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Having been subjected to those creeps in Seattle for 11 years, I am curious... how many of them would you estimate are running away from abusive households? I know there's a shelter specifically for such youths on Capitol Hill, but I've never had a sense of whether it's some of 'em, a lot of 'em, or what.
What I do believe is that most of the white kid homeless in Seattle are junkies. Whereas most of the Alaskan Native American homeless are drunks. I don't have much opinion on black homeless in Seattle because they didn't tend to hang out in Capitol Hill so much. The white kid junkies were common when I first moved into the neighborhood in 1995.
I was living in the university district and frequented Capitol Hill and downtown. By my count, not a lot of the transient kids came from what I would call abusive households. Great situations? No way, but not abusive households. The majority of them were your typical dropouts, but I suppose it could be argued that any environment that creates a chronic underachiever (like all those kids were) is a toxic one.
You're right on about the lot of them being junkies.
I give more in the winter. I gave a guy a 50 last week, his eyes almost popped out. It was so cold that day and he looked like he was just down on his luck.
When I pulled up I had it folded into fourths and just had the 50 showing below my thumb, I lowered my arm below the window and handed to him and said Merry Christmas.
He was so grateful, I said dont say the amount I don't want my son to hear and get me in trouble. lol
Made me feel good and I'm sure he could use it.
If I donate, it is to the homeless mission here --- but that's not as necessary anymore because they took on a new outlook. They now have jobs for the mission residents. They make furniture. They feel that work skills are better than handouts, they help these people get back on their feet and also staying busy helps them a whole lot more. I may buy some furniture from them now.
A few years ago when I was living in Baltimore, I just came from Lexington Market an dI had some food with me that I was gonna take home with me when a kid, who could not have been older than 19, was crying and begging me for any type of food be cause he hadnt eaten in 2 days so I gave him a lot of what I had and I was kinda traumatized by that.He was only a few years younger than me and people in America should not be hungry. That's what my philosophy is. So from that point on I always give even when not asked. I hate suffering
I currently live in Iowa and don't run into many homeless here. I think I've only been asked for money 3 times in my 12 years here. However, when I went to college in Honolulu until 2000, I got asked for money by beggars and panhandlers all the time. I would always give whatever I could spare (usually a dollar or two) without thinking much about what the money might be spent on. I figured it was a small price to pay to live in paradise, and I really cared about homelessness as an issue at the time. I thought it was so unfair that I had a roof over my head and they did not.
As I've gotten older and went through life's struggles, I've become more frugal, hardened, and cynical. I take trips to Chicago frequently and whenever I'm approached now I politely refuse. I don't want to part with my limited money, don't want it spent on alcohol or drugs, or given to someone who could make more than me in a year via panhandling. I did give one guy $2 for a sandwich on Thanksgiving, but that's it. While I still would like to see something done about the homeless problem, I understand now that the few bucks that I used to give didn't make a difference.
I have no idea if Baltimore is tougher to get food than other cities. Seattle, Asheville, Raleigh, Savannah, Charleston, I know that people can and do get food. A person may show up who doesn't know the ropes yet, and may act very desperate for food, but it's not rocket science to make the rounds of the Churches, ask other homeless, visit the DSS, call the 211 services hotline, etc. I've yet to see a Salvation Army that doesn't offer "daily bread," for instance. Could be petrified bread, if you were hungry you'd eat it.
It is possible that a 19 year old might have recently fallen into homelessness and had no clue whatsoever about how to respond to his new circumstances. But I really wouldn't worry about such a person remaining unfed, unless I had reason to believe that the food situation in a particular US city was particularly grim. In the cities I named, even if he was totally foolish and totally hungry for a few days, it would motivate him to "get on the stick" and solve his problem. Well, unless he was emotionally despondent enough to immediately commit suicide, but I think most human beings have a survival instinct that kicks in.
I mean, heck, I've occasionally seen people hard dive into trash cans, really rummaging around to the bottom of the barrel to find stuff. Not like the dainty top-of-can picking for perfectly wrapped / fresh leftovers that I've been known to do. I figure people going through all that griming and pawing around, are either really hungry, or deranged. Or maybe neuromuscular problems, hadn't thought of that before.
Last edited by bvanevery; 12-21-2013 at 01:01 AM..
I don't have a "policy" it depends on the situation. I usually give something if I walk past the person. I once gave $1.00 to a man who told me straight out that he was going to buy booze with it, because I liked that he was honest.
I don't have a "policy" it depends on the situation. I usually give something if I walk past the person. I once gave $1.00 to a man who told me straight out that he was going to buy booze with it, because I liked that he was honest.
People don't understand. So what if they buy booze with it. What are they going to do if you give them $50? What if they make $200 in a week from hand outs one week? Is that going to change their life? No. They need a lot more help. Like haircuts, a place to sleep, a shower, some mental health care for some, and then a job.
Since hardly no one is willing or able to help that much, let them at least get drunk so they can ease the pain.
They can receive benefits by way of welfare, SNAP, heating assistance, OBAMACARE, etc.
No, I don't supplement what I give them just because they beg on the street. That would be double-dipping.
Absurd.
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