UNIVERSAL BENEFIT CUTS

Pensioners could face universal benefit cuts after the next U.K. General Election according to the current Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan-Smith.

Oh dear, Smithy!  How skilfully you turn a small victory into certain defeat!  Now you've gone and put your good old ex-military foot right in it on something else.

Based on their current abysmal performance alongside of the namby pamby Liberals it's most unlikely the Tories will be returned to any form of power for a very long time.  But even assuming the unlikely, (more unlikely now as Pensioners see what the Tories promise) why would anyone in their right political mind threaten to deprive Pensioners of anything !!

"Right you 'orrible, 'orrible lot of old skiving conniving gits. Let's be 'aving your bus passes, winter fuel allowances and TV licence fees - AT THE DOUBLE NOW!"  

Smithy, bullying Pensioners is probably not a good choice.  Bullying - that will be the perception. Who could believe such a thing from you? 

Smithy is alleged to have said "Pensioners need a much longer time if you are going to make changes to their income......They are arguably the most difficult group to make short- term change because.......they can't suddenly say I'll take on more hours of work."  So what are they going to do, Smithy?  How will they replace what you plan to take away? Write blogs and hope someone clicks on the ads? 

We can only guess what evil adviser was behind this proposal.  Maybe working on the assumption that a load of these Pensioners will have snuffed it by the time means testing comes along; and that their replacements won't miss what they never had?

In fairness the fellow has the right idea when it comes to the general need for austerity measures. But to be perceived as knocking Pensioners about is not clever. Probably  a confused hangover from a military past? 

On the other hand, in the right context, why should anything be wrong with a bit of prudent "bullying"? In the hands of a skilled practitioner who knows what might be achieved with some metaphoric water-boarding? 

Could it be the fellow is just in the wrong job? Perhaps, bless him, our Smithy should be given the go-ahead to use strong-arm tactics and get rid of obscenely wasteful Quangos? I'll wager the resultant saving would far outweigh potential Pensioner savings.

Here surely is a man whose integrity is such he would have no qualms if it happened to involve "bullying" one's friends and colleagues?