Major Begs the Question Of
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"poverty will ■ ■ ■ anarchist^fortnightty always exist! Yes, so long as property does.”9f p-j. Proudhon Vol.Freedom 55 No. 12 FIFTY PENCE 11 JUNE 1994 MAJOR BEGS THE QUESTION OF HOMELESSNESS or Mr Major the homeless living in The official figures have shown a “It concludes that ex-service people are Fthe streets and doorways of our monthly decrease, but as everybody more disadvantaged than other homeless cities are ‘offensive* and quite by now must know, the government’s people. Most of those interviewed stayed unnecessary. His vitriolic attack on statistics refer only to those in receipt less than a year in their first the youngsters among the ‘beggars’ is of the dole. Those wage slaves who accommodation after leaving the forces. understandable. After all it was he, More than one-third have never had a have been unemployed for more than settled home after leaving. when Social Securities Minister, who a year no longer exist, even as a About 70% said they had physical or deprived the 16-17 year old statistic! mental health problems. A quarter unemployed school leavers of any With the Labour Party’s Mr Brown suffered from depression or stress-related social security payments unless they declaring that if returned to power Illnesses while a quarter also reported an took part in some kind of training then full employment will be their alcohol-related condition. More than 40% scheme - which anyway could not first priority, we wonder how they had been in prison and 23% in a absorb all the school leavers and intend to achieve these ends (apart psychiatric unit. doesn’t provide jobs for most at the from declaring war) unless they are Even when periods of homelessness end of the ‘training'. Not because they occurred some time after they left the prepared to reduce the working week forces, those interviewed often traced back don’t want to work (okay, some don’t to 30 hours, ban all overtime and their unsettled lifestyle to the ‘culture but the majority do) but for the simple provide material incentives for shock’ of leaving. A significant proportion fact that the jobs are not there. And parents to spend more time with their had care backgrounds or unsettled only an idiot cannot see that the more young children. childhoods before joining up and had no technology is directed towards Major and his gang who reject the family to return to." dispensing with human labour European Union’s Social Chapter, So much for the ‘land fit for heroes’ unemployment must inevitably which puts a limit of 48 hours on the myth! continue to rise. working week (and he accuses the All commentators, other than the European ‘socialists’ of wanting to government’s paid parrots, have no reduce it to 35 hours), are also doubt that homelessness is an China calls Clinton bluff proposing to remove the long-term artificial creation thanks to a whole unemployed from the dole after six series of policies which have resulted months and that all receiving benefit in a shortage of housing, chief BUSINESS IS be directed to jobs for their dole and amongst them the selling off of rented a bit more - an obvious incentive to housing which has not been replaced BUSINESS employers to sack full-time by rented accommodation which employees and take on part-timers (continued on page 2) n spite of all the evidence to show for whom no national insurance, Ithat Beijing’s record on human holiday and other charges apply. rights leaves much to be desired, and in spite of pressures from human o return to Major’s ‘offensive’ BT PROFITS SOAR rights activists, President Clinton Tbeggars who among other things AND ANOTHER 15,000 decided to renew its most favoured are discouraging tourists and FOR THE SACK nation status trading privileges with shoppers from coming and spending the US and no longer Unk them with their money buying useless souvenirs ritish Telecom announced record the human rights issue. and being ripped off anyway, and not Bb pre-tax; profits of £2,760 million Chinese virtually told Mr by the beggars. InThe Independent on for the year to the end of March and Clinton to mind his own business and Sunday (29th May) one learns that: said it would be making a £750 threatened to pass on future “One in four single homeless people has million provision for redundancy alrcraft or<iers to the served in the forces and a high proportion payments to 15,000 employees who ^ v ? nSO? Uin 311(1 not Boeing of them are sleeping rough, according to a would be getting the sack this year. who value business more than study published this week (commissioned The company chairman Sir Iain human rights. After all. China has by Crisis|." Vallance had his £465,000 p.a. salaiy boosted by a £185,000 ‘performance- thefT" past two years.blggest oistomer over The Crisis report’s director forecasts that the number of ex-soldiers on the related bonus’ and will not be getting And another consideration The US streets will grow as the government the sack. Commerce Secretary Ron Brown was implements the 17,000 redundancies Mark you, even the top boys are pointing out that “China is going to be started in 1992 as part of its ‘defence vulnerable these days. For instance, spending US$600 billion on cuts’. the Britton Group is taking over NMC infrastructure projects between now The Crisis report. Falling Out us®s for £121 million which means that and the year 2000. We’d like data from a national study of the Norman Gordon, chief executive of American companies to participate." single homeless actually comm^sstonfld NMC, will be redundant, but his We bet you would! Long live by the Deportment of the Environment pay-off is £2,200,000 which should k eep the wolf from the door. _____ _ hypocrisy! lastyear . — I ftI EDITORIAL COMMENTS **ax* 2 he art market is proof, if needed, that there So long as there are the poor, the sick, the disabled, the homeless and has either the will or the power to dispossess Tis plenty of cash around but in the wrong the unemployed in a society where a growing minority can flaunt their the rich. At most there could be a bands. Recently at the Serpentine Gallery a wealth while governments cut back on benefits, the social services, redistribution of wealth by taxation. In the last dead sheep preserved in a glass tank of fifteen years of Tory government there is no formaldehyde was sold for £25,000. A poster housing and education, we anarchists say it’s ... escaping the fact, as Jean Corston the Labour ‘Keep London Going’ by Man Ray for MP for Bristol East, was able to ascertain from London Transport was auctioned at Christie’s the government’s own statistics, that: last month for £26,000. A Matisse cut-out THE RICH WHO “... the poorest 10% of families with children are (when he could no longer paint he cut out £9 a week worse off than they were fifteen years shapes from coloured paper and glued them ago - while the top 10% are £250 a week better off.” into semi-abstract designs) was auctioned at Sotheby’s for a record £9,300,000 last ARE ‘OFFENSIVE’ One of Major’s arguments is that the 16-17 November. The London National Gallery paid year old school leavers should go on living £3,570,000 for a painting by the French with their parents - again showing a complete painter David. The last complete copy of ignorance of the real life problems of the poor William Blake’s Jerusalem in private hands and the unemployed families, which the rich was sold at Christie’s for £617,500 to “an don’t experience since they get rid of their anonymous telephone bidder”! And so on and children by sending them to £12,000 a year so on. But that’s not all. boarding schools. Ridiculous things such as Charlie Chaplin’s We cannot resist referring to a recent court trademark bowler hat and cane were sold for case where the rich reveal themselves in their £55,000 to “an anonymous British collector'’. true colours. David Cocks, a millionaire QC The former newspaper owner Eddie Shah seduced Miss Hammerton who had joined his secured a “1930 4.5 litre supercharged London chambers as his pupil aged 22 in ‘Blower’ Bentley” at a Sotheby auction of 1973. A year-long affair and innocent Felicity ‘classic cars’ for a mere £386,500. And at was with child. He did the honourable thing another Christie’s auction, this time of motor moneywise, but didn’t bother to see his son for car number plates, one “anonymous British the first fourteen years of his life. He is now buyer” paid a record £203,500 for a plate with 18 and more than ever dependent on mummy, simply KINGS on it! The same buyer paid and she is demanding more for her boy. In fact £13,200 for LI ONS and £12,100 for 1 XXX. she is wanting an extra £17,342 a year. After There were other lunatics with more money all, his private education at a London crammer than they knew what to do with at the sale. The costs £11,500 a year! Mr Cocks has offered to named developer of Pine Ridge Gold Centre pay the college fees and £10,000 towards his in Camberley paid £52,800 for a plate with 1 son’s “general care” but disputes “the extent TEE (golfers will appreciate the man’s taste).