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| Welfare - truly a sacred cow | |
Sex is fun. Most of us don't need to be paid to have sex. In fact some of us
are even willing to pay for it. But responsible sex involves consideration and
preparation, and the government has spent millions of our money educating us
about rubber bags, creams, and little pills to prevent unwanted outcomes - like
pregnancy. On the other hand it also gives millions of dollars to women who are too
stupid to take the pill. Apparently everyone likes the idea of receiving
welfare. The idea of getting someone else's money for doing nothing (or doing
something which you wanted to do anyway) is truly blessed. Unfortunately, he
who pays the piper also calls the tune and the blessed (those judged worthy of
receiving money stolen from other tax-payers) have to pay a price. The blessed
must spend other people's hard-earned money in a blessed way. And some of the
intellectual elite are concerned that the lump-sum baby bonus might be
squandered - ie spent on things which they don't approve of, such as drugs,
alcohol, gambling or just having a good time The thought that people who are irresponsible enough to have a child
without the financial means to support it might also be irresponsible enough to
squander other people's money never occurred to the true
pregnant-women-are-blessed believers, who have been demanding greater subsidies
for single welfare-mums for decades. But now the ALP's Wayne Swan is quoted on the ABC as saying "It is simply
irresponsible to be making lump sum payments across the board." So should we really be subsidizing women who are too irresponsible to spend
their $3000 sensibly? Yes, are told - the government's Kay (counting-the-votes)
Patterson insists that 'parents and new mothers are best placed to decide how
to spend the money'. But apparently the people who actually created the wealth are not. But this raises the more serious question of whether we should even be
encouraging these women to breed. Yes! Apparently even stupid irresponsible
women breeding is necessary 'for the common good' - it's in our own interests
whether we know it or not. As Paul Keating pointed out in his maiden speech in
parliament many years ago - "After all, the best migrant is the infant
Australian". Hmm .. Government regulation has often been criticized as being a too blunt a tool to
achieve the desired aims. But not too blunt a tool, it seems, to impregnate
Australian women.
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