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Winston Smith

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Winston Smith is an ex-Social Worker. I worked in child welfare, and in medical settings and in homeless settings. In the later our facility was geared as a permanent address for people to apply for welfare. Once they received that we could send them to facilities in which their welfare paid the bill and provided enough for a meager existence. We also referred people to vocational rehabilitation services. Many of the people who came to us were people who were clearly emotionally ill, but Reagan's slashing of the services for these people caused them to become homeless. One woman I dealt with-St. Jane, believed she was in direct communication with God, urinated freely without using the facilities and she had 47 bags of trash which were prized possessions. She got welfare and was sent to a facility were she could survive. The rule was that our facility could be used 1 time only as we had too many people who thought that the services that we provided we would lift them from the dire straights that they were in. Well, we provided our services for St. Jane around Thanksgiving. On Christmas Eve she was back with her 47 bags of trash and wanted to stay at our facility. I informed my superior of this situation, but we declined to provide services for St. Jane. She slept in front of our facility in a snowstorm. The local rag took the picture and excoriated us for what we did. The local welfare department asked her where she would like to live. St. Jane said Chicago because she liked the wind. She knew on one there. She and her 47 bags of trash of were carted onto a train for the windy city and never of again. The local welfare department was glad to get shed of her. Social welfare in the mid-1980's was geared to blame the victim. Ill people were sent home from hospitals were no one was going to help them because social welfare budgets were slashed by Reagan. Bush 41's â"thousand points of lightâ" was just another way to shaft the weakest in our society. Bush 43's faith based initiative was just another attempt to reduce social welfare services. Reagan's â"Just say Noâ" was the pinnacle of hypocrisy. No services for those who desperately needed them under the guise of tough love.

Obviously I became burnt out by too much indifference regarding our weak and weary. I couldn't look at desperate people and could not get myself to say that what I could offer them wouldn't really help themâ"”it would only get them out of my office to be another person's problem, until the local welfare department carted them away.

I had little interest in politics until the illegal Iraq War started. Growing up in the 1960's caused me to understand that the GOP used war to attract right-wing extremists to vote for them. When â"Tricky Dick'sâ" secret plan to end the Vietnam War unfolded into elongating our presence there for 8 years I knew that I would never believe a GOP war-monger again. I dislike Obama's plan to escalate our presence in Afghanistan and see it as a craven attempt to placate the GOP. Maybe he'll reduce the GOP's attacks against him, but it will at the expense of alienating his base.

OpEd News Member for 953 week(s) and 3 day(s)

160 Articles, 17 Quick Links, 49 Comments, 5 Diaries, 0 Polls

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No rules for W's government.

All big bro 43 has said are lies.

"That's been going on, in the name of all of us."

W needed a boogey-man and invented one.

Which US citizens are fighting against "truth and justice"!

US soldiers are dying for what reason?

W is willing to compromise, but only to advance his goals.

Bush, with criminal intent, planned the economic crisis for partisan GOP gain.

Soon Senior GOP Senators are going to tell W off.

It is always the same.

If it can happen to Yoo it will happen to you Dick Cheney

War is peace and also votes.

GOP emptiness.

W has failed the Democracies of both the US and Middle East.

The GOP is trying their ages old ploy of terrifying the US.

W is flipping us off.

W's history of "Low Expectations".

Bush planned the economic crisis for partisan GOP gain.

All against each other.

Terrorism thrives in lawless areas

What happens to US credibility if Spain finds them guilty and we don't?

You did it to Abu Zubaida!

What He Said and What his Policies are Understandably Don't Match.

What type of military strategy is needed in Afghanistan?

Why is Obama protecting 43?

It hasn't changed.

Why not state the plain facts about the genocide in Iraq?

Why did we all hate Palin?

Stonewalling to the bitter end!

What is there to trust?

Gates Hues to the Company Line

Where are the "16 words" in this State of Union?

Heartless W!

Simultaneously 'With us' and 'against us'

W is the Who's "Tommy".

The GOP doesn't care about policies just votes.

Accessories after the fact.

You lost! Stop the hypocritical legal defenses and destroying the US government.

Meet the new boss--Same as the old boss.

They are lying about their failure!

Currently the war criminals are shaping the argument.

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing."

They can't protect the capital while the other cities' security plummets.

US military must fight with their hands tied.

Typical war-mongering, hypocritical, GOP model.

Currently the war criminals are shaping the argument.

Bush nightmare land-the US!

You need the "1984" code book to realize that W dreams the bottom 99% would aspire only to a futureless life.

Once again the forces of the dark side are exposed.

"Cheney still in crosshairs of Senate Intelligence probe" –

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