Bottomless Pockets

A good Samaritan told me to get a Medical Certificate for Martinique as I would be stuck at home doing no activities otherwise (French protocol is as tight as the hanger's noose). I decide to brave the hills of Bristol and make my way to the Student Health Service, hoping to walk out of there with the piece of paper in my hand (call me anti-sick but I hate the smell of the doctors).

''You'll have to pay £13 for the standard certificate of health''

Before I get bombarded with people saying the NHS needs money and £13 is nothing etc, let me just say: I don't want to hear it. It is an institution that was created to help people therefore it should do that and provide support. If 13 year old girls can get abortions for free (correct-me-if-I'm-wrong), then what about people who just want a piece of paper saying that they are healthy? Is that too much to ask?

I'm not angry at the secretary, she needs to eat and if reciting those painful words means she can afford a can of Coke, good for her however that does not take away from the fact that this country is putting its' long arms into students' tiny pockets and making sure that we are sucked dry. Don't forget the presence of tuition fees people -- those 17 year olds are members of the poorhouse even before the ink on their UCAS form has dried and not to mention international students who pay what Paris Hilton would pay for a handbag.

Maybe I am too much of a complainer but that is what university does to you...

~A