Cutting It: 'Big Society' and the new austerity

[kepplescolumn]

Big Society = COMMUNITARIANISM Go look it up.

Also known as 'The Third Way' in Tony Blair's days in office.

[TheRacistsMustDie]

@kepplescolumn So?

[decenthypocrite]

people seem to have a bizarre desire to make life harder for themselves and for others, when our abundant technnology should be making our lives easier, i dont get it at all.

[alanmillwall]

so many idiots got get paid for doing hardly any work public sector jobs under labour this big society thing is a good idea to cover the gaps left by the 1s getting the same money as the others that do no work ie the unemployed. the 1st speaker said about cherishing multiculturism. Well let me tell you that people that live in the middle of multiculturism hate it. The 2nd speaker was better of in his job as a vet on emmerdale farm.

[CameronsContrick]

I am sick of all these middle class toss-pots 'discussing' topics - such as The Big Society - as if they were running things.

I didn't elect ANY of you bunch of 'interlectuals', so f*** off and go and do some charity work.

[ukpropaganda]

Another bunch of UNELECTED middle class busybody do-gooders.

Never mind 'think-tanks', what about politicians asking the people who elected them, i.e. US?

You will also find that Big Society is connected to the 'Common Purpose' organisation.

[FakePlasticShrimp]

TL:DW

[mog89]

Credits to whoever wrote the second speech. Very compelling even though I don't agree with the ideas being promoted. I'm guessing the writer isn't unfamiliar with conversational hypnosis.

[johnfin4]

Cloud Cuckoo land like Thatchers trickle down theory.

[athrac]

I wish the promoters of Big Society were more honest about the goals. It IS mostly about cuts and reducing the size of the goverment. And there is nothing wrong with that. The amount of public spending in most European countries has reached an unsustainable level, and something needs to be done about it.

But just don't insult us by giving us that bull crap about "cultural change" and "giving power to the citizens". Say things as they are.

[LVanMaren]

You don't create jobs (for janitors, for example) to employ people. As long as people expect someone else (especially the state) to create a job they can do, then we are screwed and will end up with a fascist system.

People don't exist to support the state. The state constantly forgets this. People in a free society need the state to be small and enough freedom to learn skills and find work.

[eotto2001]

In the US, this explains why the social agencies are being consolidated and smaller ones starved out for funds. It explains why the big corporations are making efforts to be on all the charity and social service boards. It explains why Bush II kept talking about volunteerism. Thanks for the post. [Jointy either needs to join Toastmasters, take a public speaking class, or take Ritalin.]

[lurkio77]

Ha Ha Ha tories talking about society ! - Maggie T will be bouncing off the walls of her padded cell

[MarkoKraguljac]

Seems as an excuse for dumping responsibilities that people in Real power really dont care about on confused crowd. Tackling and taming out of control corporate state must be a first priority. Then think about society models when times get better before they get even worse again. I am not from UK so I am probably ignorant on this issue. Do people in UK really bite this?

[AnonymousScreenOgler]

Jonty Olliff-Cooper works for A4e. A4e have been siphoning money from the public coffers for years. They were involved the labour governments back to work scheme. They get paid £100 per client per week by the government to do practically nothing. Their only expenses on these schemes are supervisors of whom only one is required per 15 clients. A4e made a cool 40 mill for its creator Emma Harrison. This is a scam.

[seks03]

what is that red flower he is wearing I have seen a lot of positions wearing it, people in Canada, US...

[RefugeeT]

@seks03 - 'poppies ' are worn to commemorate those who died in war. peace & love brother

[MENJAGVETJUINTE]

@seks03 A red rose is the internationally recognized symbol of the social democrats.

[bbb695]

@seks03 It’s a Poppy, the symbol of the royal British legion, a charity that looks after veterans and their families, they run an annual campaign called The Poppy Appeal.

[pokeralho2008]

Big Society is just an euphemism for "the citizens must somehow sort out the problems that occur as collateral as a consequence of a small elite going about their business of creating the conditions in society to increase their wealth". Ex: the stockholders of Company X wish to increase their profits and can choose between investing in technological progress or press the society to decrease their taxes. If a "Big Society" is in place its so much easy to choose the 2nd option.

[agentm83]

@pokeralho2008 Exactly! Just another excuse for implementing Conservative ideals.

[pokeralho2008]

Jonty Olliff-Cooper 10 mins talk sounded like pure waste of time. He basically told us about his opinion on Cameron (how well intentioned he is, etc.) and flew over all the details and problems identified by Anna Coote. And to top it all, he still had time to hint vaguely at how the Internet could help the Big Society idea. Well, on this account he is right. Thanks to the Internet is now very easy to compare and identify the kind of superficial argumentation he presented. What a waste of time...

[BBthzPrisonerOfWar]

He wants to suck David's cock.

[thernr]

Big Society is just meaningless code word for not having reliable and stable help to those who need it most.

[rockjockcanada]

Seeing the monumental divide between the salaries of government employees and those in the private sector, governments are only interested in serving their own interests before anyone else. It should never be so overwhelming that there is no mechanism to scale back its power and influence.

[CurtHowland]

the incentives of govt bureaucracy vs. voluntary cooperation are opposite.

A voluntary organization benefits most by getting the biggest bang for their buck.

A govt bureaucracy benefits most by getting the biggest bucks for what little bang they deliver.

[colourmegone]

The truth is that charity does nothing well. Charity is like a sticking plaster on a limb amputation, it hardly slows the bleeding. The welfare state came into being because it served needs that charity was unable or unwilling to cope with. Since most charity is linked closely to religion, which has its own agenda, the idea of "caring and sharing" through charity and volunteerism can have strings attached that make the problems of the welfare state look miniscule.

[bluefootedpig]

@colourmegone I must disagree. Charities like kiva, and the gates foundation do great things to help the world out.

And what welfare wasn't already done by charity? Medical? unemployment? Hunger? shelter? all taken care of by charities.

Welfare came about in my opinion of people pointing at the rich and saying, "life isn't fair because you aren't there, so take them down to your level." but the truth is, life isn't fair.

I am for charities that fix problems, not bandage them fyi.

[colourmegone]

@bluefootedpig The Gates Foundation, among other "charitable" endeavors, funds The Discovery Foundation which is dedicated to spreading the doctrine of "intelligent design".

I have seen charity in action and it fails. If charity were effective Africa have the best, education, health and social welfare provision on earth. I don't disparage charity completely, it's better than nothing, but it is powerless to address the root causes of our problems.

[bluefootedpig]

@colourmegone Well, lets look at a few places. Thailand, one of the most dramatic drops in AIDs infections. Malaria, several countries since the charity has started have been fixed. And even if they spread the doctrine of "intelligent design" does it matter if they are doing good? Would you rather have a country in poverty and war but atheist?

And I don't doubt you have seen that, some charities do fail, but many also succeed.

[colourmegone]

@bluefootedpig They may make a small difference in a few countries but the only truly effective provider of public services is government.

I reiterate Africa, which has been in receipt of massive charitable provision since at least the 19th century, should now have the best health care, education and social provision on earth. The utter failure of charity to address the root causes of Africa's poverty and ignorance makes it the sticking plaster on the bleeding stump.

[bluefootedpig]

@colourmegone Well lets actually look at it. How is most charity money given to africa countries? through their governments by our government. So the real waste appears to be in the government. And I would even more disagree that public services through government is the way to make changes. That just gives more control, that is why we have waste. In order to do something good, you have to go through the government, and pay the overhead of it. That is where your sink hole is. cont...

[colourmegone]

This is the same, tired litany of those who want to eliminate the provision of public services. It's the Thatcherite/Reaganite whine about paying taxes. Of course taxes for the wealthy and powerful will inevitably decrease, those for most people, such as yourself, will increase. You will longer and harder to keep fewer and fewer in luxury. The next attack will be state funded education.

[colourmegone]

@bluefootedpig Most charity money is given to Africa by religious charities to "spread the word of the Lord". Governments have nothing to do with the distribution of charity money, unless it's the government of the recipient country. There follows from this child abuse and murder under the name of "exorcism", the killing of "witches", homosexuals etc. The money is wasted but not by our governments.

[bluefootedpig]

@colourmegone Also, many African governments are in civil war because we forced fighting tribes to be one country, again that was government intervention for the better of humanity. If you look at the African countries that have accepted our aid, without the corruption of the government, they are doing amazing compared to the other countries. Watch the TED on Africa's population, you see that there are areas in Africa that are thriving.