Maintaining Excellence in Credit User Services (MECUS House Longterm Facility)

Cherry

By thanksfortheparakeets@gmail.com

Mon, 12 Nov 2012
  • 1791 reads
8 comments
 

We are here because we are naughty. We are here to make good.

Georgie went and shacked up with her man. But oh dear.
Didn't do her Change of Circumstances did she?
How can she get her Credit now?
Just making ends meet? That's an old one.
Not good. Shack-shack. Tut-tut. Naughty.

We are here because we are naughty. We are here to make good.

Kevin went for chemo. Blast the nasty cells. Yes. Yes.
But has he got a claim? No. Did he do his form? No.
Credit can't be given out willy-nilly. Kevin knows that.
Poorly, silly boy. Nevermind he's 65, nevermind your cheek. Naughty.

We are here because we are naughty. We are here to make good.

James. Two bedrooms for one person? Entitlement Error.
His son ran off. Went AWOL, they say.
Yes, yes. But that's a different department. 0845755463. Option 6.
They say the son had tendencies. James got bad. Night terrors.
Wouldn't leave the flat. Sad. But,
He failed to inform the correct department, didn't he? Naughty.

We are here because we are naughty. We are here to make good.

Alice. Oh Alice. She's got a temper. Sweeping papers off desks.
That is very bad. There is no fight. Not here.
Threatening behaviour will not be tolerated.
Will result in prosecution. Sanction. But there's treatment for it.
They have Special Powers. For special cases. Special Alice. Naughty.

We are here because we are naughty. We are here to make good.

Lorraine spent her Credit on cider. Yes, they knew all about it.
She is naughty and must be sterilised.
We have to do what builds. A bigger society.
Screaming in the street: she wants her kids. Bad move, Lorraine.
And look at her teeth. Bad girl. Bad mother. It just won't do. Naughty.

We are here because we are naughty. We are here to make good.

And me?
Oh, I can't remember a time when I wasn't here.
This is a place for Problem Families. The place of my father's fathers.
You think I'm a lost cause?
No, no. I'm one of the lucky ones, I've got an Account
and a Number. My friends are all here. It's warm.
I could be out on the street without Credit to my name.
Besides, I know that I've been bad. I know that I've been naughty.

I am here because I am naughty. I am here to make good.

Certificate PG
Poem
Style vs Substance
Unclassified

Comments

Submitted by sid on
You sum up our bureaucratic rubber stamp computer says no culture perfectly. And I am always in envy of your confidence in trying different styles and formats. Are you reading in december?

 

Submitted by thanksforthepar... on
Oh thanks sid, yea I'm hoping to read at the Dec thingy :) are you?

 

Submitted by ItsSteveDave on
marion, as I said in the forum, just excellent. An original way to present the failures of our red tape society. As sid says, your confidence in using an unusual form is to be envied! Well deserving of cherries.

Submitted by Highhat on
This made me so sad. There's just not room for anybody without a form to fill out nowadays. I got a fright when I moved to Europe from Oz and was given a number (social security)- it was very strange for me but it has taken the overhand now. Brilliantly expressed Marion. ;)Pia

Submitted by thanksforthepar... on
Hi It'sSteveDave, thanks for your comment, this piece was inspired partly by the competition IP but was also shortly after I finished reading Brave New World so I think old Huxley deserves a bit of credit for his imaginative input too. Hi Pia, Well I'm glad you've learned to live with your number! What does 'it has taken the overhand now' mean? Maybe it's an expression I haven't heard before. Thanks for your comments, they are always very warm and thoughtful. x

 

Submitted by Highhat on
Oh sorry I didn't make myself clear. We're all numbers and registration of people and filling in forms etc sometimes you're just a number- noone wants to know what your name is. I mean it is so impersonal and for me it's gotten out of hand. It's our virtual reality- you don't send letters anymore , do you? Where I live the public services all are via the internet and a special keycard code. In olden days you had to take the bus to the local social service office when you needed to talk to them- now you write emails and fill in forms on the computer- even when you are unemployed- if you don't have a computer you are lost in the system. You have to register online and update your status online. Sorry I'm rambling. Rumour has it that there has never been as much paperwork as now after we started doing everything online. ;)Pia

Submitted by thanksforthepar... on
Oh, I see. Yes, I think you're right, it can be a very bewildering and dehumanising system which doesn't allow for the individuality of people's lives and circumstances. I especially feel for people who get lost in the system and fall through the cracks because they can't cope with the complexity and beaurocracy of it all. It is a very disempowering way of relating to oneanother, which I don't think is entirely an accident...those in power not only hold the keys, but the system codes, passwords, numbers, databases, and the ability to effectively delete people from participating in society. I think it's definitely worth talking about widely and creatively, to name the tactics of the powerful and ruthless, and while that won't necessarily change things on a massive scale, we are much stronger and happier when we have mutuality and speak up about the inadequacies and injustices that are being imposed upon us in the name of growth and development. ...I ramble too ;)

 

Submitted by thanksforthepar... on
Oh thank you Paul, that's a grand accolade!