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wow,smug?
I am actually glad to see people's attitudes-that it is not just accepted to remain on the streets,and harrass others.
I don't know why it would be smug to not wish to be harrassed???
There are multitudes of non profit charities and organizations set up to provide services,and many people who work HARD,two jobs,pay alot of taxes,etc. also donate money to said charities.
I resent hoards of able individuals or drug addicts constantly harrassing,intimidating or threatening. [not all,but many.]
Even having mentally ill folks in your face is very disconcerting.
And btw,in ancient times,chinese villages would needle/acupuncture an individual who was terrorizing them-we all know there are a few who have completely lost it and are not coming back.
This needle would sedate them,though in the process,as they are kicking nad screaming and out of control,it could kill them.
My point,though random-lol-is that societies have always had to address this issue,and it's not like americans are so neanderthal in our thinking when we dislike it or think it's a problem.
You have subgroups:
Youth who choose this way,b/c they dont want to work
Youth who have come from abusive homes
Addicts-adult or youth
Mentally Ill-adult or youth
Other-folks who are down on their luck,etc.
Obviously,people's atittudes on this thread reflect their feelings towards particular subgroups. Except for those who act as though *any*criticism makes one a horrible individual w/zero compassion.
Those who say folks are smug need to think through the issue.
And,those who do need services and are willing to accept them,should be pointed in that direction,when one sees them on the street.
But it's absolutely unacceptable to have to put up with encounters that are harrassing or threatening,on a day to day basis,and which interfere with one's own personal well being and life.
And,no,I don't really feel for addicts in terms of putting their needs above mine.
I am sorry about the situation-addiction is a h*ll life. But I will not place myself in a subservient position to folks b/c it makes me look 'cruel' or 'harsh',otherwise.
Same goes for jobless by choice,etc.
And,I have lived in third world countries with street children sniffing glue. I understand the range of realities and that there are stories behind these realities.
I still don't wish to be robbed or attacked.
Honestly,those who think people are smug,need to really ask themselves what type of society they want to live in.
I do not want the US to become a 3rd world society,frankly. And it is heading in that direction.
I repeat, there sure are.... They even supply the proof themselves.
I am just so glad I live in the city of Portland, where opinions similar to these are so far removed from the mainstream that it makes them irrelevant.
wow,smug?
I am actually glad to see people's attitudes-that it is not just accepted to remain on the streets,and harrass others.
I don't know why it would be smug to not wish to be harrassed???
There are multitudes of non profit charities and organizations set up to provide services,and many people who work HARD,two jobs,pay alot of taxes,etc. also donate money to said charities.
I resent hoards of able individuals or drug addicts constantly harrassing,intimidating or threatening. [not all,but many.]
Even having mentally ill folks in your face is very disconcerting.
And btw,in ancient times,chinese villages would needle/acupuncture an individual who was terrorizing them-we all know there are a few who have completely lost it and are not coming back.
This needle would sedate them,though in the process,as they are kicking nad screaming and out of control,it could kill them.
My point,though random-lol-is that societies have always had to address this issue,and it's not like americans are so neanderthal in our thinking when we dislike it or think it's a problem.
You have subgroups:
Youth who choose this way,b/c they dont want to work
Youth who have come from abusive homes
Addicts-adult or youth
Mentally Ill-adult or youth
Other-folks who are down on their luck,etc.
Obviously,people's atittudes on this thread reflect their feelings towards particular subgroups. Except for those who act as though *any*criticism makes one a horrible individual w/zero compassion.
Those who say folks are smug need to think through the issue.
And,those who do need services and are willing to accept them,should be pointed in that direction,when one sees them on the street.
But it's absolutely unacceptable to have to put up with encounters that are harrassing or threatening,on a day to day basis,and which interfere with one's own personal well being and life.
And,no,I don't really feel for addicts in terms of putting their needs above mine.
I am sorry about the situation-addiction is a h*ll life. But I will not place myself in a subservient position to folks b/c it makes me look 'cruel' or 'harsh',otherwise.
Same goes for jobless by choice,etc.
And,I have lived in third world countries with street children sniffing glue. I understand the range of realities and that there are stories behind these realities.
I still don't wish to be robbed or attacked.
Honestly,those who think people are smug,need to really ask themselves what type of society they want to live in.
I do not want the US to become a 3rd world society,frankly. And it is heading in that direction.
Yea,well,you know....enjoy portland,folks.
But when children have to complete for playspace at parks b/c homeless people are living there,and drug sales are taking place...this is not living,for anyone.
[and this happens regularly for my family-living in so cal-in areas that see a range of lifestyles. It frankly s*cks when your young child has to see a homeless commit suicide by gun in broad daylight,and watch drug deals and experience erratic behavior towards all park patrons. Why should our children not have the right to play in clean,urban parks,free of this kind of exposure and fear? Hey,my kid dealt with it like other children we know...but i wonder if most of the folks on here defending portland's acceptance of this standard,grew up in suburban white america,and had a yard to play in and did not,themselves,have to deal with such situations,as children.] Why decrease quality of life and rights for growing,future citizens,who may contribute to our world in a positive way? Heck,my son might even work for a non profit group serving homeless-and that is fantastic. But he should have the right to play in his local park w/o harrassment and criminal activity.]
I can see there will be no swaying opinions here.
It is not neanderthal to wish for clean,safe streets and neighborhoods.
There is no point in my continuing in this thread,for sure.
I am glad I did not move to PDX,as I have planned to so many times in the last 15 yrs.[until last year,when i tried eugene instead,and last 4 months in that h*llhole.]Frankly,you folks can have your Oregon. Hey,maybe PDX could be the nation's 'homeless capital?' And we can set up more homeless villages there? Then other states could relieve themselves of the problem?
Let's get to work on that! Er,well,sorry to you portlanders who would then need to move out. But,there are 49 other states.
Wow - I've always thought I'd like Portland as it seems really similar to my home city of Minneapolis, but after reading this thread I really don't feel like seeing it too much. And then there's people that actually defend these folks??? Fortunately we don't have many of these loons running around here, but that's probably due to our weather. There's always a trade-off.
I am actually glad to see people's attitudes-that it is not just accepted to remain on the streets,and harrass others.
I don't know why it would be smug to not wish to be harrassed???
The homeless have always been a part of medium to large cities, always have been, always will be. I’ve spent a lot of time downtown these last few weeks and I haven’t be harassed yet or do you actually consider being asked for spare change, harassment? If so you need to grow a thicker skin.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MN55
Wow - I've always thought I'd like Portland as it seems really similar to my home city of Minneapolis, but after reading this thread I really don't feel like seeing it too much. And then there's people that actually defend these folks??? Fortunately we don't have many of these loons running around here, but that's probably due to our weather. There's always a trade-off.
Just who exactly are the Loons anyway?
The youth who have come from abusive homes?
Addicts-adult or youth?
Mentally Ill-adult or youth?
Folks who are down on their luck?
Or just the tiny minority who choose to live on the street?
Ouch! Very narrow minded. I can understand your frustration BUT, you do not know their story....You think u do but until u walk a mile in their shoes u do won't. It's easier to hate than to love....try taking a step back and thinking to yourself that could be u or a loved one....you don't know how close you are to living that way. We all are.
Me? Narrow-minded? Narrow-minded my a**. Maybe you shouldn't judge ME until you know me. Perhaps you are the one who is narrow-minded here. Or perhaps a little naive.
I have family who have been on the streets because of drug abuse and also out of sheer destitution. I've seen it first-hand. These people do have options. I have a close friend here in Portland who is my age ("street kid" age) and was homeless, and he was able to eat 2 or even 3 times a day. The services for homeless are available to them, especially in Portland, if they choose. I am personally not going to feel sorry for 99% of the people on the street. If you want to get suckered into giving money to street kids who refuse to help themselves, then go for it. I'll donate to a charity that works with the homeless or contribute time at a soup kitchen instead of dropping my money into somebody's drug or alcohol addiction. The ones who really need help the most aren't going to be the ones out on the street asking if you have a couple bucks or a cigarette or both.
We moved to Portland a little over a year ago and have been surprised by what seems to be a large amount of kids living on the street. It is sad, b/c this has come to be their life, having run from whatever bad circumstances they had.
However, they eat and shower at some social service location and seem to (some say) they prefer to really live where they do not have rules, parents, school, responsibility, etc....
It's a situation that can become dangerous.
Portland also has the more "traditional" homeless (which sounds horrible, but the kind most are used to seeing, sadly) - that are older and mentally ill or suffering from addiction. The city offers a lot of services but the people still live this way, under the city's bridges, in the parks, along the rivers, on various river banks, blue tarps and tents by any gathering of trees and more- so it makes me wonder what the answer is?
For some reason, a lot have chosen Portland- and among the younger set- maybe it's been word of mouth?
- Victims (with families) of the Republican's Great Recession
- Collateral economic damaged from the Republican policy of tax breaks for sending blue collar factory jobs overseas
- Victims of the Democratic and Republican economic policy that permitted the Leveraged Buy-Outs and Private Equity to buy healthy companies, by using the company's own credit for the loans to buy the company, fire massive numbers of employees and in the end, kill the company. All the while, the LBO investors and Company managers walked away with massive profits or golden parachutes. (a very boring book on this subject "The Buyout of America" by Josh Koshman details this.)
*********************
What you see in downtown, is the 'visible' homeless. There is the population of "Dignity Village" (an example of a modern day Hover-ville, or Bush-Cheney ville) out near the PDX airport. Dignity Village is not the only such Hover-ville in the Portland area. The panhandlers along east side 82nd street at almost every stop light from NE Killingsworth to Clackamas County line 6 to 8 hours a day, 7 days a week. Last fall, there were several thousand homeless in the Portland area. They are all over Portland. They were kicked out of apartments, homes foreclosed, no money, no jobs, no way to find employment, or earn money.
Maybe we should round them up, put them on a bus and drop them off in downtown West Lynn, or just outside of Washington Square Mall so they could panhandle in the parking lot?
That's it, bus the street kids from downtown to the parking lots of Clackamas Town Center Mall.
Yes, need to add those also-makes me sad to see the disabled veterans and others.
The "street kids" though- for some reason I see this younger homeless population as a group to be more "cautious" around.
They are not as passive as others and they are unsupervised, basically kids or young adults and they behave as if there is no one to give them any "rules" to live by. I think they may be taking advantage of the system or something.
I am not finding the exact words I want, but I think the idea is coming across...
We may be relocating to Portland from KCMO but we are originally from Austin Tx, and after SXSW there is always an influx of street kids for a while bumming until they get back home. Being a native Austinite I am tatooed and pierced and 51 yrs old... that doesn't sit that well in Kansas City, so I'm looking forward to relocation. But I think I'd like the overcast weather in Portland over the oppressive 105 degree hot sunny month of no water in Austin. To each he own I guess. I am a little concerned about the lack of ethnic diversity, and hope if we move here we don't find it bland. We really miss the good restaurants in Austin, KCMO has no BBQ, no Sushi, no Korean, just deep fried foods in huge proportions... ugh...
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