sorry, but you sometimes have to say some smart ass shit to get some of the more aggressive pricks out of your face and let you continue with your walk...why the F*ck should I be cordial after I tell someone "no, sorry" and they keep on asking "why" or saying "you're going to hell" and the other shit some of these folks say to you when you dont give them anything...
ex-GF is a drugs counsellor. 95% of folks on the street are on heroin or worse.
I don't know what your ex is telling you, but this statistic is wildly off-base, or at least rife with bias and lacking multiple key qualifiers. Is she talking about people homeless for a week or for a year? Are these folks that have used heroin recently or just have a history of heroin use (possibly not overlapping with the period of their homelessness)? Also, where exactly is "the street"?
I don't, generally. Sometimes I make exceptions based on the situation.
One thing that qualifies you as a total douche is saying some smart-ass shit to an old/disabled/drug addled panhandler. Save that shit for the teenagers bumming beer change. Guys that feel it necessary to yell "get a job!" (or some of the other wisecracks in this thread) at broken down dope fiends surely possess immeasurably small penises.
There's an old-bum that hangs out in front of the Wells Fargo building in downtown Berkeley sometimes. He's clearly a drunk/addict but a nice guy. I gave him $20 once and he was very grateful. I think it was Christmas and I was feeling generous. I remember seeing some old Berkeley white woman giving him shit about getting a job and just had to roll my eyes.
There's another street punk kid I see occasionally around that area whose completely bitter and makes comments to everyone who doesn't give him change. He's really pushing his luck. He'll mouth off to the wrong person someday and get a beating.
ex-GF is a drugs counsellor. 95% of folks on the street are on heroin or worse.
I don't know what your ex is telling you, but this statistic is wildly off-base, or at least rife with bias and lacking multiple key qualifiers. Is she talking about people homeless for a week or for a year? Are these folks that have used heroin recently or just have a history of heroin use (possibly not overlapping with the period of their homelessness)? Also, where exactly is "the street"?
I had a friend who worked for the NY coalition for the homeless back in '97 and he said that a lot of people he got to do with had just lost their job, couldn't afford their old place anymore and here they were being homeless. Often their wife and kids would move back in with her parents. Drugs follow after a while if they can't manage to get "back on track". I also don't get the idea of denying someone compassion because they're drunks or junkies. I can't stand dumb kids begging for beer money but have no problem supporting a grown man who's down on his luck and trying to get his drink on.
There used to be a pretty cool homeless/down on his luck type dude that sat in front of the Berkeley Amoeba. He had some sort of foot injury that was pretty messed up, like it was always swollen. I talked to him all the time and he was cool. I started to give him some change, then a dollar. I remember buying him an orange juice one time. It got really uncomfortable though because he was right in front of the door and I went into the store almost daily on my way back from school. He started to guilt trip me into more money, like since we we're buddies I had to hook him up all the time. I didn't have money back then, so after awhile it just got uncomfortable and I had to avoid him.
Back in 2001 I was in San Francisco on my 21st birthday. Mr Jeigh was there and a bunch of us were walking down Market St at night. It was cold and we stopped to get drinks at a coffee shop. I had a chai tea. This guy asked us for money and I offered him my drink. He took a sip and then threw it into the street.
One thing that qualifies you as a total douche is saying some smart-ass shit to an old/disabled/drug addled panhandler. Save that shit for the teenagers bumming beer change. Guys that feel it necessary to yell "get a job!" (or some of the other wisecracks in this thread) at broken down dope fiends surely possess immeasurably small penises.
Agreed, although I've encountered a couple exceptions:
1. The asshole that thinks my back steps are his own personal toilet. I've warned him once, next time I won't say shit.. he'll just catch a beat down.
2. I caught an old guy that hangs around my neighborhood stuffing a bag of trash down the storm drain (there was a trashcan not 100ft from him). This really pissed me off.. not only does this guy sit around all day asking for handouts instead of looking for work, he's trashing up the neighborhood in the process.
I'm not going to call somebody out because they asked for change unless they're acting a fool.
It kind of depends on how entertaining they are. I remember being in Dallas one time. This dude tells me a story about washing windows, Jesus and waffles. I gave him $10 for creativity.
That duffel bag/change jar subway game is real suspect.
"Good evening ladies and Gentleman, my name is Mr. Vegan and I'm a representative for the United Homeless Organization ... that is why a group of citizens got together and decided that nobody should go hungry throughtout the transit system ... your pennies, nickles, dimes and quarters..."
i have no 'policy' if i want to give my money to someone i will, if i do not, i wont, this is based on a decision i make at the time based on my perception of the situation.
I have been homeless myself, but i never relied upon handouts, i worked for my money, shit: i ate outta dumpsters, but i have no mental health problems either, so any mass comparison or generalization is worthless.
we have all seen scammers and fake 'homeless' but we have , i am sure all seen folks who legitimately need a helping hand, and giving some money to those folks is an honorable thing to do.
b,121ex-GF is a drugs counsellor. 95% of folks on the street are on heroin or worse.
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b,121I don't know what your ex is telling you, but this statistic is wildly off-base, or at least rife with bias and lacking multiple key qualifiers. Is she talking about people homeless for a week or for a year? Are these folks that have used heroin recently or just have a history of heroin use (possibly not overlapping with the period of their homelessness)? Also, where exactly is "the street"?
font class="post"1b,121b,121We are talking the UK, 12 years ago. She worked for the Prison Service and also directly for rehab programmes on Merseyside and Manchester, IIRC. Folls living *long-term* on the streets, by their wits, in our major cities then were all on it (the vast majortiy - she says they told her everyone was) - it was very widely available and was a primarily a bonding mechanism - when you're on your own, you need to make friends fast.b,121b,121Same in prison. Folls are all on it there. So, if they weren't addicted before they went in for a spell at Her Majesty's pleasure, they are when they get out. It does the time for you, I am told first-hand.
Though: if you have a cellphone or a dog: no soup for you! Never.
I've become more assholistical lately though: digging through my apartment's dumpster and not leaving it cleaner than you found it will lead this apartment manager to GO_APE on your ass...gone are the days of the soft "hey, okay, see, it's like this, weakblah, softblah, simpblah, etc...) I will run up on a fool screaming now...
yeah, it's complicated stuff cause there are lots of varying factors in any of these situations... as many have mentioned.
in my neighborhood in Seattle, there are a few dudes that really provide some value. there is a guy named pops who drums on a empty 5 gallon water jug and sings songs that are presumably his own. his voice is really pretty good and I always give him something when I see him.
and about a week ago, i was walking out of the office to get some lunch. it was an overcast day and as i passed an intersection there was a dude sitting at the bus stop wailing on a saxophone. he was definitely playing with soul. i stood and listened and certainly enjoyed what he was doing. as i passed, i dropped a dollar in his case. he was really appreciative. made me wonder what his story was.
yeah, but these are definitely the exception. for every one of these, there are a few dozen dudes that i see everyday, who continually harass me for money, and don't realize that they do it over and over again. F*ck that.
who you got? My zone only has four beggars: Skinny Lady who will talk about how hot it is to "work" outside in the heat (fake it til ya make it style); mouth-muncher guy (I hook him up, as he seems to qualify--he's old); Loud Scratchy Voice Guy who says, "can I have some money?" just straight up--which would normally get a dollar, being such an out of the ordinary style--but his voice just sucks so bad); and You Pick Em from the random rotation off the bench...I think the street maxes out at four, and there's some regulatory body that will kick you off if you're number five to the spot.
It's crazy to see the same people, year after year: Steven Tyler guy and "real change sir have a great day sir" guy are my favorite Seattle street dudes. I know you know them!
You know Gayest Man In Seattle, by any chance? Always wearing purple with his belly hanging out acting like Tracy Morgan or some shit? He's bomb.
PeePee Man and Duct Tape Guy: I haven't seen/smelled them for awhile, I wonder if they're still running things...Duct Tape Guy. That's a real dude right there. WOW. He wears a full on balaclava robbermask of duct tape... It's as scary as anything I've ever seen.
Oh: add Dude With Possum to the list. I was introduced to him last fall, when I got on a super-crowded #10 bus. Looked towards the back and saw a big empty spot, with like four empty seats. I aint neva scurred so I went and sat down, barely paying attention to the nervous glances I passed on my way. They were trying to save me, but I was clueless. A couple stops later I looked up and I was sitting next to a dude with a full ass grown f*cking possum on his shoulder! I half-gagged/ half-blacked-out/ half-hyperventilated as I pulled the dingding bell cable so hard and just EWWWWWWWW dude I'm geeking out right now just thinking about it: the worst animal ever just boom right there in the (admittedly unflattering) flourescent light of the bus OH HELL NO no f*cking way uggghhhh
Oh: add Dude With Possum to the list. I was introduced to him last fall, when I got on a super-crowded #10 bus. Looked towards the back and saw a big empty spot, with like four empty seats. I aint neva scurred so I went and sat down, barely paying attention to the nervous glances I passed on my way. They were trying to save me, but I was clueless. A couple stops later I looked up and I was sitting next to a dude with a full ass grown f*cking possum on his shoulder! I half-gagged/ half-blacked-out/ half-hyperventilated as I pulled the dingding bell cable so hard and just EWWWWWWWW dude I'm geeking out right now just thinking about it: the worst animal ever just boom right there in the (admittedly unflattering) flourescent light of the bus OH HELL NO no f*cking way uggghhhh
LOL. i remember that dude!!! i used to see him 7 years ago in the little park behind Pike plce market...the only area tha seemed to get consistent sun in seattle. i really liked the park...mixture of riffraff and suits. an the dude with the possum was always there sharing a bottle with his homeless pirates. never saw him panhandling though
i'd like to say that my policy is to give something at every opportunity but i get solicited by homeless people every day and have grown numb to it, which is by no means a good excuse. there's never been a time when i've given money or food and regretted it. i just don't buy the argument that giving money is "enabling" them.
it depends but i try not to give them money around here we get some real third world type ladies with their babies on the corners begging for money they usually go back to juarez at the end of the day and 9 times out of 10 they're native american. i pretty much always give them what i can.
I hitchiked through an entire year once. Feels like long ago and pre celly days, life had changed since then but I give pocket change away all the time, and leftover food to go when it feels right.
Tried to give a vagrant 50 whoremonger dollars today.b, 21b, 21He refused, saying the official rating of the currency was VG but everyone on the street knows it's only worth P-
Comments
I'm not inclined to give anything to people needing it for beer or cigarettes. That show is strictly for the tourists.
Co-sign on the Berkeley punk kids. There's a special place in hell for those types.
There's an old-bum that hangs out in front of the Wells Fargo building in downtown Berkeley sometimes. He's clearly a drunk/addict but a nice guy. I gave him $20 once and he was very grateful. I think it was Christmas and I was feeling generous. I remember seeing some old Berkeley white woman giving him shit about getting a job and just had to roll my eyes.
There's another street punk kid I see occasionally around that area whose completely bitter and makes comments to everyone who doesn't give him change. He's really pushing his luck. He'll mouth off to the wrong person someday and get a beating.
but depending on the situation i might
most of the time i use these:
BUM BLOCKERS
Back in 2001 I was in San Francisco on my 21st birthday. Mr Jeigh was there and a bunch of us were walking down Market St at night. It was cold and we stopped to get drinks at a coffee shop. I had a chai tea. This guy asked us for money and I offered him my drink. He took a sip and then threw it into the street.
Agreed, although I've encountered a couple exceptions:
1. The asshole that thinks my back steps are his own personal toilet. I've warned him once, next time I won't say shit.. he'll just catch a beat down.
2. I caught an old guy that hangs around my neighborhood stuffing a bag of trash down the storm drain (there was a trashcan not 100ft from him). This really pissed me off.. not only does this guy sit around all day asking for handouts instead of looking for work, he's trashing up the neighborhood in the process.
I'm not going to call somebody out because they asked for change unless they're acting a fool.
Last year I saw a fairly good looking one-legged woman panhandling in Austin.
Her sign read "Need Help: On My Last Leg".
I'm talking about guys that walk by skitzo vets and nodding dope fiends yelling "GET A JOB!"
That duffel bag/change jar subway game is real suspect.
"Good evening ladies and Gentleman, my name is Mr. Vegan and I'm a representative for the United Homeless Organization ... that is why a group of citizens got together and decided that nobody should go hungry throughtout the transit system ... your pennies, nickles, dimes and quarters..."
Wow, that sounds like me.
Though: if you have a cellphone or a dog: no soup for you! Never.
I've become more assholistical lately though: digging through my apartment's dumpster and not leaving it cleaner than you found it will lead this apartment manager to GO_APE on your ass...gone are the days of the soft "hey, okay, see, it's like this, weakblah, softblah, simpblah, etc...) I will run up on a fool screaming now...
The worst though: this Girl Scout racket.
GET OFF MY LAWN GUY OUT
in my neighborhood in Seattle, there are a few dudes that really provide some value. there is a guy named pops who drums on a empty 5 gallon water jug and sings songs that are presumably his own. his voice is really pretty good and I always give him something when I see him.
and about a week ago, i was walking out of the office to get some lunch. it was an overcast day and as i passed an intersection there was a dude sitting at the bus stop wailing on a saxophone. he was definitely playing with soul. i stood and listened and certainly enjoyed what he was doing. as i passed, i dropped a dollar in his case. he was really appreciative. made me wonder what his story was.
yeah, but these are definitely the exception. for every one of these, there are a few dozen dudes that i see everyday, who continually harass me for money, and don't realize that they do it over and over again. F*ck that.
who you got? My zone only has four beggars: Skinny Lady who will talk about how hot it is to "work" outside in the heat (fake it til ya make it style); mouth-muncher guy (I hook him up, as he seems to qualify--he's old); Loud Scratchy Voice Guy who says, "can I have some money?" just straight up--which would normally get a dollar, being such an out of the ordinary style--but his voice just sucks so bad); and You Pick Em from the random rotation off the bench...I think the street maxes out at four, and there's some regulatory body that will kick you off if you're number five to the spot.
It's crazy to see the same people, year after year:
Steven Tyler guy and "real change sir have a great day sir" guy are my favorite Seattle street dudes. I know you know them!
You know Gayest Man In Seattle, by any chance? Always wearing purple with his belly hanging out acting like Tracy Morgan or some shit? He's bomb.
PeePee Man and Duct Tape Guy: I haven't seen/smelled them for awhile, I wonder if they're still running things...Duct Tape Guy. That's a real dude right there. WOW. He wears a full on balaclava robbermask of duct tape... It's as scary as anything I've ever seen.
Oh: add Dude With Possum to the list. I was introduced to him last fall, when I got on a super-crowded #10 bus. Looked towards the back and saw a big empty spot, with like four empty seats. I aint neva scurred so I went and sat down, barely paying attention to the nervous glances I passed on my way. They were trying to save me, but I was clueless. A couple stops later I looked up and I was sitting next to a dude with a full ass grown f*cking possum on his shoulder! I half-gagged/ half-blacked-out/ half-hyperventilated as I pulled the dingding bell cable so hard and just EWWWWWWWW dude I'm geeking out right now just thinking about it: the worst animal ever just boom right there in the (admittedly unflattering) flourescent light of the bus OH HELL NO no f*cking way uggghhhh
but yeah I give spare change sometimes yeah
LOL. i remember that dude!!! i used to see him 7 years ago in the little park behind Pike plce market...the only area tha seemed to get consistent sun in seattle. i really liked the park...mixture of riffraff and suits. an the dude with the possum was always there sharing a bottle with his homeless pirates. never saw him panhandling though
Even "normal" people are crazy to me, and I couch surfed (brah) for about a year once...so the lines blur. Everything is everything MAN
possum is full-grown, and SO NOT OKAY with me. I can't even stand doggies in bars, so possums in my personal space I CAN'T HAVE IT!!!
i'd like to say that my policy is to give something at every opportunity but i get solicited by homeless people every day and have grown numb to it, which is by no means a good excuse. there's never been a time when i've given money or food and regretted it. i just don't buy the argument that giving money is "enabling" them.
my policy is always pick em up
around here we get some real third world type ladies with their babies on the corners begging for money
they usually go back to juarez at the end of the day and 9 times out of 10 they're native american.
i pretty much always give them what i can.
people still hitchhike?
but rural areas, down south, west coast, southwest...sure
i actually have picked up a couple hitchers around philly...usually car break downs