Gordon and the donkey

A young man named Gordon bought a donkey from an old farmer for £100 The
farmer agreed to deliver the donkey the next day, but when the
farmer drove up he said, "Sorry son, but I have some bad news... The donkey
is on my truck, but unfortunately he's dead."

Gordon replied, "Well then, just give me my money back."
The farmer said, "I can't do that, because I've spent it already."
Gordon said, "OK then, well just unload the donkey anyway."
The farmer asked, "What are you going to do with him?"
Gordon answered, "I'm going to raffle him off."
To which the farmer exclaimed, "Surely you can't raffle off a dead donkey!"
But Gordon, with a wicked smile on his face said, "Of course I can, you
watch me. I just won't bother to tell anybody that he's dead."
A month later the farmer met up with Gordon and asked, "What happened with
that dead donkey?"
Gordon said, "I raffled him off, sold 500 tickets at two pounds a piece, and
made a huge, fat profit!"
Totally amazed, the farmer asked, "Didn't anyone complain that you had
stolen their money because you lied about the donkey being dead?"

Gordon replied, "The only guy who found out about the donkey being dead was
the raffle winner when he came to claim his prize. So I gave him his £2
raffle ticket money back plus an extra £200, which as you know is double the
going rate for a donkey, so he thought I was a great guy!"

Gordon grew up, and eventually became ...... The Chancellor of the
Exchequer, and no matter how many times he lied, or how much money he stole
from the British voters, as long as he gave them back some of the stolen
money, most of them, unfortunately, still thought he was a great guy.

The moral of this story is that, if you think Gordon is about to play fair
and do something for the everyday people of the country for once in his
miserable, lying life, think again my friend, because you'll be better off
flogging a dead donkey!

 

frankly if he wants an extra % or so to pay for schools and hospitals that's fine by me.

 

He's already had more than a few extra %, ostensibly to pay for better schools and hospitals.

And the results?

I can only assume that someone's pockets have been lined as the money has definitely gone somewhere but there is no measurable improvement in either schools or hospitals. In fact both seem to have deteriorated under this government.

I'm fed up with working my butt off to line other people's pockets. It's gone too far. MUCH too far.

Thank God the middle classes are finally waking up to the reality of what Labour really stands for - low standards for everyone. Let's hope they finally have the sense never to vote these thieving bar stewards into power ever again.

 

Chris - we are both in the same position. They make a big deal about "Tax cuts for hard working families". Meanwhile, the hard-working single person who puts little/no drain on the health service, social security, schools, etc is ripe for tapping up for a few more pence out of the pound.

 

And the alternatives would be better?

I agree with you though. There seems to be a constant line of "if things are to change, funding needs to be upped....", where's the millions/billions of OUR MOney gone?

 

...and we've also had 12 years of stable, economic growth.

 

The money that we pay in taxes is given to less well off members of the European Union to create a balance of wealth among all states. Our goverment does not govern Britain but pretends to, it is in fact implimenting policy from Brussels. This is why our Houses of Parliment spend their time debating minor social issues such as fox hunting and gay/lesbian rights all the time.

 

A quick look here reveals that not to be true:
http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm/cmagenda.htm

As someone who works in the education sector, I can assure you a huge amount of money has gone into schools, and resourcing is much improved. Hospitals are a long way from the grim places I remember from 20 years ago. I've had to spend far too long in hospitals in the last two years with members of my family, and they do a remarkable job without a doubt. Under the most difficult of circumstances they were kind and compassionate, and nothing was too much trouble.
Knocking the public sector seems to be a national obsession. Bizzarely everyone seems to want improvements to be made, strangely no-one wants to pay for that to happen.

 

What is not true?
The link you posted lists debate on gender equality, rural tranquility,the future of a euro star train station, tackling eating disorders, something to do with the Congo and a few things to do with europe and the NHS. From a quick look it appears that around 50% is prattle as I said above.

 

How true.

 

Where do you get this conclusion from, the tv I suppose? In fact here is something you will have difficulty explaining away, I work with alot of immigrants from Russia, and Poland mostly, and all of them, without exception, think the NHS in this country provides a service far below that of their native country which is in their cases poorer than Britain. This is just one example, we spend alot of time discussing the differences between our countries and in fact talk freely about immigration policy, they admit to wanting British citizenship to further their careers and enable travel to countries that limit influx of such people such as Australia and America. In addition to this a friend of mine is a doctor and he also, after a couple of drinks/smoke of the peace pipe admits that the NHS is run by business men and operates on the grounds of a company with financial irregularities and number shifting being brushed under the carpet all the time. You must excuse the nature of this post but it must be so.

 

Our NHS and education systems are both stretched to the limit by the influx of people coming to the country.
Those from the EU who have come here to work can claim their taxes back(providing they've been paying any)when they go back to their home countries, hence putting nothing back into the economy.
Asylum seekers arrive to be given a home, furniture and everything they need for day to day life, plus benefits as they are not allowed to work during the course of their assessment.
All of these people are free to use the NHS but none pay National insurance, leaving the rising bill with those who do.
The children of those seeking asylum are sent to already overpopulated schools, many of whom can not speak any english, making it extremely difficult for teachers to cope and teach those who can(a good friend of mine is a teacher and according to him, this has been a problem for years).

Now before i get flamed, i'm not trying to be racist or anti european, i do think that people who fear for their own and their families lives through persecution in their country should be helped and that people who come here to work should be allowed to... so long as they give something back to society.

Asylum seekers should have to work to at least cover some of the cost of their living and childrens schooling and the europeans working here temporarily should have to pay taxes and N.I. without some Brussels 'cashback' scheme to look forward to when they get home.

As long as the government allows the country to get milked, there will be plenty of people waiting in line to do so, and we look set to foot the bill with higher taxes.

Whoever does take over from Blair/New Labour is gonna have their work cut out, and i don't envy them a bit.

 

So treating eating disorders isn't an issue? Have you any experience of them?
Equality is a massive issue, or I bet it would be if you felt that you weren't getting your fair share.

 

This country takes in fewer asylum seekers, and migrant workers than most. There's figures out there if you can be bothered seeking them out. I can't TBH.
They appear to be filling jobs many of them that people in this country aren't willing to do any more. I personally feel that benefits should be earned, I'm sure there are plenty of jobs people could do to earn their keep if they are able to.
I teach a significant number of EAL students, most of them cope very well, given good models, and sufficient support. They also tend to be concentrated in areas. I applied for a job at a school recently that had a majority of EAL pupils. I don't however think that it is they who are draining the country dry, the biggest problem in schools are underachieving white working class children. (Working class is used advisedly because these are the kids whose parents don't work) The so called ferral kids, and the Lizzie Bardsleyesque parents. They're the ones who want something for nothing, and know all their rights, but don't understand their responsibilities.

 

Tell me what Equality is? Does it exist in the real world or is just an abstract notion in politics. Is this country not concerned enough with racism and sexual equality? Why do children get raped in this country and the offenders, when found guilty, get suspended sentances? Why do OAP's die from malnurishment in hospital?, Why do people who commit an offence against a coloured person get a more severe sentance because the person they assualted is coloured yet the law does not work the other way round, why do I care? I care because it is MY country thats why and I am proud to be British. I do not have to agree with what I am told is 'correct' and neither do you. Once again I ask for understanding, in my posting this.

 

the trouble with the health service is totally down to increased drug availability for previosuly none treatable dieseases and an aging population,nothing else.

if people died at the same age they did 40 years ago and gp's only prescribed the drugs we had back then the NHS would be rolling in it. But your and my granny wants a replacement hip aged 75 even though it'll outlast her by 10 years, and someone mother wants a 5% succes rate breats cancer treatment.

you can t have it all.

and anyone from the UK gets the same tax breaks abroad that they do here.

 

Can I ask what EAL stands for, I am sorry I don't know.

 

I don't know, maybe it is me, perhaps I should just believe what i am told on the TV and in the newspapers and on the radio and what I was taught at school and ignore my feelings and instincts about what is the truth and maybe I should not write this. If you knew the injustices I have seen in my 29 years, if you knew the true plight of the mentally ill in this country you would not even bring up the topic of equality for women or anyone for that matter, without meaning to offend anyone, there are such things in this life that are so important that politics or money or public image pale into less than insignificance beside them and it is these things that must be given the blessing of open and truthfull discussion with the sole aim of the immediate resolving of the problem in hand. Our society fails me in more ways than I can be bothered to mention, and if it fails me then it sure as hell fails you even if you prefer to look the other way.

 

EAL stands for English as an Additional Language

That is to say the least a very naive view.

There is no discrimination against any of these groups then:
Women
Gay people
People of differing ethnicity
Older people

Equality is about opportunity not money. Without equal opportunity you will never achieve fiscal parity.

 

I 100% agree there are many british people who are part of the problem SQ... Dropout kids, people too lazy to work and those who pretend to be unable to work with bad backs etc.
Maybe they should bring back mandatory national service.