People realise and acknowledge that the government and media make the lives of disabled people difficult and miserable but what they don't take into consideration that it makes our role as carers equally stressful.
Our role tends to be a firewall, standing between a vicious ideologically driven coalition, the media, and people who have fallen for the anti-disabled propaganda tactics used by all of them.
The Huffington Post is the latest "newspaper" to allow disabled people bashing, but they have included a neat twist on things. Their disability basher is Simon Stevens. He is know to many online campaigners for his vile attacks on people who defend the government's cuts to disability benefits. If you show him proof that someone has taken their own life because of cuts to disability benefits he calls them "Nazis" or "murderers".
He also defends Atos, who almost everyone knows is a government driven disability denying organisation, but he would defend them because he has or is working for them as can be seen here.
I asked the Huffington Post for a right of reply to some of the more disturbing and offensive piece he has done for them. But like the Daily Mail, the Sun etc it seems like the HF only allows people to reply if it suits their 'agenda'.
The Huffington Post defends Simon Stevens right to attack disabled people with impunity.
There is no balance except for when the dull and boring Owen Jones chips in to speak up for people on benefits. But that's the thing, Jones isn't disabled or a carer to my knowledge, so why the hell should he be speaking for us? Carers and disabled people can speak for themselves, it's just that the media aren't listening to anyone that doesn't fit into their neat little boxes.
Huffington Post still won't allow a right of reply to someone that thinks he is the only disabled person worthy of disability benefits and that everyone else is workshy or a scrounger.
Why anyone takes that online rag seriously while it maintains the governments stereotypes is laughable. It has failed disabled people and carers in the same way the government has.
So stop making carers jobs harder by piling the shit Simon Stevens shovels onto the people we care for
Thursday 20 February 2014
Monday 17 February 2014
UK Carers Update
Well the website is back up at our old URL (ukcarers.net) and contrary to what some people are saying I have never "been away".
Even though I having further health problems I have been had interesting contact with Labours Liz Kendal's office, which showed that Labour are still not able or willing to stand up for disabled people and carers. It would have been good if they understood the overlapping benefit rule when it came to Carers Allowance and the state pension, but it seems not.
The Lib Dems Norman Lamb was another of the main parties that won't work in the interests of carers. His siding with the Conservatives over the scrapping of DLA in favour of the cost cutting exercise that is PIP appear to indicate he is more interested in keeping his position rather than defending disabled people and carers.
The Tory response was to be expected.
UKIP surprised me though. They have a disability spokesperson that is disabled, replies to emails herself and takes on-board what people say. She also fights hard on disability issues. I have been very impressed by her even though I told her there is no chance I will be voting at the next election.
There have been other things like reminding various campaigning groups that carers exist, because the likes of the WOW petitions and Spartacus groups didn't mention carers till they were reminded about carers. So much for 'together we are stronger'.
There have been countless reports to the Press Complaints Commission about Daily Mail articles. Freedom of Information Act Requests that showed hardly any people managed to access the governments 'extra room for a stay over carer' payment.
This group http://www.dwpexamination.org/ showed promise when it first started, but it's similar to what UK Carers was doing years ago to be honest.
So yes, I am stepping up what I am doing, I certainly haven't been hiding or lazy, it's just that the game has changed, forums aren't 'productive' anymore, social media has been useful but things change so quickly you have to react as quick as possible.
So that's the start of a new phase. There are still fighters out there which is good to see, but the same old boring people are still trying to do the same old boring things, perhaps- like Carers UK's Gavin McGregor - they will land up with a restraining order on them?
Even though I having further health problems I have been had interesting contact with Labours Liz Kendal's office, which showed that Labour are still not able or willing to stand up for disabled people and carers. It would have been good if they understood the overlapping benefit rule when it came to Carers Allowance and the state pension, but it seems not.
The Lib Dems Norman Lamb was another of the main parties that won't work in the interests of carers. His siding with the Conservatives over the scrapping of DLA in favour of the cost cutting exercise that is PIP appear to indicate he is more interested in keeping his position rather than defending disabled people and carers.
The Tory response was to be expected.
UKIP surprised me though. They have a disability spokesperson that is disabled, replies to emails herself and takes on-board what people say. She also fights hard on disability issues. I have been very impressed by her even though I told her there is no chance I will be voting at the next election.
There have been other things like reminding various campaigning groups that carers exist, because the likes of the WOW petitions and Spartacus groups didn't mention carers till they were reminded about carers. So much for 'together we are stronger'.
There have been countless reports to the Press Complaints Commission about Daily Mail articles. Freedom of Information Act Requests that showed hardly any people managed to access the governments 'extra room for a stay over carer' payment.
This group http://www.dwpexamination.org/ showed promise when it first started, but it's similar to what UK Carers was doing years ago to be honest.
So yes, I am stepping up what I am doing, I certainly haven't been hiding or lazy, it's just that the game has changed, forums aren't 'productive' anymore, social media has been useful but things change so quickly you have to react as quick as possible.
So that's the start of a new phase. There are still fighters out there which is good to see, but the same old boring people are still trying to do the same old boring things, perhaps- like Carers UK's Gavin McGregor - they will land up with a restraining order on them?
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