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Social Class


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Stripey said a lot of things... Most of them were in fact bollocks.

Stripey now lives in Poznan, Poland and posts on here as an alias unknown to myself at this time!

Getting back on track. There are a lot of jobs advertised, there are a lot available you just have to go for 'every' job you can. I hear a lot of people I know say they would never work in mcdonalds, pubs etc yet they remain unemploued and complain about foreigners taking jobs???

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I basically agree with the above... however (puts on "right wing" cap) I basically think that financial child benefit should end after child two. I also basically think that after someone has claimed benefit for a year or more they should stop receiving money in their hand and instead be provided with food packages, bus passes, clothing and tokens for electricity/heating. Basically they should have the things they require and *need* physically given to them. Somehow, I think this would massively decrease the amount of people claiming benefit.

*starts making shelter to hide in*

:popcorn:

Many single parents would not wish to miss large parts of their child growing up to work for minimum wage in a supermarket. Job seeker allowance stops after 6 months and some benefits are claimed off national insurance (the fact they have worked before). Much of what you suggest would punish the children without adressing the real problems in modern culture which lead to this.

Anyway. Most people seem to think I am middle class and I probably am. I used to live in England and depsite not living in a particularly upmarket area (some have described it as 'a bit rough' or 'run down') on the Essex/London frontier. I have suffered the curse of having taints of an English accent in my voice. Combine this with living in an area of Aberdeenshire where people don't speak doric I end up with a voice that appears to give away too much of my background. People assume I am 'posh' or 'upper class', solely based on my voice. I don't like giving off this impression and often try to hide the English parts of my voice.

The reactions I get, even to my voice says to me that social class is very much alive today but the boundaries and blurred and often a bit fake.

For example. I had a friend who had been to an all-girl boarding school. She often read about celebrities, smoked, watched game shows and did other things which were more conventionally accociated with 'working class' people. Many of those who went to this school were similar in their lack of traditional middle class values.

I dislike much of the snobbery from people I know who condem anyone who wears a tracksuit as being a 'ned' and look down at people from areas such as Northfield as a matter of course. I think part of this comes down to is you kind of know what youths look like in your area and you know whether or not to be scared of them but youths look differnet in differnet areas and it is harder to tell if you have reason to be concerned.

What I also dislike as much is the inverse snobbery where I have been told by people who hardly know me I have had an over priveledged life and suchlike (perhaps I have but who is to say this? not someone who hardly knows me anyway). Many of the things that are concidered 'middle class' in this country are either unheard of in other countries completely standard across society.

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Hmm, a few points;

1) Scotland has a radically different conception of class than in England, in that people are happier to describe themselves as working class, even if they are a lawyer living in Edinburgh new town, say (met one). Perceptions are different here as we are a more egalitarian minded country/ region, particularly compared to the culturally dominant SE of England.

2) All figures show, however, that social mobility is decreasing in the UK, making it much harder for the talented and intelligent to raise their status through hard work and application, the circumstances that allowed for that were decimated in the 80s, and we are seeing how the alternative plan for the UK economy is going, to prosper through services, its just not possible in a downturn, manufacturing base is essential.

3) Essentially, its like the old joke about being given directions; 'Oh, I wouldn't start from here though", Conditions in early life are the paramount factor in deciding how a child will develop, if they grow up deprived, then on every level that will affect their quality of existence, this is hard fact, not subject to opinion.

Resources need to be shared more evenly, the proof has been established that the greatest difference in income ranges leads to the greatest social corrosion, I will post when I remember where to find the proof.

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I have suffered the curse of having taints of an English accent in my voice. Combine this with living in an area of Aberdeenshire where people don't speak doric I end up with a voice that appears to give away too much of my background. People assume I am 'posh' or 'upper class', solely based on my voice. I don't like giving off this impression and often try to hide the English parts of my voice.

.

Ooh, this was in Idiocracy

"Unaware of what year it was, Joe wandered the streets desperate for help. But the English language had deteriorated into a hybrid of hillbilly, valleygirl, inner-city slang and various grunts. Joe was able to understand them, but when he spoke in an ordinary voice he sounded pompous and faggy to them. "

That film is prophetic, PROPHETIC I TELLS YA.

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I basically agree with the above... however (puts on "right wing" cap) I basically think that financial child benefit should end after child two. I also basically think that after someone has claimed benefit for a year or more they should stop receiving money in their hand and instead be provided with food packages, bus passes, clothing and tokens for electricity/heating. Basically they should have the things they require and *need* physically given to them. Somehow, I think this would massively decrease the amount of people claiming benefit.

*starts making shelter to hide in*

:popcorn:

You know, some of that makes perfect sense. I'm putting my social worker hat on again, and many mums and dads come into our office on a daily basis looking for 'money' to get electric/gas, food supplies and bus fares. It's difficult because we don't have an endless pot of money to give out to people, but the legislation that we work under dictates that we have to give to children who are in 'need'. Because of the frequency of many families coming in for money I wonder where they spend their benefits. Especially the ones who have 2+ kids.

There needs to be a massive re-think of benefits in general. I was on job seekers allowance for 4 months after I finished uni last May and to be honest, if it wasn't for my parents and the fact I don't go mental with my money I wouldn't have been able to cope. 47.50 or whatever it is is not enough to survive, yes if you budget really strictly, but if something unexpected comes up then it just causes even more problems.

I also realise I have kinda gone off topic!! I should probably go to the pet hates thread now...

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There needs to be a massive re-think of benefits in general. I was on job seekers allowance for 4 months after I finished uni last May and to be honest, if it wasn't for my parents and the fact I don't go mental with my money I wouldn't have been able to cope. 47.50 or whatever it is is not enough to survive, yes if you budget really strictly, but if something unexpected comes up then it just causes even more problems.

is that not kind of the point tho, they dont want you to live comfortably, just give you enough to get by on the basics and nothing else.

I do agree their needs to be a shake up of the benefits system tho, i have known people who have got away with money they should have no right too and it annoys me, but if you can get away with it.,......

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The only people hung up on social class nowadays are those who consider themselves 'lower class', and have a massive chip on their shoulder about it.

Fucking do something about it rather than moaning to me that I've 'had it easy' because I had my own bedroom at my Ma's house when I was growing up.

Discuss. 8-)

I Like how you throw in my "Ma's" house to try and make yourself look a little less of an actual middle class meat chomper, When you do only ever call her mumykins to her face....

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Explain please. Do you mean that they have neutered union power, thus reducing the power of the worker, or, em, some union bashing right wing pish.

not right wing pish, no. unions are very much monopolistic - improving wages and working conditions at the expense of the market, as well as consumers and non-union work. higher wages can mean higher prices for consumers as well as reduce overall profit. it also means unionised firms hire less people, which floods the un-unionised firms with more workers being paid less wages. trade unions do not work anyone but themselves. they've cut off any direct ties that could be achieved and thus bringing the whole system down FROM WITHIN. or something. dude.

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I Like how you throw in my "Ma's" house to try and make yourself look a little less of an actual middle class meat chomper, When you do only ever call her mumykins to her face....

On that note, the solution is two-fold:

1. Learn to use capital letters in only appropriate places ('Like' and 'When' do not require capital letters in the middle of a sentence), and

2. An ellipsis has three dots. Kindly edit your post accordingly, and take this on board for next time.

Only after you have embraced these changes shall my middle class brain be able to comprehend what you have to say.

P.S. Clean my shoes you poor, dirty cunt.

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is that not kind of the point tho, they dont want you to live comfortably, just give you enough to get by on the basics and nothing else.

I do agree their needs to be a shake up of the benefits system tho, i have known people who have got away with money they should have no right too and it annoys me, but if you can get away with it.,......

Yes, you're right. But at the same time I wasn't claiming any other benefits so I still had to pay my rent/council tax somehow.

I genuinely have no idea how people scam benefits because I really struggled to just get JSA. I attempted to apply for housing benefit, but I gave up.

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improving wages and working conditions at the expense of the market.

Its the 'improving' bit that I like, some Unions have abused their position, but the basic principles are sound. There is a bit too much union-bashing for my liking, compare the position of the worker in pre-Union days, and in strongly anti-union countries, few rights and onerous responsibilities.

Like the 'bring it down from within' bit though.

Nice weekend y'all.

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