this is perfectly normal in France you will not get past reception without some sort of proof of payment....
Great Britain is a mongrel nation...it has been since before the Romans came and made the roads straight. ...we're witnessing the very same process that has gone on continually since time immemorial....people move to find a better life. If a Bulgarian is prepared to up sticks, leave his home, family and friends and seek work, against the odds, in a foreign country, then I wish them well...they've shown more gumption that a lot of the feckless individuals, born on British shores Go to any pet rescue centre....the brightest breeds are a bit of everything....it's what makes Britain great....
Perhaps a different way of looking at it is this - Yahoo, Ebay and Google were all founded by first generation immigrants into America in the last 20 years. These, along with others, now employ approximately 10 of America's workforce*. Over here, there is EasyJet and less public but hugely important companies like ARM Holdings (they make the chips in your smart phone) - and these are first generation immigrants, not 2nd or 3rd generation. In America immigrants are twice as likely to start a new business than those born there. Our issues are far more 'home grown' than the immigration I think. *I appreciate that if you go back far enough, all American's (apart from native American) were immigrants at some point.
I also think that it's very easy to be blinkered regarding our recent history...plenty of folk trot out the old platitude about our grandfather's fighting in the trenches for democracy, justice and a better way of life...so did millions of others, from all over the world...in time, the distinction between victors and vanquished becomes blurred. Supposing a German, or an Italian, or a Japanese person were to migrate to Britain to seek work....do we hold anything against them? Probably not...if that person was struggling to find work, would be begrudge them receiving some form of state benefit? Possibly....it depends on your own opinion of who is 'deserving'. I for one hold with the view that the democracy and justice, hard won by our predecessors, was one by which individuals are valued for who they are, and for how they may contribute to society, regardless of where they were born. This is the crux of the argument....individuals are being castigated and ear-marked as scroungers, benefit tourists and criminals on the grounds of their nationality...Himmler and Goering did a great job of convincing the ordinary folk of Germany, that the plight of their nation would be vastly improved were they rid of 'certain types'....so who did my grandad fight against? Here's an anecdotal story....I lived for a while in a very mixed community....all creeds, colours, races and religions...it was traditional terraced housing that used to house the workers at three big spinning mills....typical Bolton. There was a spate of vandalism where local youths would set wheelie bins alight and shove them against peoples back yard gates....one morning some knobs had gone along the back streets of two entire terraces and emptied every single wheelie bin, including the recycling stuff....that's about 400 metres and a foot deep of pure sh*te...everywhere....people were standing around gnashing their teeth and moaning about the state of the nation....someone should 'phone the Police....someone should 'phone the Council...Four Polish lads turned up in a van to pick up my nextdoor neighbour who worked with them....they got out, had a look down the street, laughed and swore a lot, then grabbed some spades from the back of the van and started clearing up. The Asian guy who ran the shop got a load of bin bags and we set about cleaning it up...another Pakistani lady brought us some food, and my neighbour's Lithuanian girlfriend made us brews...of all the people who's bins were knocked over only three of them pitched in...others stood around watching for ten minutes or so then disappered...The Polish lads who showed the initiative didn't even live there! The point I'm trying to make is this....some people have a sense of community, some are more altruistic than others, some see an issue and have the wherewithal to deal with it, even if they have nothing to gain personally....this has nothing whatsoever to do with with which country you are born in, what you do for a living or whether you are rich or poor....it has everything to do with being a human being, understanding that we're all different, but essentially the same, and having respect for others...any government, organization, group or individual intent on discouraging this understanding should be ashamed. I think @Top Banana Racing summed it up in another thread when he said it all depends on your education and how you're brought up. Right now, the media are 'educating' people in the UK to distrust and resent Romanians, Bulgarians and 'foreigners' in general.....get a grip! If you hold with this view, then you need to question your values IMHO...
Too many people in this country sitting around waiting for a well paid cushy job to be handed to them. Most of them will have a long wait.
Probably because the jobs have gone to India/China or in my case Italy! We were told that we could move to Italy at our own expence but on arriving at work for our first day we would be turned away from the gate because there wouldn't be any vacancies for us! There's a nice employer for you eh? (Swiss company, American decision) Is it any wonder the Brits are getting tired of Johny Foriegner? As the original post shows, some of them are only coming over here to rape the state systems or to rob, steal and generally live a parsitic life.
Could someone tell me why that apparently if you wish to stay and work in Spain in excess of 3 months you have to become a citizen, this includes speaking Spanish, information recently received from a friends father who has gone to stay there. Is this part of the open market but only if it suits us.
I've edited the quote to save space, but of the whole passage... can I just point out that your whole post is one of the most rational things I've read about this whole scenario... Good effort. And as for the original post - acc. to the BBC, the photo was 'mocked up'. The bus is a local service and some people tracked down from it admitted to being 'encouraged' to participate, I believe one claimed to have been paid but a couple of others denied that.
What percentage of the people who arrive from other countries 'rape the system' or come here solely to commit crime? Any statistics on this?
So your job's gone to Italy and that's because some eastern europeans have come over here to rob steal and cheat the system. If all the jobs are being out-sourced to poorer countries, then why are people from poorer countries coming here to work? Surely they should wait at home and the work will come to them.
Please don't try and make it look like I said something that I didn't. My job going to Italy was an example of good paying jobs drying up. The jobs are going to poorer countries because corporate tax and wages are much lower than the UK. Eastern Europeans are coming here because for example they can get £150 per week picking strawberries or £150 a month back home with no NHS, tax credits, child benefit, housing benefit, etc etc. My job went to Italy because some Yank worked out that it would save the company $28,000.000 (yes million) which works out as 4 tanks of Flu vaccine which, when you work it out, came to about a week and a halfs extra work. Did you not see' The Truth abut Immigration' on BBC2 last night? Even the immigrants living here are worried about the possible mass influx of new immigrants that are on their way, so it's not just native Brits that are worried. http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b03phwk5/The_Truth_About_Immigration/
No I didn't see the programme I don't watch tv. Americans are ruthless when it comes to work/money. I worked in an office with no windows once for a yank company. Someone had worked out that people waste less time if there aren't windows. I'm sorry about your job. It sounds as if you're in the right sector for another good job though, good luck.
I dont normally comment on stuff like this as I'm not as eloquent as some of you so I feel my post may be misconstrued, however. I've been in the construction game for thirty odd years and have felt the effect of migrant workers, work became very hard to come by at one time due to an influx of foreign workers, prices were dropped to such a low that once tax and fares were taken out there was bugger all left in the pot , none of this was reflected in the price of the end product needless to say. These guys from abroad were/are living ten / twelve to a house so rent and poll tax was minimal while us blokes supporting families were struggling to cover mortgage / rent. The big companies took advantage of the cheap labour and we all thought it would bite them on the arse at a later date because there was some shoddy unskilled work going on but of course this never happened. Some of these guys couldnt understand a word of english which is not a good thing on site, not just when you were trying to converse normally but they were unable to understand the basic concept of site safety and working together. There was little integration because of the resentment wedge being driven between us. As the years went by of course things settled down, some of the guys went home some stayed but for some of the local guys the damage had been done, monetary problems leading to marriage problems etc. Now in all fairness a lot of the migrants that stayed here have settled and some of them I have worked with have been great, some not so but I can say the same about some Brits. I suppose I have sent home equal numbers of Brits and foreigner for being rubbish if I have been running a job. These feelings from the initial waves still run high with a lot of people and they are probably concerned about the same thing happening all over, personally I dont think it will be as bad but corporate greed will be the boss of that. Anyway thats my tuppence a'penny worth and it hasnt answered anything.
Tomato growers in Spain moved their production to Morocco when the previous Spanish Government started to clamp down on the illegal migrant workers they employed. It was about revenue collection, not human rights & exploitation which was rife. The Spaniards wouldn't pick our tomatoes & cucumbers, far too demeaning & the big bosses with their massive stashes of cash Euro's couldn't have cared less. Morocco offered financial incentives. "Build your greenhouse factories here & we'll pay you. Only when you leave, you can't take the kit with you". Oh, & it was primarily our supermarkets in Northern Europe who were driving the prices. Corporate greed...don't let's start!
