Not according to The News Of The World yesterday
An Afghan family gets 160K a year benefits but they grumbled they couldn't afford Sky TV.<sup>[1]

[1] www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/news/article43731.ece</sup>

( Enigmatic ™                 Voice No More                  ©, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 11:37, archived)

But she moans the house it too big to heat!
News of the World; Journalism at its best.
( Chestnuts roasting on the oban fire This isn't what I ordered..., Mon 13 Oct 2008, 11:46, archived)

STRING HER THE FUCK UP.

( baldmonkey probably got the parts of Big City Zoo up his bum, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 11:58, archived)

Jesus, I fucking hate stories like that
particularly when they make no effort to even suggest the true facts, such as:

Amount the News of the Screws claim she is getting a week - £13,901
Amount she ACTUALLY gets a week to support seven kids - £333.

slight discrepancy, no?
( the mighty badger like a diabetic dog in a bath full of sugar, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 11:51, archived)

Wasn't it 145k in housing benefit
and about 15k a year to support seven kids, with no other income?

The huge amount is simply to cover the rent on a property that needed to be given to them, for some reason in that posh area.
Bit daft innit.
( Deck The Halls With Boughs Of Holly, Moohalaa laa laaaa, laa laa laa laa, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 11:55, archived)

yep
Isn;t that what I just said? or at least meant, anyway. the housing benefit is fundamentally irrelevant. She doesn't see that money, and it's not her fault councils are hideously mismanaged and just blindly pay a stupid amount of rent.
( the mighty badger like a diabetic dog in a bath full of sugar, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 11:57, archived)

The article goes on about all of the luxuries they have,
like nice furniture that a furnished rented house of that kind is bound to have, as if that helps her survive somehow. "We have no money for food... oh well, at least we have these SILK CUSHIONS".
( Moon Girl Technologies agent of Yahweh, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:09, archived)

It pisses me off more than I can stand.
You should hear the people I work with. They're fuckwits, and frankly this sort of article explains it. They only read this sort of dribble and seem unwilling to actually use their brain.
( We Wish You A Wicca'd Witchmas - with many thanks to MongyChops, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:14, archived)

What gets me is thety actually PUT the true information in there
but surrond it with irrelevant heresay and speculation and OMG outrage.

I mean, the article does actually admit they only get £330 a week (as long as you can do basic maths anyway, which probably rules out most readers) and after going ON and ON about the expensive telly and the furniture, then actually admits it was all there when they moved in. i mean, seriously, why fucking bother? I'm going to go batshit with a chainsaw in their publication offices. And then describe it as a hedgetrimming episode
( the mighty badger like a diabetic dog in a bath full of sugar, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:22, archived)

Can I join in?
Stupid cunts.
( We Wish You A Wicca'd Witchmas - with many thanks to MongyChops, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:23, archived)

And me too.
/really really wants to "go hedgetrimming"
( The Teviot Moose 's cock expands to fill the space available, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:25, archived)

the more the merrier.
Or messier. depends on how well it goes..
( the mighty badger like a diabetic dog in a bath full of sugar, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:26, archived)

I'm actually going to start using "hedgetrimming" at work when I have a bad day.
I think it should be the new "postal".
( The Teviot Moose 's cock expands to fill the space available, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:29, archived)

The bit where the guy says he got the telly "cheap off a friend",
but it's still shock and outrage that they have it. How dare they even have a telly at all, even a second-hand one!

Mind you, those things use a lot of electricity.
( Moon Girl Technologies agent of Yahweh, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:24, archived)

They have a VASE!
With CUT FLOWERS!

Holy shit, they should have piles of B&H and Stella cans!

...but how can they afford even THAT!?

rabble rabble rabble red-top newspaper daily mail rabble rabble!
( Deck The Halls With Boughs Of Holly, Moohalaa laa laaaa, laa laa laa laa, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:15, archived)

It makes me feel sick.
The comments made me very :(
( We Wish You A Wicca'd Witchmas - with many thanks to MongyChops, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:17, archived)

I bet got those cut flowers on benefits that she sponged from taxpayers.
The majority of the comments come from people who've never thought to brighten up their house with flowers, or abhor the thought.
( Deck The Halls With Boughs Of Holly, Moohalaa laa laaaa, laa laa laa laa, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:21, archived)

What folly it is for the woman on benefits to actually tidy her house.

( Moon Girl Technologies agent of Yahweh, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:22, archived)

If she doesn't have a shitpit full of overflowing ashtrays
pizza boxes and empty stella cans, how are we ever to know they are on benefits?
( the mighty badger like a diabetic dog in a bath full of sugar, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:24, archived)

Their benefits are obviously far too high,
if they're not wallowing in self pity. Poor people should be miserable, damn it! It's the natural order.
( Moon Girl Technologies agent of Yahweh, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:26, archived)

It's not like she's trying to support 7 kids on a meagre handout
or make the best of what she's got at the moment.

It doesn't mention that they don't actually spend the money on cheap fags, booze, sitting in the pub all night, a car, holidays, or anything like that.

They may have a huge house, but in cash terms they've got diddly zip, none of it is theirs.
( Deck The Halls With Boughs Of Holly, Moohalaa laa laaaa, laa laa laa laa, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:25, archived)

Oh but she "complained" that she couldn't afford to take her kid to Disneyland.
How dare she complain she can't afford things she can't afford, even though she's been given an implausibly large house she didn't specifically ask for.
( Moon Girl Technologies agent of Yahweh, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:28, archived)

Disneyland!? more like BENEFITSLAND!
I think that shes takin the piss!!!!!!!!!!!
Send dem bak!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
( Deck The Halls With Boughs Of Holly, Moohalaa laa laaaa, laa laa laa laa, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:30, archived)

Silk cushions that should be going to DECENT BRITISH people
How dare they have enough sofas to seat a family of 8?
( the holly and the ivv, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:18, archived)

She's raising herself and 7 kids on 330 quid a week
Rather her than me.
( Flapjack the halls with boughs of holly Fala-lala-laa Lala La Laa, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 11:52, archived)

I don't know how much children cost on average,
but we spend £30-£40 a week on food for the two of us, and we don't get cheap stuff. That usually includes wine as well. You should be able to feed a family of eight easily on £150 a week.
( Moon Girl Technologies agent of Yahweh, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:01, archived)

bills. clothes. transport.
etc
( the mighty badger like a diabetic dog in a bath full of sugar, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:03, archived)

The heating probably accounts for most of it,
especially since they're from the desert and probably like it a bit warmer than most people.
( Moon Girl Technologies agent of Yahweh, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:06, archived)

Actually when you subtract income tax and mortgage and council tax,
we probably live on not far off £330 a week. We spend most of it on booze, though.
( Moon Girl Technologies agent of Yahweh, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:21, archived)

How many is "we".
I'm trying to think through what I spend, and it's alot less than £330pw!
( The Teviot Moose 's cock expands to fill the space available, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:37, archived)

Two.
I don't know where it all goes, to be honest. But a night out can easily cost more than a week's food.
( Moon Girl Technologies agent of Yahweh, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:39, archived)

Afghanistan is largely mountains
it's utterly bitter in the winter. Worse even than Scotland.
( Flapjack the halls with boughs of holly Fala-lala-laa Lala La Laa, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:33, archived)

hmm...
I was trying to make excuses for them there, but I'm all out now. I don't even spend £330 a year on clothes. Transport? If every single one of them needed to use public transport every week day, maybe. But that doesn't seem likely, if none of them have jobs.
( Moon Girl Technologies agent of Yahweh, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:37, archived)

I expect children cost a lot of money though.
School things, trips, money to go out with friends, that sort of thing. New clothes as they do have that terrible habit of growing.
( spangle bells www.dinohoodie.com :3, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:41, archived)

I never got money to go out with friends.
10p for a pick and mix, now and then. They will need clothes, of course, but in the region of a hundred or so pounds a week? That seems a bit much. Especially since there are 8 of them, there's real hand-me-down potential there.

School uniforms can be an arse. One of the other receptionists I used to work with had a 14-year old son in school and she had to get all sorts of stuff. My parents were lucky my school only asked for generic stuff, plus the sew on badge and tie (which would last you the whole five years), but this poor woman had to shell out for specially embroidered school polo shirts and stuff, it's ridiculous really.
Mind you he also used to insist on £100 Nike trainers.
( Moon Girl Technologies agent of Yahweh, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:47, archived)

yeah school uniforms are a pain.
I remember mine were quite pricey, you had to get them from a special shop.
( spangle bells www.dinohoodie.com :3, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:51, archived)

They live in London
Everything costs 330 pounds per week there.

How much would food for eight people cost for a week? Ten years ago I worked on 40/wk for myself, with room for economy of scale and no luxuries you're still over 200 pounds, assuming you're not eating spaghetti hoops on toast every day. Plus shoes, clothes, school uniforms, electric and gas for a big house, transport... like I say, rather her than me.
( Flapjack the halls with boughs of holly Fala-lala-laa Lala La Laa, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:42, archived)

In London I don't know,
but like I say we spend up to about £40 a week on food, and it's not from LiDL. If that's enough for two of us, and would probably serve three or more people with lesser appetites, well for eight adults that should be £160 a week.
( Moon Girl Technologies agent of Yahweh, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:52, archived)

shopping for 2 people, I'd say, would probably come to about £60 a week here.
that's not counting wine and what the Daily Mail etc might call Luxuries.
( spangle bells www.dinohoodie.com :3, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 13:03, archived)

Big bag of rice or pasta - £2
800g of mince - £5
£3 worth of peppers, onions, garlic and chopped tomatoes.
I reckon that would serve 3 adults and 5 children.
A tenner a day. £70 a week. Although that's only one meal. They could probably get through a couple of big boxes of cornflakes and a hell of a lot of milk in a week, and a loaf of bread wouldn't last much more than a day, so that's 50p a day for supermarket bread, and maybe another couple of quid a day for sandwich turkey. £100 a week ought to do it.

You'd need some fucking big pans, mind you.
( Moon Girl Technologies agent of Yahweh, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 13:12, archived)

hmm
Jawad, wearing a Tommy Hilfiger designer shirt and acting as interpreter for his mother, moaned that the property was much smaller than the massive house they used to have in Afghanistan.

He said: "Our house there was huge compared to this one. We laugh at this house and would give this space to chickens to walk around in a cage."

They actually just made that up, didn't they?
( Moon Girl Technologies agent of Yahweh, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 11:58, archived)

I also liked the
"... is 20, and has never had a job"

why the fuck should he have had a job by the time he's 20? I'd bet more than a third of the population hadn't had a job by 20. they're called students.
( the mighty badger like a diabetic dog in a bath full of sugar, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:00, archived)

It's not like he's allowed to get one here
and I don't imagine the job market in Afghanistan was... I was going to say booming
( Newington HM Time Corps: Quo vadimus non requirimus vias, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:02, archived)

rocketing.

( the mighty badger like a diabetic dog in a bath full of sugar, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:04, archived)

He got headhunted.

( Newington HM Time Corps: Quo vadimus non requirimus vias, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:04, archived)

Most people who read the News of the World
have been builders since they were 14 though.
( Moon Girl Technologies agent of Yahweh, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:02, archived)

I for one, would like to hear Mykeyboy's view on this.

( Amorous Badger venomous choad and keeper of the QOTW Fail Archive, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:05, archived)

It probably ends up with him being wrong, running off to be comforted by his surrogate mother, Bunny,
then shares in Krispy Kreme increasing ten-fold.
( Bud Muhnquai [ :( ], Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:15, archived)

www.b3ta.com/talk/5532935
( Amorous Badger venomous choad and keeper of the QOTW Fail Archive, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:18, archived)

Aww bless.
They think Tories are people.
( We Wish You A Wicca'd Witchmas - with many thanks to MongyChops, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:19, archived)

Haha, cute.

( Deck The Halls With Boughs Of Holly, Moohalaa laa laaaa, laa laa laa laa, Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:22, archived)

They piss and moan more than liberals do.

( Bud Muhnquai [ :( ], Mon 13 Oct 2008, 12:52, archived)