Homeless man called a bum, this may change your perspective

[Staples]

After watching many episodes of Drugs Inc, a thought occurred to me but it isn't PC. When someone asks for money, first ask to see their arms to make sure they are not a drug user because if they are, you know where the money is going.

 

[sunzt]

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 very cool. How'd you go about getting this going and getting the funding? How would someone do something similar?

 

[Kaido]

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.

I knew someone who said they had a friend at work who would go down to NYC and dress up like a bum every weekend...would bring home $700 tax-free on average. Horrible abuse of the generosity system, and makes you question who you are really giving money to. My history teacher taught us on field trips - if you want to give money to the poor, check their fingernails. If they're dirty, they're usually legit, if they not, think twice. But then again, if you're to the point where you're out begging for money even when you don't need to be, there's obviously something wrong enough in your life that maybe you really do need the donations...

The story I always tell is from a high school pep rally type of thing - they brought in a homeless guy to talk about homelessness. I still remember being shocked when he said a lot of people choose that way of life, not because they have to - but because they don't have to pay taxes, don't have to deal with the responsibilities of life like a job, have the freedom to go anywhere they want, anytime they want - I guess I can see the appeal, and I can totally understand it if you didn't have a family support system and had mental or physical issues, but that was a real revelation...I had never imagined that someone would actually choose that way of life! Especially when you can qualify for low-income stuff like housing, cell phones, food stamps, etc. and get a roof over your head.

I dunno. It's a tricky situation. I can only be glad that I've been fortunate enough not to be in that lifestyle and help out those who are when I can.

 

[Kaido]

After watching many episodes of Drugs Inc, a thought occurred to me but it isn't PC. When someone asks for money, first ask to see their arms to make sure they are not a drug user because if they are, you know where the money is going.

Yeah, and it depends on your POV - like I said above, our history teacher told us to check if their fingernails were dirty or not, to see if they were scamming or actually in a dire situation. But then again, if they are out on the street hustling you for cash and do have needle marks...I'd also say they probably need the help. So it's kind of a question of supporting a drug addiction vs. supporting someone who's life has sunk so low that they're a slave to addiction and have to mooch off random people on the street to get their next fix.

That's a pretty rough situation to be in, either way :\

 

[xBiffx]

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?

That isn't living like this. That's a temporary setback, inconvenience, w/e. Even in that situation, there are choices you can make to dig yourself back out but its still not the same thing.

 

[windstrings]

Addictions are pretty hopeless when people keep enabling to maintain the addiction.

 

[CountZero]

After watching many episodes of Drugs Inc, a thought occurred to me but it isn't PC. When someone asks for money, first ask to see their arms to make sure they are not a drug user because if they are, you know where the money is going.

Drug users need to eat too. Being homeless sucks, being a homeless addict doesn't suddenly make that person any less deserving of help IMO. If I'm willing to hand over money to a random homeless person on the street I'm not really worried about judging where that money goes. If that was a concern I'd donate to a charity that helps instead or I'd buy them food directly.

 

[windstrings]

Drugs are expensive and makes you not want to eat and waste you away.

But priorities change when one gets hungry enough unless some slim ball keeps the drugs coming in for the sex.

 

[CZroe]

Addictions are pretty hopeless when people keep enabling to maintain the addiction.

That's why I would never give money and consider how any non-monetary contribution may free up money for vices. I lamented giving the $2 McDonald's gift card for that reason but it was still better than giving money or anything that could be easily converted to money like portable gas or a higher-dollar gift card.

 

[Attic]

If all your support went away, no family back up, no friends to step in... I think we'd have more homeless.

For some a setback is more severe than for others and some have more severe setbacks than others through no fault of their own. Judging the homeless is a sign of weakness, not strength.