Do the worthless dregs of society have anything to teach us?

[LumbergTech]

That's not the point of the story, but whatever. I could've walked by like most people did on the street and pretend I didn't see him, and I wouldn't do it any differently now if I were to be in the same situation. Fact of the matter is your party's policies have created 2-3 generations of people who absolutely cannot take care of themselves and have to rely on the government.

With that said, I don't know what the story is behind that guy. Hell, maybe he fought in 'Nam and went nuts after that, I have no idea of knowing. Welfare in its current form has many, many problems and if progressives are going to dismiss ANY discussions that point out our societal problems as "racist" or "heartless", well, none of the progressives will get my vote, and I'll work hard to make sure they don't get to run our government.

If reasonable people would separate themselves from the racists instead of joining forces because they happen to have some things in common it might go a long way.

 

[woolfe9999]

4 years ago, I worked at Novato, CA and on the way back to the East Bay, I'd go play hockey at Bladium in Alameda and usually I eat in Chinatown in Oakland, CA before I go play. One day I was just walking back to my car and there was this dude laying on the bench asking for help, so I walked over and asked what's wrong and the guy said he can't move his legs, can you call 911. So I did, and stayed with him until the paramedics came 20 minutes later. When the EMT lady walked over, she looked at me angrily and asked if I called or not, I said yes. She then starts lecturing the guy on how they are not going to take him to home on an ambulance again, blah blah blah. I looked at her assistant, some young dude and whispered "can I go now", he nodded (I think he felt bad for me getting yelled at) and I left.

I will refrain from injecting race into my personal experience. I was trying to be a responsible citizen and then I find out that there are these people who are just too pathetic to deserve help. That was one of the experiences that galvanized my mind about liberalism and welfare. You can call me heartless or whatever, but the Democratic policies of welfare and crap like "Great Society", affirmative action, etc , are nothing but failure in terms of addressing the root causes of the problem.

I assume the "problem" that you are referring to is poverty, and you are stating that "Democratic policies of welfare and crap like 'Great Society'" have failed to address the "root causes" of it.

So, what in your view are the root causes of poverty, and what is the proper way to address them?

- wolf

 

[Moonbeam]

I don't believe in a literal god, but I still relate to the meaning of what you are saying. I had a few of those moments when I spent time in the children's cancer ward my brother was in.

It is hard not to get choked up when you see a 4 year old who had a bone marrow transplant (but would probably soon die anyway) trying to comfort his distraught family with a genuinely happy smile.

May your shadow always increase.

 

[Moonbeam]

No I get his point, I just don't see the point in his point. This person is in their position due to shit in their life, not Moonbeams. Just because she was nice then doesn't mean she's not a wise and beautiful woman when she's not getting what she wants. This thread is stupid and the only thing to take out of it is Moonbeam feels good giving money to poor people.

I mentioned this is post 15 above, no?

"For each treasure we find we can take only what we can carry."

 

[Lanyap]

I'm trying to picture Moonbeam driving a car and stopping at McDonalds for a burger.

 

[Zebo]

I drove up to Sacramento yesterday to water and mow and garden at a house I own there and stopped at the Golden Arches for a burger. I saw an old hunched back lady there with slippers three sizes too big pushing around a shopping cart and checking out the ground. When she walked she limped. She was so hunched over you couldn't see her face. Her clothes looked to be mostly rags.

Where I live most of the time folk are very well off and we don't see folk like her walking around. So, being stupid, I checked my wallet to see if I had any money, and as is unusual for me I actually found a dollar. Then I remembered I also had a dollar in the bag where my electronic bridge toll payer is kept. I have some change in the cup holder, but that's for parking meters so I ignored that and drove up beside her and said hello. She turned to me and raised her head to reveal a beautiful old wrinkled face full of cheer and a smile, and answered my greeting. I told her, to my shame, I only had two dollars but wanted to know if she would take it. Guess what she answered to me.

Exactly, just what you would expect. She said that if she took it I wouldn't have any money. So I told her not to worry, that I wouldn't need it, because I have a credit card. So with her bony arthritic fingers she took my two dollars and thanked me kindly. God Damn this fucking world. She made me cry. Why the fuck does God have to walk around in rags.

That's not a worthless dreg. A Worthless dreg is after you gave her money she hit you over head with a 2 by 4 took the rest of your money and went and found a crank dealer.

That's just a poor person. And indeed they do have something to teach us. As in we need to think about structuring our society to minimize the poor.

Like you I feel like crap when i see stuff like that and have joy pulling a $5 out to give them. OTOH worthless dregs need to be made disappear.

 

[Zebo]

2 bucks? What a cheapskate!

LOl moon is prolly a millionaire earns more in interest in the time it took to talk to her and thinks $2 is a fortune since he does not shop for himself.

 

[spittledip]

John 9

1As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"

3"Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life. 4As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. 5While I am in the world, I am the light of the world."

6Having said this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man's eyes. 7"Go," he told him, "wash in the Pool of Siloam" (this word means Sent). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.

 

[Scotteq]

You should of taken a sledge hammer to the man's head. Only by being rid of the weak can our society prosper.

Well.. that approach does have historical precedent. Even in the United States.


You're not likely to get far on this one, tho.

 

[Moonbeam]

LOl moon is prolly a millionaire earns more in interest in the time it took to talk to her and thinks $2 is a fortune since he does not shop for himself.

I heard a million times in my life these words from my father, 'I don't think any more of a nickle than I do my right eye'.

 

[Moonbeam]

Well.. that approach does have historical precedent. Even in the United States.


You're not likely to get far on this one, tho.

Engineering and reason at its finest, like the king who sought to end poverty in his country by killing all the poor. Such things make great sense to the emotionally dead.

 

[rudder]

I drove up to Sacramento yesterday to water and mow and garden at a house I own there and stopped at the Golden Arches for a burger. I saw an old hunched back lady there with slippers three sizes too big pushing around a shopping cart and checking out the ground. When she walked she limped. She was so hunched over you couldn't see her face. Her clothes looked to be mostly rags.

Physicians in the country used to have the ability to have people involuntarily committed (not that simple but for brevity's sake that's my story). 14th amendment challenges to people being involuntarily committed now prevents local, state, and federal governments from hospitalizing mental patients.

Like many "dregs"... this lady likely suffers from a mental illness. We cannot force any treatment on her. Likely she does not realize she has an illness. There are people and organizations that try to help... but it boils down to individual rights to liberty. Unless she and people like her ask for help... they will continue to live this way.

 

[LunarRay]

Physicians in the country used to have the ability to have people involuntarily committed (not that simple but for brevity's sake that's my story). 14th amendment challenges to people being involuntarily committed now prevents local, state, and federal governments from hospitalizing mental patients.

Like many "dregs"... this lady likely suffers from a mental illness. We cannot force any treatment on her. Likely she does not realize she has an illness. There are people and organizations that try to help... but it boils down to individual rights to liberty. Unless she and people like her ask for help... they will continue to live this way.

Due Process does not eliminate the committing of folks to the care of Mental Institutions. It simply requires a competency hearing, it seems to me.
What I don't see from Moonbeam's OP is the absence of competency in the behavior of this lady that you apparently extrapolate exists from her apparent clothing and perhaps mode of movement. She seems quite lucid. A bit more 'Motherly' in her concern for Moonbeam's financial condition than her own...

I think that Competency to care for one's self ought to be carefully scrutinized before someone is denied their Freedom... So long as a person is not violating the law in some major way they ought to be able to exist as they see fit. The causations of 'Homelessness' are many and not all of them result from Mental Illness. Unless we've come to the point where someone must be 'Nuts' to give up on the normal mode of living in favor of one consistent with their ability to afford the more conventional one we ought to simply recognize that some of us enjoy Freedom in ways not understood by the mindset of the Perfect.

 

[IceBergSLiM]

Politics and news not found.

 

[Infohawk]

Politics and news not found.

Agreed.

 

[Moonbeam]

Politics and news not found.

Agreed.

Had you read the thread you would have seen why I had to post in P & N:

I read the OP and was a bit as I found no worthless dregs of society.

Then I carried on reading the thread and found them.

:ninja:

The dregs of society is how so many here see the world and for a reason. And if somebody as worthless and stupid as I am can see I have that disease, there is always hope for others.

 

[bfdd]

I mentioned this is post 15 above, no?

"For each treasure we find we can take only what we can carry."

and like I said this thread was simply made by you to say you feel good for giving money to poor people. that's it, nothing special about it. you feel like a better person for giving poor people money. more power to you, just so you know though you aren't being nice. cause you're doing it to get something out of it, the self gratification. you're just as selfish as the people you harp on.

 

[dank69]

and like I said this thread was simply made by you to say you feel good for giving money to poor people. that's it, nothing special about it. you feel like a better person for giving poor people money. more power to you, just so you know though you aren't being nice. cause you're doing it to get something out of it, the self gratification. you're just as selfish as the people you harp on.

We all got that you don't understand the first time.

 

[werepossum]

As you treat the least of His children, so you treat Him.

Yesterday must've been two-buck day, because yesterday I also gave a beggar exactly two bucks. Weird.

Although I guess this lady wasn't begging.

In answer to your title question: Yes: Humility and perspective.

Quoted for truth, and damned well said. Although I didn't give anyone any money yesterday, but yeah, I'm one of those guys who ponies up a few bucks almost every time I'm asked. And I get ragged for it by fellow conservatives every bit as much as by liberals.

 

[bfdd]

We all got that you don't understand the first time.

*yawn* whatever you choose to think. All I see is someone talking about how good it made them feel to give money to a poor person and used the word "god" for sensationalism.