THE NATION’S VOICE
Iwas 14 when I first joined the St Vincent De Paul. Each Saturday our ‘conference’ used to visit Brú Chaoimhín, an old folks’ home in the Coombe in Dublin. We would dispense cigarettes, plug tobacco – know, how times have changed – and bits and bobs to the residents. This Saturday afternoon visit became the highlight of my week and, in truth, I probably got more from it than the residents who, in turn, loved the conversation.
I was reminded of this during the week when I spoke to James, who has been an active member of the St Vincent de Paul for a remarkable 54 years. So James has been visiting the poor since the early 1960s, a time of great poverty in Ireland.
But unbelievably, James is of the view that the current recession is worse than anything he has ever seen.
He vividly told of a visit he made to a family this week during which both young parents broke down crying as a result of the latest blow to their lives. Their car had been repossessed earlier that day – and their family home is now on the line.
Like many self-employed families they are entitled to no social welfare as of right, and in truth they get nothing from the State.
While James accepted that in real terms we are all better off today than in 1960, when he started his charity work, he says the psychological distress being endured by many is noticeable.
After five years of recession, seven austerity budgets – and apparently with at least two more to go and little prospect of a letup until 2020 – it is this grim lack of hope that is casting people even further into distress. The State seems to be oblivious to this depressing horizon – and the fact that the daily grind and absence of light at the end of the tunnel is having a catastrophic effect on people.
Although Revenue and the politicians denied it, I for one firmly believe the notorious November letter from the tax authorities ‘advising’ residents of their 2014 Local Property Tax bill was another devastating and unnecessary blow to families before Christmas.
The powers-that-be say the letter has been vindicated because property owners are paying up early – forgetting that it is simply fear of the draconian penalties and powers of Revenue that sends people
The State seems to be oblivious to suffering: people need a vision, and theyneeditsoonerratherthanlater
scurrying to pay up. The effect on local shops and retailers was devastating. Revenue could easily have held off until January, but no, the state comes first. Forgetting that unless the citizen is placed first, a state can lose its moral authority.
People are tired of austerity and even more demoralised by the constant demand by the State for more, more, more.
Will 2014 see a lift? We are told that it will, economically, but people need a vision, a promise of something better that they can hold onto – and they need it sooner rather than later.