Why do we put up with this?

So the Chancellor's new budget has come out and it's all the rage. Rage being the key word here for me.

I think I have just about reached the limits of my patience with the government, politicians and politics. Listening to coverage of the budget on the radio and reading the Chancellor's speech, I just want to ask one question:

Why do we put up with this?

I am not an economist. Sadly, numbers and budgets are not my strength. So I won't go into detail on my opinions about specific policies - you might as well go talk to a random passerby, who would probably have a deeper grasp of financial terms than I do!

What I do want to talk about is ideology and rhetoric. Because I think it's about time. I've just about had enough of this rubbish.

STRIVERS VS. SKIVERS

In his speech,  George Osborne talks about the Aspiration Nation. "Mr Deputy Speaker," he opens. "This is a budget for people who aspire to work hard and get on."

He goes on.

"For years people have felt that the whole system was tilted against those who did the right thing: who worked, who saved, who aspired. These are the very people we must support if Britain is to have a prosperous future. This is a budget for those who aspire to own their own home; who aspire to get their first job; or start their own business. A budget for those who want to save for their retirement and provide for their children. It is a budget for our Aspiration Nation."

At this point I started yelling at the radio. Not an altogether healthy or contained response, I know. But this makes me so angry. I find it so insulting, so deeply offensive, and so unjust.

The reason why I hate this rhetoric is because of its underlying, not even subtle ideology. The belief is that the nation is made of two groups of people: the wonderful and blameless strivers, those who "work hard and just want to get on", those hardworking families who are finding it harder to get by, and the evil, benefit-scrounging skivers, who sit on their asses, leech off the government, annoy others by being "nightmare neighbours", and drain masses out of our economy.

There we go, ladies and gentlemen. Are you a striver or a skiver? You're either one or the other.

Apparently, if you're a striver, you have dreams. You aspire and work hard towards your goals. Britain wants you and only you, and you're the key to our prosperity.

If you're not though, if you're a skiver, you have no dreams. No aspirations. You don't just want to get on. You have no desires in life to buy a house and protect your children, to have stability and retire in safety and comfort. No, you don't have these desires,  because you're some kind of evil underling underclass who cares about nothing but leeching and taking drugs and mindlessly wasting good taxpayer money.

I hope you read that and saw it as the absurd farce that it is. If not, I'd recommend reading this post, "Lies we tell ourselves", which exposes the myths that we have about poverty and the poor in this country - including this view of skivers. There is no proof for this ideology- in fact, evidence often points the other way. So not only is it insulting and unjust, it's also a lie.

I hate - and for me hate is not too strong a word - this rhetoric and ideology that the government shovels to us day after day. By using ridiculous self-fulfilling phrases like "For years people have felt" or "We have all known for some time", they would have us believe, like soulless automatons, patently untrue and unverified/unverifiable crap of epic proportions.

What got me when I heard George Osborne's words is that everyone has aspirations and dreams. Everyone wants to have a livelihood, to be safe and stable and be able to provide for their children. Everyone wants to have that happy life. But for some people, living in poverty amidst violence, abuse, and generational cultural problems, those aspirations and dreams are knocked out of them very early on. Poverty is an accident of birth - you don't choose to be born into a poor deprived area, where everything will be stacked against your chances of living free of drugs, gangs or poverty. Who chooses that?

But no, let's not look deeper into the reasons why people are claiming benefits or living in poverty. Let's just demonise them in one fell swoop and take away everything that gives them a chance at long term survival. Let's lump them all into an insanely tasteless and baseless group and proceed to heap public scorn and mistrust on them.

That's what your role as a government is, right?

THE WORST PARTS OF US

I can't explain to you how disappointed I am by politics and politicians. Every day I wonder whether there'll be someone and something new, something that will show politics can have a heart, can be righteous, can be defending the poor and vulnerable and perpetuating justice instead of injustice. That politics can have integrity. 

I am sad and angry when I look at our politics. Britain is one of the world's most developed democracies but this is still happening. It's devastating. What I see is a government that lacks moral responsibility. A government that lacks a deeper interest in truth and justice beyond what garners positive public opinion and election points. What would politics be like without elections I wonder? Would politicians still act amorally? Probably. People only want power and forget the poor.

I hate the way that politics and politicians seem to appeal so much to the worst parts of us. The parts of us that look down on others and judge.  The parts that need someone to blame for our problems. Labour for our financial situation. Foreigners for taking jobs. Skivers for draining our taxes. The list goes on. But no one wants to say: it's our fault for allowing this system to go on. Or: it's no one's fault. It's just the way life is.

Instead, the government and opposition pander to public opinion. No one will say things that are true but won't win an election. Even Ed Milliband has to appeal to the right, cracking down on immigrants and welfare. No one wants to tell the truth if it means votes will be lost. This seems to me to be a really dangerous place for us to be.

So the Tories pander to the rich, slashing welfare costs that further cripple the disabled but allow millionaires to get tax cuts. They help home buyers to put down mortgages but don't invest in social housing. They take 1p off every pint of beer while binge drinking and alcoholism reach alarming rates.

Insulting, isn't it?

WHY DO WE PUT UP WITH THIS?

Why do we let this rhetoric and ideology go unquestioned?

All over the media, people are questioning and nitpicking new government policies. But we let the rhetoric and ideology slide. Rarely do people challenge these assumptions. Why?

We need to challenge the injustice and untruth politicians are trying to spread in an attempt to justify their policies and secure votes. We need to denounce these stereotypes. They are not true. They set up false distinctions between people which ultimately won't achieve anything good.

We need not to put up with any of this anymore.