Benefits

Yes I worry.  I've hated the right wing of the Labour Party since they were in power last time under Tony Blair. And their attitude towards social security policy has been one of the main drivers of that for me.  It's best not to worry though as it wont' do your mental health much good. Best to meet each challenge in life on its own terms as it approaches you.

Many of us were still able to apply for and receive benefits even under various Conservative Party administrations.  

Charities are on our side and lobby all governments on our behalf.  

Also what politicians don't tell you is that there aren't millions of jobs for new employees to go into. 

It also suits the interests of capital to have surplus labour as it drives down wages and labour costs.

I think that for political reasons they have to sound tough on people who are perceived to be workshy or gaming the benefits system, whether or not they follow through with action is another matter.

Unfortunately New Labour did follow through with some unpleasant policies also. Which the Conservative Party continued. Such as the Work Capability assessment.  That's why I've always been on the left wing of Labour in order to try and change it.   Unfortunately the party lost elections  under the leadership i  favoured, So now the Blairites are back in charge.

I can be difficult to have these conversations on here as really the only thing that many of us have in common is our Autism.  We don''t necessarily share beliefs or backgrounds or experiences etc.

I don't mask ,not on a conscious  level anyway. I'm not good at processing  body language etc in real time, and making adjustments based on such.

firemonkey said:

I struggle to know what to say.

And I struggle to shut up sometimes. We have more in common than we realise.

Thank you for the acknowledgement - no apology needed and I hope we can continue to discuss / debate spiritedly for a long time to come.

I will try to be more sensitive where I can detect it is needed though - I'm a bit of a bull in a china shop sometimes.

Iain said:

It is most likely linked to my own issues of self worth where I try to be useful to justify my existance through being useful.

Firstly I'm the one who should apologise,not you. I can fully understand the need to prove self worth  through being useful. For me it comes via nearly 20 years of participating in the World community grid and over 25 years of spreading information via the many RSS feeds I'm subscribed to. I'm not, and never will be, good at providing emotional support. I struggle to know what to say.

firemonkey said:

I just wish the patronising 'helpful advice' from you and others,would stop.

Do you mean just the advice aimed at you or all the advice on the site?

When you wrote:

firemonkey said:

I do my best to make worthwhile contributions.

I was trying to be supporting and acknowledge out differences to encourage you to keep doing this.

I apologise if you are offended by this. Please remember that I too am autistic and have my failings, one of which is a degree of emotional blindness that causes me to misread the unspoken "ask" in a conversation and can lead me to be overly "helpful".

It is most likely linked to my own issues of self worth where I try to be useful to justify my existance through being useful.

However this is my own cross to bare.

If you are talking about advice on the site in general then that is a hard no from me. A lot of people come here desperate and in need of advice and were I have something I believe is of use to them I will contribute to ease their suffering and improve their lives.

In these cases I think the annoyance of one individual is a price worth paying to help another.

I just wish the patronising 'helpful advice' from you and others,would stop. I may be lots of not very good things, but being mentally deficient isn't one of them.

It is certainly not the case that most Autistics live high powered lives.  Or most neurotypicals for that matter.

The internet can make you feel like everyone is deliriously happy. But it's an illusion.  People mask don't forget. Socialisation is an interesting thing.  The Auties who are better at surviving amongst NT's will have lived their lives taking on many Neurotypical characteristics without even realising it.  And it has just become personality now.

I don't tend to mask at all. Especially online.  Which puts me in a state of perpetual debate with others.  It's exhausting

firemonkey said:

I do my best to make worthwhile contributions.

Just make contributions - try not to judge their worth.

Whatever your perspective, interest or style of writing it is always welcome as it helps us understand one another better.

We sometimes don't agree on things but I always smile to see your response as it means we are engaging in a discussion about something that is important to someone and that is how we ultimately find balance in the world.

I do my best to make worthwhile contributions.

I do my best to make worthwhile contributions.

firemonkey said:

I struggle to know what to say.

And I struggle to shut up sometimes. We have more in common than we realise.

Thank you for the acknowledgement - no apology needed and I hope we can continue to discuss / debate spiritedly for a long time to come.

I will try to be more sensitive where I can detect it is needed though - I'm a bit of a bull in a china shop sometimes.

Iain said:

It is most likely linked to my own issues of self worth where I try to be useful to justify my existance through being useful.

Firstly I'm the one who should apologise,not you. I can fully understand the need to prove self worth  through being useful. For me it comes via nearly 20 years of participating in the World community grid and over 25 years of spreading information via the many RSS feeds I'm subscribed to. I'm not, and never will be, good at providing emotional support. I struggle to know what to say.

firemonkey said:

I just wish the patronising 'helpful advice' from you and others,would stop.

Do you mean just the advice aimed at you or all the advice on the site?

When you wrote:

firemonkey said:

I do my best to make worthwhile contributions.

I was trying to be supporting and acknowledge out differences to encourage you to keep doing this.

I apologise if you are offended by this. Please remember that I too am autistic and have my failings, one of which is a degree of emotional blindness that causes me to misread the unspoken "ask" in a conversation and can lead me to be overly "helpful".

It is most likely linked to my own issues of self worth where I try to be useful to justify my existance through being useful.

However this is my own cross to bare.

If you are talking about advice on the site in general then that is a hard no from me. A lot of people come here desperate and in need of advice and were I have something I believe is of use to them I will contribute to ease their suffering and improve their lives.

In these cases I think the annoyance of one individual is a price worth paying to help another.

I just wish the patronising 'helpful advice' from you and others,would stop. I may be lots of not very good things, but being mentally deficient isn't one of them.

firemonkey said:

I do my best to make worthwhile contributions.

Just make contributions - try not to judge their worth.

Whatever your perspective, interest or style of writing it is always welcome as it helps us understand one another better.

We sometimes don't agree on things but I always smile to see your response as it means we are engaging in a discussion about something that is important to someone and that is how we ultimately find balance in the world.