Is Britain really broken?

[Mich the Tester]

Remember it will be other peoples kids peg feeding you in your alzhiemer dotage.

and they’ll be paid handsomely for doing so if I’m allowed to save enough for my old age.

[mudskipper]

To go back to the original post, I think the stuff like kids torturing other kids is thankfully an exception and probably no more common than it was years ago. The fact that everyone is so shocked when these stories surface means that we're not considering it as 'normal'.

The benefits system is a nightmare for those who have no other financial support. The staff are over worked and frequently under motivated and cheques are lost/delayed etc. benefits are stopped without explanation for not turning up to an appointment they forgot to tell you about (seriously) and claimants are left with absolutely nothing. Even harder for the homeless - with 'no fixed abode' it's almost impossible to get a bank account, so you're relying on cheques being sent to a mates house or whatever. You can't get accommodation because everywhere needs a deposit and you have no money. If you do have the deposit, it still takes time for the council (they deal with housing benefit, not the job centre) to get their act together and start paying rent for you.

If you're under 25 you're 'entitled' to a room in a shared house. However, there is a cap on what they pay and most landlords charge well over this capped limit unless you choose to live in a crack house, so typically your £50 a week you get to live on becomes £30 after you've topped up your rent. When a 'crisis' happens, you get a crisis loan. This is then paid back another tenner a week, leaving you with about £20 to live on. I'm sure there are those who know how to play the system, but it badly fails those who really need it. Talk to anyone whose had to claim benefits for any length of time and you'll get stories of missed payments, cock-ups left right and centre. Combine that with having absolutely no financial buffer, and its surprising there aren't more people picking through the bins.

BTW - will be doing the Reading half marathon for Crisis - homeless charity - if sore leg permits - I might well post a sponsorship link after the event once I know I've made it round!

[mudskipper]

Don't worry - there was a report out the other week that indicated that nuLieBore was working on ways to bring the idea back.

It was Dead Kennedy's that did 'Kill the poor'.

No more welfare tax to pay
Unsightly slums gone up in flashing light
Jobless millions whisked away
At last we have more room to play
All systems go to kill the poor tonight

I think it was satirical...

[TimberWolf]

To go back to the original post, I think the stuff like kids torturing other kids is thankfully an exception and probably no more common than it was years ago. The fact that everyone is so shocked when these stories surface means that we're not considering it as 'normal'.

The benefits system is a nightmare for those who have no other financial support. The staff are over worked and frequently under motivated and cheques are lost/delayed etc. benefits are stopped without explanation for not turning up to an appointment they forgot to tell you about (seriously) and claimants are left with absolutely nothing. Even harder for the homeless - with 'no fixed abode' it's almost impossible to get a bank account, so you're relying on cheques being sent to a mates house or whatever. You can't get accommodation because everywhere needs a deposit and you have no money. If you do have the deposit, it still takes time for the council (they deal with housing benefit, not the job centre) to get their act together and start paying rent for you.

If you're under 25 you're 'entitled' to a room in a shared house. However, there is a cap on what they pay and most landlords charge well over this capped limit unless you choose to live in a crack house, so typically your £50 a week you get to live on becomes £30 after you've topped up your rent. When a 'crisis' happens, you get a crisis loan. This is then paid back another tenner a week, leaving you with about £20 to live on. I'm sure there are those who know how to play the system, but it badly fails those who really need it. Talk to anyone whose had to claim benefits for any length of time and you'll get stories of missed payments, cock-ups left right and centre. Combine that with having absolutely no financial buffer, and its surprising there aren't more people picking through the bins.

BTW - will be doing the Reading half marathon for Crisis - homeless charity - if sore leg permits - I might well post a sponsorship link after the event once I know I've made it round!

Makes you wonder whether you aren't better off in prison than homeless, especially in winter.

[minestrone]

Went out for lunch there and a junkie was throwing up in the gutter outside the office. Nice.

If anyone thinks britain is not buggered I would say to them to attend a custody court in their local court building for an hour. The amount of law breaking chavs that flow through there in a short space of time is quite astounding. It's a little hobby when I am benched.

[EternalOptimist]

Is that an urban myth, or at least a rare occurrence? If those places really existed, I'd be there myself.

oh its true.
my daughter works for iceland (frozen foods), she often has to ask the 'Freegans' to hop out of the skip whilst she chucks dozens of chickens in.
If she took them home herself, she would get nicked.

One of the lads comes around at midnight with a rucksack, real uppercrust voice and a real eco warrior, but very nice.

Freegans

[TimberWolf]

oh its true.
my daughter works for iceland (frozen foods), she often has to ask the 'Freegans' to hop out of the skip whilst she chucks dozens of chickens in.
If she took them home herself, she would get nicked.

One of the lads comes around at midnight with a rucksack, real uppercrust voice and a real eco warrior, but very nice.

Freegans

Yeah, I recall seeing a TV programme about it some time back. I doubt it's as easy as casing the local supermarket in the dead of night.

Supermarkets adopt a variety of measures to stop people from making use of their waste - everything from pouring blue dye or bleach over the bin, to erecting razor wire fencing, securing padlocks and employing security men.

[norrahe]

Pret used to give away any sarnies etc... that were left at the end of the day to the homeless.

However elf and safety kicked up about it and they can no longer do so.

[Moscow Mule]

However elf and safety kicked up about it and they can no longer do so.

Not according to their promotional material in their Paddington Central store.

IIRC, they are allowed to give it away on the day as it's good for one day only. But, they give to shelters rather than individuals.