Doestevesky

It was once written by Doestevesky, the famous Russian writer, that the treatment of prisoners within a state, revealed much about its society. He should've added the disabled, both physiocally and mentally impaired. For they are not only prisoners (of their health, faculties and functions) but also the most weakest and vulnerable in any community or society.

The recent budget from Pinnochio (George Osborne) and side-kicks the Lib-Dems, have trounced, shredded and punched the living standards of DLA recipients across this Country. We at the gravedigger expect nothing less from the Tories, who at county level, the conservatives 2 years ago closed the QE2 Centre in Dartford, which provided care, recreation and support to the disabled of North West Kent.

Because disabled people cannot work (even though they want to!), the Tories by their actions both nationally and locally, shame us all with their sense of priorities towards people who cannot defend themselves against the full might of the state. The crass penny-pinching of the Tories in the face of this deficit reduction plan of theirs, looks increasingly hollow, when if a government was really serious about this supposed crisis....why wasn't income tax raised? As for the banking levy...a mere spattering of a drop in a vast ocean...yet it was the banks/finance house's and investment funds that got us into the fix in the first place.

The idea of "were all in this together", has shown that the poor, disabled and people dependent on public services, plus those that work within its field are more "in this" than most!

The real villains of the piece are not just Tories....this is a programme of cuts, that they have been dreaming of. The near-collapse of the system (capitalism) and the benefit of being in opposition has conspired against sections of our weakest people. The advances that had been made by the last Labour government will now be placed on an operating theatre, where it seems Sweeny Todd or a government of his ilk, is the surgeon called upon to operate on the body politic of this Nation.

As for the disabled, we will see local Doctor surgeries filled to the rafters of paraplygics, amputees, the blind, deaf, the mentally & physically challenged...all being assessed by an "independent"Doctor...who will know doubt be on a bonus for those he/she declares fit for employment. The scenes across Medical Centres/Hospitals and Community Health Centres will be very, very ugly. You will witness people crying, panicking and behaving with distress as they (the disabled) enter a conveyor belt of medical checks which will be bent in favour of termination of benefits.
Already former incapacity benefit claimants will be in line for the rescinding of benefits, then the move to remove at least a 1/3 of DLA claimants will begin in earnest....off-loading these poor souls into an evaporated labour market, as the economic pain begins to mount.

What have we really become...why is it...that the people, institutions that are primarily responsible for this calamity, from both sides of the Atlantic...why is it, that the disabled must pay. Those that at this moment in time, who suffer mental illness and depression...well, they will have to face the skewered logic of this government, enough to compound anybody's depression