Advice for those in poverty

Others have rightfully blogged about the Marxist group Child Poverty Action Group demanding that successful New Zealanders and their businesses be forced to pay for others.

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It is concerned about child poverty, it fails miserably to note that the primary reason children are raised in poverty is because poor people have them. It is not because those in poverty have been robbed, it is because of irresponsibility.

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It's a shocking concept for many, almost offensive, to say simply this:

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If you can't afford to have children then don't!

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This is why the welfare state, as long as it remains should quite simply not pay any more for having more children. There should be no reward from the state for breeding.

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What do you then say to people who have more kids and can't pay for them?

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Look in the mirror. It is your responsibility. You didn't have to breed. Survive on welfare or get a job or ask people for money.

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BUT WHAT ABOUT THE CHILDREN, IT'S NOT THEIR FAULT?

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No, but is it mine? Why are all those who work bloody hard to raise their families and themselves have to be made to pay for those who make bad decisions, or don't care?

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Oh and if you care a lot about these people then nothing is stopping you - you can help through charity or maybe directly. It's called benevolence, compassion and is about caring about those less fortunate than yourself.

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Poverty will always exist. Today poverty includes having a TV, car, selection of clothes, video recorder and cellphone. The number one incentive to escape poverty IS poverty, and the state today makes other people pay for the education, healthcare, housing, food, clothing and entertainment of those who are poor.

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Taking money by force for those in poverty has done next to nothing for the last few decades. The key problem is not money, it is poverty of ambition, aspiration and desire to get out of the vile culture trap of acquiescence. Throwing money at the problem has failed miserably to change this, but it has made around 20% of the population dependent on voting Labour. You can't help but wonder if this is far too convenient.

The Great Leader's benevolence will see the proletariat so grateful

How despicably manipulative is it for Helen Clark in the Dominion Post promising "timely relief for families" as if she is Santa Clause, the feudal overlord, the Great Leader or the big chief, from whom all that is good can come.
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It's a bit simple. Give people their money back Helen. It will mean giving less to those who should be earning it themselves, this includes businesses on corporate welfare, artists, and paying people to breed. It means your government itself actually cutting back like people and families are.
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Then you might be able to do the three steps that will make a bit of a difference:
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1. Cut GST to 10%. Hardly a huge step, but it will help and help those on the bottom the most.
2. Introduce an income tax free threshold of at least $10,000. Amazing what that will do, allowing people to start earning money from their jobs or businesses without you rifling through their pockets.
3. Cut all other rates by 2%. It's not much, but it will make a difference to people.
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Of course you'd have less to spend on other things, but then - so does everyone at the moment. No reason why you should be different.

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UPDATE: John Key has, of course, suggested canning the proposed regional fuel taxes. An excellent idea. There is already remarkably high amounts of spending on roads, and far too much on public transport. Previous National Party policy was that increasing fuel taxes wasn't the right way to get more money to spend on roads, maybe there IS hope?

What government is all about

Yep, I'm not the first to point this out. I first saw it on the Have I Got News For You TV show on BBC TV, and it is also discussed in the Times today with libertarian writer Daniel Finkelstein's blog.
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British taxpayers paid London branding agency FHD to come up with this logo for the Office of Government Commerce. Of course you need to look at it horizontally to see how it was meant to be read. As Finkelstein quotes:
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"A spokesman for the OGC said (I kid you not) this:

We concluded that the effect was generic to the particular combination of the letters 'OGC' - and is not inappropriate to an organisation that's looking to have a firm grip on government spend."

The people who think they know how best to spend your money use it to pay for this - it's beautiful.

Joyless bureaucrats regulating fun

Picture the scene. It is the sunny Kapiti Coast. Families have taken a break for the day or the weekend from their working week or school, to enjoy themselves. Some choose to go to the great family experience of the local miniature railway. The kids like the ride, it's good clean fun. Anzac Day after all is a day when, for the morning, shops are required to close to pay respects for those whose lives were lost at war. However, the work doesn't stop for the eager Labour Department bureaucrat. With the clipboard, cellphone and the eager enthusiasm of someone whose sole purpose is to stop people doing things, one was working that day - yes on Anzac Day - and found the Kapiti Miniature Railway operating, allegedly against the law!
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Half a dozen people were on one of these trains. Trains mind you that don't get a dollar of government subsidy, they are operated by volunteers, people ride it for the purpose of fun, but no... Mr Bureaucrat ordered the railway to shut down.
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Was it unsafe? No, there was no evidence that it was. Given the railway reportedly carries hundreds of people every weekend, the public seem to be satisfied. The joyless petty little man, who produces nothing, shut it down because "the club had not paid its registration under the Fairground and Amusement Devices Regulation Act".
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He couldn't wait could he? He couldn't hand the notice to the club President and threaten its closure. No, far more self satisfying to shut down an outfit run and funded by volunteers, and enjoyed by the public. Having got himself off in the only way such bureaucrats can, he can go home wipe himself off, and think about what a good little cog in the wheel of Nanny State he is.
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The Labour Department spokesman (somehow it's always petty little men who are inadequately endowed who seem most comfortable acting like former East German bureaucrats) said "Amusements are required to be registered and, as part of that, they have to be able to prove it can be operated safely."
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Of course the law does say that. Heaven help you engage in unregistered amusements!

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I can hear it now. "What if something happened"? Like what? The train derailed? Some kid ran in front of a train? A kid ran out onto the road? Yes that's what. The purpose of this law is to deal with fairground attractions, to avoid dodgy little men who make a living from driving around the country with rusty equipment throwing kids around with their dated rides (and frankly most look like they've been around since i was a kid). There may be better ways of doing this, but I wont go into it much here (think private property rights, rights to sue, strict liability for accidents attributable to equipment failure)

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Some of the greatest dangers today are in areas that the state doesn't get too involved in. Kids cross roads all the time, and they are unfenced and their activities are not supervised. Most accidents happen in the home, and there are no home safety inspectors checking if nothing will burn, hit you on the head, trip you up or the like. I don't doubt that poorly endowed Labour Department inspectors will have thought of the merits of this idea. Of course it doesn't help that ACC does away with civil liability for personal injury by accident, or even grant higher or lower premiums for bad or good behaviour.

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However nothing better exemplifies the joyless bullshit of Nanny State that this little man, on Anzac Day, shutting down a miniature railway while little kids are having fun. No MP betters represents him that Sue Kedgley - the high priestess of Nanny State.

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Of course Nanny State can't work without the vile little humourless onanists who haven't the ounce of humanity to let kids enjoy a miniature railway ride on a nice day. I bet he thought he was doing them good, I bet he thought the (largely) elderly men who proudly built and maintained the railway were themselves beneath him. Nothing like ruining a day for kids and the elderly is there?

Rainbow presents the London Mayoral debate

It's far more interesting than the real three.