<To the lady at the robie street intersection sunday afternoon at approx. 2:00pm, do you really think it was necessary to be that rude and ignorant to the squiziers trying to wash your windshield? Its completely up to you whether or not you give them money, I’m sure they don’t expect it everytime but I was right in front of you and you acted inhuman to them. You flicked them off as if they were animals or something. I was embarrised for you and kind of sad too because your mind must be soooo narrow. I loved that they washed my filthy window and I gave them a loonie without even thinking about it. I know it’s not much but untill you know their story or walk in their shoes who are you to judge? And what harm could it possibly do?
This article appears in Apr 17-23, 2008.
they ought to get a job! like the rest of us.
They’d be easier to ‘leave alone’ if they’d fuck off and only washed windows after asking if it was ok. Pabst Blue Ribbon!
I agree cranky, keep your hands off my car unless I ask. If i was walking down the street and someone ripped my sunglasses off my face and polished them, the last thing I would to them is give them money.
“…untill you know their story or walk in their shoes who are you to judge?” Why is it that a small percentage of us see these lazy-ass kids as some romantic, pitiful group? Yeah, maybe some of them have had rough upbringings but how far in life can you keep using that excuse? Do you think my grandfather had an easy upbringing? He grew up with NOTHING and left home at 16 to work in coal mines so he could start a family and support them. Granted, things are quite different know but one thing that hasn’t is that not all of us are given the easy ticket in life and it is our own personal responsibility to better ourselves. And please, don’t give me that “I don’t want to work for the MAN” garbage. I have a few 40+ year old friends who still believe that crap and are still borrowing money from their parents (or using welfare) to survive. I’m sure their parents are proud…
Seeing as how there really isnt anything ya can do as you are sitting in your car and really not going to do shit about these fuckers, look for a positive outta the situation. At least these kids are doing something for the change they are requesting. Sitting on some steps with a sleeping bag over your lap lying on your lover with a tim hortons cup, really isnt a service.
“No I don’t want me windshield cleaned” means “NO I DON’T want my windshield cleaned” Its not hard to understand. Accept this.From me it also means, No I don’t want my windshield cleaned with the “water” either from the harbour or half the piss you put in there.Doing something for their money? HAHAHA right.
I don’t think very many of you have put yourself in the shoes of these kids I was homeless at 15 and had a job so the whole “get a job” theory, YEAH RIGHT, they are doing work for the money they are asking for!!Human kindness and compassion certainly didn’t KILL or BOTHER anyone…YOU PEOPLE SHOULD TRY IT!!
Put yourself in their shoes. That is crazy. They should get fucking jobs and stop mooching off society. They are nothing more than hobos. Besides that they are making that area look trashy. Get the fuck away from peoples cars, dirt bags. Them and the bums on the street piss me off so bad. I wish they were out of sight.
Jenn: FYI there is no fucking way I will ever have compassion for some of those lazy, conniving bastards on Barrington Street because they are goddamn posers who can’t wait to get your money so they can go feed their various addictions. I’ve seen ’em at the liquor store and the lotto booth at Scotia Square more fucking times than I can count. The guy with the dog in front of Hortons is totally bogus, although I’ll admit, he dresses well for the part. He just wants you to pay for his smokes, booze and drugs. They can all collectively suck my shiny metal ass.
Well Scott….I was in their shoes and homeless at 15 and HAD A FUKING JOB, OH BUT STILL homeless none the less, SO yeah I say put yourself with no family no friends and no one to rely on but the kindness of strangers….But Not YOU go back to your quiet little exisitance in la la land and carry on!! Good Day to you SIr, and I hope you never find yourself down on your luck!!
What was your job Jenn? And washing windshields doesn’t count. That’s my real beef with the squeegee kids, is that they think washing windows is doing people a favor…I find it more irritating than someone sitting on a corner asking me for change. Slinging dirty water on my car when I just had it washed is a big piss off, not a service.
Miles…I actually worked at McD’s on Quinpool cuz it was all I was qualified for at that age and time in my life, I have a GREAT JOB now and am secure and settled in my life and it just breaks my heart when I see people so negitively act towards SOME of these kids, especially I work for Tourism NS and promote how friendly and down home we are to strangers who call me every day
I saw a good documentary on CBC Newsworld last year, in which various young “homeless” people — by which I mean people who had homes, but chose not to live in them — described their pandhandling and windshield-washing as their job. When asked why they did not get more traditional jobs, in fast-food restaurants or suchlike, they said it was because they did not like having to live by someone else’s rules (which was also their explanation for choosing not to live in their homes). While it is true that some people who live on the streets do not do so by choice, it is also true that many choose the life they’re living. And you can call it noble, or tragic, or whatever you like, but I will not give one thin dime to someone like that. They simply do not deserve it. They can wallow in their self-pity all they like, but they’ll do it without handouts from me. And let’s not forget the boys and girls who appear to be homeless, in order to bum “spare change” off people who work for a living, and then turn around and spend that money on smokes ‘n’ booze, before heading off home to their comfy beds. It happens. A lot more than you think, Jenn.
I am sincerely glad you managed to get out of your situation. I would never be rude to either the squeegee kids or panhandlers for the very reason that I don’t know where they are coming from. But if you lived that life, you must know that not everyone on the streets is as legit as you seem to have been. That is what people figure out and it pisses people off. There are a lot of leeches out there mixed in with the people who are working hard to change their situation. If only we could tell at a glance, maybe the average joe would be more charitable.
Unfortunately Jen, compassion is in short supply, and the little we do have must remain in storage, reserved for the next tragedy that befalls a celebrity, or high profile victim of some spectacular crime. …because they really need it, much more than some struggling kid that has known nothing but shit and abuse in their life.
That is too bad about your previous situation, Jen. There is no worries on me being down on my luck. I am of sound mind and have the ability to weight the consequences of my choices. I have the needed foresight to make choices to keep me from being in situations that I do not desire. Personally, I think it has nothing to do with luck. Everyone with a properly functioning brain can live in La la Land, if they wish. It is a better place to be then where you are I suspect.
Jen – please ignore Scott.
I’m curious how Scott would fare if he missed 1 or 2 paycheques? Most people who miss just one paycheque would face some very serious issues … “properly functioning brain” or not.If you just tell the person “No” when they approach your car they’ll move on. At least that’s always been my experience.
Yes, he’s quite douchey.Jenn, good to hear that you were able to get out of that situation and better yourself. That doesn’t happen for a lot of people who start that kind of lifestyle at such a young age.
Ahhh Scott as I sit here in front of my desk I actually pity you, not the kids down on their luck, not the homeless standing on the corner, but I pity you, you are a very closed minded narrow indivdual who obviously sits alone on your very high horse of sound mind and body, I do wish you luck because some day in life I feel you will need the compassion and kindness of others, and if you don’t I fear you may die alone and miserable with all your saved change from not handing it out to the people on the street. Take care!!
Raoul, in my experience I found just saying “no” or waving a kid off used to be sufficient, but in the last few years I have noticed it is a lot harder to refuse their “service”. Doesn’t look like the same kids “working” there now that were there before either, so maybe someone forgot to tell the new guys how the system is supposed to work.
What really gets me are the homeless who refuse to go to the homeless shelters because they can’t follow the rules or make it there by curfew. It bothers me because I’m not the kind of person who can just walk by someone who is freezing and sitting on the ground as I’m on my way to a bar or restaurant where I will eat and be warm….so I stop and dig for change and continue to think about these people long afterwards.So, one night I took the time to ask a homeless woman why she hadn’t gone to a shelter to spend the night and be warm, and she explained that she didn’t make it in time because she had to buy her drugs first and she hadn’t made enough money by the cut off time for the shelter. Sad sad sad.
It’s sad how an addiction can control your life like that. That’s why I don’t care so much if the money I give is used by someone to get high….at that point, I don’t think you are doing drugs for fun anymore.
That’s exactly how I feel, Miles. I don’t like supporting that, but I have a hard time saying “no”. I’ve had addictions in my life, I’m just glad none of them ever left me homeless and bumming or washing windows for change.
Why should any of us contribute to someone else’s addictions? Fuck that. I’d rather see local businesses collect for the REAL homeless, shelters, etc. so that the money donated goes to where it should, not providing some addict his fix or smokes. The sad part is that our downtown is now a ‘homeless’ haven (the number of bums have increased dramatically over the last year) that city council seems to ignore. They’d rather argue over fucking cat laws, never mind the fact they have to spend a huge bundle to house said cats. Downtown should be cleaned up and that means outlawing the bums who rattle their Tim cups under our noses. Our tourism is gonna take a huge hit if this situation continues.
I’m not saying I want to support the addiction…just that once the money leaves my hands, I don’t care what they use it for. I think giving change to people only provides a niche for them to continue surviving on the streets. I would rather (and do) give my money to shelters, meal programs etc, where I know for certain that MY money is going to things I support. But I occasionally do give money to the people I encounter regularly with the hope it goes to food and shelter, but aware that it may not. I just trust my instincts on it. I would rather give money to 20 people and actually help 10 then give to none and help none. And sometimes charity is not about helping the people you give to, but helping to remind you of the things you have to be thankful for. It connects you to your community and like it or not, the poor are part of our community, they are not just going to go out of sight like Scott would like.
I am not required to have compassion for every living person or thing on this planet. Get off my case… You do not know my situation, where I come from or what I may have been through. Maybe I had to ‘rely on the kindness of strangers’ and did not get any. You don’t know, So Fuck-Off…If I missed several pay cheques I’d be fine. Foresight and planning ahead are sort of synonymous. Perhaps more people need more foresight. For that matter you can include common sense too. Both common sense and foresight are lacking in today’s society. As for narrow/close minded… I love how when you do not share the same opinion as others they say you are narrow minded or close minded. Typically when people say that they themselves tend to have a closed mind. You have no real idea of how enlightened I am or am not. You are entitled to think as you wish and so am I. Perhaps I am cold and have become callus like, but that is also my right.
I’m with TTFN on this one. There are more important things to donate money towards. It’s possible to kick an addiction. I’m not saying it’s easy, but it’s definitely possible. I can think of so many other places i’d rather see my money go than to support someone else’s addiction.
So, TTFN and Poop, do you hate the homeless addict, or pity them? That is the point I am trying to make. When someone has sunk that far that their addiction makes them choose getting high over getting to a shelter I find that a very sad life. I would never knowingly give money to someone who chooses drugs over shelter because I don’t think that is helping them one bit…I just don’t let the a person who takes advantage of my kindness to get a fix ruin my compassion for their situation. If you give change you are going to get burned sometimes, but you are also going to help occasionally too. Each person has to decide if the gamble is worth it.
Excellent post, Miles. You make a good point.And then we have the gospel by sir dickweed below..I feel so humbled.
Well, I have to feed my own addiction…buying gas for my fucking car. Try giving one of those bums a chit for free food or coffee and see what reaction you’ll get. Nope, sorry, I have no sympathy for addicts…not when I know that my life is worth shit if it gets in the way of their fix.
Miles, i pity a homeless addict, and you’re right: having sunk so far into an addiction to have to choose between drugs and a shelter is very sad. If i knew for a fact that the $2 i was giving to someone was going to be spent on drugs, i’d rather either keep it in my pocket, or donate it to a shelter/hope cottage etc. The only money to leave my pockets on the streets would be for a guy playing his guitar, or the ever so talented chalk master.
I love Chalk Master….did you know he summers in Toronto? I have seen him in front of the Eaton Center on a few visits. He was supposed to be saving for a studio in Halifax…don’t know how that worked out though. And TTFN I can totally understand your position too. They were handing out free cereal in front of the Dal SUB one day, so i grabbed a box and ran into this guy by the ATM on quinpool a little while later asking for change for food, because he was soooo hungry. I said hey buddy, your’re in luck, i just got this box of cereal and you can totally have the thing. He looked at me and was like “naw man, i can’t take that….i don’t got no milk” I figure that would be a minor roadblock if you were actually that hungry.
First off, carry some McDonald’s applications in your vehicle and hand those out to the squeegee “kids”. Or tell them to join the army. Last I checked, the army provides a roof over your head and 3 squares a day. Second, to the people simply begging on the street with their Tim’s cup. When they look at me, jingle their cup and ask, “spare change sir?” I answer, “no thanks, I’ve got enough”.
For the record, i have lived at Metro Turning point for 6 months, not because i was poor, but because i was well off at one point in my life and wanted to see how the homeless lived. I did carry a job, i paid for my own meals and didnt take donation.Let me tell you every morning, the very same panhandlers you say are this and that, are there at the Brunswick street church getting free food. They only turn you away if you fight. They even have a doctor that comes and write prescriptions 2 times a week. There is a free lunch and supper mon – fri at hope cottage. There are various other outlets to eat too. There really is no need to starve in Halifax. Not in the downtown core at least. Next thing is those that talk about feeding addiction, let me tell you the weed burns high after morning breakfast behind brunswick street church, and thems are the same kids you see out panning. The squeegie kids, they really dont make the shelters or the breakfast or free meals.So while it is annoying what they do….. they are at least trying to do something nice. Since when has the only jobs in life ever been the ones that are governed by law?
Gimme a fucking break.. Mr.Homesworthy…” have lived at Metro Turning point for 6 months, not because i was poor, but because i was well off at one point in my life and wanted to see how the homeless lived. I did carry a job, i paid for my own meals and didnt take donation”.Everybody gather round and behold… its the second coming… its a bible thumping miracle… HORRAY!!!Anybody who would write something like this has to be the most pompous arrogant self-rightous fucking asshole that ever walked on water…
lol @ floyd.perhaps i should live EXACTLY as you do correct? Some people go live on farms to see what it is like, some go live in the woods, others travel to other countries…. i went to a homeless shelter. So tell me, what makes me different from people that went to live somewhere to experience something new? That is what i thought pal.
Yeah Homsie… Should you live like me??? My friend, you wouldn’t know where to begin… Anybody that is so fucking full of themself as you are, obviously has not learned very much in all your great experience… Try some humility if you even know what that means…You should just take a minute and re-read the first paragraph of your 7:26 PM message as though someone else other than you had written it… The problem is not the experience you describe; its the holier than thou attitude that you describe it with…And if you don’t understand what I am talking about, then it just confirms to me where the problem lies… You just dont get it bud…
Ah floyd….. ye of great mind.The reasoning for stating this was to show that i was there merely to observe the lifestyle. Simply stating there would show that I had personal vested intersest or was emotionally tied to the homeless situation. That not being the case, my take on the situation was that almost of a neutral observer. I was able to qualify my opinion based on what i saw over an extended period of time. Now, if you would like to tell us that you know all there is about being homeless after you put a couple quarters in a cup of some homeless guy once, please fill us in with your vast experience on the situation. We would love to hear.
Since you asked TH… I lived in Africa for a few years and saw first hand poverty that would make the MTP look like the Taj Mahal… I also spent time in Europe, S.America and the FarEast where I saw more of the same only very different… But so what??? We all have different experience… I havent lived on the street and apparently neither have you… Just try not sounding like you know so much about damn every damn thing -K? Its annoying…
Floyd, there are plenty of topics i do not post on. Care to guess why? Because i know nothing about them. The OP about bill something or other…. i know nothing about that. Did you see that know it all post i put in that thread? Yeah, neither did i. If i bothers you that i post with detail my actual experience and knowledge and i can dumb down my posts for you. I am sorry to inconvience you by actually posting about things i do know about. I can be like the majority Scotians and assume about things i am not sure about or not.
Gave them “a loonie without even thinking about it”… then bangs out their altruism to anyone who’ll listen online. *golf claps*
Beav, nice call.Homie, i reread your first few posts a few times and I am not quite sure what you are saying….do you see the poor as taking advantage of the shelters because they smoke up after chow? Were you trying to point out that all their needs are met by the charity organizations and giving change is unnecessary? Your post just wasn’t clear enough for me.
Miles, i am saying that the majority of panhandlers, i know as they stayed (or stay) at metro turning point or phoenix house. Most of the young ones, get stoned more than i do, and i had a job while staying there, (many do till thier situation at home or till they get a pad) and it was funny each time i saw them in spring garden road….. people just load up them cups, and i think about the weed i will smell the next morning. Now this isnt all of them, but i would say 4-5 was blazing in the “pit” the next morning. If you knew for a fact where your money is going when you give it to them, does it change if you donate or not? It does me. I give them free coffee coupons, ( i know they sell on check day and that is SAD) or i offer them to follow me and i will buy them coffee. I also state that the squeegie kids, for the most part do not really go to the free meals, or the shelters. The money they make, while it might go on drugs or whatever, i am going to guess, they do spend some on food and shelter, because they are not there at them free meals and shelter locations.
I would like to bet that most homeless people with addictions aren’t buying weed with the money they bum and smokin it in the pit…..after 6 months, Homie, surely you’ve seen worse! Or maybe you slept with both eyes closed????
Does anyone else get the feeling that kay is the old NMH???
I was thinking the same thing SWAW… NMH = KayAnd call it a hunch, but I will place a bet that “Cat Lady from The Dark Side” will re-incarnate on this thread at 1.51PM today… Only this time she will be posting as “Fox Force Five”… She must be that nine lives thing going…Too bad cause I think Floyd had almost had a cyber-crush on CLFTDS…
Kay, did you say that giving an addict $$$ to feed their addiction could actually save their life? Is that what you really meant to say or did I get it wrong?
“Everybody gather round and behold… its the second coming… its a bible thumping miracle… HORRAY!!!”LOL Floyd, LOL.
Kay, of all my posts, which I think are pretty sympathetic to the plight of the poor, you chose to pick up in one word “choose” to build an arguement lumping me in with everyone you say is passing judgement. I take exceptional offence to that. Your comments are just as holier than though as any others on this thread. You think YOU have all the answers too? Try rereading my posts without the prejudgement that I am a poor-hater and see if you can find that I was making exactly the same kinds of arguements as you. Poverty is a complex issue and there are tons of reasons for people to be on the streets…addiction is one of them. And when I describe addiction as sad, I mean that in the heartbreaking sense and not the pathetic context. My point is that not everyone sees giving change to people on the street as actual aid. Some people do and for the very reasons you state. Others quite legitimately feel that the tax dollars they pay towards homeless shelters and that they donate to reputable charitable organizations is a better use of their limited and hard earned money. How can that be morally wrong? Some people feel compelled to help the individual survive for another day, others feel the need to support more long term solutions. At the end of the day, providing change provides a niche for street people to survive. If you don’t give, they are either forced into programs designed to help them, or heaven forbid, they parish. Knowing that, it is still up to the individual to decide how they want to part with their money. But, as I have said before, you can’t tell why a person is on the street by looking at them, so give them the benefit of the doubt and treat them as you would any other human being.
Raoul, she did say that, and I think has a point. They get the hit, survive and the next day they might turn it all around. Could happen. Could also happen that they OD on that hit and your contribution just helped kill someone. Thats the harsh reality of addiction. But what the hell do I know, right Kay?
I’ve gotta say, as a former street kid who’s lived here all my life, this ‘hard luck story’ doesn’t exactly read like somebody trekking across fucking Angola to get away from a civil war. If you want to help addicts, the best way is to donate to addictions services. The squeegee kids aren’t all addicts. Most of them just like to get fucked up because they live on the street and they’re bored. They feed their dogs first, then themselves, I will give them that. But the majority of them aren’t addicts, they are casual users, partiers. Painting them as addicts makes it easier to pretend they have no choice in their situation. This is still Halifax. Squeegee kids leave bigger cities that have more drugs to come here and pan because they say the police aren’t as hard on them, not because the drugs are better or more plentiful. If you really want to know where your money goes, engage them. They will either be honest, or tell you exactly what they think they need to so that you’ll give them money. I have heard on more than one occassion “I need Glow, I’m trying to get drunk tonight!”, but I’ve also heard “I haven’t eaten in three days”, it’s an individual call. But if addiction is the theme people are basing their compassion on, I’m here to tell you from experience that giving money to squeegee kids isn’t helping an addict or a down on his luck sort, no matter what you tell yourself. You’re paying for dog food, food, and then… well, since there aren’t any more thirty dollar hotels in the HRM, chances are somebody’s change is going to get someone fucked up so they can have a little fun. They don’t leave the intersections by nightfall because it’s dangerous or they’re sleeping under a tree by 9pm. They’re doing what most people in this city do after dark, they’re just doing it outside somewhere.
ummm lori, do not be fooled into thinking i said, “the homeless were in the pit smoking.” I said “the ones that you see out panhadling, were the ones that were smoking weed in the morning”BIG difference. Many of the homelss were just wandering, others were out bottling, some looking for work, others going to community programs.
FYI I’ve never posted under any other name so you can count on Cat Lady or whoever to play your silly games. I have some knowledge and direct experience with the subject posted and attempted to provide clarity and broader perspective. I’m also hopeful Haligonian readers emerge with a broader mind and more tolerance for humankind. Isn’t that what this forum is for?Have you ever heard of a person running out of weed and knocking over a store, a bank, or their grandmother for their next fix? Have you ever heard of a person dying because they couldn’t get their hands a joint? Weed addiction is about as devastating as a pimple on your nose come the first day of school. It’s the hard drug, gambling (and other behaviors) and alcohol addictions that ruins lives.Next question if you’ve ever seen a perfectly balanced, “unabused” and healthy person without constant worry in their lives succumb to addiction. Wonder why?
Excellent comments… Beav… best I have read on this thread. Thanks for shining some real light on this topic… I also think there is a lot to be said for your advice to “Engage them” Well put…
I’d like to know how Fox Force Five posted April 17, 2008 | 01:51 PMRight now it’s 10:48 AM
there is a glitch, that post has stuck on the top of the comments….. it was made last night and all of ours are under it.
And oh Kay, whether chemically addicted or just do it because they wanna, the fact is….you can go into that pit pretty much any morning and see the same kids that will panhadle on SGR there blazing away. your opinion is moot since they do do it.
Thanks, Floyd 🙂 Lots of good points being made here. It’s funny that the speculation either way is whether they’re addicts or not. I thought the point of the OP was ‘walk a mile in their shoes’, which I have. And the thing about karma, which people love to throw around as a “I hope what you did to someone else happens to you” statement when really it’s an “I am compassionate enough not to judge *anyone* because I know I could be judged as well” BELIEF. The OP is obviously looking to extoll his/her own unconditional compassion and let people here know how “nonjudgemental” they are. If it costs someone a dollar to feel like they’re a good person, they better have deep pockets because chances are that’s all they’re going on.
Yea,Sorry about that.. :SThe whole glitch thing.
I respectfully disagree with that rationale Miles. I don’t think enabling someone to consume the very substance that is killing them is doing anybody a favour; you or the addict. It’s similar to putting a band-aid on a gunshot wound.I agree that addiction is paralyzing and robs the individual of the ability to make sound choices but if you enable the person to get high today how can you expect them to get clean tomorrow? Keeping in mind how powerful an addiction can be when do we absolve someone for not taking responsibility for their own life?
I’m actually agree with your take on the addiction situation Raoul. I was just saying there is some logic in what Kay was saying.
Honestly, if someone can afford to start and addiction in the first place, and wipe themselves off the map with it..They could always go to rehab…it’s free down here, isn’t it?
One time, me and my friends were stopped at a red light right across from Quinpool. My friend, the driver, had never experienced a squiji kid before, so i told her to chill. When the kid was done, I gave ’em $5, and we were on our merry way. I’d like to think that brought some sunshine and cigarettes to their day.Recently, I saw the same kid i had given the money to as i was walking down the street. Heard the kid swearing, screaming, harassing people as they walked down the street…I was pretty much shocked. I’m not really sure what this had to do with anything…But it really isn’t that hard to go out, go to a second hand store and use some of that money to buy some decent looking clothes, and possibly look for a job. ..
Well I have had enough of the homeless situation…tonight was the tipping point. I just got off work and a co worker offered to give me a ride home so we were getting into his car parked up by the Marquee and these two bums were coming down the street and started banging on the fucking windows for change!! We just yelled “Sorry all out” and the my co worker started to drive away when the bum got in front of the car! He then started making his way to the other side of the car to bang on the other side. We stopped back at our workplace to pick up a fellow co worker and by the time we left our work place the same two guys were on Brunswick banging on some woman’s SUV doing the same thing to her!! It’s one thing to jingle a cup and another to harass…I used to be polite but no more…I’m sick of it, there is no excuse for not having a job when there is help wanted ads plastered all over HRM.
Scott, re:”I am not required to have compassion for every living person or thing on this planet” What are you, Scott? Fucking Neanderthal? Perhaps just a big ol’ ape? The thing that makes us different from lower animals is our capacity for compassion. And, whether you like it or not, we live in a socialistic society where we care for those who require it at the expense of those who can afford it. What comes around goes around, man. You’d better be careful.Myles, addicts who “chose” drugs over shelter. Guess what, buddy, addicts have NO CHOICE, otherwise, they’d be called party goers, casual users or students (teehee). Realize the whole addiction thing is about losing your ability to chose your own behavior. MOST require assistance to first make the choice to clean it up and then require more assistance to actually clean it up then even more to keep it that way. Addiction (substances, behavior, whatever) is devastating. Period.Did you know the heavy alcoholic, when denied his drug of choice will seize then die, likely in the same 48 hour period. So, if you hesitate to feed addiction with your change you can now imagine yourself giving a person another day on this plane to get some help… or not but never think your change is the difference between this person conquering addition today versus having a place to sleep. TTFN says, “my life is worth shit if it gets in the way of their fix”. You’re making a blanketing statement here that all addicts are murderous thieves… get a hold of yourself. Miles thinks that when he’s asked for a knife yet provides a spoon the addict is really not that needy. Again, the majority of people judge him so why wouldn’t he tell them what they want to hear to get what he really needs? The addict is not seeking your approval, just your change if you can spare it.And Homie, God love ya for trying. Tell us if you learned the widely varying circumstances of the homeless and if a single phrase can accurately dam them all. For the record, the day we agreed to the Tax Act (WWI) is the day self-invented jobs disappeared. For the record, illegal weed is cheaper than legal tobacco.It sounds like a lot of people here make assumptions, cast judgments based on assumption then raise their holier-than-thou noses while they turn their ignorant backs. God help all of you.Rootin’ for the underdog.
I have nothing againt the squeggie kids and I don’t care what they do with their money. But when I see their squeegies laying in the dirt I would rather pay them not to wash my window…don’t need the scratches thanks.
Regarding shelters and rehab centres. They need to:1. put a sign on the road, every miles or so, letting ppl know where they are, their contact info, and stating that their services are FREE ;2. refer people to other shelters when they are full, I read a story in one of the local papers stating a homeless person could call a list of shelters and got a simple: WE R FULL! from each one of them, :(!—I also know that those VACANCIES signs are not real. I tried to apply with some of them, and it may take months till they call you, if ever (because of the many numbers of applicants, people who have no experience or look homeless will never get the job).