Man gets benefits for heavy metal addiction

[ageofquarrel]

Dont know if this was posted already or is legit but if it is wow.



hxxp://www.thelocal.se/7650/

Man gets sick benefits for heavy metal addiction

Published: 19th June 2007 15:12 CET
Online: hxxp://www.thelocal.se/7650/

A Swedish heavy metal fan has had his musical preferences officially classified as a disability. The results of a psychological analysis enable the metal lover to supplement his income with state benefits.

Roger Tullgren, 42, from Hässleholm in southern Sweden has just started working part time as a dishwasher at a local restaurant.
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Because heavy metal dominates so many aspects of his life, the Employment Service has agreed to pay part of Tullgren's salary. His new boss meanwhile has given him a special dispensation to play loud music at work.

"I have been trying for ten years to get this classified as a handicap," Tullgren told The Local.

"I spoke to three psychologists and they finally agreed that I needed this to avoid being discriminated against."

Roger Tullgren first developed an interest in heavy metal when his older brother came home with a Black Sabbath album in 1971.

Since then little else has mattered for the 42-year-old, who has long black hair, a collection of tattoos and wears skull and crossbones jewelry.

The ageing rocker claims to have attended almost three hundred shows last year, often skipping work in the process.

Eventually his last employer tired of his absences and Tullgren was left jobless and reliant on welfare handouts.

But his sessions with the occupational psychologists led to a solution of sorts: Tullgren signed a piece of paper on which his heavy metal lifestyle was classified as a disability, an assessment that entitles him to a wage supplement from the job centre.

"I signed a form saying: 'Roger feels compelled to show his heavy metal style. This puts him in a difficult situation on the labour market. Therefore he needs extra financial help'. So now I can turn up at a job interview dressed in my normal clothes and just hand the interviewers this piece of paper," he said.

The manager at his new workplace allows him to go to concerts as long as he makes up for lost time at a later point. He is also allowed to dress as he likes and listen to heavy metal while washing up.

"But not too loud when there are guests," he said.

The Local spoke to an occupational psychologist in Stockolm, who admitted to being baffled by the decision.

"I think it's extremely strange. Unless there is an underlying diagnosis it is absolutely unbelievable that the job centre would pay pay out.

"If somebody has a gambling addiction, we don't send them down to the racetrack. We try to cure the addiction, not encourage it," he said.

Henrietta Stein, deputy employment director for the Skåne region, is also puzzled by the move; "an interest in music" is not usually sufficient to qualify for wage benefits.

"Certain cases are confidential but in general there is always a medical reason that is well-documented," she said.

Tullgren currently plays bass and guitar in two rock bands and says that he tends to get a lot of positive reactions for daring to be himself.

"Some might say that I should grow up and learn to listen to other types of music but I can't. Heavy metal is my lifestyle," he said.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

I give it three weeks until people in that country are allowed to play Guitar Hero at work.

[Ksyrup]

I saw that on Blabbermouth a couple of days ago. Funny.


This recent Onion article is pretty good...



Open-Minded Music Lover Likes All Kinds Of Metal

June 20, 2007 | Issue 43•25 (http://www.theonion.com/content/index/4325)

LOGANSPORT, IN—Area music enthusiast Curt Webber, 22, is completely open to enjoying "all kinds" of metal, the self-described eclectic iconoclast said Monday.

"Some people are so narrow-minded and uptight about music, but I'm into a wide variety of bands—everything from Sabbath to Disturbed," Webber said. "Whether it's the old stuff, like vintage Maiden or Priest; new stuff, like Mastodon or the Sword; the virtuosic neoclassicism of DragonForce; the unpolished rawness of, say, Motörhead; a multiplatinum band like the Crüe; an alternative act like Clutch; or just a local outfit like Soldiers of Carnage here in town—power metal, speed metal, glam metal, thrash metal, death metal, nü metal, metal-core, or even Norwegian black metal—it's all music to me, man."

Webber conceded that the one musical style he simply cannot abide is rap metal.http://www.theonion.com/content/themes/onion/assets/terminator.gif

[ageofquarrel]

its crazy, people in Sweden must pay like 70% of their wages in taxes if people like that or getting benefits

[molson]

its crazy, people in Sweden must pay like 70% of their wages in taxes if people like that or getting benefits

Regular workers also get like 3 months vacation time. I don't know what the hell's going on over there.

[Ksyrup]

Sweden gave us Europe, and we gave them millions of dollars for Final Countdown, Carrie and Cherokee to spend on "healthcare."

[JonInMiddleGA]

its crazy, people in Sweden must pay like 70% of their wages in taxes if people like that or getting benefits

You're a little off, but not by all that much.

http://www.freedomandprosperity.org/Papers/sweden/sweden.shtml
# The 1991 reform created a flat income tax of about 30 percent for nine out of ten taxpayers, consisting only of the local and regional income tax. During the 1990s, however, the legislature gradually subjected more taxpayers to the national levy. Almost half of taxpayers now pay a national income tax of 20 percent, in addition to a combined local and regional tax averaging 31.5 percent. One in five are subject to the higher national tax rate of 25 percent.

# Individual capital income is taxed at a flat rate of 30 percent.

# Corporate income tax rates have been reduced. Prior to the 1991 reform, corporations faced a tax rate of 52 percent. The corporate tax rate initially was reduced to 30 percent and since has been reduced to 28 percent. Sweden has a territorial system, meaning companies generally are not taxed on income earned in other nations.2

# Payroll taxes are a significant burden, totaling nearly 40 percent of income, including a 32.28 percent tax imposed on employers. These taxes finance retirement, sick leave, unemployment, parental leave, and other programs.

# Wealth is taxed. Assets are tax-exempt up to SEK 1,500,000 (US$ 205,863)3 per individual. With some variations, the standard tax rate above that level is 1.5 percent.
...
# The value added tax is 25 percent, the maximum rate allowed for European Union nations, but there are preferential rates for several items.

[Ksyrup]

So, by my calculations, most of them are paying like 107.5% tax? :)

[JPhillips]

I think something is off there Jon. Just adding up the federal and regional taxes and adding payroll taxes the combined tax burden is 91.5%. With the 25% value added tax, it seems that they would be taxed more than they make.

[Ksyrup]

I guess I underestimated, then! :D

[molson]

I think something is off there Jon. Just adding up the federal and regional taxes and adding payroll taxes the combined tax burden is 91.5%. With the 25% value added tax, it seems that they would be taxed more than they make.

I think the payroll tax applies to employers (or most of the payroll tax, anyway)

[Lathum]

I think someone needs to tell this guy to grow up.

[MikeVic]

Yeah, I'd be trying to scam money for an addiction like this too if I was pay over 100% in tax.

[Ksyrup]

I think someone needs to tell this guy to grow up.

Why? The government is telling him he doesn't need to. Basic human reaction.

[JonInMiddleGA]

JPhillips -- here's what I get
Local & regional = 31.5% (avg)
National (pd by nearly half) = 20% (or 25% for about 1/5)

So that's 31.5% for about half the population or 51.5% (or higher) for the other half.

The way I read it, the single sentence reference to "flat rate of 30 percent" is already accounted for in the first paragraph I quoted (except that it's now avg 31.5 percent).

Then the VAT (in lieu of sales tax) is dictated by consumption,not income.
And possibly (not sure how to interpret the phrasing) another 7.72 in payroll taxes for the employed (could this be included already in the 31.5%/20% calcualations?)
And then 1.5% of assets over $205k.

Meanwhile, corporations appear to be paying 28% on profit + 32.28% of payroll.

[King of New York]

Could I receive disability benefits for my 80's synth pop addiction?

[Ksyrup]

Could I receive disability benefits for my 80's synth pop addiction?

That's just a fad, it's not a lifestyle.

[Eaglesfan27]

There is no comparable diagnosis here for heavy metal addiction. However, there is a movement to add a Video Game Addiction Disorder to the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders which could possibly (although unlikely) lead to people collecting disability due to their video game addiction one day.

[MikeVic]

There is no comparable diagnosis here for heavy metal addiction. However, there is a movement to add a Video Game Addiction Disorder to the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders which could possibly (although unlikely) lead to people collecting disability due to their video game addiction one day.

LOL. So World of Warcrack will be self-paying at the very least?

[st.cronin]

I believe the highest tax rate in this country at one time exceeded 100%. Remember, not all income is taxable, so depending on how deductions and exemptions are figured, a tax rate of more than 100% is entirely possible.

[Ksyrup]

It doesn't sound like this guy fits the description, so I'm just throwing this out there, but in all seriousness, the black metal scene in the Scandinavian countries is pretty freaking intense. The bands aren't like Slayer, where it's basically an act. These guys live the life. Mayhem is the most notorious of these bands, with several deaths associated with band members. And the recent documentary/interview of Gorgoroth's Gaahl who was recently released from prison is quite chilling.

Those are some bizarre, sick, and intense fuckers.

[Lorena]

So does this mean I can collect disability for cranking my headphones way the hell up to get my production going? I might be losing my hearing because of this.

[Fonzie]

There is no comparable diagnosis here for heavy metal addiction. However, there is a movement to add a Video Game Addiction Disorder to the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders which could possibly (although unlikely) lead to people collecting disability due to their video game addiction one day.

I propose that you and I lobby the DSM-V working group hard to ensure that text-sims are covered by this new diagnosis.

[Eaglesfan27]

I propose that you and I lobby the DSM-V working group hard to ensure that text-sims are covered by this new diagnosis.

Sounds like a plan ;)

[Ksyrup]

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/fun.games/06/25/addiction.video.games.reut/index.html

CHICAGO, Illinois (Reuters) -- Doctors backed away on Sunday from a controversial proposal to designate video game addiction as a mental disorder akin to alcoholism, saying psychiatrists should study the issue more.

Addiction experts also strongly opposed the idea at a debate at the American Medical Association's annual meeting.

They said more study is needed before excessive use of video and online games -- a problem that affects about 10 percent of players -- could be considered a mental illness.

"There is nothing here to suggest that this is a complex physiological disease state akin to alcoholism or other substance abuse disorders, and it doesn't get to have the word addiction attached to it," said Dr. Stuart Gitlow of the American Society of Addiction Medicine and Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in New York.

A committee of the influential physicians' group had proposed video game addiction be listed as a mental disorder in the American Diagnostic and Statistic Manual of Mental Disorders, a guide used by the American Psychiatric Association in diagnosing mental illness.

Such a move would ease the path for insurance coverage of video game addiction.

Even before debate on the subject began, the committee that made the proposal backed away from its position, and instead recommended that the American Psychiatric Association consider the change when it revises its next diagnostic manual in 5 years.

The psychiatrist group has said if the science warrants, it could be considered for inclusion in the next diagnostic manual, which will be published in 2012.

While occasional use of video games is harmless and may even help with some disorders like autism, doctors said in extreme cases it can interfere with day-to-day necessities like working, showering or even eating.

"Working with this problem is no different than working with alcoholic patients. The same denial, the same rationalization, the same inability to give it up," Dr. Thomas Allen of the Osler Medical Center in Towson, Maryland.

Dr. Louis Kraus of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and a psychiatrist at Rush University Medical Center, said it is not yet clear whether video games are addictive.

"It's not necessarily a cause-and-effect type issue. There may be certain kids who have a compulsive component to what they are doing," he said in an interview.

But addictive or not, too much time spent playing video games takes away from other important activities.

"The more time kids spend on video games, the less time they will have socializing, the less time they will have with their families, the less time they will have exercising," Kraus said.
"They can make up academic deficits, but they can't make up the social ones," he said.

The AMA committee will consider the testimony and make its final recommendation to the AMA's 555 voting delegates, who will vote on the matter later this week.

The Entertainment Software Association, which represents the $30 billion global video game industry, said more research is needed before video game addiction should be categorized as a mental disorder.

[Mustang]

I thought this thread was going to be about some guy that like to eat mercury, lead and cadmium..

[MikeVic]

What's all this talk about kids being addicted? Adults can be too...