The less money the state has to waste, the more it will have to concentrate on core services. A dramatic reduction in tax intake would, for example, not leave money for interfering prodnoses to ask inane questions about stuff that is none of their business.
People are to be asked how satisfied they are with their husband, wife or partner, under government plans to measure the country’s happiness.
This at a time when we are seeing the economy disappear down the plughole. You would think, would you not, that excess government spending would include this waste of money – but, no, despite all the rhetoric about austerity, politicians will still piss our money up the wall with stupid surveys that ask deeply personal questions about areas in which they have no place prying.
We don’t need a “happiness indicator” we need the state to get its books balanced. We also need the state to mind its own damned business.
I hovered over that link, thinking it was going to be something from the ‘Daily Mash’ but no. It appears to be real.
There are no words….
No, it really is real. Life imitates satire.
Slightly disturbingly, out of the 10 questions on the shortlist, the state has directly involved itself in 8.
Is this a sign they’re looking to interfere in who you choose to marry/live with?
Well, that would make life simpler wouldn’t it? A state approved spouse selected for you at the appropriate time as decreed by the government. Why would you object?
You’re right, it would certainly make life simpler, especially for someone as hideously ugly and socially awkward as myself.
And it could be used to help encourage the multicultural-paradise that currently doesn’t seem to be quite working.
But I was more concerned for any poor young lady who gets the short straw and ends up stuck with someone like me.
“How satisfied are you with life?”
As opposed to what? Non existence?
You just couldn’t make this shit up could you?
And the last three questions are designed to alert our Elite when to rev up the engines on their private jets and get the hell out of here, because they’ll know that the “Hounds and torchlight are on their midnight trail” (Robert Hunter quote).
Just sort the economy if you bleedin can you self selected wankers, and leave the rest to us, please!
Sadly I disagree with your first sentence LR.
They will always find the cash to poke their noses where not wanted and to hell with the core services.
Call me cynical if you wish……
A cynic is merely what an idealist calls a realist 😈
And when they find out how happy or unhappy we are, then what? These people are bloody morons.
It’s like a modern-day catechism – I wonder if children will end up being intructed how to answer the questions, or at least to regard them as some kind of sacred writ. Certainly that’s how the results will be treated, however arbitrary the answering process that supplied them.
I’m assuming that each question will require an answer on a numerical scale – there probably won’t be a box for “My husband’s OK, but I’d really prefer George Clooney” – which means the number-crunchers will have plenty of meaningless dross to spin into gold.
Couldn’t someone set all the statisticians at the ONS to analyse their own statistical significance first? With any luck, they would implode as a result and save us all a lot of money.
It’s likely that these will be on computerised systems and as such they will involve false dichotomies. Answers not on the approved list won’t apply.