Topic: WHAT KIND OF SOCIETY ARE WE?

[Tohellwithweeds]

the kind of society we live is when you come from a differant country you get all the benefits available, housing, new car, that our British oap have paid for and most of them (if they are like my dad and been carefull with there money and own there house) have never drained the system as much as the influx of foreigners has. my dad is 81 has his own private pension and three little part time jobs that he HAS to have to help make ends meet. my mother who stayed at home to look after us kids is 71 and she has a small pension and has 7 jobs to help dad with the house hold bills they don't live beyond there means don't claim benefits and never have so yes it makes me sick when you see another foreign body on the streets wearing the latest clothes that you just know you have paid for society sucks and what is great about Britain any more

[Multiveg]

A library book I borrowed from the library and found incredibly boring was about the history of allotments. Many allotments were set up as a way of helping poor people live- kept them off the streets/out of the pub and helped them provide some food for their family....

[Garjan]

Perhaps you don't think I have a right to intervene in a thread about your society as I am from the Netherlands.
But I do want to object to statements regarding 'foreign bodies' wearing fashionable clothes society supposedly paid for.
How do you know this?

Born and raised in the Netherlands, my parents and me owning Dutch passports, I am one of the foreign bodies you can see in the streets wearing fashionable, expensive clothes.
I did pay for them myself, I earn my living and pay my taxes.

It is also statements like these that make me wonder what kind of society we are in.

[springbok]

Gargan, its a known fact that foreign people seeking asylum/or coming over here within the EU from poorer countries to this country are given a lump sum from tax payers money, and housing too.
As with the designer clothing, a certain group of people coming to this country are taking over our towns, esp in farming communities.  They are out for what they can get and come here to do so.

I know for a fact that they do this, as my neighbours do just that.  A family of 4 in one bedroom in a house.  Both parents work, and live the life of riley... BUT.. they claim all they can get from free dentistry, free medicines etc.  I was livid when they came to ask me to fill in tax credit forms for thier children back in their own country... HOW DARE THEY!!!!... They claim for benefits for children living in their own country!!!.. You think this is fair???    sorry but this subject gets my goat :D

[Old bird]

the kind of society we live is when you come from a differant country you get all the benefits available, housing, new car, that our British oap have paid for and most of them (if they are like my dad and been carefull with there money and own there house) have never drained the system as much as the influx of foreigners has. my dad is 81 has his own private pension and three little part time jobs that he HAS to have to help make ends meet. my mother who stayed at home to look after us kids is 71 and she has a small pension and has 7 jobs to help dad with the house hold bills they don't live beyond there means don't claim benefits and never have so yes it makes me sick when you see another foreign body on the streets wearing the latest clothes that you just know you have paid for society sucks and what is great about Britain any more

Tohellwithweeds

I cannot imagine that your parents need to work as many jobs as you say just to live!

Surely you could help them in providing  them with sufficient veg to help them out.  You say they don't spend beyond their means -  sounds to me as if they do.  The joint retirement pension plus their small pension should take care of the basics plus food, heat, light and power.  I cannot imagine that if you were able to  help them out a bit with veg etc from your lottie they couldn't slow down a bit!

I do and will continue to do so live very cheaply.  I eat mostly vegetables, I run a car, I pay a mortgage, insurances, heat and light and I still manage to have a bit of fun!  Just like hundreds of thousands of us.  When I do eventually retire, I will not be able to afford to run a car but everything else should be OK.  I am sure that there aren't many pensioners doing what your folk are doing just to survive.  There are many that do manage to survive - albeit not living grandly - on the basic state pension.

[Garjan]

Springbokgirly,

In my post I established the fact that I am a foreign looking body NOT living of society.
How valid is your point now?

All I wanted to say is that you cannot see how a person can afford his/her clothes from mere seeing his/her body.

[Old bird]

Gargan, its a known fact that foreign people seeking asylum/or coming over here within the EU from poorer countries to this country are given a lump sum from tax payers money, and housing too.

I think you are wrong on this one Sprinbokgirlie.  I think someone has been telling you porkies. 

[GrannieAnnie]

Just an aside, i hope all the woman on here know that they are changing the age of retirement for woman. Old Bird has just mentioned she can officially receive a pension in two years time. As I'm younger mine will be 65 and some younger ones won't be getting it until even later.

Some old people get very attached to their homes it's the consistent thing in a fast changing world in which they see all their friends and older family members die and leave them. It's not surprising they are resistant to moving you can't really blame them it's not just a house it's all the memories of children and maybe a spouse that's gone. Also the physical ordeal of moving is not easy when you're younger just think what it must be like when you're elderly. So they struggle on trying to cope with all the bills for a house too big for them but the alternative is just as scary.

It may be scary but still one of the facts of life: we should not try to live beyond our means or our energy level trying to keep up a MacMansion which is what we call it in the states. So many huge homes housing a teeny family or a single woman or one elderly person who then becomes severely dependent upon neighbors/family/church members to help them maintain their former way of life.

I believe there needs to be a new education about housing- either you move to something smaller OR get a boarder in to pay rent and help out. 

There is a group now that tries to pair up an elderly person with a younger able-bodied soul who needs housing. That sometimes works very well for both. I know a number of divorced folks  though who struggle to keep their big house working multiple jobs and reaching exhaustion routinely. Just doesn't seem sane to me and I'm perhaps lacking in compassion when they whine.

[Pesky Wabbit]

But ... didn't the wealthy county that we live in today get that way by robbing those countries of its Empire.

Don't we owe something to them ?

[Pesky Wabbit]

Do we not all live on the same planet? Why should I, we have more that others ?

Does the woman that has to walk miles to the nearest well for water have a right to a better living ?

[springbok]

Gargan, its a known fact that foreign people seeking asylum/or coming over here within the EU from poorer countries to this country are given a lump sum from tax payers money, and housing too.

I think you are wrong on this one Sprinbokgirlie.  I think someone has been telling you porkies. 

Not quite.  Its the truth!!
They get £250 and a roof over their heads! 

[Old bird]

Pesky Wabbit

Would it make you happier if WE had to walk miles to the nearest well for water to even out life's inbalances?

We have more than others due to hard work by our forefathers.  We are lucky in the country of (most of us) our birth.

It is an unfortunate fact that if we spread the worlds resources equally around the world, there would still be wars, there would still be hunger because of mans greed!

Religion also plays a part but I think that we are treading dangerous water here and shouldn't even go there.

We didn't rob other countries of their Empire we just got rich grabbing land and making the British Empire which as you are well aware does no longer exist.  The countries that we are talking about are European and we didn't take them over Pesky Wabbit!!

If we went the communist way for the whole world maybe it could all be shared but Would you like to live like the Chinese and Russian people had to for many many years?

I certainly wouldn't - and even though they were all meant to be equal - the leaders were all feathering their nests.

It is a sad fact of life Pesky Wabbit - life is not fair!  You just have to make the best of what you have!

[Baccy Man]

Re: asylum seekers there is a myth buster HERE which refutes most of the claims made by the media which people seem to believe.

[silly billy]

Q.WHAT KIND OF SOCIETY ARE WE?
A. Sadly one that spends way too much time reading the Daily Mail. As ever its chinese whispers so and so saying to so and so and before you know it some one takes it as gospel.


All these people complaining about foreigners and immigrants should never forget that in WW2 we turned away boats with Jews in and sent them back to Germany and no doubt there were people who complained about foreigners and immigrants stealing our so called wealth. Hasn't the Goverment just invested £25 billion pounds in Northern Rock with out the taxpayers say so?

[RosieMcPosie]

Perhaps you don't think I have a right to intervene in a thread about your society as I am from the Netherlands.
But I do want to object to statements regarding 'foreign bodies' wearing fashionable clothes society supposedly paid for.
How do you know this?

Born and raised in the Netherlands, my parents and me owning Dutch passports, I am one of the foreign bodies you can see in the streets wearing fashionable, expensive clothes.
I did pay for them myself, I earn my living and pay my taxes.

It is also statements like these that make me wonder what kind of society we are in.

well said Garjan, and thank you for your post.
i am english, my parents are british, born and raised here so i'm not bringing up this point becuase it applies to me.
but it makes me sick when i hear people talk in such a way about immigrants- don't believe all you ready, because many immigrants are here to work hard, and that's what many of them do.
what would you do in their situation? would you not want a better life for yourself?

[RosieMcPosie]

Gargan, its a known fact that foreign people seeking asylum/or coming over here within the EU from poorer countries to this country are given a lump sum from tax payers money, and housing too.

I think you are wrong on this one Sprinbokgirlie.  I think someone has been telling you porkies. 

Not quite.  Its the truth!!
They get £250 and a roof over their heads! 

not every single immigrant gets this.

[RosieMcPosie]

also, thank u baccyman for that post.
i really should learn to read the whole topic before posting, shouldn't i :P

[Barnowl]

There is a difference between an immigrant and an asylum seeker, so although Baccy Man's link is informative, it only covers a fraction of the story.

From a brief look the information on this site seems objective and based on Office of National Statistics reports.

http://www.workpermit.com/news/2007-12-12/uk/one-five-babies-migrant-born-ons-statistics.htm


With regard to why migrants cost Councils money, this article may help

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=411495&in_page_id=2

[Baccy Man]

Here is another myth buster which clearly describes the differences between migrants, illegal immigrants & asylum seekers & what they are entitled to.
http://www.pendle.gov.uk/site/scripts/download_info.php?fileID=2082

[Barnowl]

Very informative. Thanks Baccy Man.