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SpudBoy
= Cult of Ray =
Equatorial Guinea
649 Posts |
 Posted - 07/17/2004 : 09:01:59
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quote:
Originally posted by Monsieur
I always give money to bums before my exams/job inteviews/dates. I want God to be on my side.
I became ordained as a minister to cover that. And a pope. Just in case.
Edit: next page demands quoting.
*festoon* |
Edited by - SpudBoy on 07/17/2004 09:02:49 |
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The King Of Karaoke
> Teenager of the Year <
USA
3759 Posts |
Posted - 07/17/2004 : 09:42:42
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Well, here we are talking about homeless people.
And we all know what I think about homeless people.
I think, they're people... And they have no homes.
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http://www.geocities.com/j_vaughn/bigfoot.html
Have you looked into the eye's of a RankStranger?
If you have you will never forget that moment!
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/ |
Edited by - The King Of Karaoke on 07/17/2004 10:20:17 |
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apl4eris
~ Abstract Brain ~
USA
4800 Posts |
Posted - 07/17/2004 : 10:05:39
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(sure is nice to see ya again, KoK -I guess Cheney didn't send his henchmen for your head after all  ) |
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The King Of Karaoke
> Teenager of the Year <
USA
3759 Posts |
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TarTar
* Dog in the Sand *
1965 Posts |
Posted - 07/17/2004 : 15:02:57
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apl4eris, is that a socially acceptable way to derail a topic? by putting it in parenthesis? cool. but still, how dare you stray from the point!!! haha. I kid you. c'mon apl, you know you can derail my topics anytime.
Dean Ween, shortly before Brando died: "He's played Vito Corelone, Colonel Kurtz, and Stanley Kowalski all in one lifetime. What have you done?" |
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betty
= Cult of Ray =
USA
258 Posts |
Posted - 07/18/2004 : 02:54:14
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i feel for, and help when i can, the mentally ill homeless.
also, i was furloughed (laid off) from my job flying for a while. i'm one of those people who has worked since jr high, sadly, and never gone more than a week or two without finding a job when i needed one. let me tell you, this economy thing is no bullshit. i applied endlessly everywhere, and never even got an interview. over a month. not one. the frustration was surprising and intense. when i finally did find a job, waitressing, it was only because my best friend worked at the restaurant and called me moments after the other waiter quit.
in short, i know first hand that it is not only the lazy who fall into hard times.
warm wishes and fond regards,
betty |
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bumblebeeboy2
> Teenager of the Year <
United Kingdom
2638 Posts |
Posted - 07/18/2004 : 03:08:57
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i remember my first time in london, i was quite young, prob 16 or something, was walking towards the astoria, well just wandering as i was too early for the gig (an afternoon gig)... some homeless guy says 'excuse me' so i automatically say 'sorry mate, no money' then he replies (looking quite upset) 'i just want to chat to someone, i don't want any money' - so being a nice lad, i say yeah sure, i've got a little while. so i sit down with him and chat for about 5 - 10 mins, seems fair enough, we talk about what i do, and he tells me a bit about how he became homeless and stuff, then he asks if i can spare some change so he can get into a hostel or something. so i say "sorry mate, like i said, i've got no change" so then he starts saying we could go to a cashpoint and then get some change some place, and how he only needs however much, so i was like "look i said i'd chat to you but i'm not giving you any money" so he then storms off swearing and shouting all kinds of abuse at me. lovely.
And it's hard to be a human being, and it's harder as anything else, and I'm lonesome when you're around, and I'm never lonesome when I'm by myself, and I miss you when you're around. |
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gracie
= Cult of Ray =
United Kingdom
573 Posts |
Posted - 07/18/2004 : 04:26:23
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I mostly give them money just because i feel like such a shit if i don't. Its just a way of easing my guilt. Even though i shouldn't really feel guilty, i still do i'm such a mug.
I know alot of them spent it on drugs or drink but i figure i give them money in good faith, what they do with it is up to them. I do get pissed with the beggers who have homes, money etc, although i find it hard to believe that people would beg if they didn't have to.I couldn't do it, i'd rather steal. |
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VoVat
>> Denizen of the Citizens Band <<
USA
9168 Posts |
Posted - 07/18/2004 : 09:10:10
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Yeah, I'd think begging would be harder than working, unless your job REALLY sucks. People who are good at scamming others might prefer to do it, though. Either that or they get infomercials late at night. I mean, Don Lapre is essentially just a glorified beggar, isn't he?
Cattle in Korea / They can really moo. |
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The King Of Karaoke
> Teenager of the Year <
USA
3759 Posts |
Posted - 07/18/2004 : 22:34:28
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My previous post was for humor but on a serious/ very personal note:
My mom was homeless for a couple of years after Reagan decided she was miraculously cured of her schizophrenia in the late eighties. Reagan released many mentally ill people from institutions in the late eighties and many ended up on the streets.
-------------------------------------
http://www.geocities.com/j_vaughn/bigfoot.html
Have you looked into the eye's of a RankStranger?
If you have you will never forget that moment!
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/
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The King Of Karaoke
> Teenager of the Year <
USA
3759 Posts |
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Opaque
= Cult of Ray =
USA
251 Posts |
Posted - 07/18/2004 : 23:43:24
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I dunno... I guess I am a sucker for a hard luck story. Depending on the story. The more unexpected the tale, I think the more likely I am to hand over cash. I don't know why. And it seems that I am a magnet for the bizarre of the bizarre when it comes to folks trying to bum cash.
Some people really are extremely cursed in their luck. Then there are the charlatans of the world. I suppose some days it's hard to tell the difference.
"My primitive words match my primitive heart..." - Mercury Rev |
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ObfuscateByWill
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1887 Posts |
Posted - 07/19/2004 : 00:25:21
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Don't care if they're running some con.
I always give 'em a couple of bucks.
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I don't come across many homeless where I live, but I do volunteer in shelters/kitchens quite a bit.
I know that probably %60 of the money I hand over is headed straight for some drug-dealer or liquor store-owner. Doesn't fucking matter.
Would rather see these people helping themselves, but when it's February and the shelters are full they've gotta find relief someplace.
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Kinda sucks that people feel they should be entertained by the homeless.
*Shka-pow! You're Dead! |
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darwin
>> Denizen of the Citizens Band <<
USA
5454 Posts |
Posted - 07/19/2004 : 00:29:05
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quote:
Originally posted by ProverbialCereal
This is really cruel... but I've always wanted to keep a bunch of job applications for Starbucks and McDonalds in my car to hand out to those same traffic-jam homeless people that irritate me.
Just quit a cult / going through withdrawal
Do you really want them making your half-caf soy frappo mocha?
Last time I gave money was to some couple in Santa Barbara whose car had broken down and they needed to buy bus tickets to San Luis Obispo or something. Very clean and believable. Then in the next couple of weeks I saw them several times walking around downtown Santa Barbara. Made me feel like a chump. |
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Opaque
= Cult of Ray =
USA
251 Posts |
Posted - 07/19/2004 : 02:53:34
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quote:
Originally posted by ObfuscateByWill
Don't care if they're running some con.
I always give 'em a couple of bucks.
Would rather see these people helping themselves, but when it's February and the shelters are full they've gotta find relief someplace.
And I would have rather read that than pretty much anything else I have read today... compassion is a noble trait. It has become scarce in this day and age. *hugs* to you.
"My primitive words match my primitive heart..." - Mercury Rev |
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Minky303
- FB Fan -
USA
66 Posts |
Posted - 07/19/2004 : 03:14:29
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I heard a stat that something like 60-70% of homeless are schizophrenic. Mentally ill have it much harder than the physically ill that get more sympathy/tax dollars. Unfortunate..
It sounds hokey but my perspective on the homeless changed after volunteering in a homeless shelter -- a lady was crying and hugging me thanking me for what I did (granted, not much) - she had just got a job and an apartment thru the shelter and was plum giddy.
So perhaps when you hand money out there may be happy consequences. Or maybe more people should give directly to shelters I don't know.
Saw a sign recently I liked : "jobs not jails" |
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mun chien andalusia
= Quote Accumulator =
Italy
2139 Posts |
Posted - 07/19/2004 : 03:50:39
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i always pass some coin to the beggars. who cares what they do with the money. the fact is that i am privileged and they are not and i don't feel morally authorized to preach about finding a job or quit drinking. it's their life after all. feel free to give or not to give them your money but the whole "they deserve it" attitude just makes me sick.
 join the cult of errol\and you can have a beer\without having to quit smoking
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VoVat
>> Denizen of the Citizens Band <<
USA
9168 Posts |
Posted - 07/19/2004 : 18:43:45
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In an ideal society, there wouldn't be any homeless people. I doubt anyone WANTS to be homeless. It's a societal and economic problem.
Cattle in Korea / They can really moo. |
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TameReg
- FB Fan -
USA
110 Posts |
Posted - 07/28/2004 : 20:51:43
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Here's my "strange but true" bum story:
I'm walking down the street and I see a couple guys up ahead begging people for money. Now, at the time I had been debating with myself over what the right thing to do in these situations was. The part of me that felt bad for them, was debating with the part of me that felt like a sucker. So I duck into a doorway and I actually said to myself "God, Please tell me what the right thing to do is"! After I said this to myself, I look at a bulletin board in the doorway I ducked into, and there is a flyer there, stating how you shouldn't give money to homeless people, that you're really not helping, and just making the problem worse, etc... Now, I'm sure most of you(especially the atheists) would say it was just a coincidence, but since that day, I haven't felt guilty about not giving them money.
On a side note, lately a lot of these guys begging are awfully young. I mean, I'm seeing guys in their earlier twenties, who look pretty healthy asking for money. I can't help but think
"these guys could get a job if they wanted". Maybe there's this thrill of scamming people, I don't know. I rather just give money to a good charity. |
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fumanbru
* Dog in the Sand *
Canada
1462 Posts |
Posted - 07/28/2004 : 21:02:54
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in winnipeg we have squeegy kids. these "homeless" people make some good coin washing peoples windshields at streetlights. at first i thought it was a creative way to get some money but now it's just annoying. if they took it a step further they could get a job at a gas station, but then they wouldn't make as much money.
 "I joined the Cult of Frank/ and I got a free t-shirt with this dude on it." |
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VoVat
>> Denizen of the Citizens Band <<
USA
9168 Posts |
Posted - 07/28/2004 : 22:20:10
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quote:
After I said this to myself, I look at a bulletin board in the doorway I ducked into, and there is a flyer there, stating how you shouldn't give money to homeless people, that you're really not helping, and just making the problem worse, etc...
Just like feeding the ducks, isn't it?
Cattle in Korea / They can really moo. |
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realmeanmotorscutor
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1764 Posts |
Posted - 07/29/2004 : 09:37:34
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quote:
Originally posted by TameReg
I can't help but think
"these guys could get a job if they wanted". Maybe there's this thrill of scamming people, I don't know. I rather just give money to a good charity.
Do people even consider the circumstances leading up to homelessness? So many people think it's so easy to change!
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TameReg
- FB Fan -
USA
110 Posts |
Posted - 07/30/2004 : 09:42:21
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quote:
Originally posted by realmeanmotorscutor
quote:
Originally posted by TameReg
I can't help but think
"these guys could get a job if they wanted". Maybe there's this thrill of scamming people, I don't know. I rather just give money to a good charity.
Do people even consider the circumstances leading up to homelessness? So many people think it's so easy to change!
These guys I'm talking about here are very young. I doubt they are even homeless. I think they're just young guys looking for easy money. As far as real homeless people, yeah, I believe it's hard for them to change. But I'm still not sure you should give them money either. If enough people give them money, why change? And, for the record, I have given people money in the past, even since my little incident. But if I think I'm being scammed, I'm not going to feel guilty about saying no. |
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realmeanmotorscutor
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1764 Posts |
Posted - 07/30/2004 : 10:30:43
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I understand being guarded against a scam, but there are more young homeless people than old (20 and under) and to call it easy money is just off the mark. Aso, that billboard was part of a much hated campaign by the government to drive homeless out and away from tourists - where do they go? Somewhere else is all; it doesn't solve anything. It was hardly a "sign" from God.
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n/a
deleted
4894 Posts |
Posted - 07/30/2004 : 10:36:29
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If you don't feel like giving these guys money, buy them a sandwich and a coffee and a tin of food for their little scabby dogs. One with a ring pull of course.
Frank Black ate my Hamster
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TameReg
- FB Fan -
USA
110 Posts |
Posted - 07/30/2004 : 14:18:45
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| I wouldn't be opposed to buying someone food. My wife and I have given money to a local homeless man with a dog a couple times. But I don't mind because this guy never asks for money. He doesn't even speak to people, he just goes his own way. I really don't know what billboard you're talking about, what I saw was a little flyer on a bulletin board. I live in Pittsburgh, so there's not many tourists. And I don't expect people to think it was a "sign" from God. I thought it was just a cool little story. I do believe in God too. But I don't want to start thinking every little thing I see is a "sign". The point of the story was that I wrestled with this issue quite a lot. I want to help people too, but I sometimes doubt just handing over money is the best thing. But hey, maybe I'm wrong. |
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realmeanmotorscutor
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1764 Posts |
Posted - 07/30/2004 : 18:17:37
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my mistake - the billboard thing was in San Fran or somewhere methinks.
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Damn bums
