle" of work and production. The capitalist system survives on us, or at least enough of us, providing the labour and maintaining the money supply to the top of the pile, the leaders of our "animal kingdom", to keep them in their ivory tower, with riches, whilst we worry about paying the basic household bills. But their system is maintained and we can do little to change it....yet!
Can you blame anyone who genuinely falls ill from claiming what they can from "the system" that has caused so often their illness; even if it is just due to excessive hours, stress, bullying (such as with currently council workers!), bad working conditions, etc? A system that, at the lower end at least, stiffles human creativity, restricts their personal freedom, and throws them out once no longer wanted.
So before we all target the poor (in more ways than with just pure "wealth" standards) of our society and those very few who
MAY have found a way to "use" the sytem to their benefit, with our rantings, attack first the causes and reasons why our capitalist system exists, the damage it causes to fellow human beings, and those with a very real interest to keep it all going!
Life is never fair, but could be a lot fairer for all if mankind was not so greedy, nasty, brutal and self centred!
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Topic: Council/Government/Spongers Rant (Read 4237 times)