Twenty Seven Pages To State The Bleedin' Obvious...

What's important in your life?

What makes you happy?

In broad brush strokes, many of us are going to say our families and friends. Health. Enough money to be able to afford to eat well and stay warm. A decent roof over your head. A life free of crime and violence. Then you might start to narrow it down to those personal pleasures from a walk in the countryside, sitting by a lake, a river or the sea. Gardening(if you have access to one)watching the birds that visit. Possibly a glass of wine, a favourite piece of art, a piece of music or a painting and so on. It may be a hobby where you make something.

It could be that you or someone close to you has had a serious illness and recovered and are glad to be alive. The birth of a child. Playing with your children. Someone saying "I Love You!"

You may also put job satisfaction amongst your priorities but that is more likely to be because you have to spend so much of your life working and that having a job hopefully gives you enough money to do all the other things that are on your list even though to coin a well known song "The Best Things In Life Are Free!"

The list is probably endless.

At these times of restraint and cutbacks there are many more reasons for people to be afraid of what the future holds and in many cases the Government should actually realise that their policies are more likely to add to stress and worries of many.

So a report has been issued and its taken twenty seven pages at a cost of £2Million to say what most people could guess what would be said but its full of spin and jargon.

It is available online but for quickness you may as well look at the review available here.

What did the report find? health, family and relationships, work, the environment and education were most important(Surprise, surprise)

In many ways its airy fairy. I know I wouldn't like to take part in what appears will be an annual exercise. I wouldn't want to say what they hope you will but equally I wouldn't go down well if I said all the negative things that affect my life. I want to be optimistic and I am more likely to be so, the more that authorities and Government keep out of my life.

That may seem contradictory but I like to think they'll keep essential services going and be there for when the most vulnerable and sick need help but often its those who are affected first.

Most of society depends on each individual doing something already, no matter how small that gesture or action happens happens to be.

There are very few that don't do something.

And no doubt this will be tied into the other plan that has been promoted lately and entitled "The Big Society" which pushes the idea of each of us doing more for ourselves which sounds OK but it actually divorces Government from many of its responsibilities for the caring and well being of its population.

Already, if all the charities, volunteers and people who look after their loved ones were to stop doing this unpaid work much of our society would fall apart because Government is already reducing what money and support it gives in these areas already.

However, there is always money to be found to give away to other countries(and not always for the reasons few could argue with such as natural disasters)and they get involved in more and more wars or skirmishes. Even though they have less money to do so.

How much more are we expected to do? What are we paying taxes for if not to have a decent health service, law enforcement, social services and welfare. I suspect most who took part in the survey would agree with that if asked.

I have mentioned this topic before but back then the idea was about to be launched, this is the first time any of us have had the chance to see what has been found out.