Point number 2 I agree with, it's high time that some of these young and not so young get off their butts and find work instead of pulling on the welfare string, Before everyone starts chucking rocks, there are a lot of people out there who openly will tell anyone who will listen that why should they work when the they are getting almost as much on welfare as they would if they went to work, plus all the perks that go along with the welfare card.

I agree with your point Deanna .I think any young fit person should be made to work for their unemployment benefits a minimum of 30 hours a week this work could be maintaining public parks and gardens and school gardens, helping in nursing homes for the disabled and aged care even helping out old aged pensioners in their gardens or cleaning windows etc , this would teach them to value the money given to them ,and give them more incentive to actualy go out and get a real job.If they dont show up at designated place for work they dont get any money simpleWobbly

It makes nonsense on the people we do see confinded to a wheel chair or on walking aids who are actually working and glad to be part of the community. I have lived surrounded at one time by welfare consumers - took 8 years to onsell the house - most on disability and not one actually disabled enough not to do some sort of work - this Wobbley was in Kingston having been sold a house in the public housing area - bit of an eye opener to us I can tell you. I have arthritis and walk badly with a stick but most of those living around me walk straight and not using any stick - bad backs and one woman able to mow on the cusp of a hill without any problem - one our house shared and I couldnt even walk up it without someone pulling me up! Next door the guy walked into Hobart daily down the outlet 16K's of a freeway with his dog and back lived in a 2 storey town house and was unable to work as a painter because he couldnt climb a ladder - but hung out of his upstairs windows ran up and down them happily and laughed at those who work. Another bloke qualfied engineer who had worked all his life until losing his job at 60 due to closure of the business and put on disability in 1995 because he was born with bad feet. He was annoyed to be shunted off. Another friend who really was disabled and unable to work was given 19 point and needed 20 to get on disability and CES then were offering her jobs picking apples !!! Mad world we live in. One time the pension was called an Invalid Pension and the people on it were in fact just that, invalids unable to work but like all left wing moves it got called disability and that change of word changed the whole thing. Back to Invalid for those who cannot work and sickness benefit for those who have slight disability but can work I reckon - get pharmaceutical but same money as dole so incentive to go find a job etc. and checked every 6 months to see if still needing the sickness allowance. Another bloke had a stiff neck due to having done some SES work but not sick enough not to attend Targa every year and put his bets on daily - also garden and grow veggies without any problems with digging etc - I guess thousands out there glad to get the same money as the Age Pension and also one big advantage their partner gets it too regardless of age but age pension partners get the dole until they qualify themselves! These anomolies caused by alterations by series of governments and they all want to put them onto one payment! Meaning pensioners on age who have paid their income taxes to get their pensions are going to lose out as they lower it to be sure not spending too much on all the rest.
Then the continual whining of the ACOSS and other ageing organisations who supposedly represent the elderly all on board with dole money too low at $34 a day when the married rate of the Age Pension as well as disability is $36 a day and dole for marrieds without kids $30 a day.
No one seems to care that these people are being discriminated against now do they? They are but white so don't count I guess. Too apathetic to bother to complain it is not the money so much as the principle that marriage whom all parties say they have as a value is discriminated against when 2 people consume more than one on all counts except the sharing of a roof which can be addressed far better than it is and rates for singles too addressed because these are harder to pay if one lives alone. No one cares though enough to even talk about it - except me and I see the problems every time I go volunteer to help. Young single women with kids do so much better but spend more on crap as no idea how to budget. And demand more. Why are our generation so complacent? Or apathetic? or all of the above!