Homeless man called a bum, this may change your perspective

[Reasonable Doubt]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=GThh6bU0-OU

 

[zerocool84]

That's why I'm grateful for everything I have no matter how little it is.

 

[CZroe]

He says he's not a bum but, to be frank, that's kinda the definition of what he is doing.

I didn't enjoy it, but asking homeless people to sleep somewhere else was part of my job while I was doing security in San Diego. We were literally one block from the shelter and it was against the law to sleep at the front door of my client's homes no matter how close to being a "public" sidewalk their front doors were (illegal to sleep in your car too). The property is still private even with a public right-of-way.

He sure sounds like a typical bum despite his insistence that it's simply a recent one-plus year streak of being down on his luck. Perhaps part of it is that most are perpetually sick or something but most people from the 'burbs don't use nearly so many double-negatives and know that "bum" isn't always an insult. I kinda doubt this man was ever a very productive member of society no matter how badly he wants to be.

He certainly isn't stupid and no one deserves to have to live like that, but it isn't like he bears no responsibility for it.

 

[beachchica]

A lot of people with mental health issues can come off like healthy people - most of the time even. But if left untreated, even the most highly functional will mess up enough to not be able to hold a job or function at a level that most would consider 'normal'.

That guy did not come off as 'normal'.

Many of those people wind up on the street. In fact the vast majority of homeless people (bums, if you like) fall into one or (usually) more of three categories: Substance abusers, mentally ill and runaways.

 

[AreaCode707]

You never can tell, one person from another, what brings them to that spot and why they are as they are.

I've rolled down my window and offered directions to a guy with a sign to help him find a nightly food distribution spot, and had him whip out a pen and paper and take down the directions, asking me to repeat a few times to make sure he had them down right. He really just wanted to make sure he had enough to eat that night.

I've also offered to buy a woman (who allegedly hadn't eaten in three days) a meal at the grocery store at the end of the street in a busy business sector of town and had her turn me down flat if I wasn't going to give her cash.

There will always be people out there scamming, but I think God judges me based on my response to those in need, and he'll judge them for their dishonesty if need be. Gotta be smart about it so you don't encourage problems, but really it comes down to your own self and reaction to people in need.

 

[phucheneh]

The mentally ill (and the oft-linked former substance abusers) still don't exactly deserve that, though. And yeah, some jackass will come along and pick apart the word 'deserve;' fuck you in advance, whoever you may be.

And even the current drunks and drug users get some sympathy from me. People don't understand it if they don't have a personal link to it. Again, strong link with 'mental illness'...if you've never had sustained severe depression, consider yourself lucky and try and keep your judgement to yourself. If you have, imagine feeling like that while you sleep under a bridge without even fleeting glimpses of hope. No one is going to hire a homeless guy. Many cities have little/no outreach to give them any help. 'The fuck are they supposed to do? I can hardly blame a dude with a physical addiction for 'indulging' to try and make the pain stop.

No, I don't want to have to deal with crazy cracked-out homeless dudes, either. But it's not like there are any meaningful suggestions you can give someone like that, objectionable as they may be. 'Hey, stop drinking/smoking/whatever and if you're not dead in six months, maybe you can afford to get some place to briefly stay while you attempt to get a shitty minimum wage job! And if you can't, well, at least you already have some solid homeless experience to fall back on!'

Shit. I hate our society. But remember, successful people! It was all you! No one helped!

Funny how the people who complain about 'entitlement' seem to have the worst cases of it.

 

[DesiPower]

I got this in the related video link...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTgsdHWrXRc

 

[phucheneh]

I got this in the related video link...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTgsdHWrXRc

Good thing she wasn't driving; 180mph is too fast for the kitchen.

 

[CZroe]

A woman asked me for a gallon of gas tonight. She knew better than to ask for money, but I knew she was going to go there despite ridiculous circumstances.

First, as nonsensical as it sounds, she repeatedly said she could buy a gas can but needed me to buy her a gallon of gas. Then, she flatly refused to let me push her car a few yards from the parking space it miraculously ran out of gas in conveniently at an incline that leads DOWN to my pump. After I told her that I can't help her then and checking to make sure I didn't have a gas can in my trunk, she hung around and kept sticking her hand in to ask about things that weren't gas cans every time I tried to close it (probably trying to get me to turn my back and pump my gas while leaving it open so she could swipe something from it).

Sure enough, she finally pointed out that there was an ATM inside and I almost busted out laughing saying "Can't help you then." Her response? "Do it for God." I'm sure I chuckled after that one. "I can't push your car to the gas pump for God but I can give you money for gas in His name?!" The thing is, she stuck around watching me swipe my card and stared right at the keypad as it requested my PIN. I said out loud "I'm just going to run it as credit then" to make it clear that I was aware. She still stood there as I finished even though I told her I could not help her with cash.

Though she never admitted to needing anything else, sure enough, she gladly accepted the remaining $2 on my McDonald's gift card that I only offered as I was ready to leave. That's probably just going to free up $2 that she would have spent on food to spend on whatever drug problem she has but I did so anyway because it's possible that she might be desperate enough to starve before she ODs.

 

[Slick5150]

The cycle of homelessness is a nearly impossible one to get out of unfortunately. As he says in the video, once you're there, it's incredibly difficult to find a job as employers want a phone number, they want someone that looks presentable, etc... Yes, there are mentally ill people that should be getting treatment, and yes there are drug & alcohol abusers on the streets, but there are also people and families that legitimately are down on their luck and once they lose their home, can't find a way to get one back.

I worked to help get a charity off the ground that helps people in those situations by providing them with mailboxes and phone #s to put on job applications (basically just voicemail boxes and an ongoing line they can use to call employers back from), free haircuts/grooming and a set of business clothes to use for interviews. The gratitude from these people was overwhelming and it was truly a wonderful experience watching the pride in them when they'd finally land a job and see a path forward for themselves finally.

I was inspired to do this by finding out a good friend of mine from college had become homeless. I tracked him down found that his life had spiraled out of control, partially fueled by alcohol, causing him to lose his job and eventually his home. He had cleaned himself up and was healthy again, but couldn't find a way to get back to work given his current situation. I'm happy to say he's back at work now and is doing well, but he's certainly the exception to the rule.

So before you pass judgement on people and say "get a job", realize that many of them would if they could.

 

[BUTCH1]

A woman asked me for a gallon of gas tonight. She knew better than to ask for money, but I knew she was going to go there despite ridiculous circumstances.

First, as nonsensical as it sounds, she repeatedly said she could buy a gas can but needed me to buy her a gallon of gas. Then, she flatly refused to let me push her car a few yards from the parking space it miraculously ran out of gas in conveniently at an incline that leads DOWN to my pump. After I told her that I can't help her then and checking to make sure I didn't have a gas can in my trunk, she hung around and kept sticking her hand in to ask about things that weren't gas cans every time I tried to close it (probably trying to get me to turn my back and pump my gas while leaving it open so she could swipe something from it).

Sure enough, she finally pointed out that there was an ATM inside and I almost busted out laughing saying "Can't help you then." Her response? "Do it for God." I'm sure I chuckled after that one. "I can't push your car to the gas pump for God but I can give you money for gas in His name?!" The thing is, she stuck around watching me swipe my card and stared right at the keypad as it requested my PIN. I said out loud "I'm just going to run it as credit then" to make it clear that I was aware. She still stood there as I finished even though I told her I could not help her with cash.

Though she never admitted to needing anything else, sure enough, she gladly accepted the remaining $2 on my McDonald's gift card that I only offered as I was ready to leave. That's probably just going to free up $2 that she would have spent on food to spend on whatever drug problem she has but I did so anyway because it's possible that she might be desperate enough to starve before she ODs.

I was getting gas at a Sunoco last week when a girl from a few pumps over comes by and asks for gas$$, "we were boating today and he left his wallet and phone on his buddies boat and now we have no gas to get home"..OK, I told her "you can use my phone and call him and tell him to bring the wallet over", she said "we already tried that and he didn't answer". sorry, can't help you, they were driving an Avalanche and have no gas to put in it?. Stupid bitch, sell that fuel-swilling beast and buy a Geo or something you guys can actually afford to drive. As for the guy in the OP's link, yea it's tough looking like that and no phone# or addy to apply for a job, TBO it's hard to tell at this point if his body could withstand 8 hrs of hard work..

 

[mmntech]

I stopped feeling sorry for the homeless after watching them out in front of Skydome after a Jays game. Most folks seem to give them a dollar so I crunched some numbers. All they would need is to get ten people to drop a buck in their cup each hour for eight hours to make minimum wage. Very feasible. Plus it's 100% tax free until they buy something. All for minimal effort. A lot easier than washing cars or flipping burgers. Nice little grift they've got going. Of course that's the "sane" ones. A lot of them aren't even homeless.

Then there's the crazies. Which is really the sad part since it's a colossal failure of the system. Mental healthcare has been consistently underfunded by every government and every party in this country. Since they closed the asylums and tossed them out on the streets, they've got nowhere else to go. Nor are they responsible enough to take their meds. A lot end up doing hard drugs.

I do find that Toronto doesn't have a lot of "crazy" homeless. Most of them wound up in Vancouver due to the warmer weather and greater tolerance for vagrancy, prostitution and drug use. Big part of why that city has such a big crime problem. They all gather in Pigeon Park in East Hastings. Not far from the downtown. They line up in front of the local drug store every morning to get their meds. The city's socialist elite don't really see it as a problem though. Fine by me. Vancouver can keep em.

 

[CZroe]

The cycle of homelessness is a nearly impossible one to get out of unfortunately. As he says in the video, once you're there, it's incredibly difficult to find a job as employers want a phone number, they want someone that looks presentable, etc... Yes, there are mentally ill people that should be getting treatment, and yes there are drug & alcohol abusers on the streets, but there are also people and families that legitimately are down on their luck and once they lose their home, can't find a way to get one back.

I worked to help get a charity off the ground that helps people in those situations by providing them with mailboxes and phone #s to put on job applications (basically just voicemail boxes and an ongoing line they can use to call employers back from), free haircuts/grooming and a set of business clothes to use for interviews. The gratitude from these people was overwhelming and it was truly a wonderful experience watching the pride in them when they'd finally land a job and see a path forward for themselves finally.

I was inspired to do this by finding out a good friend of mine from college had become homeless. I tracked him down found that his life had spiraled out of control, partially fueled by alcohol, causing him to lose his job and eventually his home. He had cleaned himself up and was healthy again, but couldn't find a way to get back to work given his current situation. I'm happy to say he's back at work now and is doing well, but he's certainly the exception to the rule.

So before you pass judgement on people and say "get a job", realize that many of them would if they could.

Almost every homeless person I met in San Diego had a cellphone.

 

[windstrings]

It's implied if your homeless that your dependent upon asking for handouts, hence the term bum.

Poor or even a woodsman who builds his home out of sticks carries dignity as he does not bekon to others for survival.

Anyone who puts firth energy and then trades that energy for the energy of others talents and goods has learned commerce and how to be a part of society.

It's also implied that a bum has chosen that as a lifestyle rather than a temporary mishap of life.

Most people are more than happy to help "tax dollars" the latter situation, but begrudge supporting someone who will not support himself.

Widows, cripples, mental deficient folks need support.. They are not bums.

Many bums find its much more lucrative to beg on a corner than work... This is a disgust and shame... We support it when we give.
Don't be moved by the lying sign they carry, listen to your heart.

 

[BUTCH1]

About a month ago there was a dude who drove a nice-looking Accord and hid it behind some bushes then walked into the medium strip where all the cars stop at the light and held up a sign "homeless, wife and baby need food! please help" dude was in his early '30's too, he didn't last long before the cops ran him off..

 

[Texashiker]

The mentally ill (and the oft-linked former substance abusers) still don't exactly deserve that, though.

A buddy of mine developed a mental illness early in life. This was back in 1983 and 1984 when he was 16 and 17 years old. By 1985 his parents kicked him out for using drugs.

Around late 1991 to early 1992 he disappeared. Disappeared as in he just walked away from his life. He was not married nor did he have any children.

10 years later his brother found him living in a homeless shelter in california. He had hitchhiked from southeast Texas to California. A few months after his brother found him and they saw each other for the first time in a decade, the voices in his head drove him to commit suicide. The voices told him the world was coming to an end, so he killed himself.

Maybe if my buddy had gotten the help he needed he would still be with us and leading normal life.

When my buddies behavioral problems started around 16 years old or so, everyone wrote it off as typical teenager rebellion.

 

[BUTCH1]

Almost every homeless person I met in San Diego had a cellphone.

There was a special on 20/20 where John Stossel asked 12 people who had signs "will work for food" to do lawn work, offered to pay cash and free bus tokens, out of 12 ONE showed up...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4teq7aKTNJ4

 

[xBiffx]

This is his choice as it is any homeless person's. Blame mental issues if it makes you feel better, even though I think true mental illness is much rarer than people like to think because its an excuse that makes them feel better about these people. Perhaps that is preventing people like this from making the correct choices but in the end its still a choice. There are still opportunities out there for these people to not live like this. They simply choose not to take those opportunities. Again, blame it on lack of education and not knowing what these opportunities are, if that makes you feel better. These people get around, they aren't stupid, they know where things are. They know where to get food, where to find a bed when needed, where to get a shower, etc. They simply choose to live like this.

 

[windstrings]

Almost every homeless person I met in San Diego had a cellphone.

You forgot the unopened bottles of purified water and cigarettes... Who knows what was in their main ride!

 

[Texashiker]

This is his choice as it is any homeless person's. Blame mental issues if it makes you feel better, even though I think true mental illness is much rarer than people like to think because its an excuse that makes them feel better about these people. <snip> They simply choose to live like this.

It is not fair to group all homeless people together and say they choose to live like that.

How many people were evicted during the recent housing crash? I guess those people chose to be evicted?

I used to work with a guy who lived in a van. He used the bathroom, shower and kitchen where we worked at, but he slept on a cot in his van.

 

[AreaCode707]

Widows, cripples, mental deficient folks need support.. They are not bums.

As a "cripple" I'll dispute this. I pull my own weight, earn my own living and pay into the government at least if not more than my fair share. If my husband dropped dead I'd be a widow and still not need support. But thanks for the vote of confidence.

 

[BUTCH1]

It is not fair to group all homeless people together and say they choose to live like that.

How many people were evicted during the recent housing crash? I guess those people chose to be evicted?

I used to work with a guy who lived in a van. He used the bathroom, shower and kitchen where we worked at, but he slept on a cot in his van.

Down by the river??, J/K had to put that in, I agree, some are truly needy and just need a break to get them out of the cycle they are in and then some would rather beg or live off Gov. programs than work a 40..

 

[Kaido]

The cycle of homelessness is a nearly impossible one to get out of unfortunately. As he says in the video, once you're there, it's incredibly difficult to find a job as employers want a phone number, they want someone that looks presentable, etc... Yes, there are mentally ill people that should be getting treatment, and yes there are drug & alcohol abusers on the streets, but there are also people and families that legitimately are down on their luck and once they lose their home, can't find a way to get one back.

I worked to help get a charity off the ground that helps people in those situations by providing them with mailboxes and phone #s to put on job applications (basically just voicemail boxes and an ongoing line they can use to call employers back from), free haircuts/grooming and a set of business clothes to use for interviews. The gratitude from these people was overwhelming and it was truly a wonderful experience watching the pride in them when they'd finally land a job and see a path forward for themselves finally.

I was inspired to do this by finding out a good friend of mine from college had become homeless. I tracked him down found that his life had spiraled out of control, partially fueled by alcohol, causing him to lose his job and eventually his home. He had cleaned himself up and was healthy again, but couldn't find a way to get back to work given his current situation. I'm happy to say he's back at work now and is doing well, but he's certainly the exception to the rule.

So before you pass judgement on people and say "get a job", realize that many of them would if they could.

That's awesome man :thumbsup:

 

[Kaido]

It is not fair to group all homeless people together and say they choose to live like that.

How many people were evicted during the recent housing crash? I guess those people chose to be evicted?

I used to work with a guy who lived in a van. He used the bathroom, shower and kitchen where we worked at, but he slept on a cot in his van.

And homelessness doesn't always equate to not having a choice. Check out fuzzybabybunny's thread, "I'm homeless and I've lived in my Honda Fit for months. Ask me anything."

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2305166

Pretty cool :thumbsup:

 

[Kaido]

Almost every homeless person I met in San Diego had a cellphone.

We have a program like that in Connecticut - free cellphone to low-income families. I'm sure it gets abused, but it's also nice to have that link to civilization, as was mentioned earlier - having a way to get in contact with an employer etc.