Famous, Rich And Hungry

[sherrardk]

For those that are interested this is just starting on BBC 1.

[emmie]

not sure if it was the same woman who was paying 60 quid a week out of her benefits to a loan shark? or for debts.

[factor-fiction]

>As for those that smoke,and 'shouldn't...do you really think they can take on the added stress of quitting when they've so much other rubbish in their lives to deal with? Smoking may be the only relaxing escape they've got.

One the programme about foodbanks recently someone who couldn't afford food of his own but smoked was asked why he spent his money on cigarettes and he replied the smoking was caused by the stress brought on by benefit cuts.

I suppose unless you smoke you don't know how hard it is to give up. Maybe it is a genuine addiction and we should do even more to stop people starting teh habit

I'd find it hard to give up wine, meals out and holidays to get away from it all, but they all cost me less than smoking and I know I'd have to give them up if I couldn't afford them.

[sherrardk]

It was the same lady. I felt sorry for her but sorrier for the others.

[pastafreak]

I suspect many in similar situations don't know how to 'work the system'...they have no idea what's available,and if they are middle class there is the humiliation/embarrassment factor. Which may explain why that poor man did not tell his kids. Why did only one of the four make use of food banks? Maybe its 'easier' to not eat,rather than 'beg'.

[factor-fiction]

I didn't see tonight's programme but I saw one last week about foodbanks and it struck me that so many people live close to the edge and it just needs one piece of bad luck such as losing a job or having to repay a big loan to cause disaster especially if they had debts and be recovering from drug habits.

[sherrardk]

When we were in the *** food banks weren't so prevalent (I hadn't heard of them). We rang social services asking what we should do and they told us to go to the police and ask for money (would have died of embarrassment although we didn't actually have the money to catch the bus there and it was an 8 or 10 mile walk). In desperation himself rang the social (from a phone box - no home phone (cut off), no mobile (no money)) and asked him to take the kids away (I could have killed him) but they wouldn't (thank god).

[emmie]

getting advice is not playing the system, why would you think that, its going to the likes of the CAB to start off with, they have free advisor's, who can help with debt issues, housing and benefit issues, they are a resource we have to help with problems like theirs.

[pastafreak]

I'd find it hard to give up wine, meals out and holidays to get away from it all, but they all cost me less than smoking and I know I'd have to give them up if I couldn't afford them

Wine,meals out and holidays are not addictions ...your body is not dependant on them.

[pastafreak]

Maybe poor wording on my part,Emmie. What I meant is that many don't know what's available,nor how to access it.

[emmie]

i have been in the situation of almost losing my home, not enough money, work sporadic, debts coming at you, i do know how it works, but sometimes you can't just hide your head and say not me, CAB are very good at sorting out debts, and welfare rights officers can be sought via councils. I remember what it was like staring at the bank machine when it swallowed my debit card, insufficient funds, and thinking how am i going to go on.

[sherrardk]

Emmie, what pasta said. If you find yourself in that situation you can't think straight. You can't see past the here and now, a CAB appointment in a week or so's time just feels too long. It's the hopelessness of the moment, you can't see a way out.

[emmie]

been there, done that.
i do however think that Theo was the most useful and sometime critical of the person he was staying with, whether she listens and takes on board what he had to say, and it was sound advice, won't fall on deaf ears.

[emmie]

you should be able to see the cab on the day, generally its your first port of call in a crisis, if there isn't one nearby that is problematic, but councils are the other port of call, i think some of the cases were symptomatic of head in sand, and feckless blokes who leave women quite literally holding the babies.

[factor-fiction]

Hi pastafreak- I agree smoking is an addiction for some people but I also know many who have had the will power to give up. I'm just glad I was one of those people lucky or wise enough never to be led into the trap of starting smoking- actually I think I was just too careful/tight with my money

[naomi24]

Apart from the man with heavily nicotine-stained fingers who said he couldn’t work because of ill health, but didn’t appear to be receiving sickness benefit, debt seemed to be the real problem – not a lack of income. I found it difficult to muster a great deal of sympathy – and I couldn’t help wondering yet again why people with little income complicate their already difficult lives by having more babies.

[ummmm]

Naomi - maybe I missed a bit of the programme but did it say how long the woman with young kids had been in this situation?

Her life two years ago could have been completely different.

[naomi24]

True - but if she'd suddenly fallen upon hard times, as the man with health problems claimed to have done, I suspect we'd have been told.

[sandyRoe]

I didn't see the programme. Did the rich and famous actually go hungry? Even if they did it would be similar to other TV shows where MPs or wealthy journalists have a taste of life living on the benefit level given to unemployed people. What they can't capture is the despair that can so easily comes with a life led in such circumstances.

[naomi24]

No, they didn't go hungry.

[pastafreak]

I'm rather shocked at the lack of empathy for those in bad situations. Are we all so perfect that we'd never make bad choices that then get out of control? I know these people are not victims of natural disasters or 'acts of god',but not everyone has the same coping mechanisms,nor do we all make the same,'good' choices when life deals difficult situations. Its all well and good saying they should have done this,that and the other. But they didn't...and now they need help.