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A site to share information on Welfare cuts, illness, disability and general, current, political thought.
Thursday 2 February 2012
135 comments:
I couldn't agree more. But...what do we do now? I have to give a presentation about the whole tragic lot next week to a load of parents who've got kids with disabilities. And I haven't a clue what to say! Apart from 'We're all fucked.'
AnnieReplies- Findlow2 February 2012 at 10:59
Annie, ask those of them particularly who have Tory or LibDem MP's to go to their MP's surgeries. Such MP's need to have their noses rubbed into the chaos and misery that they have voted for.
Delete Hi.
Yeah, I'll do that. My own MP is Tory and I am disgusted at his replies to my emails and letters. He just repeated the Party Line ad nauseam. He's leaving Parliament at the next election because of the reduction in MPs allowances/expenses which he thinks is very unfair!!! But I shall certainly set all the local parents on to him and his disgraceful colleagues. He himself is, I suspect, screening calls from me!!- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 19:52
i agree and they are liars cheats and 2faced B,S AND WOULD,NT KNOW WHATS LIKE IN THE REAL WORLD, AS THEY LIVE ON CLOUD COOKOO LAND
Delete Good idea. I am in the middle of writing to ask only for an apology for what they've done to my prospects. If you do suggest that they visit MPs, tell them that you don't get anything from the first time; it's only once you become a thorn in their side that they start talking to you remotely properly. My approach is to allow myself to direct my vindictiveness towards them, but then dislike does make me very articulate!
Delete- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 23:53
If only so much effort as this load of sh1t was put into doing work!.. The benefit cycle would not even be an issue.. Put yourself in the rest of the world where,,, don't work die.. and no Jeremy Kyle
As usual Sue, you write down what we are all feeling. I think I felt my heart break while watching the debates yesterday. It is only today that my anger is started to wake up. Don't they know that the way they have gone about this will be their downfall. They have exposed themselves as having no valid argument for their actions. And we will call them on it, loudly, repeatedly in public until people start to listen.
ReplyDeleteWhat arrogance they have, what total disregard for democracy and what hatred for sick/disabled people, yes hatred, I can't explain their actions any other way. There are many of us though who know what is right, many of us who will continue to fight and show them up for what they are and the day will come when the tide will turn, oh yes it WILL turn.
ReplyDelete- Findlow2 February 2012 at 10:54
Yet again, Sue, you have spoken for the hundreds of thousands of people who have been left reeling by the callous savagery of this government. Deepest thanks.
The heroic Sonia Poulton in Mail online article:
quotes Conservative MP and social security spokesman Quentin Davis in 1999, when Tories and LibDems vehemently opposed cuts Labour proposed:
"I am proud that we stand today on our previous record, which is that the disabled, far from being a soft target and an easy touch for the Government, are a group of vulnerable people who should be the last people to be disadvantaged when changes are made to the welfare and benefits system." Couldn't have put t better.
I've got more angry. I've cried. I'm not sure where we go from here. I want for every organisation and protest group to come together and take the government on over the likely cumulative effect of all these poisonous bills versus human rights. To bring together a focus group made up of representatives of these groups along with any willing lawyers. If they're all scattered, we could arrange online conference chats in a designated IRC chatroom. Need more spoons.
Do we know what the Lords are saying about this yet?RepliesI think you are right. What does occur to me is that, if we can get them on board, parents of disabled children would be useful. People like me. I am not disabled and I have spoons!! A lot of our time is spent with our kids in hospitals etc and just coping with having a life-limited or severely disabled child but...there's a lot of us out there. What we need to do, and I what I am trying to do in my own small part of the East Midlands, is to get through to other parents of disabled children that this affects them too. The current stuff and the fact that, for most of us, our children will survive into adulthood and become the severely disabled people of the future - and kids grow up fast. It's not far away!!
Delete- Findlow2 February 2012 at 11:41
I'm not a mum myself but I understand mumsnet is very vociferous..not sure if it's entirely composed of Sam Cameron yummy mummy types, but if not, that could be another info sharing source. Also, I kid you not, but the Womens'Institute has long ago tried to shed its Jam and Jerusalem image and has engaged in real campaigns.
Lastly, consider contacting broadcaster Jenni Murray from Woman's Hour. I've been asked to write a blog for Mumsnet, but I've been so POORLY. Note to self however - must do it by next week !!
Delete- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 20:20
Forget Jenni Murray, but who knows, I tried to encourage her to do a programme about how minimum waged single older women were suffering as their wages didn't cover basic living costs (in the cheapest place to live in the country!), that it was so bad that friends of mine, decent honest hard working people, had seriously talked about going into prostitution they were so desperate.
I got a letter back, but honestly, they're just not interested. I like Radio 4 for some things, but on the whole, Woman's Hour is a middle class baby.
Channel 4's unreported world might be a good one; at least they might present the actual circumstances, like they did when the U.S. pushed through their welfare reform that meant people went to work by day, and lived in tents or just on the street by night. Forget also the BBC; I am disgusted with them, and after all, Chris Patten is a Tory!
It might be good to gather evidence and experiences over the next however long, not only for a peer reviewed journal/report, but also there would be many small independent production companies willing to self fund a documentary, which could then be sold on to a terrestrial TV company. Many people who have trained and are part of these production companies, and of the right mindset, might be very interested in that as a vehicle for their careers. Make a note of any such companies and write to them. If I had been well, I would have done one myself as I have most of the equipment, but negative spoons for years now.
A word of warning however, I could kick myself for not remembering his name now, but a famous documentary maker and film maker (Ken Loach??), made a documentary about the unions and how Thatcher was trying to break them, and EVEN TO THIS DAY, Thatcher's government and successive governments have BANNED it!!!!!! ON ANY, AND ALL NETWORKS. When you appreciate this, and consider how much further this government has taken ANY of Thatcher's reforms, in one day abolishing numerous laws, some of which they made when they were still in power during the 90s (see end of WRB), you will understand that any type of documentary about the negative affects of WR will not be allowed, this is why we have all of the steriotyping on the BBC currently.
That said, an independent filmaker could just put it on youtube and it would still help them get work, and also publisize the issue, so it may well be worth the work sourcing such people.
I think Mumsnet is a good idea, though there was some negative stuff on there about the cap, but it's a free country and if people don't debate, then we've really had it as a country, and it is the only way that people get to understand about the lies.
Hope you are not so poorly soon Sue.
Clarebelz - Anonymous3 February 2012 at 13:20
In terms of the BBC, who have been atrocious in the biased coverage of welfare issues, I do wonder if we could have some sort of protest where we withold a small % of our licence fee to register our dissent/anger. The thing is the BBC think that all interest groups think the BBC is biased against them and that they are are basically balenced.
But, on welfare they are clearly not balanced, just watch Emily Maitliss interviewing Sue...
re banned film, its Ken Loach, and it was a film made in the 1969 for Save The children, other films of his have been banned.. - Anonymous3 February 2012 at 13:24
No, it was 'Questions of Leadership', a documentary series on the response of the British trade union movement to the challenge posed by the policies of the Thatcher government, which also gave members an opportunity to call their own leaders to account.
from wikipedia
anyway, back on topic..
An eloquent and heartfelt summary of exactly how I am feeling. I am still too numb to fully grasp the enormity of what has happenned and so very angry that the regular man in the street has simply no understanding of what has exactly been done. Press reporting has been at best wholly negligent and at worst blatantly untrue and filled with right wing propaganda. I have lost my career , my independence , my husband , my sanity and now they want to take my self respect.I don't think I have any energy left to fight but fight I will , if I can't do that I might as well give up altogther. I don't know what we can do , I'm just praying someone does. Thank you for everything.
ReplyDelete- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 10:57
Was it on the news? I had to go bed after all that. I was amazed the amount of times they used the word Disabled it really was a bill that was largly against us and not so much against all those huge living on welfare families they keep going on about.
I wonder if any Lords will make up a stink over this? Why isnt Labour all over the news saying how bad they think this is? Might as well have voted with them. - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 11:00
I totally agree with all you've said, the way that Welfare Reform has been handled by the government is disgusting.
What do we honestly expect though, very few politicians have to live like we do, the majority are able bodied and have secure finances behind them to live their lives, they don't understand that by removing a relatively small amount of money from us can do untold damage and destroy lives, basically they don't care.
Sure there are some politicians who do support us and our aims but the majority don't, disability is a dirty word to them, I've been saying for a number of years that the first thing politicians will try and do is to REMOVE the term disability from our vocabulary, once they remove the word, disability will not exist, functionability is the new word, what we can do?
Society doesn't want to see disabled people, it makes them feel uneasy, it makes them all too aware of what can happen to them?
All those people who comment on "The Daily Mail" about malingerer's and the workshy, all of them are frightened, as the general pot gets smaller those able to defend themselves will do all they can to secure a bigger share for themselves, those unable to defend themselves will fall by the wayside, society is going backwards not forwards, disability rights, justice, empathy, caring, all these things are being lost in our modern day society, those at the bottom of the pile namely the sick, the poor, the disabled,the unemployed, all these groups as far as the likes of Cameron, Clegg, Miliband are like detritus, rid society of it and society will be a better place?
I remember how calously Cameron exploited the disability and death of his darling child Ivan, I knew then that he was an uncaring B######, he lacks empathy, he lacks moral fortitude as do all the other political leaders but Cameron is the worst, exploiting a childs disability to gain sympathy, how low does that go?
Your also right about people dying, I have peope contacting my site all the time telling me they cannot go on any longer, there on the edge, they've lost all hope, everything has been removed from them, they've lost their homes, they cannot afford to feed themselves, they cannot afford to go to hospital appointments, a woman this morning contacted me to tell me she's had enough, Atos/DWP have destroyed her, she wants to end her life, life for some people has got so bad it's not worth the struggle anymore, for people who laugh at me when I say this is a Eugenics based policy, maybe now you will see the truth, you can only back people into a corner for so long, when people have nothing left, when you keep pushing, the only thing for people to do is to start pushing back.
As someone said the other day, maybe this is our POLL TAX time, that destroyed Thatcher, maybe we need to start thinking in the way the people who campaigned against the poll tax did, the politicians will only do something when it hurts them and their position.
Again Sue, I thank you and all your associates for the Sparticus report, all my blog members support what you've done 100%.
Hope your feeling better.
Paul Smith (Atos Victims Group) Poor houses, out of sight out of mind, ring fenced, destitute, evil, possessed. should not have been born. Natures rejects-
Should I just kill myself now and save you the tax payers a bit of money.Is that what they want of me.
Are we not humans Do we belong on another planet I do not recognise this one any more.- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 11:07
When they argue over time limiting ESA to a year as to the same as JSA if you have a working partner they foget the fact that anyone on JSA has a chance everyday of finding a new job. Whilst if you are too ill to work you have no options whatsoever.
And as for including child benefit in the cap how long before kids are "living with grandma" who is working so also able to claim tax credits and child benefit for them whilst if they lived at home they bring in no income to feed and clothe them.Replies- sarcboy2 February 2012 at 11:56
So if you are on benefits you dont get child benefit so your kids suffer but anyone who is lucky enough to have a job gets it even if you are on say a 100 grand a year and dont need it .ALL in it together....where next..see my reply below
Delete - Lord Fraud2 February 2012 at 12:12
You have to remember that most illness and disability is solely in the mind. One year is enough for you to recover and get back to work. You are an economic unit not a human being - and don't you forget it!!
Delete - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 17:07
JSA is actually time limited to 6 months before being means tested. Everyone on JSA doesn't have a chance of finding a new job - there are far fewer vacancies than there people on JSA never mind mind those who are unemployed but not registered (for various reasons). Many on JSA have health problems too and that's before the ill conceived WCA declares many of those currently on IB/ESA fit to work. For example I'm on JSA and get DLA. Guess how employable I am.
However congrats to the government, they have managed to divide and conquer once more. The poor fighting/blaming the other poor. I don't know you and I'm willing to believe that you are much iller or more disabled than I am. JSA is worse than ESA on all levels - conditionality, time limits, £s per week, workfare. I hope you never get the cahnce to find out first hand. - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 20:01
lord fraud is the right way to describe that dolt, he should write that down more often cameron is a fraudulent no feelings no idea, ignorant ill informed dolt
Delete - Anonymous3 February 2012 at 00:20
If I had a pound for every-time I've heard
If I get pregnant I will get........
I would be in receipt of child benefit
Lets hope this will put an end people having kids they can't afford.
On the comment above, already looking for ways to remain on the SCAB..
it people like you that makes others so angry. How did you pay for your computer....Popped out a rug rat and what number child was it for the flat wide screen to watch JK... got to go and vomit now,, got the image of a shit filled nappy that hasn't be changed for days.... sterotype SCABS - Anonymous3 February 2012 at 13:27
Can Sue delete this obscenity, he/or she can **** off back to the Daily Mail, free speech is important but what does that load of bile do to contribute to the debate?
- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 11:08
- God you are melodramatic. Welcome to the real world. Austerity sucks, Labour broke us, and the country has to live within its means. RL sucks, and there are, unfortunately, no respawn points.
The democratically elected chamber has spoken.
Good luck to you all, I wish you well.Replies- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 11:15
Oh well im glad Dave has found someone that is so happy that when they have an accident or become ill after a year they will have no income whatsoever. Im sure all those beans and toast will go down well knowing that its just you sucking up austerity.
Delete - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 11:48
"The democratically elected chamber has spoken."
And If you believe that you'll believe anything...but wait, you already have, haven't you..... - Findlow2 February 2012 at 11:49
Much as it annoys me to have to respond to your drivel, I should just point out that "austerity"doesn't seem to "suck" much amongst the tax avoiders and tax evaders who are doing very well for themselves while disabled people face penury.
Delete - sorry for 03 082 February 2012 at 12:01
anon at 03 o8.well when you get ill and need help you better hope there is an nhs left you idiot.NON so myopic as those who refuse to look.
TROLL on then eh!!!! @ Anonymous 03:08am
Your pathetic argument has been refuted every time it has been repeated. There are plenty of places to save money without killing people, as this bill will do. You are the one who has no understanding of real life.
- oldtrekkie Ann Woods2 February 2012 at 11:12
I agree with everything above and the fight will go on. Being co-ordinated is definately the key. My interest is people with learning disabilities, however I consider we are all part of the same family and we are all in the same fight. We are Spartacus, we are pissed off and we are going to be a pain in the arse till someone listens. this is now my mantra.
ReplyDeleteRepliesThat's my main interest too as my son is SLD/ASD. Yes, he'll be able to physically work....but not sure what as! He has a mental/emotional age of a small child. But we need to get co-ordinated.... physically disabled adults, learning disabled adults, parents of disabled children...we all need to find some way of getting together.
- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 11:13
David Cameron wont give up trust me on this. The only time the government will be vulnerable is if a sick or disabled person killed either themselves or others and left a note as to why it happened as the press would be able to go over it with a fine tooth comb and i dare say pass judgement
The main aim thou would be to get maximum news coverage
Another would be that a sick or disabled person took out a private persecution against the government on a human rights infringement
Both of the above thou are not likely to happen so the government can and will do as they please up until then
Of course if something above did happen then they would obversely have to pause with the welfare reforms but it still would only be temporary so in overall reality the government would still win the day and like in the middle east david cameron would press on to the bitter endReplies- Findlow2 February 2012 at 12:00
Fourbanks - you are right on the question of maximum news coverage.
Look, every one of us feels despairing and pissed-off right now, but we have to believe that awful things CAN change...Ghandi chucked the British Empire out of India after all...
A little while after the '97 election win for Labour a former Conservative Minister admitted that there was a paper/study going around Conservative Central Office looking at the possibility of Privatising the NHS. I for one, knew it wouldn't be far off their agenda then, if they ever did get back in.
ReplyDeleteReplies- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 12:19
anyone seen the couple of ads for taking out insurance to cover illness whilst at work/
that magician bloke pulling a tablecloth of a table without disturbing the dishes ....?
it's for UNUM - the american private company who also have a say in the 'fitness for work' interviews here
website: http://unum.com/
privatisation of health/ welfare / education on its way already I've been noticing their TV adverts recently. parasites the lot of them
- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 11:20
After the government yesterday railroaded their welfare "reforms" (what a mis-use of a word) through the House of Lords, it is evident that whatever the statistics, the government is intent on ignoring them, & whatever the evidence or arguments, ignoring people who are sick or who have disabilities, ignoring disability charities, ignoring disability support groups, ignoring human rights groups, consumer groups, ignoring the church (and the teachings of Jesus and God that are sacred to many), and now they have ignored the House of Lords. The government is ignoring fact, ignoring human rights, and ignoring morality. Many people with disabilities are in utter despair. We evidently have a harsh coalition dictatorship, that does not think in terms of using facts or researched information to inform decisions to make them good ones but in using misinformation to justify themselves. The government has upped it's game over all our heads now.
This government has no noble feeling or compassion at all. If it were anyone else we would call them arrogant, ignorant, uneducated, uncaring, grossly biased, and foolhardy, but sadly this is our government. I wonder what does move them? Shares falling? Losses not profits?Replies- Anonymous3 February 2012 at 00:48
I will put simply!!
The county goes in to recession.
The same amount of money is in the country,
only less number people have the money, this makes the few richer than before, so they hold all the power
and send there kiddies to a school called eton, they grow up and take over and so on.......
The country did not even vote for them.(no one questioned this at the time) .. MONEY IS POWER ..
We all do what is going on now, called dead heading pulling out the weeds, spring clean the spongers.. in another country! think back only to 90s this country went to war. It was said ethnic cleansing was a step to far in economic hard times... DON'T FORGET HOW EASY WE ARE just to get anything.....
Don't forget Dorries et al. 's shenanigans around abortion counselling.
It's absurd someone can introduce an amendment, get HUGELY voted down in the commons, then introduce exactly the same measures by another means.
If the house of commons is anything its supposed to reflect the will of the people.
It is utterly and entirely failing to do that currently.
http://www.abortionrights.org.uk/content/view/450/1/RepliesHere's something else I posted a while ago on the Graniaud comment threads, which sort of sums up my feelings......
Jesus. I thought labour was bad, bureacratic, annoying, actually pretty illiberal.
This government has done more to alienate me in 18 short months or so than Labour managed in 10 years.
A year of service to recognise the importance of faith in volunteering (I'm an atheist)
Spending a fortune on royal jubilees/weddings/yachts (I firmly believe if anything we should scale back the royals and their money)
Promoting Faith Schools on the taxpayer as a good thing (when my kids can't use them even though my taxes go there).
The absurd and untrue arguments deployed in the No to AV vote.
Completely reorganising the NHS when they promised not too
It's fair to say I was at least ambivalent towards the Tories before they were in power. Now I absolutely despise them, and realise they live in a completely different world, with a completely different set of values to me.
- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 11:31
David Cameron managed to smuggle a misleading two-liner under the wire, about sickness benefit claimants, in his conference speech to the Conservative Party faithful on October 5th 2011. This set the trend / prepared the ground for a campaign of further deliberate misinformation.
Quote: "We've got to get some sense back into our labour market and get British people back into work. For years you've been conned by
governments. To keep the unemployment figures down, they've parked as many people as possible on the sick. Two and a half million, to be exact. Not officially unemployed, but claiming welfare, no questions asked. Now we're asking those questions. It turns out that of the 1.3 million people who have put in a claim for the new sickness benefit in recent years. One million are either able to work, or stopped their claim before their medical assessment had
been completed."
The cabinet office refused to say (in response to an FoI) where David Cameron got these figures, and said that it was a matter for the conservative party.
If you try to contact the conservatives via their website, you have to fill in an array of personal details, so they have efectively blocked contact / discussion / protest.Replies- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 13:19
Well you're daft to privately FOI then use the WDTK site
http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/ The government well aided by the media has managed to sell the idea that "the disabled" are a large number of people with a bit of a twinge of backache, or feeling a bit down. It is of course true that some people were nudged sideways on to IB out of political expediency, but that was a long time ago and has zero to do with disability anyway. I can't decide whether our illustrious betters are thick or corrupt - but I do know they are not invulnerable. I doubt Thatcher's mind is clear enough to feel the irony, but they will not all escape unscathed. Sufficient money is a cushion they want to deny the rest of us, but doesn't solve everything.
Delete- Anonymous3 February 2012 at 01:10
I can't see what anyone has to worry about, the genuine sick/disabled will be looked after. The last thing they want to be is a burden on those around them and do there part in there own way. However a council estate near to where I live all on the sick. My god they can run and fight when the police come to bust them for drugs. I worked for brighthouse delivering white goods, one guy kindly got out of his wheelchair which he had been in for years and years and carried a TV which I could only dream of being able to afford.
Delete - Anonymous3 February 2012 at 13:30
Ah, the 'ubiquitous' flat screen TV, which seems to appear in all diatribes against claimants,
Having read all the comments, I think that we can all get together to *do* something. But I'm not sure how...not being that good at computers etc! Via Twitter or something? Could Sue, as a Central Point, get a list of our email addresses so we can keep in touch with each other and plan?
ReplyDeleteReplies- Anonymous3 February 2012 at 01:13
Why not put that energy into doing your CV. As you have time on your hands do a course in computer studies.
I think you answered for everyone why the changes are plainly needed...
- sarcboy2 February 2012 at 11:46
OK so NOW WE ARE ANGRY.....so the next step is to REALLY fight these bastards.Once all these cuts start to bite there will be a backlash but people will need a place to focus that anger and i have said we should now become someting more thah we are.WE know now as i said earlier that they KNEW the outcome.It has all been planned a long time ago.IDS hid in the shadows planning and enlisting the likes of..well we know who...and always beware the quiet men in gray suits.So given that we now know thay had it all mapped out we must now fight on and we should become a proper voice and as i said yesterday we should become a political movement... a party...We have no choice but to fight on the inside .IT is the only way and we have nothing to lose now so nothing to fear.
COME ON lets do it.Lets organise a meeting and start the ball rolling...call it waht you will like social reform party or something similar..but DO IT NOW as we have no more time left...10 million remember...10 million votes and 10 million very pissed off people...Do it now and fight fight fight or give up and fade away and then there will be no one...thos govt only cares about themselves and labour and dimleds are no better and if we dont we lose.. I today ponder the disgraceful ruling in the Commons last evening whereby the Commons, Lets not forget all parties took part in these votes, declared the Welfare Reform Bill to be Privilege. A process which has been around since 1671 and until now only used for the budget.
Should we now anticipate that this House of Commons will now declare that the Health and Social Care Bill alongside the Legal Aid Bill be part of the process of Privilege.
I for one will not be surprised by this, Will you.
We must and will as a charity organisation representing the amputee and limb impaired communities and individuals of the United Kingdom continue to oppose the measures being placed in the pathway to our independence.
We must as a group of peers stand together in unity and solidarity, we must endeavor to educate our fellow citizens as to the plight of our fellow man.
The date 31st January 2012 will be marked on the historic calender as a black day for democracy in the United Kingdom. Let it also be marked down as the day the disabled population enabled its voice and power to be heard as one entity.
Gordon McFaddenReplies- sarcboy2 February 2012 at 12:11
I called yesterday BLACK WEDNESDAY and its the day democracy died in this country.These bastards knew all along about the use of Financial and Parliamentary privilege so the debate and therefore voting was always rigged and now they will use this agin and agin so we now do not have rights...your vote counts for NOTHING...we have been granted Priveiges which they can and will take away as they see fit.
SO it wasnt just us the sick and disabled that where crapped on yesterday but the wholoe democratic process but it seems only we can see it.SO enough .Gordon why not help start a new political party.You will have valuable experience to contribute and as i have said we have nothing to lose now....ONE meeting is the first step.. - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 21:15
Yes, the use of Financial Privilege explains Cameron's disgusting performance at PMQs yesterday when he bated Milliband and the Labour benches to support the ConDems in the lobby last night. Knowing that the bill would go through he showed himself to be the arrogant bully we've come to realise he is.
The use of Privilege also raises the question about how much of the debate over the last few weeks and months was genuine. Given the outcome one could be forgiven for thinking that it was just carefully stage managed to keep a lot of people quieter than they otherwise would have been.
Yes, of course they will now use this process to force through anything they want. The Parliament Act was Blair's tool of choice and now Cameron has found Privilege. What is it going to take for the general population to realise what is happening to this country?
An opposition party that really understands disability issues is needed now more than ever. Moreover we need representation by a party that respects the electorate and isn't just interested in gaining power for its own sake. - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 21:36
Actually, sorry to disagree, but before that, it was the con government as well...any one think that the only people that are 'all in it together' are the powers that be? And, as we all now know because of being better informed via technology, the 'powers that be' aren't necessarily elected.
I have been helped by M.P.s in the past though, and I know that some are genuine, but they are in the minority obviously, and even when they do vote with their conscience, like we have seen, democracy is subverted.
Clarebelz - Anonymous3 February 2012 at 12:36
Of course all administrations have forced through legislation to achieve an aim, all the while telling us it will be for our own good.
What we have now is a professional political elite with no real principles or concern for what's best for the country as a whole, just their own pet projects and in the case of the Cons, a particular hatred of certain sections of society. They view the country, economy and the voters as their playthings to do with as they see fit. With blinkered vision they pursue an agenda at all costs, completely ignorant and uncaring of the effects any legislation will have. If they screw things up it doesn't matter because it won't affect them and in the end they pick up a few well paid directorships to top up their pension and probably some kind of honour as well for services rendered (bet the "no reward for failure" won't apply to them.) All they know is that they are right and they will use any means possible to realise their "dream".
Forcing MPs ,who are supposed to represent their constituents, to vote in a particular way is undemocratic at least. Using privilege (even if it is a legal option) to prevent any further scrutiny of that vote and process is immoral but I suppose politics and morality don't sit easily together.
- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 11:57
Thanks Sue for all your inspiration. It has certainly not been wasted. There is now much higher consciousness about the issues. The challenge will be how to keep up momentum and keep pushing the effects of this nasty bill into public view.
We do have some political support. My MP (Labour) emailed in response to the Church Action on Poverty campaign:
"I am opposed to the thrust of this pernicious attack on vulnerable people. The government won't use "parliamentary privilege" to force these changes through;they will use their inbuilt majority of rabid right wing back benchers and toadying Liberal Democrats."
It's a little hedged, and not very hopeful, but I believe his heart is in the right place. Trouble is, I'm likely to be shunted onto the periphery of a Tory constituency with the proposed boundary changes. But of course the Tories had all this worked out a long time ago, and got their master plan out of the filing cabinet once they had a workable majority. It's not just lies, cheating and propaganda, it's a conspiracy against us all. - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 12:08
Politicians the thinking Crips burden. How shall we lighten the load? Should we vote for another or just say no? - hossylass2 February 2012 at 12:32
Sarcboy, may I use the phrase "The day democracy died" ?
If people wish to debate the issues you can visit Ouchtoo.org, a message board that debates sensibly the reforms, that has strong links to the Spartacus campaign, and allows for personl interaction via private messaging etc.
Regular newsletters keep posters up to date with the work of Sue, Kaliya and the team.
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Join us for campiagning, discussion, support and advice, and quite a few giggles.
P.S. Sue, as I said last night, the gloves may not be coming off just yet as we have our dignity, but they are certainly wearing a bit thin around the knuckles...Replies- sarcboy2 February 2012 at 15:51
Of course you can..feel free and i have to say it again. WE are not beaten...i dont know how many fights you have all had in your lives but if you think you are beaten then you are....SO get fighting. There are already people commenting on here such as the one above and gordon etc so LOOK if you want to be beaten then fine be bloody beaten but once again i have to say it we have NOTHING to lose now ,if we ever really did, so bloody well get back in the ring and fight FFS.....there are people who will join whatever we set up once they know that the reforms will affect them.There are people who will join once they realise democracy was hijacked and stolen yesterday by people who have been planning this for years when they were in opposition and it is not just about the WRB they will now use this trick everytime they dont get thier way as almost nothing that comes before parliament can be separated from a monetary concern so mark my words we aint heard the last of the finacial and parliamentary privilege bullshit.Once they know they can get away with it they will run with it.
i must say here that a couple of weeks ago i was listening to a certain Radio 2 midday show and a man came on who was on the Thatcher general election campaign trail the first time around and on the day they won he overheard her saying Now we can really put the working class in thier place.....now this man said this on air so we have no reason to believe its not true SO my point is to them we are all just the lowest on the heap and exist only to serve them so why the hell we epect any other kind of treatment from them is a mystery....Labour and the Dimleds are no better and they bloody knew this Financial Privilege bullshit was going to be used they bloody knew.....do you not think they would have used this themselves given the chance.Now it may well be that the Lords didnt know about this but i would suggest that the ones who were ex MPs did and i bet they are the ones who voted with the govt but that hardly matters when we realise that Democracy was hijacked by liars and cheats who presume we didnt notice and will do nothing so again i say to you all FIGHT BACK OR DIE its that bloody simple and to quote a friend of mines mantra Stand for something or die for nothing .The choice is yours but in reality you have no choice....what you all do about next is up to you BUT the gloves must come off if we want to win...So what are you gonna do???
- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 12:36
I think we all know what we're dealing with here, but I've just gone right ahead and said it in my blog, which you can find at http://wp.me/p262ZD-2Z
I'm so angry about this that I can't even find the words to express it properly! - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 12:37
You are an incredible person,(as are all of the campaigners on these issues) I think people who were feeling crushed will be inspired by your statement of intent. The whole welfare reform process has been characterised by deceit, ommission, misinformation smears, begun under Blair and now the odious Lord Fraud and Smith and Grayling. But,the events of the last few months have made the parliamentary system look even more the 'banana republic' it has been moving towards.
I agree with you, that over time, the public will see what a disgrace these reforms and how they came about and yes, the cruelty and injustice that informed them. You will have many allies: the new Unite Community Union Branches will focus on welfare issues as a priority, occupy and uk uncut will now join the fray, the churches are waking up to the injustices, and of course the tens of thousands of Spartaci..
NEVER GIVE UP! - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 12:45
HA HA HA HA HA !!! - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 12:54
oh and lets use all the new social media, this one is good, an independent news service
http://www.blottr.com/ At the moment I just don't know how to feel about everything, I just want to curl up in a corner and avoid everything, I am in a state of despair at what will happen to myself and hundreds of others like me. I think for myself and for others like me we need to start some sort of fight or campaign, I don't care if we can't win but I need something to focus on and to restore the fight in myself, to give myself a purpose and to stop the despair from taking over and sending me into a downward spiral!
ReplyDelete- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 13:11
First thing to do: Watchdog, the BBC1 consumer affairs programme is asking for contacts of people who have been declared fit for work by Atos when they're obviously not. I'm sure posters here can tell them real horror stories...
their Twitter page ...
https://twitter.com/#!/BBCWatchdog - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 13:16
To cheer you up - here is a link to the transcript of the debate in the welsh assembly on welfare reform yesterday:
It starts on page 54. That is how parliament should be.
Planeshift - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 13:35
Anonymous 4.27 - you say Unite Community Union Branches will focus on welfare issues.
I was a member of a union that was one of those that formed Unite. I was a loyal member for many years until I became permanently ill and then was told that as I was no longer in work, I couldn't stay in the union. They couldn't even be bothered to help me negotiate an exit package - after paying an enormous sum into the union over the years, I had to pay solicitors to help me. I won't ever trust a union again to give a toss about people once they're too sick or disabled to work. - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 13:49
Many posters have been arguing that anyone can become ill and disabled, this brilliant Rowson cartoon in the Guardian, feat one Margaret Thatchers, beautifully makes that point...
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cartoon/2012/feb/01/stripping-fred-goodwin-knighthood-cartoon - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 13:50
The government first created the media blitz against welfare and then played to a populist audience while ignoring any basis of common decency.
ReplyDelete A very sad day for democracy. For me saddened even more by the fact that the party to which I once proudly belonged and which I supported merely accepted the Tory line. And today Miliband the elder wants Labour to move to the right - can you believe that?! Let's hope they're all out of work after the next election - They'll pretty soon campaign for better benefits when they're on the receiving end!
ReplyDelete- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 14:14
Now that this sick joke of a "government" has decided that no-one is allowed to be disabled anymore, can we please get rid of Maria Miller MP?
I mean, what's the point of a minister for disabilities if there aren't any disabled people?
Surely she is now even more irrelevant than ever.Replies- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 20:24
If Maria Miller was minister "for" the disabled, can anyone say what she has actually done for us? In all this, the only mention I can recall of her is that she backed out of a long planned meeting with groups representing the disabled to discuss the reforms. From what I remember of an interview at the time, she certainly didn't seem to be "for" us at all. Another con by the administration. If you're told you have a Minister for the Disabled, you'd naturally assume someone intends to promote and protect your interests as a disabled person.
Delete - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 21:37
Maria Miller is a similar age to David Cameron born in 1964/66
She is a Advertising and marketing expert and has no experiences whatsoever of the sick and disabled
It would be a bit like me going in to the nuclear power service chief executive and ask to be one of the directors when i know nothing about the industry at all
He would turn round to me and say "what drugs are you taking " and then show me the door
- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 15:27
Goverments more people getting into the ESA Support Group = 1 extra person being allowed in.
ReplyDelete At the moment I still feel rather shellshocked and afraid..like the man in wales who was told he couldwork despite being registered blind/svi and having rheumatoid arthritis I have a svi and other impairments now it looks as if my security may well be ripped from under me as the welfare reform begins to bite.. we can no longer claim to be a civilised country as we wont be looking after the vulnerable not even disabled childen, adults and others who need their benefits just to exist
We must remain standing together because if we dont we will all likely fall.
Myrtlemaid- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 15:48
I had a nightmare dream last night; it was 2018 and the re-elected coalition government had just been assassinated by a disabled suicide bomber. The Disabled Liberation Front had recruited this terminally ill cancer patient to undertake this mission; as they were poverty stricken and had nothing to lose they were willing to sacrifice themselves for the cause. The DLF announced it was the start of the disabled Jihad (Struggle). The BBC Newsnight team were wondering how come all this had happened; what were the causes, then someone tweeted #remember the Welfare Reform Bill.
Perhaps it was my anger and feeling of hopelessness that inspired this disturbing dream after listening to the voting yesterday? But history does show that when some people have nothing left to lose then their reaction becomes extreme.
Perhaps I'll be dreaming about the 2012 Paralympics being boycotted tonight?Replies- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 16:39
Ah the olympics..that great opportunity for protest and civil disobedience.Blocked roads etc etc.....
Delete - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 20:10
Don't think you'll have much luck with that. Ms. May has already said that there will be no chance of any protest camps appearing at the Olympic venues. Can't have us scum spoiling the views of the new stadium on the news can we? Mustn't let the rest of the world know how they treat us.
My partner said to me last night and she used these exact words, "it seems like they want to eradicate all disabled and sick people" that was some statement from her i assure you and you know what she is right. The fight should go on more so now than ever before we can and shall have our day.
"we shall overcome"RepliesWell you know those conspiracy theorists......eugenics...the new nazis and all that kind of stuff now you have to wonder if they do indeed have a point.Even nutters like Mr Icke may be right i mean just cos you aint seen a ufo land in your garden doesnt mean its not possible...ok bit extreme i know but you get my point.
Maybe the Torys are eugenicists and really do want the sick and disabled to vanish from all statistics which they surely will when the time limited esa runs out and the time limited jsa is used up too as to be a statistic you have to be on the list...very clever eh...no record you no exist.- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 17:39
The government over time will destroy all sick and disabled people wherever possible that was always the conservatives driving force that and slavery they never ever did stand for anything else so to this day am still surprised by their following
They are worse then the BNP party because they talk openly about immigrants and their dislike of them whereas the conservatives don't talk openly about their hatred for the sick and disabled hence they are seen as electable but the truth is they both have hatred as their core value and always have had so therefore they should never have been elected or electable in the first place
It would seam that the voting public learned nothing from the second world way and the likes of Hitler are still very much alive and always have been throughout time and always will be
Hitler was not a one man band he was one of many across the world that believe in total control and death to all those that are inferior and hardship to those at a working level
- Sunny Clouds2 February 2012 at 16:57
"every person wandering abroad and endeavouring by the exposure of wounds or deformities to obtain or gather alms... shall be deemed a rogue and vagabond ... and it shall be lawful for any justice of the peace to commit such offender to the House of correction there to be kept to hard labor for any time not exceeding three calendar months." Vagrancy Act 1824
So I hope no one here is hoping to beg for their living when they lose their benefits in case as a disabled person they appear to be trying to get money on account of their deformities.
This is not the first government to try to hide disabled people.Replies- Findlow2 February 2012 at 17:39
That's right. The Soviet Union did in the late 1950's. My father, a doctor, did some translating for parties of British medics visiting Soviet hospitals and doctors. When someone expressed an interest in finding out about the systems used to help people with learning disabilities, he was told "we have no people with learning disabilities in the Soviet Union".
Delete - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 17:49
In around as little as ten years you will find that the sick and disabled will have vanished from the tv and media you may not even ever see a glimpse of such people you mark my word
Bit by bit there quality of life will be eroded as mine has become so you will all end up like me a total recluse and afraid to go out
I never in my wildest dreams never thought it would happen but it has and it's not nice living in a Paul Getty recluse no friends type way of life I doubt it. Thanks to the internet, largely, we are not so easily disappeared. I think that is what the Government hopes for, but they are behind the times. Sure, the stupid and the vicious like a scapegoat (and governments, and this one has plenty of thugs) but I think attitudes to disability are a lot more positive than they used to be. The general populace doesn't have much of a clue, but that can change.
- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 17:49
Yeah its probably no coincidence that they have been banging on about immigration today.....so you see they will use that financial privelige bollocks again and again.
It really is it seems history repeating...first they came for the disabled and sick...then they came for the immigrants...then they came for......what a nasty buch of bastards they really are.... - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 18:02
Labour would have been as happy to see these changes go through as the Conservatives and the Lib Dems. The idea that Tony Blair would have been significantly more moderate is a joke. These policies were written by corporations with the full collusion of the entire political class.
ReplyDeleteReplies- sarcboy2 February 2012 at 18:51
yep it was but the thing is now how to continue the fight.....i have already given one idea and i think its the way to go
Delete - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 19:12
The whole discussion seemed rather political, Labour Vs Cons/Lib dems and voting seemed to go that way, too bad these people didn't think of the disabled first when voting.
Besides a few passionate Labour speakers(Credit to them) none of them seemed to care about the disabled.
- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 18:41
There are many countries operating a no sick and disabled policy and you will find that in many countries you'll never see them outside of Europe and even in some European countries they are thin on the ground
ReplyDelete - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 18:53
David Cameron had a son who died as his care was not as good as it should have been and yet he voted to cut his own dead sons money
Now that is a very very serious error on David Camerons part as you could read that in that his own son had played a part in the country's downfall by being disabled and now i David Cameron am cutting the night time care for disabled children of a certain disability
I may have this wrong by my interpretation and am sure sue or someone may correct me so please doReplies- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 20:01
You wouldn't have thought it at the time but since we now know his attitude towards the poor, the sick and the vulnerable, Cameron used his son's illness and death.
Most people would naturally feel sorry for his loss, so he managed to generate sympathy and empathy. I think he was reported at the time as saying that he understands how difficult it is for people to manage or cope with a sick child in a similar situation. Cameron is a millionaire, so he didn't and doesn't understand at all. There was no limit to what he could have done for his son in regards to care and treatment. He was never at the mercy of the limitations and restrictions of the system.
Elsewhere here, someone has suggested that he claimed DLA for his son. If that is correct, given that he has now forced through changes that will limit DLA for those very same people, on the basis that he believes the system needs reforming and the reforms are right, maybe he should at least repay the difference between what he claimed and what he is imposing on the people now. - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 21:22
As i said above David Cameron seams to blaming his son for the country's woes hence he wants to cut off the night time support for some disabilities for children
A normal person would wont to protect all disabled people not some at night time or any time the sick and disabled should never be used in a political battle that is very disturbing only Hitler and the likes ever did that
Something has gone very wrong with the thinking at the likes of Oxford university where this has all come from it is just as bad as the ideology that the terrorists learn from their uk uni studies - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 21:57
Yes, and when C got into government, and they were first debating reforms (when I watched parliament tv permanently until I had to give up my license and subscription that is), they were specifically asked about DLA, and the answer, and I cannot remember now who it was who spoke, either Cameron directly or IDS/treasurer, but they assured: 'we have NO plans to scrap DLA'. Yes, just like Grant Shapps stated live on tv and in the newspapers the same autumn, that housing benefit/LHA reforms would 'NOT' affect 'existing tenants'.
Lies we expect, but so very many, on so many different levels, to confuse people, is the mark of a very dangerous government.
- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 20:52
This Government is the epitome of corruption,if there is any justice they will regret the day they shamelessly railroaded these polices through Parliament.
ReplyDelete - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 22:25
Robin B'stard(cameron)steals from the poor to give to the rich...wheres Robin Hood when you need him.
ReplyDelete - Anonymous2 February 2012 at 23:43
I am from New Zealand and am watching this debate very closely. Our own Tory (National) Party led Government proposed similar welfare reforms during the last election campaign here in 2011. I have been particularly alarmed at the role of the tabloid press in all this. Isn't there a public inquiry (Levenson) into the activities of the tabloid media? I think the rot began when papers like The Sun (which used to be left wing and pretty progressive when it first began) were purchased by Rupert Murdoch's right wing News International back in the 1980s. I also now predict that the UK will experience even more civil unrest as a result of these policies. A repeat of the August 2011 riots might well be on the cards. I think that if another series of riots eventuates that this time we will see disabled people on television taking part in their wheelchairs, etc.
ReplyDeleteRepliesI've half a mind that the reason that the Tabloid press has been going so heavily in support of the government on this, is that they see it as a way to sidestep round Leveson. at some point whatever his lordship decides will have to go to parliament to decide, and by this callous betrayal of their readership to fit with Lunatic right wing marketist policy, then the papers have laid themselves down a big IOU which they may want to call in at the time.
Delete- sarcboy3 February 2012 at 12:17
Thats interesting .Have you anymore info on this please.New Zealand is a long way away but are Atos or unum involved there and heas there been any fight back.Also if it happens here it could happen there so any info you can glean from the UK might help you there.
- Anonymous2 February 2012 at 23:59
Have just seen the latest from Nick Clegg - apparently the Lords are out of touch and irrelevant, when it seems that they have been the only ones that have any idea of the reality of living with a disability.
I thought I couldn't get any angrier. I was wrong.
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/clegg-lords-irrelevant-public-200955468.html - Anonymous3 February 2012 at 10:43
I've just posted this to the 1st Feb comments instead of 2nd February so I am reposting. Sorry but have a splitting headache!
I get more angry as time goes on, today I sit here seething with anger and frustration. Surely we must have some grounds for challenging them, the government's welfare reforms will certainly contravene article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Article 25.
· (1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.
· (2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.
Even the benefits we have now are inadequate to meet the criteria above.
The future looks bleak, we have to carry on with the campaign , we cannot give in. Often it takes a long time to achieve social justice, it is likely to be a long fight. They have attacked the most vulnerable group in society.
Shame on government and all who support them.
I don't give a dam about the national debt or how they pay it back if they ever do. We did not cause it. Savings from destroying our lives are but a drop in the ocean of a debt of 1 trillion!
Who does the government owe this money to? big corporations? other nations?. Why is not this information available? I mean precisely word for word, figure for figure, exactly who the hell do we owe this money to. I bet many of these evil MPs have shares in the very corporations that we own money to.
Does anyone have an answers to these questions ; is it just me that is ignorant about such matters
We have to continue to fight this corrupt and evil government, a government devoid of empathy, humanity, compassion or indeed any ethical consideration to those in society who are disabled, sick and vulnerable.
Sue is right. We need to expose every infringement, every deprivation, every death, every injustice, every facet of suffering that will result from these heinous welfare reforms, and "hold them to account for every single person hurt by their policies. ..."
For this purpose perhaps we could set up a Con/Dem Wall of shame blog similar to the Spartacus Stories where we could post accounts for every single person hurt by their policies, accounts of our personal experiences and those of others we come across on the net and elsewhere. Just a suggestion not sure about the practicalities or if anyone else has suggested this
My son has been summoned to an ATOS assessment. His GP considers he should be in the support group, at the very least in the work related group. We will have to see what happens. A worrying time for me for him and for us all. Is it is not enough to struggle with sickness and disability day in day out without having to confront this nightmare of uncertainty. I fear for the future of my son, myself and for all of us who struggle with disability and chronic sickness which of courses amount to the same thing. If you are chronically ill and are not able to do what well people do, you are disabled are you not
They Can glibly present their tired rhetoric about benefits going to those who need them but we all know at the end of the day everyone will loose money and will have to struggle on much less in a time of escalating prices, of food, housing and energy. It's going to get colder this week, already it is reported that 200 people per day may die from cold. That number will increase as these evil reforms kick in.
Another good and inspiring piece of writing Sue.
To answer your question:
"Are we going to let this happen? Are we going to give up on democracy altogether? Are we so cynical, so fatigued by corruption that we're just going to sit back with a sigh and give up? "
NO MOST CERTAINLY NOT! - sarcboy3 February 2012 at 12:11
I think this is a great move.Earlier this week i posted the ifo on what was to be the last push ,if you like,on a website that is specific to my illness and asked them all to email thier Mps and i got not one single reply until two days later and that reply shocked me.
You would think that people who have a long term,in most cases a lifetime illness with no knowable cause or cure would actually want to fight but to be then told that more or less there is TOO much fraud in the system and the unfair assesments by atos cause people to commit this fraud is frankly unbelievable.This is from people who should know better.This was from one person who really should know the real figures on fruad in the system and not believe the lies but they didnt and THIS is what we are up against.Not only do the public believe the lies but people who are ill and ON sickness benefits beleieve this rubbish...
I told them about the Spartacus report and to come to this website and get the real figures and i hope they do.
As i said earlier we have to fight and seeing as they clearly do not have any qualms about using any method possible, including CLEARLY hoodwinking some people in the sick/disabled community, then nor should we.Firstly lets find out if wer CAN use the article 25 of udh and maybe Liberty or some other organisation can give us the info on that OR maybe someone in the legal proffesion who would help..There must be someone and somebody who knows someone.
How do we go about it and i see WE because it might mean us all putting in some funds here and we already have the mechanism for that.
When will the bill be signed off and how long do we have before that?Is it easier to challenge now or after royal assent? Can it be challenged through any EU mechanism?Our euro mps could maybe help with that...
Meanwhile lets get this Wall going and we need to contact people like shelter too to provide evidence of how this bloody bill is affecting people .Again we might need to pay someone to do this...more funds in the fighting fund.
Whatever Wall we put up needs to be seen so it should be extremley linked and pushed out in the frontal vision of everyone and anyone...media friendly people(if any )etc ect.
The fight continues and it has to get as intense as they have been.Nothing to lose and everything to gain ...And it need t be on all fronts with as many other affected people on board.This has to become more than what we are right now and sue and Kaliya cannot do this on thier own so you now know that its heads above the parapet time for all as keeping a low profile will not stop the machine that is the wrb passing its evil searchlight over us all so stare right back and say F*** You we are not having it... - Anonymous3 February 2012 at 12:56
Below is the website of the United Nations Disability section Enable
The following link is both mailing address and an e-mail address.
This may be of interest - perhaps there may be a point in individually contacting them with our concerns regarding the Welfare Reform Bill - in relation to Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Kevin - Anonymous3 February 2012 at 13:07
Powerful Rowson cartoon in the Guardian, i think liberal society is waking up to the brutal atttacks on welfare benefits and sick and disabled people, sadly according to polls(are they correct) working class people are behind the govt on this...Replies- Anonymous3 February 2012 at 13:23
Yes, Cameron, IDS and Osborne have managed to con the people with the daily "scrounger" rhetoric and the backing of the media. What the working class supporters don't yet realise is that if they find themselves redundant, sick or disabled in the future, there will be no sympathy or assistance for them. At that point they will start to complain about how unfair the system is.
Delete - sarcboy3 February 2012 at 16:14
Well yes the whole media campaign by the givt has worked as they have used the good old emotive techniqiues of snake oil salesmen and the most effective point i think gas been the 26 grand bullshit.Now anyone who isnt thinks everyone who is on ANY benefit gets this figure which is plainly so bloddy ridiculous but its believed.
The dialy scrounger rhetoric is a big part of that too backed up by programmes on tv such as saints and scroungers et al.
If you read my post above where i mention the illness specific website i posted on and how someone on there also believes the fraud rhetoric too and its clear that the govt played a clever game here.Not many people realise the influence of atos and unum in this or the fact that unum was banned from operating in the states until the ban was overturned,and you can read how if you search for it,but they will become aware of it or at least the ones who become ill in the coming months and years will...and then we come to the people on in work benefits such as working and child tax credits,housing beneifit, council tax benefit etc etc and of course there is the disgracfull attack on disabled childrens Ni contributions and cancer patients....we can only hope that the reaction to all this comes about very very rapidly and it adds fuel to our fire but in the meantime all of us should explore every avenue.Collate all the info needed for the Wall of Shame ,but expect themm to do the same with the fraud figures etc.. and contact and try to enlist as maany other organisations and individuals as we can and see what happens.
All changes in both public perception and legal changes have to have momentum and such a momentum has to reach a critical mass and thats what we have to do.Now this may take months and months but the key is unity of force.
All battles have to follow plans and all battle pland never succeed first contact with he enemy so we have to be adaptable.They certainly were and they had years to plan this but all counter attacks have no luxury of time so we have to be quick here.Maybe it will be that there is nothing we can do but we dont know this yet and when the homeless start sleeping on the steps of Houses of Parliament or failing that some other high profile buildings then we may get some momentum
REMEMBER this we are hosting one major event where the eyes of the world will beupon us and if we cant force some air time then well....
MEANWHILE anyone out there know any lawyers...
- sarcboy3 February 2012 at 16:55
OK folks i have just emailed the Un Human rights council to ask for thier help under article 25 so lets see what happens...might take a while but if we do get a rply and they will help then i dont have the expert knowledge so i will need to pass this on to someone who does so dont be shy here in coming forward...
ReplyDelete - Anonymous9 February 2012 at 13:47
We certainly WOULD sue you, Sue, however since that would take even more of our hard earned tax than you are already hoovering up, it's not really cost-effective. Tell you what; instead of producing this blog, why not turn your efforts and output to something more productive - maybe work for a living?
ReplyDelete - Anonymous9 February 2012 at 14:57
Here Sue - an interesting little video about what public opinion feels about benefit scroungers!
As the man says, "Thirty five thousand a year is a fucking good wage!" But some will always want more, eh Sue? - Anonymous22 February 2012 at 03:13
I have aspergers syndrome, adhd, mild learning deficit and all diagnosed by a psychiatrist, I have had many meltdowns over this subject and I cannot believe what this government is doing to us. Look after those who need looking after.


text:
In a new report that coincides with Congress' return after the Thanksgiving holiday, the White House says that if lawmakers don't halt the automatic increase in taxes for households earning less than $250,000, consumers might even curtail their shopping during the current holiday season.
"As we approach the holiday season, which accounts for close to one-fifth of industry sales, retailers can't afford the threat of tax increases on middle-class families," the report by President Barack Obama's National Economic Council and his Council of Economic Advisers says.
The report comes as official Washington dives back into negotiations on how to avoid tax hikes and deep spending cuts scheduled to begin taking effect Jan. 1.
White House and congressional leadership aides said Obama spoke separately with House Speaker John Boehner and Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid over the weekend. The aides would not reveal details of the conversations. Obama last met with the bipartisan congressional leadership to discuss the fiscal cliff on Nov. 16. No new meetings have been announced.
Meanwhile, the stock market edged lower in the morning as the outcome of the budget talks remained inconclusive.
Retailers such as Macy's, Target and Saks were down in early trading, amid fears that consumers might cut back this season. But the National Retail Federation reported earlier that 247 million shoppers visited stores and shopping websites during the long Thanksgiving weekend, up 9 percent from a year ago. They spent an average of $423, up 6 percent.
The White House report also says a sudden increase in taxes for middle-income taxpayers would reduce consumer spending in 2013 by nearly $200 billion, significantly slowing the economic recovery.
The figures echo estimates by private forecasters and by the Congressional Budget Office.
Congress and Obama have until the end of the year to avoid across the board tax increases that would do away with rates set during the administration of President George W. Bush and restore higher tax rates in place during President Bill Clinton's administration when the economy was robust and the federal government had a budget surplus.
Many middle income taxpayers also would be exposed to automatic tax increases under the Alternative Minimum Tax, which is designed to guarantee a certain level of tax payment by wealthier taxpayers.
According to the report, a married couple earning between $50,000 and $85,000 with two children would see a $2,200 increase in their taxes.
Obama wants the Bush-era tax rates to remain at their current level for households earning less than $250,000. He is calling on Congress to increase taxes for families earning more than that threshold.
Obama's plan is part of an overall deficit reduction package that would increase tax revenue by about $1.5 trillion and reduce spending by a similar amount over 10 years.
Congressional Republicans, led by Boehner, have said they are open to including discussions about additional revenue but have balked at any plan that raises tax rates on the wealthy. They argue that the higher rates would also hit some small businesses, stifling economic growth.
Instead, they have advocated changes in the tax code that would eliminate tax breaks and loopholes that primarily benefit the wealthy. Several key Republican lawmakers have also said they would not be bound by a no-tax-increase pledge that they have adhered to in the past.
House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said Monday the urgency of finding solutions intensifies as the end of the year approaches.
"If we don't do anything, on Jan. 1, 2013, there's a lot more people paying a lot more," the Virginia Republican said on MSNBC.
Cantor said the rapidly approaching deadline accounts for the more serious tone to the debate, but also reaffirmed the GOP's opposition to raising tax rates for the wealthy. "We've got to have the president step up and say, here's my position on how we reform these entitlements and start managing down the deficits," he said.
"What should be on the table is a recipe to fix the problem and not give away growth," Cantor said, when asked whether Republicans would agree to have increases in tax rates considered.
"We were re-elected to fix the problems, get the economy going again," he said. "Well, the president got re-elected and we know at the end of the year taxes are going to go up on everybody, rich and poor alike," if no action is taken to avert the hikes.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
By Knox Thames
CSCE Counsel
The United States Helsinki Commission held a hearing June 10, 2003, focusing on the plight of an estimated three million internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the Caucasus region and southeastern Anatolia. The region has become a temporary dwelling place to the single largest body of displaced persons in the region covered by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
Testifying at the hearing were Dr. Francis Deng, United Nations Secretary General's Representative on Internally Displaced Persons; Ms. Roberta Cohen, Co-Director of the Brookings-SAIS Project on Internal Displacement; Dr. Maureen Lynch, Director of Research for Refugees International; and Mr. Jonathan Sugden, Researcher in the Europe and Central Asia Division at Human Rights Watch.
Mr. Gabriel Trujillo, Mission Head for Doctors Without Borders of the Russian Federation was scheduled to testify, but encountered unexpected delays in Moscow. Mr. Nicolas de Torrente, Executive Director of Doctors Without Borders, U.S.A. graciously delivered Mr. Trujillo's opening statement.
Helsinki Commission Chairman Rep. Christopher H. Smith (R-NJ) opened the hearing, describing how protracted conflicts in Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia and the North Caucasus of the Russian Federation have diminished the prospects of displaced persons safely returning home. He noted that few individuals have been allowed to return to southeastern Turkey, despite the lifting of the last state of emergency in late 2002. "We must address this problem now as thousands and thousands of individuals are suffering," said Smith. "More must be done to find just, realistic and durable solutions."
Helsinki Commission Co-Chairman Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R-CO) stated in written remarks, "As an American Indian, I am particularly sensitive to the plight of men, women and children who have been uprooted from their homes. Whether due to conflict, natural disaster or other causes, the displaced cling to the hope they will one day be able to return home." Campbell added that with millions waiting to return, "it is the responsibility of individual participating States and the international community to meet the needs of these individuals while working to create the conditions necessary for their return in safety and dignity."
Ranking Member Rep. Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD) emphasized the need for the hearing to both ascertain the precise situation of IDPs in the region and to bring greater attention to their needs. He expressed hope that the hearing would provide information and ideas on how the State Department and the U.S. Congress could play a role in assisting the internally displaced.
Commissioner Rep. Joseph R. Pitts (R-PA) called the condition of IDPs in the region "urgent," as they suffer not only from a lack of food, medical aid, and education, but also from the inability to return home. "Some fear government action against them. Others fear rebel action. Others fear both," Pitts noted.
Dr. Deng is the author of the UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement which recognized international norms for the rights of the displaced and the corresponding duties of states in protecting those rights. He provided an overview of the situation in the region, characterizing IDPs as having the same needs as refugees, "but worse." Since IDPs do not leave their country, they remain more or less within the conflict zone, faced with the same threats that caused their flight. While their home governments bear primary responsibility for their safety and security, Deng noted in many cases IDPs become in effect political hostages. By not resettling the displaced and allowing free integration, the government uses them as bargaining chips in the political conflict. When the government fails to act, the displaced often fall into a "vacuum of responsibility," Deng observed, noting that the world cannot sit and watch and do nothing.
Ms. Cohen offered a series of recommendations for the OSCE on issues pertaining to IDPs. "The OSCE, more than most regional organizations, has tremendous potential for dealing with the problem of internal displacement in the European region," stated Cohen. "It also has the responsibility to do so."
Although recognizing that in recent years the OSCE has expanded its involvement with problems of internal displacement, Cohen noted that these steps have been largely ad hoc and too small. She recommended that the OSCE systematically integrate internal displacement into its activities, particularly within the Caucasus region and southeastern Anatolia, using the UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement as a framework.
Cohen specifically urged OSCE bodies to ensure the right of IDPs to vote. In addition, Cohen identified the OSCE/ODIHR migration unit as the potential focal point for activities within the organization and contended that, if these recommendations are carried out, it would positively impact the situation in the Caucasus and Turkey.
Russian Federation
Gabriel Trujillo's prepared statement outlined the results of a Doctors Without Borders' survey conducted in February 2003 that polled over 16,000 displaced Chechens housed in camps in neighboring Ingushetia. When questioned about returning to Chechnya, an overwhelming majority of respondents said they were too afraid for their safety to return. Notably, individuals interviewed did not consider the availability of humanitarian aid available in Ingushetia as a reason to stay.
The ongoing violence has kept UNHCR from certifying Chechnya as a safe return destination. International aid agencies, including Doctors Without Borders, are choosing to limit or suspend their operations out of concern for the safety of aid workers. Mr. de Torrente pointed to recent abductions, including Doctors Without Borders volunteer Arjan Erkel still missing from nearby Daghestan after ten months, as exemplifying the security situation in the region. "If present security conditions in Chechnya and the neighboring republics are not adequate for humanitarian workers to carry out assistance activities," asked de Torrente, "why would they be considered adequate for civilian Chechens to return and resume their normal lives?"
Despite this lack of security, the UN estimates that more than 38,000 IDPs from Ingushetia returned to Chechnya last year. Respondents to the survey said people are left with little choice. They report that officials have threatened to cut off assistance in Ingushetia and block future aid in Chechnya for those refusing to leave immediately. Also, Russian troops reportedly are stationed near IDP camps and authorities limit assistance from international agencies, all to pressure IDPs to return to Chechnya.
De Torrente concluded, "The results of the survey are a clear indication that the basic rights of displaced people to seek safe refuge, to be protected and assisted properly in a time of conflict, and only to return home voluntarily as guaranteed by international humanitarian law are not being respected."
Mr. Sugden described the situation in southeastern Turkey, where approximately 400,000 to one million people, mostly of Kurdish heritage, fled their villages during the conflict with the PKK. Relative peace returned to the region by 2001, yet the majority of Turkey's displaced have been unable to return home. Sugden noted that often local authorities will not permit villages to be re-inhabited, while in other cases the gendarmes or village guards block resettlement, often by threat or use of violence.
While the Government of Turkey has policies and programs aimed at returning the displaced to their homes, Sugden asserted, they have "consistently been underfunded and ill-conceived, falling far short of established international standards." Because of this, the international community has been reluctant to get involved. "Instead of helping villagers to get international assistance, the government, with its flawed plans, is actually standing in their path," he remarked. Sugden noted that the implementation of a fair and effective return program for the displaced populations in Turkey would also serve the country's goal of EU membership. He urged the Helsinki Commission to use its leverage in encouraging Turkey "as a matter of urgent priority" to convene a planning forum with the goal of creating a return program meeting international standards.
Azerbaijan and Georgia
Dr. Lynch estimated that in the South Caucasus there are currently some 250,000 displaced individuals from the Abkhazia and South Ossetia conflicts in Georgia and over 572,000 displaced from the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in Azerbaijan. Although political solutions would provide the best opportunity for these groups to return home, the frozen nature of the conflicts makes that a remote possibility. In addition, Lynch asserted that the Georgian and Azeri Governments have failed to provide alternative integration opportunities, thereby maintaining the displaced as "political pawns."
In Azerbaijan, only about ten percent of IDPs live in camps. The rest have settled in abandoned hotels, railway cars, or underground dugouts, all of which represent serious health hazards from air and water quality to the risk of structural collapse. The lucky few provided with government-funded housing find themselves located far from jobs and on unirrigated land unsuitable for farming. Nevertheless, Dr. Lynch maintains that Azerbaijan is full of potential; it is an oil-rich country with a highly literate population. "The answer to Azerbaijan's trouble is not found only in resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict," he asserted, "Azerbaijan must protect itself from corruption and use all of its resources to look to the future."
In Georgia, the living conditions for IDPs are just as harsh, but with the added difficulty of only sporadic food aid. There is also a severe lack of even basic healthcare accessible to IDPs and virtually no psychosocial assistance. What healthcare is available is often too expensive for the displaced, resulting in many IDPs dying from curable ailments.
Dr. Lynch declared that both Azerbaijan and Georgia must develop long-term solutions for their displaced populations, but they must also allow relief aid to arrive unhindered. In particular, Georgia must lift the import tax it imposed on humanitarian goods, which is currently blocking effective aid distribution, and both countries must work to create economic opportunities for IDPs. She further urged governments to be transparent in their plans, thereby encouraging continued participation of the international community.
The United States Helsinki Commission, an independent federal agency, by law monitors and encourages progress in implementing provisions of the Helsinki Accords. The Commission, created in 1976, is composed of nine Senators, nine Representatives and one official each from the Departments of State, Defense and Commerce.


text:
I've been wanting for some time to talk about this subject — discussing race with children — but have shied away out of fear that I will say something wrong or, at any rate, inadequate.
I am white, after all. The fact that it's four years into my blog that I make a simple declaration like that is proof enough. I am steeped in white privilege to the extent that I could go my whole life without intentionally addressing the subject of race and be just fine. (Not admirable, but with no apparent impact on my quality of life.) Those who are not white, in this white-dominant U.S. society, cannot avoid the topic of race. I also do not want to. I want to stand with them and bring my children up to be less prejudiced than I am.
Oh, I said it. I have prejudices. They make me shudder and blanch and think, "Please tell me that thought did not just go through my head." I look at our parents and see, We are a little better off, a little improved, from the generation before us, and the same could be said for them, and that gives me hope.
I have come to realize that the only way to help the next generation — Mikko and Alrik and their peers — grow up even less prejudiced is to talk about race, openly, freely, frequently. And I realized that I was doing a disservice not to bring up that pledge of mine here — to talk about talking about race, so that this topic, too, is out in the open.
Today, Martin Luther King, Jr., Day, is serving as a kick in the pants for me to get these thoughts on paper (as it were). So I'm going to just write, and not do as much research and linking (and maybe even pondering, and quailing) as I would like, so that it will get done, and out there. I did try searching through my Reader for associated articles, and I will list those at the end as further and perhaps more elevated reading. I would also love to hear your thoughts, particularly those of you who are people of color or are raising same, though I know it's not anyone else's job to teach white people how to be respectful.
I also want to say that this is coming from a place of process, and that I can speak only for this white parent parenting a couple particular white kids. I won't attempt to speak for any group, particularly not any group I don't belong to.
So: What I've learned, from my reading and from my observations of my four-year-old, is that children see race. As a child growing up (mostly in the '80s), I thought the point of being a non-racist was to be "color blind." Stephen Colbert likes to spoof this, by saying that he has no idea whether a particular guest is white or black, and knows only what his assistants have told him. It's as ludicrous a concept as he makes it sound. Of course, we see people's skin color, and their hair type, and their clothing style, and their manner of speaking, and whatever sets them apart from us (and there are a lot of other factors I could put in that list, but I'll stick with race and ethnicity for now). It's horribly naive for us to imagine that children (and even babies) don't see such things, and it leads to an ill-formed assumption that the best way to have them grow up in this idealized "color blind" way is to avoid at all costs mentioning the differences we ourselves see in an instant.
What's the alternative, then? It's to talk about race. It's to — take a deep breath — point out the differences.
Oh, man. That goes against every fiber of my PC upbringing. It was so hard for me to open my mouth for the first time and say to Mikko, about a boy in a book, "Do you see how his skin is brown? What color is your skin?" But you know what? He was relieved. He was receptive. He had noticed these differences, and he just wanted to know how to name them. By not talking about them, we were only letting him form his own assumptions about what the differences meant. And research has shown that the assumptions most kids make when race is not talked about is that anyone who's different from them is inferior.
You can surely remember this from your own childhood, about whatever topic. For me, since my dad was in the Army, anyone whose parent was in the Air Force or Marines or another branch was not as good (almost an enemy, which is so silly looking back). For Sam, whose dad worked for Ford, it was anyone who worked for or drove a Chevy (the traitors!). Kids categorize people quite easily, and they tend to see the world, excuse the expression, in terms of black and white. They don't understand how Army people could have a friendly rivalry with Navy folk but not really be against them. They only know: Here's how my family is, and you're different, and therefore that must be bad. The way to break through those barriers and reshape that way of looking at the world is: Talk about it. As often as you need to.
So I'm not an expert in this, far from it. I'm halting and tongue-tied and just trying my best — no, probably not even that, to be honest. But I'll keep trying, anyway.
Here are some ideas I've had to help introduce the subject of race in non-painful ways with a young child:
- Talk about friends who are of a different color (or schoolmates or relatives or neighbors or even strangers), when you are alone. Point out the differences in skin tone or other features. I try to be matter-of-fact about this, not elevating one way or the other, just stating that we're different, and here's what we call ourselves, and here's what they call themselves. It's a naming process, demystifying the differences and letting him know that I see them, too, and that he can talk with me about them.
- Talk to friends who are of a different color. I want to step lightly here, but I do think it's instructive (for me) to have discussions of race with people who are most affected by racism. I'm hoping to include Mikko in more of these discussions as he grows older. For now, if people are receptive to it, there are sometimes opportunities that come up. For instance, a child might ask in the person's hearing, Why does that man use a wheelchair? (This has happened to us.) And the man using the wheelchair might volunteer to answer the question for him. (I try not to discount this or assume that such discussions would be uncomfortable if all parties are willing.) I don't know how this looks with a four-year-old, but I'd like to find some way to open up discussions of race with friends who are people of color. (Um, I realize wheelchair usage has nothing to do with race; it's just a conversation that happened with us recently.)
- Talk about being white (if you or your children identify as such). Part of white privilege is not being forced to identify as a race. White kids don't typically describe white friends to their parents as, "Jane and I were playing at recess. She's white." But a reverse situation would be more likely true: "Jane and I were playing — she's Korean." Don't wait to discuss race just when people of color are in view; talk about being white as well, and what that means.
- Read books that feature a diverse selection of characters. (This could also include TV shows and movies if your family values allow for screen time.) One reason I love books that show people of color is that it will feel less exclusionary to children who look like the characters. But another reason is that it opens the door, quite painlessly, to yet another discussion for Mikko and me about race. Particularly since we tend to identify with the characters in stories we're reading, I appreciate the reinforcement of "We look different" with "But we are so much the same as well." (Here are a few options I've reviewed, but there are tons more out there, obviously: Jazz Baby, Mama, Do You Love Me?, On Mother's Lap, The Baby on the Way.)
- Have dolls, action figures, and other toys that reflect diversity. This might somewhat depend on what sorts of toys you have anyway, but since we have a lot of dolls, I've made it a goal of mine to make sure several of them are DOC (dolls of color). Ikea makes some fun soft ones, by the by, and you might also check at thrift stores for super-cheap offerings. Then you can play with them in ways that reinforce respect.
- Let topics come up naturally. If you remain open to these conversations, you'll catch moments that are perfect. We saw a family where the women wore hijab, which Mikko asked about. I was able to talk briefly about differences in religion and culture, just from an offhanded comment.
- Gear it to your child's age level. They won't take in everything, and that's all right. That's why we keep having the conversations, over and over. You can speak simply, answer their questions with just a few facts, and add in detail as they ask for more. If they know you're open to talking, they'll ask for more when they need it.
- Don't be alarmed at the things children say. Sometimes a kid will come off sounding like a racial supremacist when really it's just a misunderstanding of what she means. (As adults, we're more tuned to quiver at un-PC language.) Try not to overreact or overdramatize as you ask for clarification and talk out what your sweet little racist (kidding) means. They won't know they can come back to talk with you about the tough subjects if you shut them down, so try to stay open.
- Talk about differences in concrete ways. One thing that's been helpful for Mikko is having me point out that skin tone is a spectrum by comparing our skin tones as a family. He can see when we hold our arms together that I have very light and pinkish skin, whereas his father (also white) has yellower and tanner skin than I do, and that Mikko's is somewhere in the middle. It helps to reinforce (I hope) that skin color is just one aspect of who we are, and that someone you love can be a different color from you.
- That said, start the tough conversations about racism. Just because Sam has darker skin than I do (which, let's be honest, doesn't take much; I think Moby Dick had darker skin than I do) doesn't mean he's experienced the kind of prejudice or even fear of prejudice that people of color deal with on a daily basis in a place like the United States. Besides talking about differences, I need to (figure out how to) talk about how these differences have negatively affected some groups, and tell him (sob) about our country's painful history and, frankly, its painful present. To every person who's suggested racism is dead? Um, wake up. And see:
- Work on your own prejudices. If you are white, own your privilege. Don't say, "It's too bad I don't know any people of color." Make some friends. It's not up to people of color to come up to you; you enter their sphere and be respectful. If you're religious, seek out a place of worship with some diversity (perhaps even where you're in the minority! yes!). If your kids go to school or playgroups or other organized activities, look for ones that have a diverse makeup. Shop or even live in neighborhoods where you can look around and see people unlike you. Attend festivals and visit museums to show you value other cultures. It does mean something to your kids. I can count on one hand (two fingers) the number of non-white
friendsacquaintances my parents had growing up. It has an effect on our children when we say one thing ("Everybody's valuable; everybody's equal!") and do another (segregate ourselves). Beyond this, I have so much baggage in my own heart and mind I need to get rid of, and I'm trying — through some good reading, some good conversations, and some soul searching. I invite you (wherever you are in this journey) to join me in pursuing a more open and caring heart.
I want to do more as a parent. I want to be intentional about addressing matters of race with my (white) kids, so they can be better than I am. I pray so.
Some links to ponder:
- White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack — Peggy McIntosh
- Nurture Shock - Why White Parents Don't Talk About Race — Multiple Musings
- Talking to Kids About Race — About.com/Race Relations
- Talking To Your Kids About Race — BlogHer
- Inquisition Monday: Race — the bee in your bonnet
- Multiculturalism Carnival — Bicultural Mom (lots of reading here)
- And from that, these next two: I Am a Racist — Let's Take the Metro
- And the rejoinder: Why Amanda Metro Is Not A Racist — Hybrid Rasta Mama
- How Parents and Teachers Should Teach Children About Slavery — BlogHer
- Quick hit: Race affects everyone — Raising My Boychick
- A Tale of Two Slayers: on speaking race and white-as-default — Raising My Boychick, from which the following three links:
- Anti-racist parenting: It's for everyone — Love Isn't Enough
- White Noise: white adults raising white children to resist white supremacy — Love Isn't Enough
- See Baby Discriminate: Kids as young as 6 months judge others based on skin color. What's a parent to do? — Newsweek Magazine
- Quickie Soapbox: The Waah-Waah Brigade — Navelgazing
- And, finally, a really cool craft and early-childhood-education experience to try out with your kiddos today: Multicultural Paper Dolls — No Time for Flashcards — with some ideas for children's books to read at the end
How do you talk about race with your kids? Does having conversations like this scare you or inspire you? What did I say in this article that was oh-so-white?
Photo Credit: spekulator / stock.xchng


text: Good morning. I'm David Greene. Happy retirement, Ron Akana. After flying over the Pacific thousands of times, the 83-year-old made his final trip as a United Airlines flight attendant yesterday, going from Denver to Honolulu. He got his job in 1949 and met plenty of stars onboard. His most important meeting, though, in the early '60s, when a coworker left a note about a new flight attendant who became his wife. By that point, he must've been making a little more than $185 a month, which was his starting salary. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.