The Best View Comes After the Hardest Climb.

mothernerd

Buffythedebtslayer said:

Been watching the news and trying to work out how I would cope if my country was taken over by an authoritarian government would in all likelihood take away my rights and freedoms. 

I don't think I would cope. I mean what would i do? Would I leave? Would I be on a plane? What about Mum? What about my sister and her partner.  

ooops got to leave for the dentist now! Enough thinking XX 

Buffy - it's already happening here - power of parliament to make decisions or even be consulted eroded, press to be punished for criticism of the government, chunks of the NHS sold to privateers (under American principles), lose the right to vote if you can't afford a passport (if you haven't been on holiday for years why would you have a passport or a luxury like a car), the right to protest (peacefully) taken away.

In Afghanistan the US and UK trained the Taliban (so that they could fight the Russians). The propaganda texts they (US and UK) supplied have been used as text books ever since. We invaded illegally and now after 20 years of killing, we pull out. I saw a Joe Biden quote yesterday saying "Afghanistan was not North Korea, you would not see helicopters taking off from the roof of the American Embassy" underneath near identical images of the US pulling out of North Korea and Afghanistan by helicopter. Creating refugees and then treating them as criminals is becoming our forte.

Apologies if anyone finds this offensive/ political - I can delete it if you hate it buffy.

Hugs and sympathy for your ongoing trials with your mother.

WinterWarrior

@mothernerd sorry if I’m missing the point, but isn’t voting done on the electoral roll? I don’t have a passport, but I do vote. Scotland is even worse for losing rights in my (probably not very knowledgable) opinion, it does worry me. 

badmemory

They are trying to bring in the need to show a passport or driving licence when you show up to vote as proof of ID.  Last year it would have meant my son couldn't vote as he had neither at the time, so we now both have postal votes.

Buffythedebtslayer

mothernerd said:

Buffythedebtslayer said:

Been watching the news and trying to work out how I would cope if my country was taken over by an authoritarian government would in all likelihood take away my rights and freedoms. 

I don't think I would cope. I mean what would i do? Would I leave? Would I be on a plane? What about Mum? What about my sister and her partner.  

ooops got to leave for the dentist now! Enough thinking XX 

Buffy - it's already happening here - power of parliament to make decisions or even be consulted eroded, press to be punished for criticism of the government, chunks of the NHS sold to privateers (under American principles), lose the right to vote if you can't afford a passport (if you haven't been on holiday for years why would you have a passport or a luxury like a car), the right to protest (peacefully) taken away.

In Afghanistan the US and UK trained the Taliban (so that they could fight the Russians). The propaganda texts they (US and UK) supplied have been used as text books ever since. We invaded illegally and now after 20 years of killing, we pull out. I saw a Joe Biden quote yesterday saying "Afghanistan was not North Korea, you would not see helicopters taking off from the roof of the American Embassy" underneath near identical images of the US pulling out of North Korea and Afghanistan by helicopter. Creating refugees and then treating them as criminals is becoming our forte.

Apologies if anyone finds this offensive/ political - I can delete it if you hate it buffy.

Hugs and sympathy for your ongoing trials with your mother.

I pretty much agree and worry a lot about Parliament's powers being eroded and "governance by Twitter/media". The right to protest - that law, seriously bad and so many housing/land use laws have clauses in that mean government can take over whatever land it "needs". Much of the press is in the boys' club and the NHS situation is just dire.  I am hoping I will be on the way out by the time it is really bad tho I think covid has sped up certainly some of the legal changes. 

And how many people now won't have passports due to covid. The ID thing scares me. 

Anyhow this really will get too political!! 

Buffythedebtslayer

Had a horrible conversation with mum re the stair lift situation. This lead to the discussion of rent and how it includes all my food (no it doesn't) and the use of the sheds/garden. To be fair I have always been clear on paying the rate for renting a room in this area so it is my fault my rent is so high. Being alive is expensive. I don't really want to talk about to be honest. She is old and frightened, hates relying on me for anything, hate that I get her pills out and she doesn't ask or more accurately can't tell me. hates that she is lonely and in pain. Sometimes living with her is fine but it is an enormous compromise on my part. And I was willing, as I had my pets and my freedom (and mum was away a lot) but really in the last four years that has gone massively. And it has happened so slowly she doesn't even notice. 

Any how, I wasn't going to apply for anything but frankly if I am working like loon to look after her, and still paying for the privilege then I must stop spending money on house in any way. 

Lets be horribly realistic here, the most likely scenario is mum moves to a care home which means the house is sold and I am homeless. I really do need to save everything I can, this is an absolute emergency, I have no safety net. 

I have to do loads of steps today. !!!!!!. 

Also loads to think about. 

I wish this was all in my old diary I was trying to be positive here. I really don't want to talk about the mum situation at all. I feel like an idiot and fool and I hate that a decision, a situation all slowly crept in and took over my life. I never meant anything like this happen. When John Lennon said life is what happens when you are making other plans he wasn't wrong. 


I shall channel my anger into something useful. 
Mum is putting her washing on. I have been doing it but she wants to save me the trouble. She has been struggling for 10 minutes.........And I am stuck here waiting for her to finish so I can continue to clean the kitchen. God knows what she is doing. 

XXX

badmemory

Obviously you don't have to answer on here but does she claim attendance allowance?  If not why not look at the forms & see if she can get it at at least the lower level.  That would help pay for any help especially for when term starts again.  A few years ago I met a retired chief superintendent  (I'd like his pension) & he was getting it, so it has nothing to do with income or lack of it but just to be in need of help.  It is also easier to get help from social services if you can pay for it - well it is here anyway & they are all skint!

WinterWarrior

Just a thought, but if you have spent money on the house you should save all the evidence. Then if she is made to sell up for care at a future date you could possibly register an interest, get that repaid in some way?  You don’t want to take money from mum, but the council wouldn’t think twice 😞

Buffythedebtslayer

WinterWarrior said:

Just a thought, but if you have spent money on the house you should save all the evidence. Then if she is made to sell up for care at a future date you could possibly register an interest, get that repaid in some way?  You don’t want to take money from mum, but the council wouldn’t think twice 😞

I don't think you can aside from anything else the money I have spent has been tiny amounts, paint, the garden, getting things fixed whilst she was away. having read about it there is nothing I can do, just stop the cash now. I have no rights at all. That is why most people sign the house or part of the house to someone else - like their children, but mum thinks I would chuck her out or the person I marry would (what a laugh)  as that is what happened to her friend who went blind and lives alone. 

I really do need to save more. And cut down on spending. 

Buffythedebtslayer

badmemory said:

Obviously you don't have to answer on here but does she claim attendance allowance?  If not why not look at the forms & see if she can get it at at least the lower level.  That would help pay for any help especially for when term starts again.  A few years ago I met a retired chief superintendent  (I'd like his pension) & he was getting it, so it has nothing to do with income or lack of it but just to be in need of help.  It is also easier to get help from social services if you can pay for it - well it is here anyway & they are all skint!

I don't think mum would have a cleaner... and she may well get the money already. She gets a high state pension. She always needed to go to to see my sister so got into the habit of saving for that. .

badmemory

From what you have said I'm not sure she would have been entitled to an attendance allowance back then.  The state pension when she started getting it would not have been the single amount it is now.  She could have inherited some as well as having earned extra in her own right.