Fluke

You seriously overestimate your countrymen. We were just about to cross the Canadian border, if that helps you wrap your head around it. London, Ontario was some ways north. We actually went through it for the laughs, after the interaction with the moron. 💛

About 15 years ago, I got to go on a road trip across the states. 6 weeks, driving from east coast to west coast.

On more than one occasion, when we were inevitably asked where we were from and dutifully replied "England.", we were met with utterly blank stares.

"Uhhhhhhhh, Engerland?" "You mean New England? Never met anyone from there before..."

"No, England. Old England. The original England, capital city, London. That England."

"London? That's just north of here... I don't get it."

I swear, the sheer ignorance and lack of basic understanding of the geography of our world was fucking staggering in some places. Not always the armpit of nowhere "towns" either.

Tetraethyl Lead has a lot to answer for, but yes, a lot of people are just selfish arseholes.

Yep, that's an accurate summation.

I am way past sick of being treated as if the country's problems are entirely and singularly my fucking fault for having the sheer audacity to be born fucking different.

It is only a matter of time before someone who's got nothing to lose does something "drastic". I suspect that's what it'll take for the rest of us to be treated with a modicum of respect.

Because rather than spend the money from the bills on upgrading the system to handle the increased demand over the years, they gave it away to shareholders.

In fact in a lot of cases, Thames Water being the prime example, they gave away more than they had coming in, building up debt over the years. Not only is the infrastructure failing and the coffers empty, some owe private lenders more than they make in a decade too.

This is the end result of the privatisation of our country's entire civilsation. From the most basic of things like clean water, to healthcare and education. It's now all run for profit.

We are now mere commodities to be exploited to make the richest even richer, and every government this country has had since Thatcher has been nothing but eager to get their own snout in the trough.

We need to radically alter the political landscape and systems of this country. I personally can't think of a better way to do that than force the relocation of the seat of government from London to somewhere more central to the country.

Oh, I meant taken by the private entities that actually administer the benefits system. None of it is run by civil servants anymore, it's all contracted out -at great cost- to Capita and Serco mostly.

Why does it take an age to actually speak to someone about your benefits when you need to? Because Capita intentionally understaff the centralised, offshored call centres to maximise profit.

Why do the letters about your benefits take an age to be delivered, if they arrive at all? Why do your "prepaid return" forms often never arrive with the benefits office? It's all sent 2nd class post to maximise profit, of course. (Which is even worse than it ever was, as Royal Mail is also a for profit, privately owned enterprise, natch.)

What is intentionally obfuscated by everyone in power and their media is that every penny that actually ends up in the hands of a benefit claimant, is almost immediately handed over to private enterprise very shortly thereafter.

The entire benefits system is a subsidy for "the economy" in a very real and direct way. Since it was privatised, a select few companies close to UKGov take the lion's share of it and direct it offshore.

Why does Labour allow this to continue? What are they gaining from it?

So, when do we remind these fucks who they are supposed to work for?

What I'd like to see is the actual figures for the benefits system.

Specifically, for every pound the government allocates to the benefits system, how much actually ends up in the hands of a benefit recipient?

ie. Just how much exactly does Serco, Capita, et al. take from the system?

Correct.

They are where you'll find the deeply ignorant, xenophobic, Daily Mail readers frothing at the mouth and red in the face with anger over how "forriners" are lazy criminals that come here to claim benefits for them and their 16 kids, while simultaneously stealing all the jobs and homes from "hard working British families" (read: "British benefit claimants out of work and living in grothole housing owned by a local slumlord").

Because the wearing of poppies has become synonymous with the now defunct BNP and the rest of the British right wing for a lot of us.

You can thank Stephen Yaxley-Lennon for that.

What is this?! Nuanced thoughts that recognise that everyone is an arsehole? On my internet?!

💛

I mean, current "Labour" are as tight with British capitalists as the Tories. That in mind, this behaviour does actually come as a surprise in some ways. That they're simply saying what they think will be popular is also very on-brand for what "Labour" are now though, so there's that.

We can't afford therapy.