P
Portrait
Guest
Dearly beloved friends,
Cordial greetings and a very good day.
Most good and decent people living in Britain today are sickened and indignant at the governments assault on the welfare state, which has pivoted around the issue of benefit fraud, gross mischaracterisation and downright untruths. The coalition’s draconian and outrageously unfair cuts that have unrelentingly hammered down upon the sick and poor are nothing short of immoral, especially in a civilised country of the West which boasts of being the seventh richest world economy.
The usual justification for these iniquitous cuts is that the Social Security spend is no longer sustainable over the long term and that even national bankruptcy will result if drastic measures are not taken. This, dear friends, is simply a downright lie emanating from the Conservative propaganda machine, but it is, nonetheless, a lie which has duped many of my fellow British citizens. Incontrovertibly, the driving force behind the Social Security cuts is electioneering and courting the middle-class vote. Politicians know fully well which buttons to press and thus they focus their efforts on persuading swing voters, who are middle-earners, so they can win elections. Moreover, they must secure the vote of the elderly, generally unsympathetic to the plight of the poor and sick, since they now make up a large bulk of the voting public. Whatever happened to convictional politicians such as the late Anthony Wedgewood Benn?
What is so very disgraceful is that the politicians are covering up their decisions by scapegoating the sick and jobless. Alas, all political parties are guilty of this, including the Labour Party, which ought to know better. Indeed this is the motive behind the shameful rhetoric of ‘strivers and shirkers’, ‘alarm-clock Britain’ and the so called ‘squeezed middle’. Sadly, owing to our fallen nature, men like to find someone else to blame for their problems as this helps give them a feeling of moral superiority. However, when one looks at the facts behind on this extreme right-wing rhetoric, one soon discovers that it is all utter nonsense, intended to demonize some of the most vulnerable members of society. The fact is that the sick and jobless did not create the current economic crisis, yet it is they who are paying, by far, the highest price for it. Let us be under no illusions, it was the Bankers, CEO’s and the reckless credit card spending of *working *people that engendered the financial mess in which we now find ourselves. It is a national disgrace that the poor and sick are targeted in this fashion, given that we are supposed to be a country of decency and fair play. Why have we allowed this to happen and where is the condemnation from the Left, especially given that there is an important election in May 2015? Both Ed Milliband and Rachel Reeves are conspicuously silent regarding the wicked welfare cuts and the so called ‘reforms’.
Social Security expenditure is more than affordable in Britain, notwithstanding what some Conservative ideologues and ultra right-wing commentators may say to the contrary. These are all jolly adept at peddling misleading myths about Social Security and benefits. For example, dear friends, when politicians tell us that the ‘benefits bill is just too big’ they conveniently add together pensions and Social Security benefits and come up with the figure of £180 billion, which admittedly does sound like a great deal of money. However, £155 billion of all of those benefits - pensions and Social Security - are paid back to the government as taxes. In actual fact the net cost of Social Security benefits and pensions together is only £25 billion, that is 2.5% of our national income - a tiny figure in the grand scheme of things.
Notwithstanding all the sensational stories about unique cases of fraud which no man would defend, the official figures show that benefit abuse is a very minor issue. Benefit fraud is £1 billion, illegal tax fraud (not tax evasion) is £15 billion whilst tax evasion has been estimated at £70 billion. Actually, £17 billion of Social Security benefits go unclaimed because the whole system is so confusing and stigmatizing - indeed we could term this government fraud. Finally, the cuts to Social Security benefits amount to £22 billion and there are even more planned if the Conservatives win the 2015 General Election. How this shameful oppression of the poor and sick can possibly be defended in a civilised society is beyond me. The genuine maths evinces quite clearly that the Social Security expenditure is more than affordable and sustainable over the long term, contrary to popular belief.
Finally, dear friends, let remember that none of our present economic troubles were created by our modest spending fighting poverty. On the contrary, the economic crisis was engendered by a housing price bubble, far too much borrowing by greedy home owners and far too much lending by the banks. The fact is that the poor, the jobless and the sick are bearing the brunt of policy mistakes by the rich and powerful. This is a grave social injustice and must be condemned in the strongest terms by the Catholic faithful. It appears to me that nobody is defending the cause of the poor and sick in British society - all of the political elites are woefully failing the most vulnerable and those in greatest need. All of the parties are falling into the trap of scapegoating the very people who are not responsible for our present financial crisis.
A nations true greatness is always measured by its treatment of the poor and sick, since they are the vulnerable members of society and neither will a country ever attain lasting peace if its government imposes unfair and harsh measures against God’s poor and the sick in mind and body.
God bless and thankyou for your time.
Warmest good wishes,
Portrait:tiphat:
In Christos
Cordial greetings and a very good day.
Most good and decent people living in Britain today are sickened and indignant at the governments assault on the welfare state, which has pivoted around the issue of benefit fraud, gross mischaracterisation and downright untruths. The coalition’s draconian and outrageously unfair cuts that have unrelentingly hammered down upon the sick and poor are nothing short of immoral, especially in a civilised country of the West which boasts of being the seventh richest world economy.
The usual justification for these iniquitous cuts is that the Social Security spend is no longer sustainable over the long term and that even national bankruptcy will result if drastic measures are not taken. This, dear friends, is simply a downright lie emanating from the Conservative propaganda machine, but it is, nonetheless, a lie which has duped many of my fellow British citizens. Incontrovertibly, the driving force behind the Social Security cuts is electioneering and courting the middle-class vote. Politicians know fully well which buttons to press and thus they focus their efforts on persuading swing voters, who are middle-earners, so they can win elections. Moreover, they must secure the vote of the elderly, generally unsympathetic to the plight of the poor and sick, since they now make up a large bulk of the voting public. Whatever happened to convictional politicians such as the late Anthony Wedgewood Benn?
What is so very disgraceful is that the politicians are covering up their decisions by scapegoating the sick and jobless. Alas, all political parties are guilty of this, including the Labour Party, which ought to know better. Indeed this is the motive behind the shameful rhetoric of ‘strivers and shirkers’, ‘alarm-clock Britain’ and the so called ‘squeezed middle’. Sadly, owing to our fallen nature, men like to find someone else to blame for their problems as this helps give them a feeling of moral superiority. However, when one looks at the facts behind on this extreme right-wing rhetoric, one soon discovers that it is all utter nonsense, intended to demonize some of the most vulnerable members of society. The fact is that the sick and jobless did not create the current economic crisis, yet it is they who are paying, by far, the highest price for it. Let us be under no illusions, it was the Bankers, CEO’s and the reckless credit card spending of *working *people that engendered the financial mess in which we now find ourselves. It is a national disgrace that the poor and sick are targeted in this fashion, given that we are supposed to be a country of decency and fair play. Why have we allowed this to happen and where is the condemnation from the Left, especially given that there is an important election in May 2015? Both Ed Milliband and Rachel Reeves are conspicuously silent regarding the wicked welfare cuts and the so called ‘reforms’.
Social Security expenditure is more than affordable in Britain, notwithstanding what some Conservative ideologues and ultra right-wing commentators may say to the contrary. These are all jolly adept at peddling misleading myths about Social Security and benefits. For example, dear friends, when politicians tell us that the ‘benefits bill is just too big’ they conveniently add together pensions and Social Security benefits and come up with the figure of £180 billion, which admittedly does sound like a great deal of money. However, £155 billion of all of those benefits - pensions and Social Security - are paid back to the government as taxes. In actual fact the net cost of Social Security benefits and pensions together is only £25 billion, that is 2.5% of our national income - a tiny figure in the grand scheme of things.
Notwithstanding all the sensational stories about unique cases of fraud which no man would defend, the official figures show that benefit abuse is a very minor issue. Benefit fraud is £1 billion, illegal tax fraud (not tax evasion) is £15 billion whilst tax evasion has been estimated at £70 billion. Actually, £17 billion of Social Security benefits go unclaimed because the whole system is so confusing and stigmatizing - indeed we could term this government fraud. Finally, the cuts to Social Security benefits amount to £22 billion and there are even more planned if the Conservatives win the 2015 General Election. How this shameful oppression of the poor and sick can possibly be defended in a civilised society is beyond me. The genuine maths evinces quite clearly that the Social Security expenditure is more than affordable and sustainable over the long term, contrary to popular belief.
Finally, dear friends, let remember that none of our present economic troubles were created by our modest spending fighting poverty. On the contrary, the economic crisis was engendered by a housing price bubble, far too much borrowing by greedy home owners and far too much lending by the banks. The fact is that the poor, the jobless and the sick are bearing the brunt of policy mistakes by the rich and powerful. This is a grave social injustice and must be condemned in the strongest terms by the Catholic faithful. It appears to me that nobody is defending the cause of the poor and sick in British society - all of the political elites are woefully failing the most vulnerable and those in greatest need. All of the parties are falling into the trap of scapegoating the very people who are not responsible for our present financial crisis.
A nations true greatness is always measured by its treatment of the poor and sick, since they are the vulnerable members of society and neither will a country ever attain lasting peace if its government imposes unfair and harsh measures against God’s poor and the sick in mind and body.
God bless and thankyou for your time.
Warmest good wishes,
Portrait:tiphat:
In Christos
