Ok first i'd like to say i'm a leftist and i bleive in social security and universal healthcare and all that jazz, but wheres the control on these things?

I live in australia and we have a pretty good social security system in the sense its not hard to get free money from the government. The problem is people who abuse the system. I currently live with two people on the dole (thats what we call free gov. money). One is a small time grug dealer so he's got money for himself as well as government money and this i dont mind as he's actually working for alot of his income and the gov money is just a little extra. The other dude i live with relies entirely on government money. After he pays rent and bills he has little to no money for himself. He's capable of work, he actually had a job for 3 hours last week and quit coz he didnt like it. Then he has the nerve to ask me if i can lend him money... i didnt.

Now this guy is a friend of mine and it pains me to see him living below the poverty line coz he's a smart guy. People say its coz he smokes heaps of pot and that affects him. Bull#! I smoke pot everyday and i have a high paying job and i'm moving up in the company.

This friend of mine will always be nearby when someone is eating to get any scraps that are leftover. I hate to say it, but i'vel ost heaps of respect for him for allowing himself to live like this. Itsl ike he's a beggar just taking what he can get and thats it. And it pains me that he expects people to do him favours when he wont do himself any favours. Every so often i'll give him a meal or some food just so he doesnt die on me, but as soon as he asks to borrow money i say

'no coz you had a chance to have a job and you let it pass, so theres no way in hell i'm lending you money'

it just pisses me off soooo much. And because he's always hungry he never does chores and says he shouldnt have to coz he's hungry... sometimes i wish he would starve to death so i could stop pitying him so much

Been there and done that I'm affraid.

At some point you will have to move on and leave him to his ways. Some friends are not lifelong.

You are doing the right thing. Do not lend him money unless you are comfortable with the fact that it is a gift.

The urge to accomplish must come from within and as long as he is being taken care of, that drive is non-existant. Too much pot in the wrong circumstances will have that effect. I've been there too.

Well updated on this (i must have ESP or something), he actually called me and asked if i had any positions available at my work. This is something that i am more than happy to help him with. As long as he doesnt ruin my job as well.... maybe i'll get him work in a different department.

that could rub off on you if he quits the next day. You boss will think "Why the hell did he vouch for this kid?" It's happened to me once when I got a friend a job.

Originally posted by thebeagle
that could rub off on you if he quits the next day. You boss will think "Why the hell did he vouch for this kid?" It's happened to me once when I got a friend a job.

One thing i do know about his friend of mine is when he does have a job he's good at them, its just when he doesnt have a job he gets caught in these ruts and he doesn bother trying to get a new job... i have balanced out the pros and cons and i've taken the risk and vouched for him (me and the recruiting manager are quite close so hes pretty much gauranteed the position)... but if he screws me around all hell will break loose