UK: Pensioners Burning Books To Keep Warm

Gotta love this global warming!

Wonder how TPTB will charge their Carbon Tax on this?

Pensioners burn books for warmth

Volunteers have reported that ‘a large number’ of elderly customers are snapping up hardbacks as cheap fuel for their fires and stoves.

Temperatures this week are forecast to plummet as low as -13ºC in the Scottish Highlands, with the mercury falling to -6ºC in London, -5ºC in Birmingham and -7ºC in Manchester as one of the coldest winters in years continues to bite.

Workers at one charity shop in Swansea, in south Wales, described how the most vulnerable shoppers were seeking out thick books such as encyclopaedias for a few pence because they were cheaper than coal.

One assistant said: ‘Book burning seems terribly wrong but we have to get rid of unsold stock for pennies and some of the pensioners say the books make ideal slow-burning fuel for fires and stoves.

A lot of them buy up large hardback volumes so they can stick them in the fire to last all night.’

A 500g book can sell for as little as 5p, while a 20kg bag of coal costs £5.

Since January 2008, gas bills have risen 40 per cent and electricity prices 20 per cent, although people over 60 are entitled to a winter fuel allowance of between £125 and £400.

Jonathan Stearn, energy expert for Consumer Focus, said: ‘If pensioners are taking such desperate measures to heat their homes it is shocking. With low wholesale prices and increasing profit margins, there is clearly room for energy companies to make price cuts immediately.’

Ruth Davison, of the National Housing Federation, said: ‘The spiralling cost of energy means heating homes has become a luxury rather than a necessity for many people – particularly the elderly, low paid and unemployed.’

[edit on 1/5/10 by Ferris.Bueller.II]

It's a shame it has to come to this, but the price of fuel won't be helping.

Yes the elderly here get a winter fuel payment of £200+ every year, but that can easily be used quickly with the prices the energy providers charge.

No matter how concerned they say they are, they won't let that spoil their big fat profit every year.

I hate the thought of burning books, but thats the elderly for you, practical as ever. When temperatures are so bad that one cold night could kill you, burning a book to survive is no big deal in my opinion.

CX.

thank you for this thread it makes people aware and it gives my new thread i've just written another reason for extra help in the UK.

check it out if you want Emergency UK militia.

dont think i am trying to steal your thread, it just proved a point for me.

Also about the coal in the uk its everywhere but there are no grants coming from the government to help get it.

The machinery is pretty dated works well but needs alot of maintainig and all they used alot of the mining sites that used to be getting coal is just for mining equipment storage which are left to rust and be ruined.

I know this because i used to work within the mining industry repairing the machines and euipment plus i've been to a site and seen it.


hope thats not too off topic

I do have to say that the elderly at the housing scheme where I worked had no trouble at all with their fuel bills. Perhaps because they were in modern well insulated homes.
Those of us in older homes struggle more. I have a cast iron stove and buy a fuel called Excel. Which is an oval shaped type of compressed coal. It is £15 for 2 half bags. A half bag lasts about 3 days - if I want to keep the stove on continuously but low or just fired up well at peak periods. So around £15 a week. On top of that I have electricity and gas central heating (around 2 hours each day) bills. If the winters get worse, they will have to revise the fuel payment. Coal is becoming a luxury.
I can't imagine books lasting for very long. Also, paper tends to clog up the fire.
Our local farm shop usually has a tub full of large, free dog bones. I'm not too proud to pick up a bag or two if they are available. They are great to burn. I'm wondering if anyone else has cottoned on to this?

[edit on 5-1-2010 by unicorn1]

[edit on 5-1-2010 by unicorn1]

Global warming carbon taxes will HELP this problem, in the long run.

The problem is the price of fossil fuels -- even if the co2 'pollution' isn't a problem.

So, you may bitch about man-made global warming being real/fake, but complaining about monetizing alternative energy sources via cap and trade is wrong. (not that cap and trade doesn't have its share of problems.. Mostly because politicians are corrupt)

What a sickening thought, it's shameful that our Elderly have to suffer this way while we run low on Gas supplies.. I felt really sad (and ashamed) last year that Icelanders put a container together of old sweaters to keep our elderly warm (tho it was good of them to care when our gov doesn't)

Coal in my neck of the woods has gone from £3 for 10kg to £6 for 10kg.. some retailers are rubbing their hands together in glee...

While the police are trying to catch those persons who are cutting down trees in our local woods to keep themselves warm (who can blame them really) what a sad world we live in.

Originally posted by Kaytagg
Global warming carbon taxes will HELP this problem, in the long run.

The problem is the price of fossil fuels -- even if the co2 'pollution' isn't a problem.

So, you may bitch about man-made global warming being real/fake, but complaining about monetizing alternative energy sources via cap and trade is wrong. (not that cap and trade doesn't have its share of problems.. Mostly because politicians are corrupt)

So, adding a tax to make fossil fuel sources even more expensive, and a lot of peoples' only source of heat, is HELPful? Please explain.

Originally posted by Ferris.Bueller.II

Originally posted by Kaytagg
Global warming carbon taxes will HELP this problem, in the long run.

The problem is the price of fossil fuels -- even if the co2 'pollution' isn't a problem.

So, you may bitch about man-made global warming being real/fake, but complaining about monetizing alternative energy sources via cap and trade is wrong. (not that cap and trade doesn't have its share of problems.. Mostly because politicians are corrupt)

So, adding a tax to make fossil fuel sources even more expensive, and a lot of peoples' only source of heat, is HELPful? Please explain.

Yes please tell us what an earth your talking about this being helpful??

Cap and trade creates a monetary incentive to produce alternatives to something that, in the short term, if perfectly good as it is.

The problem is, in the long term, it doesn't work. It's finite.

If we could dig oil out of the earth, cheaply, forever, then the story would be different. But we can't, so energy companies, both big and small (exxon mobil is one of the leading investors of alternative energy), need the proper legal framework enacted to make investing in renewable energy profitable -- because if it's not profitable, it's not happening at all (one of the pitfalls of capitalism).

Of course that's not why cap and trade officially exists. That doesn't mean that it's not a good idea, though.

Do you guys think we can use fossil fuels forever?

Are you planning on the human race dieing out in the next 50-200 years?

If not, we need renewable forms of energy.

reply to post by Kaytagg


You're saying that we will die out in 50 - 200 years if we don't have fossil fuels? Even though we managed for thousands of years without them? Talk about delusion...

reply to post by Incendia vox


Yea, look what's happening to those pensioners when they don't have gas to heat their homes.

They're not dieing out or any.. . oh wait . They are.

reply to post by Kaytagg


Old people dying != Human race dying out

Mesolithic man did not usually live past 25 years, we are still here now.

Originally posted by Incendia vox
reply to post by Kaytagg

 

Old people dying != Human race dying out

Mesolithic man did not usually live past 25 years, we are still here now.

You want to go back to having a 25 year life span?

Originally posted by Incendia vox
reply to post by Kaytagg

 

You're saying that we will die out in 50 - 200 years if we don't have fossil fuels?

Btw, I never said that.

My point was that fossil fuels are a finite resource, so unless your plan is for the human race to not be around in 200 years, then we need to find a viable alternative to cheap fossil fuels.

reply to post by Kaytagg


No, I was just making the point that,

No fossil fuels != Everyone dying.

I have nothing futher to add.

Originally posted by Kaytagg
Do you guys think we can use fossil fuels forever?

Are you planning on the human race dieing out in the next 50-200 years?

If not, we need renewable forms of energy.

Originally posted by Kaytagg
reply to post by Incendia vox

 

Yea, look what's happening to those pensioners when they don't have gas to heat their homes.

They're not dieing out or any.. . oh wait

. They are.

This is not due to an actual physical shortages in fossil fuels. This is due to manmade artificial shortages and price gouging. Little bit of a difference.

This is what the global warming crowd is doing to promote more expensive and less efficient 'green energy' technologies.

Nice try though.

[edit on 1/5/10 by Ferris.Bueller.II]