As was first reported on Waatea 5th Estate 4 months ago, the Ministry of Social Development spies on beneficiaries using Facebook.
Now let’s be clear what is going on here.
Because the Ministry of Social Development has a sexist and anti-women moralistic position that being in a relationship with someone automatically means you should get less, they trawl social media to find evidence that beneficiaries are in a ‘relationship’ and when the Ministry feels it has evidence, they then charge the beneficiary with welfare fraud.
It’s a despicable and shocking extension of the State forcing their sexist ideas and morality onto women.
60% of solo mothers on welfare owe WINZ money for this so called ‘fraud’. That means these people are locked into a debt cycle forever with WINZ for the ‘crime’ of being in a relationship!!!
This is Orwellian, we should not have a Government Department that is actively creeping into our bedrooms to sniff the underwear to determine if we are having a relationship.
Also remember, there is no clear cut formula that determines a relationship, no number of nights that equates to a relationship, it’s just up to the nosey staff members discretion.
This is the very kind of example we need to have a political revolution against, these so called public services have become vicious extensions of the State and do nothing but cause grief to those it is supposed to be concerned with.
WINZ, CYFs, Corrections, Probation, Housing NZ, the Ministry of Social Development – all of them are the problem, not the solution. We need a new means of reigning these departments in and forcing them to act in the interests of those they serve, not the petty bigotry of talkback.
With reference to your last sentence , they are serving in the interests of their employers because they are on renewable contracts. We must change that if they are to serve the public. Trouble is we have to get rid of neoliberalism first.
100% Garibaldi,
How to get rid of neoliberal’s?
By another Global economic crash, they are now setting us up for.
Then watch those cockroaches scamper under the cracks in the plaster.
The crash of 2016 is about to hit us, as now the patient (central banks) are now immune to ‘negative interest rates’ and there are now no tools left for them to play with!
Brace yourself.
These pathetic creatures manning these departments are nothing more than duplicates of the Milgram experiment.
That is what the ‘ do nothing deliberately’ govt of John Key is all about. And has been since 2008.
The only sector they do anything for are the offshore giant corporations and dodgy so called ‘ businesses’ that use NZ as a tax haven.
As for the actual people who live in New Zealand – they are to be treated with contempt and as playthings to be used to enrich the already mega rich.
However , after 2017 they will no longer be heard off – and Key will slink off quietly due to ‘family reasons’.
You can only bully a population for so long before there is an uprising, – and they can thank their lucky stars that this is New Zealand by that comment and we do things by the vote – not the gun.
Bring on 2017 and the Labour / Green MOU.
Clearly one should avoid mentioning ‘relationships’ on-line or even avoid going on-line at all if your suspect you might be vulnerable.
Or just don’t use FarceBook at all. Just do a web search for “Stallman” and “FaceBook” for a long list of carefully referenced reasons to start a mass exodus into alternatives.
Back to the core problem, do Labour or the Greens make any promises to change WINZ policy to that of the IRD, where each person only has to be accountable for their own income? Or even better, to create a guaranteed basic income so all this expensive, stingy means-testing can be done away with?
Well Mr Orchard, you are encouraging beneficiary people to be dishonest and defraud consumers and taxpayers of taxpayer and borrowed money. No wonder the country is in such terrible shape with burgeoning debt.
The biggest “fraudsters” are super-annuitants who claim they have paid taxes their whole lives and expect to be nannyed by the state for the rest of their lives. Obviously most super-annuitants have houses, money, families to support them and Universal Superannuation. Once Winston leaves the scene, or joins the “right ” coalition block after the next election, then this HUGE drain on the public purse will need to be dealt with and eliminated. After all – what is Kiwsaver for?
Even Martin Bradbury agrees that the baby boomers have too much, implying that they have caused, or been party to others not having enough.
The biggest fraudsters are in fact, those who are supposed to govern us. I know many super-annuitants, and most of them have small jobs to: A/ give them something to do; and B/ Help make ends meet.
You want to talk about the HUGE drain on the public purse?
What about the flag referendum?
What about WINZ workers getting paid a bonus for everyone they kick off a benefit, or somehow ‘provide’ a job for?
And, what about the big companies who are making millions in the so-called ‘resthome’ business? That money comes out of the public purse.
Or what about one or two Kiwi companies, that are actually owned by trusts, thus do not have to pay taxes, while keeping their employees wages at a minimum?
From the way you present your viewpoint, you are probably one of them.
Well, From the Right Bank – those same superannuitants are STILL paying taxes. GST on everything. Huge amounts on petrol for roads most of them will never use. Every last cent of interest made on savings.
Most will have very little use for Winston’s Gold Card – because they don’t live in towns/cities and their local stores are not part of the scheme.
What on earth do you think they do with their pathetic income? Stash it overseas? Burn it so it cannot go another round? Bury it in a flower pot? C’mon! THINK!
It gets spent. Or extorted by councils, utilities, Our Wonderful Medical Profession and others who forget (if they ever knew) that these same Big Spender superannuitants get $355 a week and pay at the same rates for power, water, housing, as the Good and Blessed on their $45k+ Usually with no top ups. Or look after the grand kids for free.
KiwiSaver…Mate!!!! It only started this century. The last time it was tried a band of dancing Cossacks skipped across the TV screens and wrecked the super scheme. This present bunch of wotevs have been starving the scheme since 2008. It is ever thus. Or changing the terms and conditions. That’s par for the course.
Just you wait: you think you’re all right with your prudence – and just as soon as you’re plump enough – a bigger fish will get you. Pratfall at a date to be determined. Guaranteed. :-))
It’s EVIL, invasive, discriminatory, and shows why our overlords need to be removed.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/206f3528-e393-11e5-a09b-1f8b0d268c39.html#axzz4Gnq652oK
March 6, 2016 7:28 pm
Bank for International Settlements warns of negative rates risk
Claire Jones — Frankfurt
Negative interest rates risk backfiring the longer and more deeply central banks in Europe and Japan venture into this unconventional monetary policy, economists from the Bank for International Settlements have warned.
The caution over one of the most important experiments in monetary policy’s history comes before the European Central Bank’s meeting on March 10. Markets expect the ECB to push its deposit rate deeper into negative territory — lowering it 10 basis points to minus 0.4 per cent — to help stave off the threat of deflation.
IN Global Economy
World Bank draws fire with rule changes
BoJ plays for time with weak stimulus
ECB official allays cash hoarding fears
Italy finance minister rejects banks bail-in
Policy makers view negative rates as part of their strategy to raise worringly low inflation. But the strategy is attracting criticism from other central banks, who say they are engaging in deliberate and short-sighted attempts to weaken currencies. Financial investors are also critical, arguing that banks are having to foot too much of the bill for the experiment.
Meanwhile, tax dodgers owe the IRD $6 billion.
Per year.
It’s about time the government started monitoring Facebook. There is so much anti-ACT, anti-National, anti-MaoriParty and ani-UnitedFuture sentiment there on FB (Facebook).
If you want to get rid of a party, or a coalition, vote at the elections, don’t whinge about it on social media.
If it stops thieves and social welfare cheats as well, all the better. And anyway, benefits are meant to be used for feeding families and paying bills not pfaffing about on the internet.
Do you know that WINZ actually advocate for beneficiaries having smartphones and accessing their services via the internet. Therefore WINZ obviously see the benefit covering an internet connection.
Are they free Apps? Or User-Pays apps?
From those right bank?
The one percent bank?
And keep your money hidden in a shell company that is all just speculation funds or credit swaps?
How much productivity did this speculation hedge funding make for our future?
Do you believe in “trickle down economics?”
How long do we have to wait for the trickle down, or to keep on believing these lies?
Neo liberals BBBBRRRRRRR where’s the gallows?
Hangman, hangman, hold it a little while,
I think I see my friends coming, Riding many a mile.
Friends, did you get some silver?
Did you get a little gold?
What did you bring me, my dear friends, To keep me from the Gallows Pole?
What did you bring me to keep me from the Gallows Pole?
I couldn’t get no silver, I couldn’t get no gold,
You know that we’re too damn poor to keep you from the Gallows Pole.
Hangman, hangman, hold it a little while,
I think I see my brother coming, riding many a mile.
Brother, did you get me some silver?
Did you get a little gold?
What did you bring me, my brother, to keep me from the Gallows Pole?
Brother, I brought you some silver, yah
I brought a little gold, I brought a little of everything
To keep you from the Gallows Pole.
Yes, I brought you to keep you from the Gallows Pole.
Hangman, hangman, turn your head awhile,
I think I see my sister coming, riding many a mile, mile, mile, mile.
Sister, I implore you, take him by the hand,
Take him to some shady bower, save me from the wrath of this man,
Please take him, save me from the wrath of this mad man.
Hangman, hangman, upon your face a smile,
Tell me that I’m free to ride,
Ride for many a mile, mile, mile.
Oh, yes, you got a fine sister, She warmed my blood from cold,
She brought my blood to boiling hot, To keep you from the Gallows Pole, Pole, Pole, Pole, yeah, yeah
Your brother brought me silver, Your sister warmed my soul,
But now I laugh and pull so hard And see you swinging on the Gallows Pole, yah
But now I laugh and pull so hard And see you swinging on the Gallows Pole, Pole, Pole
Swingin’ on the Gallows Pole! [x3]
Swingin’ on the Gallows Pole, Pole, Pole, Pole, Pole, Pole, Pole, yeah
Good one, Einstein. They should monitor facebook because of dissent? You realize you’re openly advocating for totalitarianism as practiced by the Stasi, don’t you? Christ, in your next breath you probably wax lyrical about democracy.
I state I’m
Married on FB ( well I am legally) yet I have been single living without him since 2008 and he has new partner so good luck MSD and WINZ
It’s crazy – the DPB is for the kids – it should not make a difference if the parent is in a relationship, only if the relationship has PROVEN financial gains for the DPB recipient.
A lot of the time the relationships are actually are preying on the DPB recipient for income – not the other way around.
And if the purpose of the DPB is to get the recipient off welfare, maybe allowing them to enter into a new relationship might help that goal?
Was deeply shocked by the episode that had the women sent to jail and taken away from her young children over a man who claimed they were in a relationship. It was unbelievable. What about her children!!!!! Disgusting!!!!
I used to enjoy your comments and agreed with many. However you carp on about the ‘problems’ as you perceive them but offer nothing as an alternative. It is getting old.
For example this article goes on about Work and Income (which is part of MSD but not all of it) singling out women and sexist treatment. I agree with you that using Facebook in this way is pretty much scraping the bottom of the barrel and somewhat dispicable. But if someone is on the DPB or whatever it is called now, the rules are clearly stated when one accepts this support. This is not new. In fact, for those who collect this support and ARE in a supportive relationship, then it IS fraud.
Like you I am far from happy about the way MSD are doing their job but you need to place the blame where it really lies – with this crony government and the National party philosphy which drives reform in the social sector. The philosphy which drives this is neoliberalism which needs to be more openly critiqued for the flawed and damaging approach that it is. A great start in this critique is an articel published in the Guardian recently.
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/apr/15/neoliberalism-ideology-problem-george-monbiot
Despite my criticism I am very happy that you are part of a growing critical voice rallying against the orthodoxy of neoliberalism – keep it up!
This shouldn’t be any real surprise? Its text book right-wing ideology which is associated to the current Capitalistic, (non intervention) Free Market philosophy policy in Housing that this government is playing-out. Simple solution. Vote’em out at the next election. Now, if your not actively searching for work whilst in receipt of a Benefit/JobSeeker. You are not counted as unemployed! Blinglish’s account programmes kicking in here to fiddle the numbers.
That is just a step away from trolling.
That’s why the political right like it so much, it comes naturally to them.
“these so called public services have become vicious extensions of the State”
No. They are extensions of a vicious state. There is a huge difference.
Bloody disgusting and so wrong on so many levels.
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