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I just watched it, and it was a little depressing. It also really makes you have a second look at your own first world problems.

There is a definitely more that the government could do, but as an individual, how can we help ? All I can currently think of is local charities which could provide extra curricular activities, training, etc, however this wouldn't be a an isolated case, so in general, who can suggest ways that we can make a difference ?
 
demiser said:
I just watched it, and it was a little depressing. It also really makes you have a second look at your own first world problems.

There is a definitely more that the government could do, but as an individual, how can we help ? All I can currently think of is local charities which could provide extra curricular activities, training, etc, however this wouldn't be a an isolated case, so in general, who can suggest ways that we can make a difference ?
Click to expand...

These parents are dysfunctional or a not very intelligent I guess you'd have to say, you cant stop them having children but the Govt should find some sort of work for them to keep their minds active at least, surely the Govt could find something they could do, for a small wage.
I fell so sorry for the kids, it's just shocking.
 
demiser said:
I just watched it, and it was a little depressing. It also really makes you have a second look at your own first world problems.

There is a definitely more that the government could do, but as an individual, how can we help ? All I can currently think of is local charities which could provide extra curricular activities, training, etc, however this wouldn't be a an isolated case, so in general, who can suggest ways that we can make a difference ?
Click to expand...

So they should be dependant on local charities while this is happening :confused:

The Gillard Government has given over $10 million of our taxes to the Islamic cause. Hard to believe? Here are just a few recipients:

The Islamic Council of QLD.
The Islamic Council of Victoria.
The Lebanese Muslim Association.
Victorian Arabic Social Services.
The Federation of Ethnic Communities.
Australian Somali Federation.
Forum on Australia Islamic relations, and 18 other cells including Islamic University Groups.

A curiously included donation was one to Gillard’s favourite football club and a $45,000 curtain enabling Islamic women to bathe in the Monash Council Pool.
 
Good for 4 Corners for tackling this depressing subject. Most telling was the kid who was asked if he intended to get a job when he grew up. He seemed doubtful and thought perhaps he'd rather just stay home.
Then the bloke who couldn't read or write but didn't think it was that much of a problem.

It's hard for us to relate to, I guess.

For some years I tutored in adult literacy, mostly people in their 30's and 40s who had experienced itinerant childhoods and never learned to read and write. Most were hugely embarrassed and anxious about it, and did well with the help, eventually gaining the confidence to apply for jobs, some to actually get a job.

Then there were the others who had been referred by Centrelink but who had no real interest in changing anything.
One was a bikie who was happy to come as long as it was on a Monday. All other days, however, were out because they were drinking days.

Much of this entrenched disadvantage is now becoming multi-generational with an attitude of entitlement and no sense of taking responsibility. Hard to see it changing, sadly.
 
the Govt should find some sort of work for them to keep their minds active at least, surely the Govt could find something they could do, for a small wage.
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I'm in two minds about this. Watching the report I felt sad for the kids, not so much for the parents. In most of the cases neither parent worked, but even if they did, would any money be used for what it should be ?

There was one household where the daughter didn't have a lightbulb in her bedroom due to the cost of electricity, yet kids had smart phones, the dad living the the garage had what looked like a macbook, and the other house had a plasma in the lounge and tv's in the bedrooms.

So they should be dependant on local charities while this is happening
Click to expand...
I definitely don't think that they should be dependant on local charities, and as mentioned above, I feel any sort of handouts or otherwise would be throwing money away, or taken advantage of fairly quickly.

Trying to expand on what I was actually thinking (it helps when you write these things down), was more so a long the lines of activities to keep the kids busy, or help encourage them to stay in school, etc. Any sort of additional skills or training would surely help, though i'm not sure how you'd approach it when you have kids saying they don't want to work, or that 'if dad just apologised for bashing mum it would all be better'.
 
Putting lots of people with similar problems together is a big problem. You need to spread them out so that the kids can be exposed to a diversity of possibilities. It’s hard enough to choose a different path than what you experience as you grow up, when you have limited resources, but impossible if you don’t comprehend there is another way.

The second problem these kids face is the reality that Australia is not a meritocracy – Who your parents are and their resources effect so many aspects of what your opportunities will be. Start by at least putting education on an equal footing. [Attendance at a public school full of kids from dysfunctional families is not the same opportunity as attending an exclusive private school].
 
craft said:
Putting lots of people with similar problems together is a big problem. You need to spread them out so that the kids can be exposed to a diversity of possibilities. It’s hard enough to choose a different path than what you experience as you grow up, when you have limited resources, but impossible if you don’t comprehend there is another way.

The second problem these kids face is the reality that Australia is not a meritocracy – Who your parents are and their resources effect so many aspects of what your opportunities will be. Start by at least putting education on an equal footing. [Attendance at a public school full of kids from dysfunctional families is not the same opportunity as attending an exclusive private school].
Click to expand...

They're pulling that estate down to create a mix of private housing and Govt assisted homes.
Those kids have no chance, their teeth are rotten, they have no clothes or good roll models, they will feel worthless as they grow up and meet others from the "outside" then they'll turn to drugs and alcohol, they have been taught to fail.
 
demiser said:
I'm in two minds about this. Watching the report I felt sad for the kids, not so much for the parents. In most of the cases neither parent worked, but even if they did, would any money be used for what it should be ?

There was one household where the daughter didn't have a lightbulb in her bedroom due to the cost of electricity, yet kids had smart phones, the dad living the the garage had what looked like a macbook, and the other house had a plasma in the lounge and tv's in the bedrooms.


I definitely don't think that they should be dependant on local charities, and as mentioned above, I feel any sort of handouts or otherwise would be throwing money away, or taken advantage of fairly quickly.

Trying to expand on what I was actually thinking (it helps when you write these things down), was more so a long the lines of activities to keep the kids busy, or help encourage them to stay in school, etc. Any sort of additional skills or training would surely help, though i'm not sure how you'd approach it when you have kids saying they don't want to work, or that 'if dad just apologised for bashing mum it would all be better'.
Click to expand...

I'm not so hard on them , it seems the parents cant cope, they have been beought up the same as they are bringing up their kids........tragic.
 
I saw it, yes it was bad, but if any of you was to work in the NT you would have seen the same thing a 100 times worse with OUR native people. The first thing the govement should do is STOP paying people to have unwanted baby's.. Did you see the car one of them was driving???, mag wheels, low profile tyres, vents in the hood, no matter what we do, we will all ways have no hopes, that will live on the tax you and I pay.::banghead::banghead:G
 
MrBurns said:
The little girl who couldnt have the light on at night because it used electricity got to me, just heartbreaking.
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Well, that was just so silly. If she had the light on in her room for a couple of hours each night, how much would that cost? Almost nothing.
It's a matter of priorities and lack of any basic budgeting skills.

There was in the program, I think, a woman featured who had a couple of kids of her own and then had taken on the care of those of a relative. She seemed genuinely good hearted and pretty sensible.
But, before your heart bleeds too much, Mr Burns, consider that your taxes are paying someone in such a position approximately the following, according to the Centrelink website: (I didn't read all the details about eligibility.)

Basic parenting payment about $650 per fortnight
Family Tax benefit A " $200 " " for each child
Family Tax benefit B " $100 " " " " "

So, say there are five children with a single parent, that's about $2150 per fortnight and the family would also be eligible for rent assistance, pharmaceutical allowance and various other allowances.

So to suggest they are too poor for a kid to have a light in her room is ridiculous.

I recall asking one young woman, about to produce her fifth baby, how she planned to use the baby bonus which then was paid in a lump sum of I think about $4000. She was going to spend the lot on taking the kids to one of the theme parks on the Gold Coast.
 
Agree Julia.
I didnt watch the show, but I think its sad to see/hear stories like this, especially when we live in a country with so much opportunity.
If they are unwell, then thats a different story.
 
Tink said:
Agree Julia.
I didnt watch the show, but I think its sad to see/hear stories like this, especially when we live in a country with so much opportunity.
If they are unwell, then thats a different story.
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Thats just it Tink they are unwell, they've been dragged up in horrid circunstances or are backward and cant compete in the real world.
Why else would they live in those circumstances.
 
craft said:
Putting lots of people with similar problems together is a big problem. You need to spread them out so that the kids can be exposed to a diversity of possibilities. It’s hard enough to choose a different path than what you experience as you grow up, when you have limited resources, but impossible if you don’t comprehend there is another way.

The second problem these kids face is the reality that Australia is not a meritocracy – Who your parents are and their resources effect so many aspects of what your opportunities will be. Start by at least putting education on an equal footing. [Attendance at a public school full of kids from dysfunctional families is not the same opportunity as attending an exclusive private school].
Click to expand...

I just got around to watching the program last night, and I think Craft has hit the nail on the head. I noticed that every house was not only run down, but it seemed obvious that nobody took any pride in the appearance of their yards or their homes. This is symptomatic of the root problem in my view - just as there is little incentive to keep your yard weeded and free of junk and well-presented if the rest of the street resembles a rubbish tip, the kids see wagging school as the norm if that is what every other kid in the neighbourhood does. If a child grows up with parents who don't have jobs, neighbours who don't have jobs, and lives in a suburb where getting by on Centrelink payments is the norm, they will naturally see this as normal and acceptable behaviour. If most girls go from school to the maternity ward this will also be seen as quite a normal and expected path. In other words, kids often mimic the behaviour of the adults they grow up with - so these poor kids are starting life with a handicap. It struck me that most of the kids interviewed had poor self-esteem and a victim mentality, and seemed to expect no more from life than their present circumstances.

If the families in that particular suburb were sprinkled among the general population, and not all lumped together in one "ghetto", then the kids would have better examples around them during their formative years. It's one thing to be told by a well-meaning teacher that you can be whatever you want if you work had enough etc - to some of these kids you may as well tell them they can go to the moon if they jump high enough! There is no substitute for good parenting, but in its absence a good example set by neighbours or the general community would go a long way towards opening these kid's eyes to the possibilities that actually do exist for them. Until there is more integration in housing, the gulf that exists between the poor and middle classes of Australia will continue to widen imo.
 
Just finished watching the segment on CBA and the whole Don Nguyen incident. Makes me think that there has to be an inevitable crash with banks reporting increasing profits each year. It's unsustainable, and you soon reach a level where you're forced to cut corners to reach that target before everything blows up.
 
I didn't watch it through to the end, but - even making allowance for the emotive reporting by the ABC - it was a powerful indictment against the CBA, and no doubt something similar applies to the other big banks.

Once again the case is made for people to educate themselves in a financial sense instead of blindly accepting what some 'qualified person' suggests is best for them.

The tenor of the program also supported the claims of the Storm Financial investors who felt so badly used by the CBA.
 

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