Empathy Is Not a Dirty Word

I try to stay chilled out about things in this world whenever possible. I get stressed out, I get pissed off, I get sick. But with the news that charity Save the Children are launching a campaign to raise cash for children living in poverty in the UK, I've got really wound up.

Of course, I've not been living in a hole. I've known a while there are young kids out there who aren't getting enough in the way of proper food and clothing. Times are hard and getting harder for a lot of people. But this story brings it home.

It's too easy to dismiss people who this affects. The media will tell us these people have squandered their money on booze, fags and betting. Politicians will put the boot in too, to justify their callous behaviour with their own expense fiddling now a distant memory in the public mind.

Take Douglas Carswell, the MP for Clacton: "I don’t actually mind charities making political interventions but I totally disagree with them in terms of the causes of child poverty. We have actually spent a very large chunk of taxpayers’ money creating a state of dependency in this country – that’s one of the main causes of child poverty."

And then there's Philip Davies, the Conservative MP for Shipley. He reckons: "It is just a publicity seeking campaign. I think people will see through the fact that this is an organisation that has been campaigning for as much money as possible to be sent abroad for many years so it’s no good now telling us there’s no money left to go round to British children."

What a pair of complete and utter drizzling shitehawks. I have to love it when politicians use words like "dependency" in regard to the people at the bottom of the ladder. This from people so far detached from the realities of life, who are chauffeured around and often have second homes on the public's expense. You almost wish for them to just come out and say "look, you people are scum. If there are no jobs, just go to one of our new state-assisted suicide machines. You're of no value to anyone".

The truth is they believe being poor is a lifestyle choice, not the end result of the politics we've been living under for too long. Several years ago, the writer and comedian Robert Newman spoke about "Employed homeless" people in the States - folk who worked a full week, but couldn't afford somewhere to live. He warned it was coming this way, and I fear he was spot on. Support for those who need it will continue to be taken away, legalised loan sharks will thrive and the scrapheap will get bigger.

For now, Save the Children have set a target of half a million pounds for their appeal. I expect it will be met, and then our esteemed Prime Minister will crow on about how this shows "The Big Society" at work. The fucking tosser.