Disability News Round Up By John Pring - Week Beginning 14/11/2011

11/15/2011 10:14:00 am BenefitScroungingScum 2 Comments


·         A disabled woman and her husband who have been found dead in their house had spoken publicly of their struggle to obtain the benefits they needed to survive.

·         MPs have accused the government of “pandering to the Daily Mail” over the issue of incapacity benefit reform, after it published a misleading press release about the results of its “fitness for work” tests.

·         A disabled peer has accused her own government of behaving like a dishonest insurance company over its treatment of hundreds of thousands of people currently claiming out-of-work disability benefits.

·         An investigation by young disabled campaigners has raised new fears of a shortage of accessible hotel rooms when thousands of disabled visitors descend on London for the 2012 Paralympics.

·         A disabled film-maker’s award-winning video installation about the killing of hundreds of thousands of disabled people in Nazi Germany has had to end its run in Gloucester Cathedral, after a vital piece of equipment was stolen.

·         Reform of incapacity benefits is set to “impoverish vast numbers of households” and “cause untold distress in countless more”, a new research report has warned.

·         Police, prosecutors and magistrates have won praise for using hate crime legislation to increase the sentence imposed on a hairdresser who shaved an offensive word into the hair of a man with learning difficulties.

For links to the full stories, please visit Disability News Service

2 comments:

Emer Grey said...

I thought this show sounded worth watching, although I haven't actually seen it - I keep meaning to find it online. There was another interesting article on the Guardian in which they did a screening of Top Boy for a group of kids from Hackney and got their opinions on how realistic it was, which was what piqued my interest!

Achelois said...

Thankyou for taking the time when I know EDS takes such a toll I am sure posting this used up valuable spoons.

I feel constantly guilty not using my blog, time in my life to help the cause. I am wracked with guilt on it and that is the truth. I only said this once before but on a dear dear bloggers blog who has severe POTS along with other serious conditions in Australia but that was a secret sort of confession because my guess is that only one person I know of in the UK reads her blog as well. Ok I have said it. I am feeling so selfish yet I am polaxed by the whole attack on 'us lot' it overwhelms me, an avid Radio 4 listener even they sadly miss out relevant demonstrations,appearing to be on the daily mails bandwagon on the reporting of misleading benefit statistics (NB I don't give that paper capitals by way of small personal protest despite the grammatical error screaming at me); on the News which has me livid at the inanimate object in the corner which used to be my friend. To give You and Yours but even the You & Yours team have been perhaps guilty of emphasising on occasion misleading benefit statistics only occassionally touching on the real issues of hardship etc experienced across the UK, and In Touch which is a good example of informed radio. One of the few which still provides transcripts which used to be so readily available on the BBC website generally! http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qxwwone

And here I am going on about me again instead of doing as you do which is putting the bigger picture before yourself. I admitted on said blog above that all of it I think is why I have bloggers block, I just feel to *&^%^&*% guilty and worried about the possibility of my indefinite award of dla being taken to post anything much of sense then feeling guilty if I post of my personal woes. My only claim to independence to be able to pay pay pay even a little towards the bloody heating bill which due to my complete inability to control my core temperature cos of the EDS means its astronomical, a small example of the extra cost of disability, when my poor husband works tirelessly but nevertheless on a realtively low income which means he is burdened with the 'whole' financial responsibility, along with the worry of caring for a wife, daughter with EDS and a son with epilepsy whilst he also has epilepsy himself. So wracked with guilt & worry & bombarbed on all fronts with hate crime towards fellow disabled people plus the Political Climate of targetting those who are the most vulnerable in society I am selfishly not coping. I don't even know if my indefinite dla award will be renewed because telling the truth to ATOS is like wading in treacle, fearing greatly the implementation of PIPS due to the extra stress it will create, feeling I must prove yet again that I have an incurable deteriorating condition to inadequately trained ATOS doctors using a not fit for purpose criteria as is slowly being reported for assessment. Believe me thats the short version of my list of personal anxieties!

I just hope you are feeling better because you know me I make myself ill worrying about you making yourself ill because you give so of yourself. You know me along with my other attributes of selfishness and guilt I also harbour over thinking which contributes to anxiety! So in essence I would be worrying anyway about something....
So a genuine heartfelt thank you for posts like these keeping me informed. Despite my head in the sand performance of late due to anxiety and EDS overwhelming me and my daughter who is suffering severe health problems due to her EDS right now and me being completely overwhelmed by the receession and all its many faceted implications worldwide.

Well there it is my public confession of guilt. Thank you for the platform to comment.

How are YOU my friend?
xoxoxox