General Discussion

GarroHorus

(1,055 posts)

63. Personal experience

Sat Jun 23, 2012, 11:05 AM

Jun 2012

And that was all I related. Note the words in my post "that I see".

Personal experience -A corner by a train station in the city. A guy with crutches acting like he has psychological issues. Saw the same guy two days earlier walking fine with crutches in hand. Saw a legitimate homeless person same corner a few days after the guy acting like he has problems. Vietnam vet in a wheel chair. Legitimately homeless. Gave him money.

Vietnam Vet is there for several mornings. I give him money each day. Not much, but something and hopefully somebody sees me doing it.

After that, same guy with crutches on that corner. Found the Vietnam Vet three corners over where there is a lot less traffic. HE told me some guy chased him off from his other spot.

I've seen several instances likef this around the city. The scammers chase off the real homeless people from the best spots.

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There's A Reason Americans Pass By Homeless People In The Street Without A Second Glance [View all] xchrom Jun 2012 OP

"people are destitute and others are well-off because of personal choices" is RW mentality. DCBob Jun 2012 #1

Yes, it says in the Bible dotymed Jun 2012 #44

it also says that the rain falls on the just and unjust- Bluerthanblue Jun 2012 #47

I'm reminded of a statement from the German philosopher and polymath coalition_unwilling Jun 2012 #67

thanks- Bluerthanblue Jun 2012 #82

It also says in the Bible that we are to take care of the poor, homeless, Zoeisright Jun 2012 #90

There was a best-selling book a few years ago called "The Secret" that espoused the TheDebbieDee Jun 2012 #99

You are so right about that, and it's something people are almost conditioned to ignore. Raksha Jun 2012 #139

I am sorry that dotymed Jun 2012 #160

"People are destitute and others are well-off because of God's will" is also coalition_unwilling Jun 2012 #62

And many of them, if not most of them, use the "god's will" argument to justify Arkansas Granny Jun 2012 #71

Not to re-fight the 30 Years' War, but the difference between Protestant and Roman Catholic coalition_unwilling Jun 2012 #77

Been Saying That For Years liberalmike27 Jun 2012 #68

Sometimes I believe we barely have any free will choices in life at all. LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #2

I think the truth of the matter./... sendero Jun 2012 #3

I don't quite agree that it somewhere in the middle mazzarro Jun 2012 #15

Even the ability to focus and "work hard" pscot Jun 2012 #23

Good point. Turbineguy Jun 2012 #31

not to mention that the table of "choices" itself is laid by larger forces. HiPointDem Jun 2012 #115

Life is a lot like... meaculpa2011 Jun 2012 #26

And, most often dotymed Jun 2012 #55

I would.. sendero Jun 2012 #56

free will Brainstormy Jun 2012 #19

Well put. I hope you get a chance to read the wonderful novel by Tom Wolfe "A Man coalition_unwilling Jun 2012 #69

I Think You're Right liberalmike27 Jun 2012 #83

It reminds me of "shunning" Cerridwen Jun 2012 #4

Yes. I always stop and give the homeless money, even when they are obviously drunks. LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #21

I used to keep a handful of change pscot Jun 2012 #27

Exactly! And thank you for doing that. :) LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #28

I'm the same way, whatever the reason they are down and out, the fact is that smirkymonkey Jun 2012 #30

"just down on their luck"... BrendaBrick Jun 2012 #100

"My first instinct is to feel compassion" Cerridwen Jun 2012 #37

You may be liberal, dotymed Jun 2012 #58

:) Thank you n/t LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #92

My sister fed the homeless man on the city grate each morning on her way to work. CarmanK Jun 2012 #156

Homelessness is our answer to mental healthcare. raouldukelives Jun 2012 #5

We created some very bad institutions when we did try to take care of them. dkf Jun 2012 #7

We used to deliver babies with hands that had been in a cadaver and not washed. Mothers died. jtuck004 Jun 2012 #153

I still remember the DU post about giving incapacitated women birth control so they can't get dkf Jun 2012 #161

Evil is never going away, but that's no reason to throw the hands up in the air. n/t jtuck004 Jun 2012 #162

+1000 and the prisons n/t clang1 Jun 2012 #16

Right. Here's the Disconnect: Iggy Jun 2012 #6

When is the last time you invited a homeless person to share your abode? dkf Jun 2012 #8

Yesterday. sulphurdunn Jun 2012 #10

That's dangerous. nt Honeycombe8 Jun 2012 #13

Not really. sulphurdunn Jun 2012 #17

So the person made a choice to be homeless? dkf Jun 2012 #25

People in the grip of severe mental illness and/or addictions almost always make bad choices, due to LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #43

No sulphurdunn Jun 2012 #75

Some people have a regular, safe & comfortable place to sleep outside free from harassment... Luminous Animal Jun 2012 #102

I can support the thought it is dangerous to take home a homeless person. airplaneman Jun 2012 #143

That is pretty brave of you. dkf Jun 2012 #22

Homeless JonLP24 Jun 2012 #40

If and only if the family is supportive. nt raccoon Jun 2012 #50

Agreed. sulphurdunn Jun 2012 #76

It's not just that they're homeless. I wouldn't invite ANY stranger into my home. Honeycombe8 Jun 2012 #148

DKF, I'm curious, which of the traditionally Democratic positions do you embrace? r/o LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #29

Ditto. Inquiring minds would like to know. Thank you for putting into words coalition_unwilling Jun 2012 #73

You refer to "traditionally Democratic positions" and raise a good point especially with any AnotherMcIntosh Jun 2012 #107

You have a point there. I guess it's the Dream act etc. I'm thinking of. LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #110

none is the answer. HiPointDem Jun 2012 #117

That's what I thought. Then why is a right-winger even here? LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #119

polite. HiPointDem Jun 2012 #120

I don't understand what you mean. LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #122

the poster is polite; doesn't attack other posters or get into flame wars. HiPointDem Jun 2012 #124

Oh, okay! So it's not against the rules to do the right-wing thing if done politely, thanks! :) LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #133

Another side can sometimes make people deal with things their friends won't. That doesn't mean jtuck004 Jun 2012 #154

Good luck with that one. Rex Jun 2012 #164

Difference: Iggy Jun 2012 #134

Never going to happen. Rex Jun 2012 #166

HA! Rex Jun 2012 #165

Or maybe it's because we expect someone else to take care of them. dkf Jun 2012 #9

That's right. sulphurdunn Jun 2012 #11

Most liberals that I know of, don't have a problem with that at all. LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #32

You just showed how you think OTHER people should take care of them joeglow3 Jun 2012 #36

I don't agree. We as individuals are not trained to take care of mentally ill or LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #39

That is a great point JonLP24 Jun 2012 #49

When I was a kid sulphurdunn Jun 2012 #132

I'd be happy to take my contribution sulphurdunn Jun 2012 #130

Of Course the Government liberalmike27 Jun 2012 #94

The person you are addressing seems to espouse only right-wing talking points. If you look at the LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #95

Political celebrity? Marr Jun 2012 #96

Yes liberalmike27 Jun 2012 #136

I call it personalizing, which amounts to the same thing. Raksha Jun 2012 #140

Yeah, right... chervilant Jun 2012 #12

Measurable IQ liberalmike27 Jun 2012 #86

Thank you so much chervilant Jun 2012 #106

no kidding. barbtries Jun 2012 #14

Saw this artcle posted on Facebook this morning and shared it. mmonk Jun 2012 #18

autoxchrom DURec KG Jun 2012 #20

Our daily lives overtake our ability to look around. turtlerescue1 Jun 2012 #24

+1 LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #33

The people at the top get loopholes, the people at the bottom get vicious circles ck4829 Jun 2012 #34

Truer words were never written! turtlerescue1 Jun 2012 #89

I mostly ignore them because the majority are scamming GarroHorus Jun 2012 #35

I'd like to see a link to your facts SemperEadem Jun 2012 #52

Personal experience GarroHorus Jun 2012 #63

Personal experience AlbertCat Jun 2012 #70

Anecdotal evidence is 100% legitimate in my post GarroHorus Jun 2012 #72

You seem really perturbed that some poor people might be getting a dollar EFerrari Jun 2012 #79

You seem pretty pertured that somebody is skeptical of alleged "homeless" people. GarroHorus Jun 2012 #101

Your concern has been noted. EFerrari Jun 2012 #103

As has yours. GarroHorus Jun 2012 #112

My friends at DU know that I have worked EFerrari Jun 2012 #118

These are not poor people GarroHorus Jun 2012 #126

And now you compare poor people to toilets. EFerrari Jun 2012 #127

No, I'm comparing scam artists to toilets GarroHorus Jun 2012 #129

Not in the least. But thank you EFerrari Jun 2012 #131

I donate to organizations that help the homeless GarroHorus Jun 2012 #138

I see. So in your "personal experience" Zoeisright Jun 2012 #91

It's pretty easy to tell GarroHorus Jun 2012 #98

You asserted "fact" and by doing so you are basing everyone's reality on your anecdotes TheKentuckian Jun 2012 #108

I asserted fact because it was factual. n/t GarroHorus Jun 2012 #113

Did you follow the scammers home? DocMac Jun 2012 #145

Didn't need to. n/t GarroHorus Jun 2012 #147

No, its a dishonest assertion with inadequite supporting evidence. D23MIURG23 Jun 2012 #152

personal experience is opinion, not a measurable fact to anyone SemperEadem Jun 2012 #168

There are hundreds of thousands of homeless people in the United states. EFerrari Jun 2012 #53

YTes, there are GarroHorus Jun 2012 #64

And you know this for a fact how? nt raccoon Jun 2012 #54

See my response above. GarroHorus Jun 2012 #65

I know for a fact you don't see half of the truly homeless- Bluerthanblue Jun 2012 #60

It's easy GarroHorus Jun 2012 #66

it isn't easy- Bluerthanblue Jun 2012 #78

Before I put you on Full Ignore, I only wanted to applaud coalition_unwilling Jun 2012 #81

McDonald's coupons work, if you're afraid of addicts or scammers mainer Jun 2012 #85

bingo GarroHorus Jun 2012 #114

Sometimes homeless people piss me off... kentuck Jun 2012 #38

We may not be able to do much personally treestar Jun 2012 #41

Exactly. newthinking Jun 2012 #155

You're on your own, buddy! AlbertCat Jun 2012 #42

We are a very sick society right now. Let's hope we can heal ourselves. LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #45

Exactly. jp11 Jun 2012 #74

Guilty consciences LuvNewcastle Jun 2012 #46

it is competely a puritanical mindset SemperEadem Jun 2012 #48

Hypervigilance. Thats how. WingDinger Jun 2012 #51

what choice do we have in the family we are born into? Bluerthanblue Jun 2012 #57

Awesome post. Wish I could DU Rec it. Can't rec it highly enough - n/t coalition_unwilling Jun 2012 #84

+1 Please consider making this an OP? Please? :) LiberalLoner Jun 2012 #97

I have nothing to add to that except "you're right"! Raksha Jun 2012 #141

I gave twenty dollars to a guy near a stoplight GeorgeWW3 Jun 2012 #59

Of course, when these things happen to THEM, well "that's different". NC_Nurse Jun 2012 #61

Emphatic K&R! - n/t coalition_unwilling Jun 2012 #80

Don't randomly hand out dollar bills; give to a homeless shelter instead mainer Jun 2012 #87

fear, shame, guilt . . . mzteris Jun 2012 #88

I find it funny UglyGreed Jun 2012 #93

Yesterday saw a woman who appeared to be homeless hunting cans from the garbage at a store. jwirr Jun 2012 #104

How is your search going? EFerrari Jun 2012 #105

Still looking but they have put me on the waiting lists for all the low-income housing in the area jwirr Jun 2012 #109

Moving in with two kids sounds like taking on a lot. n/t EFerrari Jun 2012 #116

Yes, I love to baby sit but I want to have my own time also. Oh, well at least now I have an option. jwirr Jun 2012 #121

What did you finally think of the student idea? EFerrari Jun 2012 #123

I talked with my daughter and we realized that I would need to ask for too much for a student to jwirr Jun 2012 #146

I figure mostly what is going on is they can't look the homeless in the eye TheKentuckian Jun 2012 #111

K&R DeSwiss Jun 2012 #125

Whether we help a needy person or turn away is one of the real choices we really still have. leveymg Jun 2012 #128

It really is. EFerrari Jun 2012 #135

Blessings. Made any headway on the summer program? leveymg Jun 2012 #142

School board lady blew me off but there are 4 others. EFerrari Jun 2012 #150

It's a psychological defense mechanism called the "Just World Theory". Odin2005 Jun 2012 #137

I for one would rather be wrong and inadvertently give a scammer a few bucks NYC Liberal Jun 2012 #144

There are such things as 'forced' choices. Which end up not really being 'choices.' freshwest Jun 2012 #149

I'm not destitue Phlem Jun 2012 #151

This message was self-deleted by its author trusty elf Jun 2012 #157

I give the homeless clean blankets. Spitfire of ATJ Jun 2012 #158

k&r for reading later n/t w0nderer Jun 2012 #159

Willingness has nothing to do with it. Rex Jun 2012 #163

Denial. "Haha, that can't happen to me! I don't choose it!" Fire Walk With Me Jun 2012 #167

friggin "rugged individualism" OneGrassRoot Jun 2012 #169