It was getting tough in 2006 and the workhouse still threatens us in 2011

Softstuff

Boy, a lot of people needing more than a hug, I'll make a jug of gin and orange and pass it round. There's whisky too for those who want something stronger.

I read of what happens in England, but am obviously cushioned and distant from it being over here in Australia. We're not cushioned for price rises, indeed food prices here have been worse than Englands and are rising dramatically, and where I live is pretty bad for unemployment, I noticed 3 shops in our local centre are closing this week. But England really takes the biscuit for a government so completely out of touch with its people. I read some news sites from England and am generally just gobsmacked at what is going on.

madammim_2

Softstuff wrote: »

Boy, a lot of people needing more than a hug, I'll make a jug of gin and orange and pass it round. There's whisky too for those who want something stronger.

I read of what happens in England, but am obviously cushioned and distant from it being over here in Australia. We're not cushioned for price rises, indeed food prices here have been worse than Englands and are rising dramatically, and where I live is pretty bad for unemployment, I noticed 3 shops in our local centre are closing this week. But England really takes the biscuit for a government so completely out of touch with its people. I read some news sites from England and am generally just gobsmacked at what is going on.

Please could I have some of your gin & orange? I've just finished the cranberry & vodka. yes, our economy is up sh**t creek make no mistake. I do think the government is having no choice but to take hard measures to recover the mess the last lot left us with - they were a 'spend, spend' spend' government but they spent what we didnt have.

Softstuff

madammim wrote: »

Please could I have some of your gin & orange? I've just finished the cranberry & vodka. yes, our economy is up sh**t creek make no mistake. I do think the government is having no choice but to take hard measures to recover the mess the last lot left us with - they were a 'spend, spend' spend' government but they spent what we didnt have.

I'm afraid I'm a bit of a poor hostess, I found the gin in the cupboard, but no orange. So here's a straight gin.

I think austerity measures would be a good idea for any government to adopt, but let's be clear here, I think the cuts should come from where there is genuine waste. From politicians travelling first class, from expense accounts that include things that should reasonably come out of their own pockets, from the wining and dining, the unnecessary flights for "fact-finding", from their advertising budgets where they try and put a spin on their every move. I think the cuts should trim the fat of those who can spare it, not cut the poor to the bone.

And David Cameron spending a couple of million to measure the nations happiness??? You have to wonder where they're getting all these ideas from, if I sat in a room and pondered the most stupid thing I could do in a time of economic crisis, I'm not sure I could even come up with this rubbish, and I have a pretty good imagination.

shelley_crow

I've avoided tesco like the plague and have been shopping at aldi for a fair few months now. I had to go to tesco out of need for bits and pieces they don't have at aldi, I wish I hadn't! I bought nothing expensive or extravagant, everything was on special offer or bogof and it came to £38! Not much to show for it either.

We have just bought a fairly good car as our car that had to be scrapped from a man who was made redundant, it seems to be a widespread problem at the moment. Things ren't looking up on the jobfront for me, will keep plodding on. Things are going to be very lean until my partner's student bursary come in, unfortunately the car wasn't something he can do without due to commuting. We did discuss not replacing the car but the train and bus charges were extortion in comparison.

Had a rubbish day, culminating in my tired and over emotional 6 year old saying that he doesn't like me. He's been pushing his luck recently and doesn't seem to be appreciating the resulting discipline, pity that! My youngest son has been awake for the past hour and doesn't seem to want to sleep anymore, so it's going to be a long night for me!

Hugs and liquor to those that need them, I see Softstuff has beat me to it x

ceridwen

madammim wrote: »

Please could I have some of your gin & orange? I've just finished the cranberry & vodka. yes, our economy is up sh**t creek make no mistake. I do think the government is having no choice but to take hard measures to recover the mess the last lot left us with - they were a 'spend, spend' spend' government but they spent what we didnt have.

Ahem.....do you want to hear the one about the newspapers are full of the fact that, though Britain isnt in the Euro (thank goodness), we might be called on (to the tune of MANY billions of £s:eek::eek: to act as guarantor for the EEC set-up - courtesy of our membership of the IMF).

Translate that into - "the b*ggers (aka Europe and all that) might well come with the begging bowl to get billions of £s more from us yet...in fact the odds are pretty high that they WILL".

Pass the bucket and put ALL the booze in - we'll all share it...I'll pass the straws round for us...

I am finding it difficult to get my head round how "history can go backwards and reverse the gains yer-ordinary-person-in-the-street has made last century" - even though the history books tell us about The Peasants Revolt, land enclosures, the Long Depression, the Great Depression. I certainly know my own generation cant quite believe it - as we saw "history" as now having broken that cycle and as being a steady onward march of progress. I honestly thought "Now we're in control of our own fertility - and can avoid having any children we cant afford - we've cracked it. There'll be no more being thrown into poverty for any careful/provident ordinary person again".

Think - "Now all we bl**dy need is for the Government to decide we havent got involved in yet another moneypit (aka war) for at least a few months .....". Time for an OS demonstration of a load of us in our pinnies and with rolling pins in hand heading for Downing Street if any stupid b*gger announces they think we'll start up yet another war in yet another country..

redlady_1

Read the Telegraph today. EU is going to sue Britain because we are TOO STRICT with benefit tourists!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!! why am I busting my !!! working two jobs to pay for these people who get a damn sight more than I would if I didnt work??? I can't read the whole article as I feel the need to smash the screen into little pieces .http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/immigration/8798095/Brussels-threatens-to-sue-Britain-to-let-in-benefit-tourists.html

I am so tired today. It was a late night and I am so shattered. Aftera wonderful weekend away reality is hitting home again. Grumpy Red en route!!

ceridwen

I rest my case as regards the E.U......

JUST how fast can we get out of it? - completely....

Contemplating having a good read of the UK Independence Party's manifesto....

I wonder personally whether Britain will "break apart" totally at some point - as in England breaking away from Wales and Scotland (which is a really wierd thought to get ones head round for someone in my generation).....think I'll book the removal van at that point to head for the South Wales or Scotland.

Rowan9

Bright sunny morning here. Will go out with dogs soon before it gets too hot.
I had my veg box delivery yesterday and am pleased with it. Local produce so, being Scotland, there won't be aubergines or whatever. Potatoes, carrots, onions, parsnip, tomatoes, salad leaves, half a cucumber, lots of curly kale (yum yum Mardatha I'm going to wheech some your way). £11.50. I can't remember what I used to pay in England - the selection was good though. Anyway, I haven't committed myself to buying it again but may go for a fortnightly bigger box and split with DD and her BF.
I read somewhere that Te$co has buy 1 get 2 free on mature Cheddar so I'll have a look there today. I'm planning on cutting my T shopping once they halve the clubcard points. I'm getting a bit fed up with their world domination.
Big (((hugs))) to those who are worried about housing.
Rosanna - thinking of you and your little cat today.
W

Rowan9

Deleted post as too early in morning - off out with doggies
W:)

GreyQueen

Greetings from the Sunny Side, where it touched 28 degrees yesterday. On the second-to-last day of September, can never recall seeing the like and I ain't no spring chicken.

Felt too hot and too whacked to cook yestereve so the last portion of Mr Pumpkin is saved for tonight and I just had fruit and a sarnie. I've been going to bed at 9 pm for the past fortnight, just shattered.

Softstuff, things are getting baaaad in Blighty at the moment. The Lithuanian m@fia are in P.C. and are trafficking sex slaves and kidnapping people (mostly other Lithuanians) and beating them up.

In my hometown (dozy little market town) there are squatter camps in the woods and commons where destitute european migrants with no work eke out an existance; churches are doing soup and sandwiches and they troop into town for these. In winter in the past years there have been deaths in these camps from hypothermia. Hello, 21st century.

These encampments are totally in breach of the law but the police seem incapable of moving them out. Some of the camps have been there more than a year. No EU national has (currently) any right to be in the UK for more than 3 months without being subject to immigration control unless they have one of 3 statuses; financially independant, full-time student, a worker. If they've never worked in the UK they currently have no rights to benefits and no rights to apply for social housing or to be accomodated as homeless in dire emergency.

In theory, these unemployed and destitute europeans should be deported. In practice nothing happens. Heaven help us all if what is being threatened comes to pass- that they acquire equal rights with UK nationals as soon as they set foot on British soil. There's no way that the social housing sector can handle this, never mind how the rest of us can hope to pay enough taxes to fund the benefit bill.

I do benefits stuff at work among other things and talk to people every day who've lost ESA and are appealing- some will suceed and some will be on JSA, with chronic illnesses and/ or disabilities which will mean that they are probably going to be at the bottom of the pile for any kind of job they go for. I can handle a desk-based job for a few hours a day but there's no way I could handle anything manual like I used to do on production lines, or driving gigs, or even be on my feet for hours like shop-work, waitressing or bar-work. Watch GQ go white as a sheet with exhaustion and collapse on the job- it has happened before and scares the sh*t out of employers.

People on benefit who rent privately get Local Housing Allowance and as these are coming up for renewal (it's annual if you stay in the same address) seem to be ending up with less LHA as the rates for each tariff of home-size are lower than last year and they have to make up the difference themselves. People say, "How can I manage?" to me and mine every day of the week.

What can we say? The benefits assessors are applying rates set by central government in terms of what is humorously-called "excess income" and the LHA rates are set by the Rents Service. Either way, we ain't got no flexibilty. More and more people are applying for Discretionary Housing Payments (a top-up of a few quid a week for a few weeks on your benefit) but even if they get it, it only postpones the crisis. It's a finite fund each financial year and when it's gone, that's it until the next year, no matter how needy the applicant.

I've often thought that it is ONLY the benefit system which has stopped there being blood on the streets over the terrible levels of pay and conditions for the employed (i.e. top-ups via tax credits) and the unemployed and sick alike. Take those away and the Gubment could be in for a very bumpy ride.

Mind you, it's about time that the Powers-that-Be were made to face the music over what their policies (or lack of them) mean for the rest of us. Perhaps rioters need to be a bit more specific and find out where the beggars are living and head there, instead of down to the shops to do a bit of retail therapy. Ahh, but that would suppose that they were politically-motivated, and most people seem so ground-down and dispirited that we can't muster the effort.

Sorry to be a moaner, I've had a helluva week of it at work with a lot of callers waiting about half an hour and quite a few of the usual colleagues seeming to be MIA. Don't know whether the temps have been sent away as they never tell us anything but it's been insane.:(:o

Anyway, on happier thoughts, my folks are coming up tomorrow and we will use this lovely sunny weather to play in the sun on the lottie, and Mum has promised to bake Ch*colate C*ke today and bring some up for us to share, nomnomnom. And there will be time with friends on Sunday......good thoughts.

((Hugs to all today and nobody is to get sunstroke OK?))

ETA Ceridwen, the UKIP candidates that I have seen appear to have escaped from secure psychiatric units. Perhaps they're better where you live.