I'm late to this, so sorry if I interrupt anything. My Jack Origin Story is that I thought she was a stinking fraud the second I heard of her. That's because I was a (genuinely) single parent of a child the same age, at the same time, with no help from friends or fam. But we didn't huddle on a bare mattress because I got income support (I didn't have to look for work until my child 5, and that's another story) and had nothing worth selling coz I'd always been poor and even so, I didn't need to sell light bulbs and toys for pennies because I also got HOUSING BENEFIT. Why didn't Jack? Did she have too much in the bank? If so, why starve?
We had enough to eat. I did an OU degree for free (life changing) during this time then won a scholarship to do an MRes. It wasn't easy, especially when the bairn went to school and I was battling the job centre (again, another story, and actually the hardest part of my pov).
Anyway, I came from nowt and am now okay. I've been as poor as Jack, still use charity shops, still don't drive, still can't afford holidays but can afford an annual camp out with friends. You make the best of your lot.
I know that now it's much harder to live on benefits (I work for a homeless charity) and much more desperate. But I can not and never will understand the song and dance that Jack has made about being in income support with housing benefit 10 years ago. The people who enable this performance are insulting the dignity, intelligence, resourcefulness and cheer of people who have genuinely lived on benefits. And as I said, things have changed a lot in ten years. What Jack's doing now , and what the blue ticks and The Food Program are promoting will actually harm people now (in my opinion).
ETA: sorry so long! Feel free to skip, it's all me me me
We had enough to eat. I did an OU degree for free (life changing) during this time then won a scholarship to do an MRes. It wasn't easy, especially when the bairn went to school and I was battling the job centre (again, another story, and actually the hardest part of my pov).
Anyway, I came from nowt and am now okay. I've been as poor as Jack, still use charity shops, still don't drive, still can't afford holidays but can afford an annual camp out with friends. You make the best of your lot.
I know that now it's much harder to live on benefits (I work for a homeless charity) and much more desperate. But I can not and never will understand the song and dance that Jack has made about being in income support with housing benefit 10 years ago. The people who enable this performance are insulting the dignity, intelligence, resourcefulness and cheer of people who have genuinely lived on benefits. And as I said, things have changed a lot in ten years. What Jack's doing now , and what the blue ticks and The Food Program are promoting will actually harm people now (in my opinion).
ETA: sorry so long! Feel free to skip, it's all me me me
