The Welfare State

One of the major drawbacks of the welfare state is that it permits the existence of people who refuse to work even though they are not handicapped in any way. Apart from not contributing to the National Income by not providing goods or services, which in itself is bad enough, they bleed money from the nation in the form of various amenities, such as hospitals and schools.

No conscientious person can condone the behaviour of these parasites, depriving other people as they do of what is theirs by right - their education and health. They take all they want from the state and contribute absolutely nothing. They are the leeches of society, slowly sucking away our life-giving blood until, when all the blood is gone, we are left lifeless to founder on the rocks of international competition, and fade away to eventual extinction.

In order to survive as a nation we must do all within our power to defeat this menace while we can, and eliminate it before it is too late. The few people who claim to disagree with this do so only because they have a vested interest in maintaining this condition, and it is up to the rest of us to save the community from such a perilous disease. But, although it is generally not difficult to recognise one of these parasites, they have remained almost entirely unnoticed in one particular case, even to the extent that respectable people defend them. This notable institution extorts at present nearly half a million pounds every year from the taxpayer, and is even complaining that this huge sum is not enough. They live in decadently ostentatious surroundings, incur massive payroll bills with their multitudes of servants, and amuse themselves by joyriding around the world - all this at the nation's expense. As if this was not enough, they even assume that they play a vital role in the government of the country, and that they are doing us a service by going on expensive foreign tours. If we are to make - and keep - this nation prosperous: if we are to erase from our society the decadence of former times; if we are to provide a better future for our children, we must destroy this institution.

M R Walsh


| "Essays" Index | 1970 Magazine Index | HOME |