Most Popular Choices
Become a Premium Member Would you like to know how many people have visited this page? Or how reputable the author is? Simply sign up for a Advocate premium membership and you'll automatically see this data on every article. Plus a lot more, too.


SHARE More Sharing

Winston Smith

Facebook page url on login Profile not filled in       Twitter page url on login Profile not filled in       Linkedin page url on login Profile not filled in       Instagram page url on login Profile not filled in

                 

Volunteer a little time and make a big difference

Become a Fan
Become a Fan.
You'll get emails whenever I post articles on OpEdNews

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.

OpEdNews Member for 1009 week(s) and 3 day(s)

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

Most Popular Articles in the Last 2 Weeks (by Page Views)

Get out now.

Declare "Mission Accomplished" again.

Who is left to kill?

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

W needed a boogey-man and invented one.

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

Obama has to be more aggressive and the time to start is now!

Currently the war criminals are shaping the argument.

Dear red staters the GOP is playing blood-stained politics with our military.

Why did we all hate Palin?

Holier than thou!

Both the Democrats and the 4th estate are culpable.

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

What type of military strategy is needed in Afghanistan?

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

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

Petraeus expects to be withdrawing our troops in 6 months!

These are not isolated incidents of W's minions running amok.

Tit for tat has to end with Keating 5.

Attacking the innocent is an inherent GOP trait.

Nameless US official and Iraqi freedom fighter agree that the evil is caused by W.

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

Gates Hues to the Company Line

McCain is either nuts or stupid-maybe both!

Underneath his chest full of medals Petraeus was wearing a communication device!

Bush planned the economic crisis for partisan GOP gain.

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

It is Obama's war and his tactics are criminal and making us less safe!

War is peace and also votes.

By the way, you sorry excuse for a president your policies are reprehensible!

"Stick to principle"--The top 1% all of the time!

W can declare "Mission Accomplished" about his lying!

Everyone hates the US because of W's illegal Iraq war.

We're all fearful, but we need hope!

Dithering!

Bush ruined our foreign policy so completely that how can success be achieved?

Did you hear the lie that "the surge" is working?

W assumes it's his ball and he can go home anytime he wants.

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

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

The hatred chokes away any attempts at reason.

Stonewalling to the bitter end!

"Cheney still in crosshairs of Senate Intelligence probe" ?

What is the Huckster-in-Chief Obama Selling?

He could have built oil fields on the moon.

Obama faltered by interfering with criminal proceedings against war criminals

The US has to prosecute W for war crimes.

Simultaneously 'With us' and 'against us'

Start the phased withdrawal from Iraq!

Big Bro 43's "meaning of is" perjury or obstruction of justice

Popularity Navigation
Control Panel:

Time; Last: 6 hrs
12 hrs
1 Day
2 Days
3 Days
7 Days
14 Days
1 Month
2 Months
One Year
All Time
  Help


Content Articles
Events
Life/Arts
Podcasts
Series
Sci/Tech
All
  Help


Popularity Page Views
# of Comments
All Ratings
  Help

Tell A Friend