Re 6

Try the Official History of the Great War.

Re 13

Charlie

The winners always write the history.

Re 149

Matt, You slightly miss the point. It’s not voluntary, it is compulsory, that is if you want to still draw your benefits. The work envisaged is work that few want to do. It is work of benefit to the community – me and you:

Picking up litter
Cleaning graffitti
Cleaning street signs and public notices.
Spraying weed killer along kerbs

These are jobs that when done make for a more pleasant and acceptable environment but, my guess is that they are hardly enough to sustain a paid workforce involving yet more expense on the part of the taxpayer. These jobs sometimes do get done by the council but, only rarely.

If this work is done by people already getting paid from the public purse – then, all well and good. Don’t forget, people do need a sense of self worth and self respect and giving something back to the community is one effective way of getting it.

Moggy,

There’s nothing I’d like more – I just don’t know how !

Re 28

So what is your answer? If you’re confronted by a physical bully and your retaliation is more effective than his, he won’t confront you again.

Similarly, if our justice system worked to protect the victim and punish the offender we would not have the kind of situations that frequently appear in these columns and give rise to a lot of tetchy comment.

Re 6

Trumper, you’re a pessimist ! But, now you’ve mentioned it I’ll lay a piece of artificial grass at the bottom of the fridge door.

Re 157

Ensuring that people work for their benefits is something that is more than the sum of its parts. The moment you begin some kind of productive work along the lines already mentioned, is the moment when individual self respect, responsibility and a sense of self value and worth ‘kicks in’ and enables the beneficiary to feel a valued member of society.

It’s not a question of paying the going rate for the job. It’s not a question of ‘manufacturing’ un-necessary jobs. For the receivers of State benefits, it is a question of self worth and self respect. It is a question of doing something worthwhile; something for the community; something that will merit a smile and a word of appreciation from passers-by.

At least once a week, on a decent weather day, I’ll take three or four plastiic bags go to the beach and pick up litter. We have council workers who do this work but they don’t do it often enough. I don’t feel especially ‘holy’, my back aches like hell but, it is pleasant when the odd walker smiles and makes an appreciative comment.

Sitting on our hands and doing nothing to remedy an already parlous situation is not an option. The next generation of lazy scroungers are already in the pipeline. Let us at least try this suggestion of welding CIVIC work to benefits and then look at the consequences.

Re 32

I don’t wish to be too controversial, but I do think that you are living as your pen name suggests. Either that or cuckoo land.

Take note of 33 & 34.

Yes, I agree, I would lose little sleep if the bandits had received life threatening injuries and then later, died. They would indeed be the architects of their own misfortune. Two less, to cause misery and mayhem.