Exactly.. Ive been looking for a job since my leaving… Got a few interviews but with no experience.. no job. I’m so tired of the working looking down.. in a heartbeat I would switch places. I hope something comes up for you. It must have been devastating.

So crochet what do you have your PhD in? I’m sure there has to be some universities you could get a job in with a research department or something. It doesn’t say much for Ireland and its universities if people that are “at the top of [their] profession” can’t get a job.

Gar where do you see Phd?? You’re an uninformed troll! Go home.

Where he said he was at the top of his profession. You can’t be at the top of your profession if you don’t have a PhD.

A making assumptions again are we? Do you know what a Phd is? And I know quiet a few people with Phd’s who have applied for jobs to be told they are “over qualified” Do Cardiologists have Phd’s? No!

Yep, the respite cut is a massive own goal. Hopefully Fina Gael will be able to defelct the majority of the hate onto the goons in the Labour party.

That’s the great thing about this coalition, Labour are being crucified every single day while Fina Gael laugh all the way to the bank. Similar dismantling of the Liberal Democratics happening over in London town at the moment. It’s never felt so right to be on the right. :)

Ben, Stephen treat people like animals and they will soon start to act like animals.

Your suggestions would actually cost more in the long run, but stupid is as stupid does

FG are GONE!

Because those nasty successful people contribute so much more to the revenue. They shouldn’t be paid these welfare payments.. but they should have to pay less tax if they don’t get any benefit…

While I mostly agree with your sentiments, you can’t just presume that because someone is driving a BMW they can afford something more than the next.

Exactly Peter.. but we all know that the biggest crime in Ireland is to be successful.. hence the BMW jibes…
Maybe if we respected success. Even admired it we would be in a better place individually.

I totally agree !

Gentlemen, to be clear- I’m not a tax the rich, merchant. The well to do already pay more tax than others and an ambulance doesn’t arrive any faster at their house. Everyone should be able to aspire to a BMW. Success shouldn’t be punished, it should be nurtured. But I listened to a woman today tell me she uses Children’s Allowance to get her hair done once a week. There’s something wrong there. Benefits shouldn’t be a tax refund. It should be used where needed or cut entirely to reduce the burden on taxpayer. That’s all I’m saying.

Admire success by all means, but remember your brothers in need, even if you don’t see them as such, it’s individuals thinking their above others that enables greed and detachment , just as the culture of intitlement is wrong at bottom, it is wrong at the top also

Sorry I should elaborate on my point. Stating that “if you have a BMW then you don’t need child benefit”, I think is wrong. The problem I’m highlighting is that you can’t just presume one person is in a better position than another just because they have, in this example, a nice car. For all we know the BMW owner could be in far more need than a person without a car

A few people I know are trying to get rid of their BMW’s and can’t sell them and they’re stuck with them,snd they have no money,the only cars I see selling in anyway is 1ltr WV Polos

Exactly. A lot of people would have bought cars on finance and then effectively topped up the loan each year or two when trading in their car for a newer model (before the one they have devalues). When the market crashed car prices fell significantly and people couldn’t obtain or afford repeat finance which left them with cars that were worth much less than the amount owed on them. Just another example of negative equity and how those who appear to have money can actually be more indebted than the next.

Also an example of people over extending themselves in the good times, thinking they would never end and not making adequate provision for the inevitable rainy day. I’m not sure it’s incumbent on those who were prudent in the good times to subsidise these people now.

Michelle apparrntly you “dont go out either” but why is your profile full of pictures of you out drinking? It appears you smoke too, that’s hardly a cheap habbit.

@Gar I was waiting for that comment :) It takes the likes of you to notice these things and automatically make assumptions. You don’t know me.. You see my picture and investigate.
I socially smoke.. when I go out every 6 months I have 3 drinks mainly because I can’t stomach it and guess what.. I pay for a night out by babysitting which is planned in advance. Probably not the answer you were looking for!

I said baby sitting not running a full time creche service!
Your whole comment is irrelevant.. You’re just proving your lack of intelligence.. which I find humourous. When you can offer me a full time job let me know darling.. I gladly take it up :)

The allowence is only for school clothing and footwear it is not for books or a coat. Go to Pennys or Dunnes and you will see you can get a uniform a few spare shirts maybe a second skirt/trousers and a pair of shoes for less than €50.

Some of us rely on dole to pay rent and bills as well as food. Im not into this civil war that occurs in discussions regard social welfare. There are people who are careless as Frank has mentioned but in this current era responsible people are unemployed and need assistance. People who could contribute greatly to a workplace(even more than some currently in employment) are not getting a chance. Personally I am trying to responsibly establish a career so im not hopping on and off welfare in my future years, its not easy, I possibly picked the worst organised course on offer from the Springboard program and took a temp job with the public sector we all know career options there will be reduced next year so it could have been a waste. This life story is to illustrate how frustrating it is. Some keyboard warriors(who possibly still live with their ma’s) above talk about scrutinising people, using vouchers instead of cash and other ludicrous suggestions, it isnt fair on people who are hard times who are hitting a brick wall. I see no reason why someone on welfare cant have a couple of drinks, there are plenty of people working who clearly spend too much on booze and thats not helping the wider economy while also stressing public services. There are responsible and irresponsible people both employed and unemployed.

I’d a business is loosing money NO bonus’s should be paid ,
I would be happy to see the revenue commission take the lot as a tax

Some people I know working for certain multinationals were told that their Xmas bonus was being given to charity on their behalf.. These aren’t the top level guys obviously – just the frontline staff who’ve had everything else thrown at them..

niamh.. that’s not helpful at all

No niamh, frank merely stated the reality among certain demographics. Accurate depiction in some social contexts in my opinion.

I do agree with you Frank and the term “mickey money” makes me cringe. But a lot of people automatically assume that those on welfare don’t want to work. I’ve seen it happen around my area; mothers dumping their kids and going out. It’s not on. But we could have this discussion forever haha :) Lets hope a job is on the cards for 2013 :-)

What do you think should have been cut so?

Base rate of dole down to 120 euro. Reducing by 10 euro for every year spent on the dole until payment reachs 60 euro.

People who have paid PSRI over 10k in the past get an each 100 euro per week for the first year of unemployment, then the same sliding scheme down to 60 euro.

It shouldn’t be cash payments. It should be vouchers for essential goods and services… redeemable against Irish goods and services only… that will stimulate the economy too.
Not for cigarettes, or Dutch Gold, or the Bookies… but for what families need.

@Dareen – I agree. Now the Left will say they will simply trade them for beer/cigs but this will make it harder to get these substances and reduce the overall amount they eventually do get. A great idea.

convert all welfare to a laser card that cant be used in off licences, pubs, travel agents, hotels, car dealers or for direct debit to television or mobile phone companies , give a 3000 euro fine to any shopkeeper knowingly selling cigarettes or alcohol to anyone using these cards , the infrastructure is there, it could report back on the actual needs of welfare recipients and see which groups of people are running out of money at the end of the week , and who has a surplus.

If I ran this country I would end up in the Hague but by God I’d love every second of it.

also a 10 year ban on social welfare for immigrants and asylum seekers, plus fingerprinting of all new welfare recipients who are not irish and born of irish parents.

hope u dont every need social welfare. social welfare is hi in Ireland compared to say the UK but the percentage in the cut is very big for certain people who are the poorest in society, an example would be a single mum who is returning to college would get hammered by this budget, probably forcing her out of education which means she may stay in the dike for life.

Also self employed particularly low paid self employed got a hard time, probably forcing them into the black economy

#Ben- I have decided I would vote for you.

@Vincent – thank you but it would mean alot more to me if your second name was Brown.

So the state did lower the amount of welfare contributions on a rolling basis over a number of years you believe this would be good for society? WRONG!
And if the state issued vouchers or some sort of debit card you believe that this would be good for the state/economy? WRONG AGAIN!
We’d have a country ravaged by extremely poor and extremely desperate people or we’d have a state double jobbing a payment system in administrating a voucher/electronic card system!
Go back asleep!!!

Who pays it? Oh yeah, those people who bother their arses to work all the hours they can and still struggle to pay their bills at the end of the week…

The problem is Social Welfare rules & conditions should have been tightened to incentivise work at the height of the Celtic Tiger when, if you couldn’t find a job you were lying. Now, cuts risk hurting people who are genuinely down on their luck having lost their job. Thin line.

What’s a white shirt?

http://beaut.ie/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/White-shirt.jpeg

Also a fine piece of ass.

I digress; a white shirt is, in this context, a high earning professional such as a lawyer or an accountant.

I’m more of a brown shirt.

Oh. I get it. like someone who paid attention in school… did a good leaving cert… went to college… got a degree.. and works hard creating success and wealth… all while handing over half their pay…

Yeah… gotta get them.

As long as the Blueshirts were looked after..

idiot!

Go outside the Dail, shout that out and wait for the response!

No thanks Stephen i will just speak my mind on theJournal

Troll

Can I ask where this idea of “A mother guzzling cans whilst her children go hungry” comes from? Plenty of times I fed my children and let myself go hungry.. eating what was leftover.
Ignorance really is bliss.

Can I ask where this idea of “A mother guzzling cans whilst her children go hungry” comes from? Plenty of times I fed my children and let myself go hungry.. eating what was leftover.
Ignorance really is bliss.

Can I ask where this idea of “A mother guzzling cans whilst her children go hungry” comes from? Plenty of times I fed my children and let myself go hungry.. eating what was leftover.
Ignorance really is bliss.

Can I ask where this idea of “A mother guzzling cans whilst her children go hungry” comes from? Plenty of times I fed my children and let myself go hungry.. eating what was leftover.
Ignorance really is bliss.

Actually, there’s been academic research done at UCD – can’t remember the exact figures, but of families living in poverty, many children of those families are in no way going without food. The research showed that parents will often starve themselves to feed children.

But yes, let’s ignore that because you think lone parents guzzle cans with absolutely no evidence.