Prime Minister Abbott has described Andrew Forrest's proposed welfare reforms as 'bold' and - I think - 'ambitious'. I'm going with some different adjectives. How does 'bullshit' and 'draconian interfering nonsense' sound? Truth be told, I think Twiggy's motives are decent, but Twigs, if you're reading this, do you seriously think you, and the government, can tell welfare recipients how they are to disburse their income? Now, you earn your money through your own business, and fair play to you, but when my payroll slip is emailed to me, there is no rider stating 'Simone, you cannot buy cigarettes and alcohol, nor can you gamble'. I actually do not smoke, drink maybe two alcoholic units a month, and find poker machines soulless and abhorrent. I understand it is illegal for an employer to attempt to dictate to an employee how the said employee's income can be disbursed. If I did get such a notification, I would take the attitude of 'fuck you', and then send a picture of myself sitting at the pokies, a beer in one hand and a ciggie in the other as a form of protest against this INTERFERENCE IN MY OWN LIFE!!!! So why do you think the government should be interfering in the lives of welfare recipients? Believe it or not, many people on welfare don't actually enjoy being stigmatised as bludgers. Many people on welfare struggle, and if they have a few cents left after rent, groceries, and utilities to quench the thirst with a cold beer, then FFS let 'em! Yes, I know there are children being disadvantaged by their families addictions and neglect, and they must be helped, but I don't think penalising everybody and playing Nanny State is really the way to go about it.
And what's this other bullshit being proposed that families who receive Family Tax Benefit should be penalised if their child skips school? I send my kids to school each day in good faith that they will attend, before I head off to work (if it is a day I am rostered to work). Supposing my kids decide to wag, why should I suffer by worrying how I am going to pay a bill and buy food? It is difficult for my kids to wag because the little one is put on a bus that drives direct to his school, and my older one has to just walk up the hill to get to the high school - it's kind of difficult for him to cut classes. My kids are pretty good, and happy at school, so wagging is not likely. But it's not fair to make the parents of children who wag suffer, when that parent is probably running around like a mad headless chook of a morning getting lunches, and then running out the door to catch a bus to work and yelling back at the kids to have a good day at school, in the faith that the children will attend school. This is just a way of making people already struggling suffer more. And what about higher-income earners whose kids decide to play truant? Oh, that's right; they are the titled ones with money, so they therefore shouldn't suffer! I know that sounds a bit twisted, but seriously, it just reflects this proposal: twisted. TER-WISS-TED! If some family on an income that reads like a telephone number has a kid who skips the elite private school in which he/she is enrolled, will they receive a notice along the lines of 'Dear Mr and Mrs Snottykid-Buggerskids, We advise your child Pomeroy has had two unexplained absences this term, and therefore your proposed cruise around the Bahamas for two weeks must be forfeited.' See my point here? What a festering, gangrenous pile of shit these ideas are.
Before I sign off, I must say I try not to be judgemental about other parents' decisions, but I am having trouble remaining impartial to the parents who abandoned the Downs syndrome child born via Thai surrogate, although they did take the healthy twin child. Wow. Magnaminous of you. I know. I don't know these people. I don't know their situation. But I can't bring myself to have any sympathy for them. They suck, IMHO.
Oh well, time to hang out some washing. Also have to check some of my notes because I've been invited to be special guest at Book Week festivities in my local library. Tres excited, to be sure. Also, I have been approached by a representative of the U3A to lecture for a term about creative writing. I'm seriously excited about this; teaching writing is something I would love to try.
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