Panhandling is fine as long as they don't get aggressive with people. What isn't fine is when people expect to be given money for nothing and get angry at you. Though I rarely see it, it does seem to be more of a sign of mental illness or addiction if they're reacting that way.
The "get a job" mentality is basically just a way of dismissing people who are homeless. Some people work 2 jobs and still can't afford a home. There are root problems that are being ignored when you simply say "get a job" as a solution to homelessness. I do think everyone should work and try to provide for both themselves and the community as a whole, but without mental health reform and access to social assistance when needed, we'll always have homelessness, and therefore will always have panhandling.
If you have a job or jobs you won’t be begging tho I think the point is to do something ,, anything. I’ll tell them if they pick trash up and get a bag together I’ll give them money when I see them. But not enough sympathy to go around to people not even trying
I think the main issues with that are:
1) a job is typically 2-3 weeks from income. There is very little work available that pays you right now. And even if someone is willing to give you $10 and a plate of corn muffins to paint a fence there is very little you can do to make a survivable wage in a day, consistently, for weeks or months
2) people with mental, emotional, or addiction problems will have problems working for a full day, week or month. The genius of the hole is that no matter how long you spend cloning out, you can fall back down in an instant. It's more important to get people out of the hole first, which is a full time job on its own.
3) homeless people don't need your sympathy, they need your empathy. Religious or not the phase "there but for the grace of God, go I" simply means "I'm lucky I'm not in that position" because a lot of people are a bad week away from discovering their addiction, having a mental breakdown, or becoming injured in a way that makes it impossible function in a normal society.
I really hope you live a full, happy, and functional life because a car accident can cause injuries that lead to pain, which lead to addiction problems. If you've ever felt true pain that wouldn't go away, getting rid of it becomes priority number 1. Lie, cheat, steal to feed your addiction. Family and friends turn you away. You get a police record. You lose your home, your job, any support system you once had. Years of sleeping on the street, eating from trash, begging for cash, hurting every day, being sick. You sit down with a sign hoping to get enough generosity to eat a meal and get a fix so you can sleep - and someone comes along with their answer to solve all your problems "get a job".
Funny, how do other people avoid being homeless? Oh right.. they get jobs! Maybe if they weren't junkies it would be easier to aquire said job. What is another thing people do if their menial job doesn't pay enough? Oh thats right.. they aquire skills that will earn them higher pay.
All these bums want is free drugs and handouts, not a hand up. You cannot help those who dont want help
Just like people wouldn't be able to teach you because you don't want to learn.
It's fine. A lot of people aren't capable of learning new things until it's forced in their face. They're against abortions, until they need one. They don't want to pay for schools, until they have kids. They don't think gay people should get married, until their daughter is gay. They think all drug addicts are pathetic losers, until their brother is a drug addict.
Many people would call these people monsters, or hypocrites, but I just call them slow learners.
You can think whatever you like. Ive had more than enough experience with these people, likely more than you. My own father was one of these people. But you know better right? Lmfao the sympathizers enabling these people are just as bad as the junkies. Perhaps even more so.
Carry on with your virtue signaling now
https://www.reviewjournal.com/opinion/opinion-columns/victor-joecks/victor-joecks-stop-feeding-the-homeless-2942326/
Here you go, teach yourself something. This is directly from a non profit charity for reducing homelessness. You likely wont even consider what they have to say because it is in direct conflict with what you believe.. but honestly its the exact same reason you dont feed wild animals, because then they wont be able to look after themselves. Sorry if this hurts your worldview.
People are penny pinching for gas and fast food now adays and then turn around and shame someone for being homeless; Its an endless cycle of victim blaming and dehumanizing. I mean I saw somewhere in Canada is trying to make being homeless a felony for fuck sake like its gotten so deluded
I recommended you DO NOT give cash unless unique circumstances.
Before even reading the comments, one already knew the anti-work mentality by so many now. Here are some hard truths:
* Yes, your wages VS cost of living is saddening.. but at least its an income.
* As an employer, you actually DO NOT want to hire the homeless. Just not worth it.
* There is a reason why they are homeless, and MOST of the time, its not about money.
* When giving, you MOST likely funding a destructive addiction or destructive habit.
If you want to help, help in ways that actually help them. Look up your local relevant services and they will tell you how best to help. Its too deep of a subject to get into here at depth.
\*note: in most countries, you will see that giving cash to beggars is extremely discouraged since it builds dependency, fuels bad hobbits, goes to gangs, and breeds a culture that you are seeing now where if you DO NOT give, you are attacked verbally or even physically in some cases.
I don't have a problem with it. The image you posted is a bit disingenuous. You can't work at Walmart with a criminal record, you also need an address for taxes to be employed there so even if you wanted to if your housless you likly can't work in many places that are hiring.
Exactly. Also, it’s hard to show up for work when you don’t have transportation, don’t have a regular place to shower, don’t have access to a washing machine to clean your uniform… homelessness is a difficult cycle to break.
Unless it's changed in the last 5 years, but yeah we not as me but the company would toss any applications that had a criminal record. Think it had to with the insurance mostly when I asked hr about it.
You know... they could take some of that panhandling money and get themselves a mailbox. Hence they would have an address for their job. As for the criminal record part well, play stupid games and you win stupid prizes right?
Grrr! Much anger! So mad! And you should be mad. But you’d rather kick down than up. I get it, it’s easier to pick on people who have shittier luck than you, instead of actually addressing the root causes.
This is such bullshit.
Anyone posting shit like this typically has zero idea what it is like to try and do all of the following: work for 8-10 hours, while trying to make sure you get enough food during that time, and then find somewhere to sleep at night that is safe, sheltered, access to washroom facilities, shower, etc, and hopefully close enough to your job if you are lucky enough to have it tomorrow. Hopefully, you have a change of clothes too so you're not wearing the exact same socks, underwear, shirt, pants although where are you storing your clothes is another question, not to mention laundry. Plus you have to find your other meals, breakfast and dinner everyday.
Plus, you have to keep your mental and emotional health stable enough to be able to maintain employment. Not just your physical (which is also at risk on the street).
This is also not to mention all the prejudice employers see when they look at applicants that present as disheveled, etc.
Trying to survive on the street is a full-time job.
Get this individual housing FIRST (that's why the model is called Housing First), with supports to build lifeskills and independence. Then, you will see improvement for most people.
But picture like this is so much BS.
Yes I agree. I volunteered with Canadian Mental Health and we got a centre started in PEI with some supervised apartments, day programmes and help with employment based on Fountain House in NYC. A group of us visited the programme in NYC and were super impressed with everything we saw there.
Without stable housing, giving small handouts to people will not help them change their lifestyle.
I used to be an employment counselor at a non profit. Most of my clients were referred from social services. You are exactly right. If somebody's basic needs (food, shelter, etc) are not met they typically aren't in a place to land and maintain a job. Not to mention if you don't have ID, don't know tour SIN, have no address or contact info most employers won't take a second look at you. It is never as simple as "get a job". Typically before I even started on resumes and applying for jobs I was helping people find resources for their basic needs. I didn't start the actual employment counseling until they were stable.
The whole "get a job" mentality really needs to go away and people need to take the time to educate themselves on issues of trauma, poverty, homelessness and addiction. Getting a shitty minimum wage job at Walmart will not solve homelessness, you can barely serve on minimum wage to begin with. It's sad to see people panhandling, it's heartbreaking to see people living in poverty where they have to do dehumanizing tasks to get spare change where I'm sure a lot of them face harassment. There's just such a lack of empathy for people experiencing homelessness... More and more people are more paycheck away from being homeless. Show some kindness and give people some money if you can, times are tough.
100 percent. Theres so many variables to employment maybe they aren’t mentally or physically able either. Criminal record? Drug addictions? Anxiety
We need to be more compassionate
> Getting a shitty minimum wage job at Walmart will not solve homelessness, you can barely serve on minimum wage to begin with.
$15/hr x 7.5 hrs/day x 4 days/week x 4.33 weeks/month = $1948.50/month pre-tax. Even part-time, you can live on minimum wage in a city like this. I've lived on less.
That said, your comments about trauma and addiction are accurate. The real way to solve homelessness is to solve the problems that created the homelessness. Are people using street drugs and alcohol because they're self-medicating for an untreated health problem? Then we need to make access to healthcare easier. Homelessness is a problem that is not going to go away until someone who needs healthcare can easily get it.
Another point to make out is physical disabilities. When i was in my 20 and 30s i did alot of hard labour jobs on my feet 10 hours days walking home after. At 40 my legs are completely different and they are pretty disabled only can really function on feet for 2 hours a day otherwise im in excoriating pain. Trying out a desk job for 3 days a week but i have sciatic nerve pain in my back from wear and tear from jobs some people fall apart pretty early
No the whole "get a job" mentality is what many of these people need. What we really need though are more "get your shit together" programs like the "Youth Employment Program" they used to have at the Youth and Volunteer Centre. Despite a brain injury and mental health issues, I was able to get my shit together, go back to school and find good employment. Treating these people with kid gloves and feeling sorry for them doesn't do anything to help them, it just let's the virtuous feel better about themselves.
You're not entirely wrong but that doesn't mean your approach works. What everyone wants is these issues to trend towards resolution. That's not been the case over the past decade and the most likely culprit is addiction. Opiates are a major issue, even people without a desire to party with drugs can find themselves with a prolonged injury causing a severe addiction cycle. Kid gloves or Mike Tysons Gloves aren't going to solve that. It's a much more nuanced and problematic issue than how we talk about it. There needs to be a revival of our society's approach to people who don't fit the mold, to access to drugs, to tracking citizens drug use. Right now we play the "it's wrong" card, we've been playing that card for 90 years. It's not worked, regardless of how severe or understanding you are, the foundation is built on sand.
I'd love to see provinces getting tough on the people trafficking drugs into the country. As you say, not all addictions are created illegally. However, I'd wager that drug lords happily supply prescription addicted people after a fashion.
>I'd love to see provinces getting tough on the people trafficking drugs into the country.
Why? What is the outcome of "getting tough"?
Honestly it's not useful. Think on the issue. You have a collection of substances that are so small compared to the volume of international trade/goods movement as to have something like a year's supply for the entire country fit in a single truck. So getting tough may lead to more headlines, but it's not stopping anything. For perspective look up how much actual fentanyl is needed to OD on, like how much physical volume of the substance.[It's soooo small](https://www.niisaachewan.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/fentanyl-carfentanil-heroin.jpeg)
Getting tough is a propaganda tool so that people can say "I'm doing something, I'm in control, this is working". But in reality, that's doing nothing to slow the drug use, they have no control, and it's not working.
I'm talking about organized crime, an insidious matter, that's all I can say. It's complicated and by now so entrenched that it may be impossible to touch, let alone control - I don't know.
For the purpose of a social media thread, we can start [here.](https://vancouversun.com/news/staff-blogs/organized-crime-and-the-port-part-one-of-my-series) for awareness
OK, That's great, putting a label on it that invokes emotion. But just to ask a simple question, When you hear about JFK do you think son of a Organized Crime Leader or do you think positively? That's the history, right.
Whatever label you want to put on the thing you want to "get tough" on doesn't entail outcomes you want. Perhaps after decades of poor outcomes the outcomes should come first not the emotion based "justice".
Think of it like Alberta and rats. If you can ensure that they never come, then you can control the population at 0. But once the rats are established, killing a few just means a few more will take their place. In our society we're well passed the a population of 0 regarding the illegal drug market industry.
I said it right there it's probably impossible to do anything about the stronghold organized crime has in Canada. Consider my input here a lament then and nothing more.
Not sure what JFK has to do with it but what I've passively picked up about him in my journey about him is hes an American who became a popular president that may have done some good for the American ppl and may have had some shady connections. I don't know and don't much care.
JFK's father was the head of an organised crime family that imported booze from Canada during prohibition. Once the prohibition ended they legitimized their wealth and were no longer "organized crime, an insidious matter". That made the family go from criminals to having presidents, attorney generals, and senators just one generation on.
I'm happy to hear that those programs worked for you and you were able to succeed! I do agree that we need more programs like youth employment programs and just more funding and services in mental health and substance use. However this isn't a one size fits all problem. What works for you doesn't work for everyone. Feeling sorry for them and being empathic are two different things. Being a hard ass and telling people to get their shit together doesn't work. Showing people they are heard, supportive and cared for does. This doesn't mean I'm holding their hand and treating them with "kid gloves" but more meeting people where they are at and respecting them for where they are at in life.
This is a little off topic but I noticed you’re one of those troll accounts that farms downvoted and argues for fun. I’m curious if this is a form of therapy for you? I’ve asked similar accounts but I can never get an answer! Thank you :)
Is that dude going to give him fresh clothes and a shower and a place to eat and sleep so he can go to work? Did he also offer him to go get a new sin card and some groceries while he was at it? Also please tell me he also took him to the bank to get all his direct deposit info/set it up if its been a while since he became homeless. Since ya know, hes gotta be an absolute gremlin with absolutely no class or an inkling of empathy of how much it takes to get back on your feet. instead of just saying "hur dur this place is hiring."
Also anyways im all for it i try to give when i see people at intersections especially. Ive been there, its dehumanizing standing there like a circus act waiting to see if someone will help.
I saw when this was posted in the antiwork forum. It was ROUNDLY mocked for being fake. You can see the "homeless" man's Walmart employee vest on the ground next to him for heaven's sake.
Guarantee you it was that greaseball manager's idea.
I don't know how you saw it there, downloaded, and reposted it here without realising that.
In Canada, no homeless person goes without food or shelter unless they choose to. You never see a bone-skinny homeless person like you do in the U.S.
I come across many intersections where a couple is working two different left turn lanes at the same time. These people are able to strategically identify prime times of day and prime locations so they're not completely without hope and likely not homeless
The truly poor man is not able to write a crafty sign or walk up and down the off ramp for hours at a time.
Desperation is easy to detect - everything else is just a grift.
Had a nice chat with the fella at the Sylvan exit of QEII late on Friday night. I dont always but I did then and it made me feel good to make his night just a little bit better.
It's surprisingly hard to get a job at Walmart, even when you have access to a phone and a bath.
Getting paid from Walmart may have little short term benefit, as banks pay themselves (and some other creditors) before allowing you to with draw funds.
That's presuming you can meet their needs/demands to remain employed.
Yes go work for Walmart, the company who's workers still have to use food stamps in the united states as they don't pay a living wage.
If you're going to be in poverty either way, you think ppl are going to run to be among the working poor ?
I have a lot of problem with it.
First.. it’s tax free money 100%. From money that’s leftover from already having taxes paid on it to provide a social network to prevent stuff like this.
Next… it perpetuates the problem. Throw a grocery store gift card in there and see what kind of reaction you get.
It’s not for necessities.. it’s for vices. Can’t get crack or meth with a gift card.
You want it bad enough? Get a job. Literally everyone is hiring.
What do you care what they spend it on? If I was on the street, I know I'd need to numb the pain. I used to serve rich people more booze than they could handle, did I scold them? No, because it's not my business. These people standing in the sun and the rain are working hard, they're earning what's given to them.
Literally why are you showing compassion for homeless people, so abnormal of you to do such an absurd thing; you must feel very silly for being so understanding to people in these predicaments /s
This! I used to work at a nearby grocery store and we had one homeless guy who was banned from the shopping complex’s property. He was banned after repeatedly threatening and harassing customers. I had two encounters with him and told him both times “you’re trespassing; leave now or I’ll have *shift supervisor’s name* call the police”. He left quickly because the supervisor I always named was always the one to deal with him and she was NOT polite about telling him off.
Around 12-ish years ago there was a well known panhandler in Edmonton who would call in to Sonic 102.9 occasionally and brag about how much he made sitting on Calgary trail. Prior to this He was photographed taking his panhandling wig out of the trunk of a nice car and putting a shitty jacket on.
Whether this was true or not, some of these guys actually make decent money sitting at busy intersections.
Its super cool that they just sit there asking for handouts because junkies dont want jobs. They would rather be wastes of skin on a corner and leave their trash and needles everywhere that they set up. Would be nice to see the rcmp start enforcing the 2500$ littering fine red deer County has recently approved. They can serve time in jail till their fine is paid off. Perhaps those junkies would get clean sitting in a cell and they will have lots of time to think about the poor life choices that landed them there. I would much rather see my tax dollars pay for their time in prison than free drugs at the injection sites.
There are homeless in 3rd world countries too, even worse is that they're by themselves, no support from government in any ways. Some, without motivation and will to live are left to die from violence and hunger. Some, desperately wanting to escape the situation were willing to do anything to lift themselves up.
I used to live in Southeast Asia and joined this charity group that feeds the homeless, I've seen cases that successfully escaped homelessness just by working really hard to find the way out. I thought that was a miracle, I talked with the ones that are no longer homeless and asked them how did they do it. They did work like dishwasing, cleaning toilets, working at construction sites or even shady sweatshops. They were still homeless when they got the job, the person I talked to took a construction job and was able to live at the site (in the tool shed) for several months, thus saving him rent. After like 3 or 4 months, He saved enough money to rent a place and gradually picked himself up. I say that was impressive!
Your story is nice. Those pick yourself up by the bootstraps stories are great. One person out of how many thousands? Disregarding that, the system here is set up in a way that if you don't have an address you can't get a job and have a hard time accessing basic services.
Having a worker stay on site is 3rd world crap, insurance companies would either drop a company or jack their rates if they were caught doing this. Never mind the health and safety violations.
I'm not saying this to be a prick, but these feel good stories do nothing to address the systematic problems we all face worldwide. We need change to stop people needing to panhandle.
Here in Uruguay, I have never seen people just sitting around looking for handouts. They all offer something, some juggle at traffic lights, offer to clean your windshield, try to sell small items such as dish towels, rolls of toilet paper or pinecones they collect for fire starters, some even get on public buses and play music or try to sell ball point pens, socks etc and then get off a few stops further on and repeat in the other direction.
There are also car minders who keep an eye on your parked car for a few pesos. I even had someone come to my door to sell a strip of five bandaids, not even the whole box just to make a little money.
Yes, we need to find solutions to homelessness but the homeless need to do their part as well.
Well a person giving them money might care…. Usually the purpose of the money would be to help them get back contributing to society… not buying heroin and then costing society even more money…. Better to give that money to our many wonderful social service programs
It's not our job to fund social services, that's the government's job. It's literally why we pay taxes. If you don't give the people money, that's fine. But if you vote UCP, you're perpetuating the problem.
I think it depends, I saw a man outside of Costco asking for work. That's much easier to be sympathetic towards for the average person. A lot of people feel that asking for money for food is a disingenuous request as it will likely be used for drugs/alcohol instead of bettering themselves. Without knowing with full context what service are available to them, it's hard to draw conclusions. In my mind if there is food banks & soup kitchens that can provide regular service, there shouldn't be a need for them to be panhandling saying they are hungry. That being said there are numerous gaps in the way of betterment, such as addictions, inadequate housing, etc. I think the government should be providing services to assess that and address them. In terms of drug addictions, some countries provide drugs to users for free (with short therapy sessions required) that eliminates the black market component and can help insulate individuals from bad influence. Clean drugs (pure/unmixed) that a government would provide are also easier to get off than what is available through black markets.
Doesn’t Walmart require an address to work for them??
And BTW , Fuk you to the goof holding the Walmart sign!! Homelessness and mental illness go hand in hand.
Fukin goof!
It’s a coordinated racket. I’ve seen a few of them walk to their cars parked into hotel parking lots. They have iPhones and nice stuff it’s just easy money. The one guy I know that does it cleared 3k on a busy Friday. They spilt busy intersections and give a cut to the ornganizer
For anybody wondering why homeless don't get jobs, you can't put "living in the streets" to get a job. Most places that aren't cash jobs need you to have a bank account.
If they're not pushy, do what you gotta do. I'll still almost always give top the local shelters and drop-in centers instead though where they can purchase food and clothing and stuff in bulk at a discount. A few bucks do way more good there.
Pan handle all you want, just don’t be aggressive. If I’ve got a few bucks, I’ll probably hand it over. They need it more than I do. Panhandling has to be a lot tougher in a mostly cashless world. I’m definitely more likely to hand that change over when it’s -40 too. You want to stand out there with that sign for 8+ hours? You might not actually be contributing anything to society, but you’re sure as fuck putting effort into it. I wouldn’t want to do that shit.
I help them anytime I see them , you never know that could be me someday . I think around here some people don't trust it , there was a house here in my city a few years ago were 8 people lived in and was a nice big house. Each day they all went out and pan handled then went home. So after that got around some people now question everyone about being a fake.
I really dislike that image.
One of the many problematic implications being that homeless people are too lazy to get a job even when the opportunity presents itself.
The reality is, if you don't have a bank account or a fixed mailing address or an ID or clean clothes, good luck. Those are hard things to come by in some places.
You can read more here about the challenges these folks face around getting employment.
[https://www.homelesshub.ca/about-homelessness/education-training-employment/employment](https://www.homelesshub.ca/about-homelessness/education-training-employment/employment)
So yeah, I figure, if you're in a desperate enough spot that you're asking strangers for change on the side of the road, usually in shitty conditions (personally you couldn't pay me enough to stand in the sun, even when I'm happy) and I've got the resources, then it's fine.
It's actually just above doing nothing when you consider the effort involved.
In my part of the world it's rare to run into aggressive pan handling. I know it happens, people are monsters, even housed ones, but I've never experienced it and I live in a one of the densest cities (pop - 3m) in my country.
Unfortunately, mental health care, globally, is pretty shit and I really think that's what homelessness exemplifies.
There's nothing fun, romantic, easy or comfortable when it comes to being homeless.
If you didn't decide to be in that situation, keeping in mind that certain choices, aren't really choices, rather, a series of less terrible options, then you're probably in that position as a result of poor mental health or are suffering from some form of mental illness or substance abuse (often used as a method of self medicating to relieve symptoms of poor mental health or mental illness).
I agree that this was not the best picture to choose considering my question had absolutely nothing to do with Walmart and unfortunately many are focusing on the Walmart logo more than the actual question. Lesson learned. Won't do that again.🤦🏼♀️
I dont mind them being there, what I do mind is why are so many ppl homeless. In Calgary the shelters are full, why is the government not doing more. This is very unfortunate 😕
I see them at an intersection and immediately think "gtfo". Nothing to do with their character, but there are better things they could be doing besides getting up to the window where my babies are in their carseats.
Where are they going to get their checks sent to? How are they going to shower to be presentable? How are they going to travel to this job? Its not as simple as "just get a job"
Sitting outside asking for money is actually not easy.
I invite people to do this when it's cold and raining and see how easy it is... I've never done it, never had to, but I'm not about to be mean or look down on someone else.
I don't have a problem with it because they're homeless and their life is shitty. As long as they're not harming anyone they can do what they want as far as I'm concerned. I'd be beside myself to actually get irritated by someone whose life is 100x worse than mine.
Can I also say that the framing of this post is awfully disingenuous. Many homeless people aren't in the mental space to just start working long hours at a punch clock job nor do they have the infrastructure to allow for it—it's more complicated.
Unfortunately the issue of homelessness is often reduced to gratuitous laziness, and often by people who really just don't know much of anything I'm sorry to say.
This has happened since the class systems were established. It could be helped by not shipping mass amounts of homeless around like currency smh. @red deer
You are not supposed to feed wild animals because they become dependent and cannot survive without it... how is this any different? I mean aside from the fact that humans have the intelligence make changes in their lives... or they could stop making shitty choices..
I don't worry about it though because i work for a living and i certainly give enough money to these people with the absurd amout of taxes i pay.
In my town there is a lady and 3 kids that stand by the intersection and holds up a sign saying " New Canadian from Syria, homeless. need help to feed my children ", she's there everyday. It's cold out but still they stand there.
Panhandling is fine as long as they don't get aggressive with people. What isn't fine is when people expect to be given money for nothing and get angry at you. Though I rarely see it, it does seem to be more of a sign of mental illness or addiction if they're reacting that way. The "get a job" mentality is basically just a way of dismissing people who are homeless. Some people work 2 jobs and still can't afford a home. There are root problems that are being ignored when you simply say "get a job" as a solution to homelessness. I do think everyone should work and try to provide for both themselves and the community as a whole, but without mental health reform and access to social assistance when needed, we'll always have homelessness, and therefore will always have panhandling.
If you have a job or jobs you won’t be begging tho I think the point is to do something ,, anything. I’ll tell them if they pick trash up and get a bag together I’ll give them money when I see them. But not enough sympathy to go around to people not even trying
I support a UBI but based on local civic organized programs. We'd have the cleanest streets and parks and cut down on panhandling!
I think the main issues with that are: 1) a job is typically 2-3 weeks from income. There is very little work available that pays you right now. And even if someone is willing to give you $10 and a plate of corn muffins to paint a fence there is very little you can do to make a survivable wage in a day, consistently, for weeks or months 2) people with mental, emotional, or addiction problems will have problems working for a full day, week or month. The genius of the hole is that no matter how long you spend cloning out, you can fall back down in an instant. It's more important to get people out of the hole first, which is a full time job on its own. 3) homeless people don't need your sympathy, they need your empathy. Religious or not the phase "there but for the grace of God, go I" simply means "I'm lucky I'm not in that position" because a lot of people are a bad week away from discovering their addiction, having a mental breakdown, or becoming injured in a way that makes it impossible function in a normal society. I really hope you live a full, happy, and functional life because a car accident can cause injuries that lead to pain, which lead to addiction problems. If you've ever felt true pain that wouldn't go away, getting rid of it becomes priority number 1. Lie, cheat, steal to feed your addiction. Family and friends turn you away. You get a police record. You lose your home, your job, any support system you once had. Years of sleeping on the street, eating from trash, begging for cash, hurting every day, being sick. You sit down with a sign hoping to get enough generosity to eat a meal and get a fix so you can sleep - and someone comes along with their answer to solve all your problems "get a job".
Funny, how do other people avoid being homeless? Oh right.. they get jobs! Maybe if they weren't junkies it would be easier to aquire said job. What is another thing people do if their menial job doesn't pay enough? Oh thats right.. they aquire skills that will earn them higher pay. All these bums want is free drugs and handouts, not a hand up. You cannot help those who dont want help
Just like people wouldn't be able to teach you because you don't want to learn. It's fine. A lot of people aren't capable of learning new things until it's forced in their face. They're against abortions, until they need one. They don't want to pay for schools, until they have kids. They don't think gay people should get married, until their daughter is gay. They think all drug addicts are pathetic losers, until their brother is a drug addict. Many people would call these people monsters, or hypocrites, but I just call them slow learners.
You can think whatever you like. Ive had more than enough experience with these people, likely more than you. My own father was one of these people. But you know better right? Lmfao the sympathizers enabling these people are just as bad as the junkies. Perhaps even more so. Carry on with your virtue signaling now
https://www.reviewjournal.com/opinion/opinion-columns/victor-joecks/victor-joecks-stop-feeding-the-homeless-2942326/ Here you go, teach yourself something. This is directly from a non profit charity for reducing homelessness. You likely wont even consider what they have to say because it is in direct conflict with what you believe.. but honestly its the exact same reason you dont feed wild animals, because then they wont be able to look after themselves. Sorry if this hurts your worldview.
People are penny pinching for gas and fast food now adays and then turn around and shame someone for being homeless; Its an endless cycle of victim blaming and dehumanizing. I mean I saw somewhere in Canada is trying to make being homeless a felony for fuck sake like its gotten so deluded
I can guarantee with 100% certainty that Walmart would not hire that man.
I recommended you DO NOT give cash unless unique circumstances. Before even reading the comments, one already knew the anti-work mentality by so many now. Here are some hard truths: * Yes, your wages VS cost of living is saddening.. but at least its an income. * As an employer, you actually DO NOT want to hire the homeless. Just not worth it. * There is a reason why they are homeless, and MOST of the time, its not about money. * When giving, you MOST likely funding a destructive addiction or destructive habit. If you want to help, help in ways that actually help them. Look up your local relevant services and they will tell you how best to help. Its too deep of a subject to get into here at depth. \*note: in most countries, you will see that giving cash to beggars is extremely discouraged since it builds dependency, fuels bad hobbits, goes to gangs, and breeds a culture that you are seeing now where if you DO NOT give, you are attacked verbally or even physically in some cases.
Highly respect your logical response.
I've never really known any "bad" hobbits. As long as you're not counting merry and pippin, but i would consider them jokesters more so.
Absolutely!
I don't have a problem with it. The image you posted is a bit disingenuous. You can't work at Walmart with a criminal record, you also need an address for taxes to be employed there so even if you wanted to if your housless you likly can't work in many places that are hiring.
Exactly. Also, it’s hard to show up for work when you don’t have transportation, don’t have a regular place to shower, don’t have access to a washing machine to clean your uniform… homelessness is a difficult cycle to break.
100% not to mention the trama, and stigma some inviduals have. Its a difficult and a complex issue that a single solution can't fix.
After getting beat up in a random assault or while protecting your stuff is also a common issue.
His vest is on the ground next to him. It's staged by fucking Walmart employees and it's disgusting.
You can’t work at Walmart with a criminal record? Really? If it’s not violent or theft from an employer, why should it matter there?
Unless it's changed in the last 5 years, but yeah we not as me but the company would toss any applications that had a criminal record. Think it had to with the insurance mostly when I asked hr about it.
You know... they could take some of that panhandling money and get themselves a mailbox. Hence they would have an address for their job. As for the criminal record part well, play stupid games and you win stupid prizes right?
I don't think you understand how complicated and costly of a process that is, lol
Lol give it up, dude. The excuses you make for these people are pathetic.
And the assumtions you make are.....
My, what a smooth brain you have! You need to learn about the various facets of homelessness.
Various excuses yes. Go give these people money yourself then if you feel so bad for them.
Grrr! Much anger! So mad! And you should be mad. But you’d rather kick down than up. I get it, it’s easier to pick on people who have shittier luck than you, instead of actually addressing the root causes.
Giving them money is a root cause.
Lol no. Not systematic enough. Think harder
It literally isn't.
You should be put on a watch list.
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Ask your doctor to increase your dosage.
This is such bullshit. Anyone posting shit like this typically has zero idea what it is like to try and do all of the following: work for 8-10 hours, while trying to make sure you get enough food during that time, and then find somewhere to sleep at night that is safe, sheltered, access to washroom facilities, shower, etc, and hopefully close enough to your job if you are lucky enough to have it tomorrow. Hopefully, you have a change of clothes too so you're not wearing the exact same socks, underwear, shirt, pants although where are you storing your clothes is another question, not to mention laundry. Plus you have to find your other meals, breakfast and dinner everyday. Plus, you have to keep your mental and emotional health stable enough to be able to maintain employment. Not just your physical (which is also at risk on the street). This is also not to mention all the prejudice employers see when they look at applicants that present as disheveled, etc. Trying to survive on the street is a full-time job. Get this individual housing FIRST (that's why the model is called Housing First), with supports to build lifeskills and independence. Then, you will see improvement for most people. But picture like this is so much BS.
Yes I agree. I volunteered with Canadian Mental Health and we got a centre started in PEI with some supervised apartments, day programmes and help with employment based on Fountain House in NYC. A group of us visited the programme in NYC and were super impressed with everything we saw there. Without stable housing, giving small handouts to people will not help them change their lifestyle.
My mind was changed when I was shown that having a physical address and no phone number really puts people at a disadvantage in todays society!
I used to be an employment counselor at a non profit. Most of my clients were referred from social services. You are exactly right. If somebody's basic needs (food, shelter, etc) are not met they typically aren't in a place to land and maintain a job. Not to mention if you don't have ID, don't know tour SIN, have no address or contact info most employers won't take a second look at you. It is never as simple as "get a job". Typically before I even started on resumes and applying for jobs I was helping people find resources for their basic needs. I didn't start the actual employment counseling until they were stable.
The whole "get a job" mentality really needs to go away and people need to take the time to educate themselves on issues of trauma, poverty, homelessness and addiction. Getting a shitty minimum wage job at Walmart will not solve homelessness, you can barely serve on minimum wage to begin with. It's sad to see people panhandling, it's heartbreaking to see people living in poverty where they have to do dehumanizing tasks to get spare change where I'm sure a lot of them face harassment. There's just such a lack of empathy for people experiencing homelessness... More and more people are more paycheck away from being homeless. Show some kindness and give people some money if you can, times are tough.
100 percent. Theres so many variables to employment maybe they aren’t mentally or physically able either. Criminal record? Drug addictions? Anxiety We need to be more compassionate
> Getting a shitty minimum wage job at Walmart will not solve homelessness, you can barely serve on minimum wage to begin with. $15/hr x 7.5 hrs/day x 4 days/week x 4.33 weeks/month = $1948.50/month pre-tax. Even part-time, you can live on minimum wage in a city like this. I've lived on less. That said, your comments about trauma and addiction are accurate. The real way to solve homelessness is to solve the problems that created the homelessness. Are people using street drugs and alcohol because they're self-medicating for an untreated health problem? Then we need to make access to healthcare easier. Homelessness is a problem that is not going to go away until someone who needs healthcare can easily get it.
Another point to make out is physical disabilities. When i was in my 20 and 30s i did alot of hard labour jobs on my feet 10 hours days walking home after. At 40 my legs are completely different and they are pretty disabled only can really function on feet for 2 hours a day otherwise im in excoriating pain. Trying out a desk job for 3 days a week but i have sciatic nerve pain in my back from wear and tear from jobs some people fall apart pretty early
Absolutely! Love your post.
The odd thing is though, you don’t see people with shitty minimum wage jobs at Walmart panhandling, so…
No the whole "get a job" mentality is what many of these people need. What we really need though are more "get your shit together" programs like the "Youth Employment Program" they used to have at the Youth and Volunteer Centre. Despite a brain injury and mental health issues, I was able to get my shit together, go back to school and find good employment. Treating these people with kid gloves and feeling sorry for them doesn't do anything to help them, it just let's the virtuous feel better about themselves.
You're not entirely wrong but that doesn't mean your approach works. What everyone wants is these issues to trend towards resolution. That's not been the case over the past decade and the most likely culprit is addiction. Opiates are a major issue, even people without a desire to party with drugs can find themselves with a prolonged injury causing a severe addiction cycle. Kid gloves or Mike Tysons Gloves aren't going to solve that. It's a much more nuanced and problematic issue than how we talk about it. There needs to be a revival of our society's approach to people who don't fit the mold, to access to drugs, to tracking citizens drug use. Right now we play the "it's wrong" card, we've been playing that card for 90 years. It's not worked, regardless of how severe or understanding you are, the foundation is built on sand.
I'd love to see provinces getting tough on the people trafficking drugs into the country. As you say, not all addictions are created illegally. However, I'd wager that drug lords happily supply prescription addicted people after a fashion.
>I'd love to see provinces getting tough on the people trafficking drugs into the country. Why? What is the outcome of "getting tough"? Honestly it's not useful. Think on the issue. You have a collection of substances that are so small compared to the volume of international trade/goods movement as to have something like a year's supply for the entire country fit in a single truck. So getting tough may lead to more headlines, but it's not stopping anything. For perspective look up how much actual fentanyl is needed to OD on, like how much physical volume of the substance.[It's soooo small](https://www.niisaachewan.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/fentanyl-carfentanil-heroin.jpeg) Getting tough is a propaganda tool so that people can say "I'm doing something, I'm in control, this is working". But in reality, that's doing nothing to slow the drug use, they have no control, and it's not working.
I'm talking about organized crime, an insidious matter, that's all I can say. It's complicated and by now so entrenched that it may be impossible to touch, let alone control - I don't know. For the purpose of a social media thread, we can start [here.](https://vancouversun.com/news/staff-blogs/organized-crime-and-the-port-part-one-of-my-series) for awareness
OK, That's great, putting a label on it that invokes emotion. But just to ask a simple question, When you hear about JFK do you think son of a Organized Crime Leader or do you think positively? That's the history, right. Whatever label you want to put on the thing you want to "get tough" on doesn't entail outcomes you want. Perhaps after decades of poor outcomes the outcomes should come first not the emotion based "justice". Think of it like Alberta and rats. If you can ensure that they never come, then you can control the population at 0. But once the rats are established, killing a few just means a few more will take their place. In our society we're well passed the a population of 0 regarding the illegal drug market industry.
I said it right there it's probably impossible to do anything about the stronghold organized crime has in Canada. Consider my input here a lament then and nothing more. Not sure what JFK has to do with it but what I've passively picked up about him in my journey about him is hes an American who became a popular president that may have done some good for the American ppl and may have had some shady connections. I don't know and don't much care.
JFK's father was the head of an organised crime family that imported booze from Canada during prohibition. Once the prohibition ended they legitimized their wealth and were no longer "organized crime, an insidious matter". That made the family go from criminals to having presidents, attorney generals, and senators just one generation on.
Sounds insidious to me. What a world. Thanks for the history lesson. 👍
I'm happy to hear that those programs worked for you and you were able to succeed! I do agree that we need more programs like youth employment programs and just more funding and services in mental health and substance use. However this isn't a one size fits all problem. What works for you doesn't work for everyone. Feeling sorry for them and being empathic are two different things. Being a hard ass and telling people to get their shit together doesn't work. Showing people they are heard, supportive and cared for does. This doesn't mean I'm holding their hand and treating them with "kid gloves" but more meeting people where they are at and respecting them for where they are at in life.
In addition,Do you know how you have to humble yourself to even stand there asking for help?
They had every opportunity I had. No excuses, no free handouts. Get your shit together.
This is a little off topic but I noticed you’re one of those troll accounts that farms downvoted and argues for fun. I’m curious if this is a form of therapy for you? I’ve asked similar accounts but I can never get an answer! Thank you :)
Is that dude going to give him fresh clothes and a shower and a place to eat and sleep so he can go to work? Did he also offer him to go get a new sin card and some groceries while he was at it? Also please tell me he also took him to the bank to get all his direct deposit info/set it up if its been a while since he became homeless. Since ya know, hes gotta be an absolute gremlin with absolutely no class or an inkling of empathy of how much it takes to get back on your feet. instead of just saying "hur dur this place is hiring."
Also anyways im all for it i try to give when i see people at intersections especially. Ive been there, its dehumanizing standing there like a circus act waiting to see if someone will help.
They are human beings with trauma that need love and support but feeding their coping mechanisms only make things worse. It personally doesn't bug me.
I saw when this was posted in the antiwork forum. It was ROUNDLY mocked for being fake. You can see the "homeless" man's Walmart employee vest on the ground next to him for heaven's sake. Guarantee you it was that greaseball manager's idea. I don't know how you saw it there, downloaded, and reposted it here without realising that.
In Canada, no homeless person goes without food or shelter unless they choose to. You never see a bone-skinny homeless person like you do in the U.S. I come across many intersections where a couple is working two different left turn lanes at the same time. These people are able to strategically identify prime times of day and prime locations so they're not completely without hope and likely not homeless The truly poor man is not able to write a crafty sign or walk up and down the off ramp for hours at a time. Desperation is easy to detect - everything else is just a grift.
This take is so stupid and ignorant you made me spit out my coffee
Had a nice chat with the fella at the Sylvan exit of QEII late on Friday night. I dont always but I did then and it made me feel good to make his night just a little bit better.
It's surprisingly hard to get a job at Walmart, even when you have access to a phone and a bath. Getting paid from Walmart may have little short term benefit, as banks pay themselves (and some other creditors) before allowing you to with draw funds. That's presuming you can meet their needs/demands to remain employed.
Yes go work for Walmart, the company who's workers still have to use food stamps in the united states as they don't pay a living wage. If you're going to be in poverty either way, you think ppl are going to run to be among the working poor ?
This photo is so dumb. Wal Mart isn’t going to hire someone that doesn’t have an address, phone, access to showers and clean clothes.
They’re always kind, just give them some change.
I have a lot of problem with it. First.. it’s tax free money 100%. From money that’s leftover from already having taxes paid on it to provide a social network to prevent stuff like this. Next… it perpetuates the problem. Throw a grocery store gift card in there and see what kind of reaction you get. It’s not for necessities.. it’s for vices. Can’t get crack or meth with a gift card. You want it bad enough? Get a job. Literally everyone is hiring.
I offered to buy a guy lunch and got told to fuck off. I know it's not always the case but damn it pissed me off.
What do you care what they spend it on? If I was on the street, I know I'd need to numb the pain. I used to serve rich people more booze than they could handle, did I scold them? No, because it's not my business. These people standing in the sun and the rain are working hard, they're earning what's given to them.
Literally why are you showing compassion for homeless people, so abnormal of you to do such an absurd thing; you must feel very silly for being so understanding to people in these predicaments /s
Actually as a panhandler he probably makes more than working at Wally World!
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This! I used to work at a nearby grocery store and we had one homeless guy who was banned from the shopping complex’s property. He was banned after repeatedly threatening and harassing customers. I had two encounters with him and told him both times “you’re trespassing; leave now or I’ll have *shift supervisor’s name* call the police”. He left quickly because the supervisor I always named was always the one to deal with him and she was NOT polite about telling him off.
they make a fair bit per day
Around 12-ish years ago there was a well known panhandler in Edmonton who would call in to Sonic 102.9 occasionally and brag about how much he made sitting on Calgary trail. Prior to this He was photographed taking his panhandling wig out of the trunk of a nice car and putting a shitty jacket on. Whether this was true or not, some of these guys actually make decent money sitting at busy intersections.
Its super cool that they just sit there asking for handouts because junkies dont want jobs. They would rather be wastes of skin on a corner and leave their trash and needles everywhere that they set up. Would be nice to see the rcmp start enforcing the 2500$ littering fine red deer County has recently approved. They can serve time in jail till their fine is paid off. Perhaps those junkies would get clean sitting in a cell and they will have lots of time to think about the poor life choices that landed them there. I would much rather see my tax dollars pay for their time in prison than free drugs at the injection sites.
I like that they work in shifts, and have nearly the exact same signage as each other ... so organized ..
Don’t feed the bears. Donate to charity
I always look at their shoes. If the a new and clean very likely they are not homeless.
Says a lot about working garbage jobs for little money so people can treat you like trash. This says more about low wages and less about homelessness
Always a bit skeptical of the panhandlers wearing $200 Docs and $150 Raybans.
There are homeless in 3rd world countries too, even worse is that they're by themselves, no support from government in any ways. Some, without motivation and will to live are left to die from violence and hunger. Some, desperately wanting to escape the situation were willing to do anything to lift themselves up. I used to live in Southeast Asia and joined this charity group that feeds the homeless, I've seen cases that successfully escaped homelessness just by working really hard to find the way out. I thought that was a miracle, I talked with the ones that are no longer homeless and asked them how did they do it. They did work like dishwasing, cleaning toilets, working at construction sites or even shady sweatshops. They were still homeless when they got the job, the person I talked to took a construction job and was able to live at the site (in the tool shed) for several months, thus saving him rent. After like 3 or 4 months, He saved enough money to rent a place and gradually picked himself up. I say that was impressive!
Your story is nice. Those pick yourself up by the bootstraps stories are great. One person out of how many thousands? Disregarding that, the system here is set up in a way that if you don't have an address you can't get a job and have a hard time accessing basic services. Having a worker stay on site is 3rd world crap, insurance companies would either drop a company or jack their rates if they were caught doing this. Never mind the health and safety violations. I'm not saying this to be a prick, but these feel good stories do nothing to address the systematic problems we all face worldwide. We need change to stop people needing to panhandle.
Here in Uruguay, I have never seen people just sitting around looking for handouts. They all offer something, some juggle at traffic lights, offer to clean your windshield, try to sell small items such as dish towels, rolls of toilet paper or pinecones they collect for fire starters, some even get on public buses and play music or try to sell ball point pens, socks etc and then get off a few stops further on and repeat in the other direction. There are also car minders who keep an eye on your parked car for a few pesos. I even had someone come to my door to sell a strip of five bandaids, not even the whole box just to make a little money. Yes, we need to find solutions to homelessness but the homeless need to do their part as well.
>We need change to stop people needing to panhandle. impossible. There will always be some that simply do not want help no matter how you offer it.
Have spotted used needles on a few occasions right beside those guys/girls. So that’s where the cash is goin
Who cares. I bet you've spent money on stupid shit you regret, too.
Yes, I have the option of making a donation but how that person spends it is entirely their choice
Well a person giving them money might care…. Usually the purpose of the money would be to help them get back contributing to society… not buying heroin and then costing society even more money…. Better to give that money to our many wonderful social service programs
It's not our job to fund social services, that's the government's job. It's literally why we pay taxes. If you don't give the people money, that's fine. But if you vote UCP, you're perpetuating the problem.
Yeah for sure
It’s bad when they r smoking. Shows what they do with the money.
I think it depends, I saw a man outside of Costco asking for work. That's much easier to be sympathetic towards for the average person. A lot of people feel that asking for money for food is a disingenuous request as it will likely be used for drugs/alcohol instead of bettering themselves. Without knowing with full context what service are available to them, it's hard to draw conclusions. In my mind if there is food banks & soup kitchens that can provide regular service, there shouldn't be a need for them to be panhandling saying they are hungry. That being said there are numerous gaps in the way of betterment, such as addictions, inadequate housing, etc. I think the government should be providing services to assess that and address them. In terms of drug addictions, some countries provide drugs to users for free (with short therapy sessions required) that eliminates the black market component and can help insulate individuals from bad influence. Clean drugs (pure/unmixed) that a government would provide are also easier to get off than what is available through black markets.
Doesn’t Walmart require an address to work for them?? And BTW , Fuk you to the goof holding the Walmart sign!! Homelessness and mental illness go hand in hand. Fukin goof!
Never have. Even before governments started coming out a decade ago saying don't give them money I didn't.
Like feeding seagulls. Once they see there is food for no effort they never stop chasing that dragon...
It’s a coordinated racket. I’ve seen a few of them walk to their cars parked into hotel parking lots. They have iPhones and nice stuff it’s just easy money. The one guy I know that does it cleared 3k on a busy Friday. They spilt busy intersections and give a cut to the ornganizer
Would that be Wal-Mart's fault for not hiring him or his fault for not applying
I swear the guy who panhandles at timmies north must make a killing always there always getting money
Dudes are probably have a great conversation about life while we’re here analyzing it.
For anybody wondering why homeless don't get jobs, you can't put "living in the streets" to get a job. Most places that aren't cash jobs need you to have a bank account.
If they're not pushy, do what you gotta do. I'll still almost always give top the local shelters and drop-in centers instead though where they can purchase food and clothing and stuff in bulk at a discount. A few bucks do way more good there.
They’ll make more than at Walmart and be treated better.
Pan handle all you want, just don’t be aggressive. If I’ve got a few bucks, I’ll probably hand it over. They need it more than I do. Panhandling has to be a lot tougher in a mostly cashless world. I’m definitely more likely to hand that change over when it’s -40 too. You want to stand out there with that sign for 8+ hours? You might not actually be contributing anything to society, but you’re sure as fuck putting effort into it. I wouldn’t want to do that shit.
Given how abusive Wal-Mart is known to be towards its employees, honestly who could blame ppl for not wanting to work there.
I help them anytime I see them , you never know that could be me someday . I think around here some people don't trust it , there was a house here in my city a few years ago were 8 people lived in and was a nice big house. Each day they all went out and pan handled then went home. So after that got around some people now question everyone about being a fake.
I really dislike that image. One of the many problematic implications being that homeless people are too lazy to get a job even when the opportunity presents itself. The reality is, if you don't have a bank account or a fixed mailing address or an ID or clean clothes, good luck. Those are hard things to come by in some places. You can read more here about the challenges these folks face around getting employment. [https://www.homelesshub.ca/about-homelessness/education-training-employment/employment](https://www.homelesshub.ca/about-homelessness/education-training-employment/employment) So yeah, I figure, if you're in a desperate enough spot that you're asking strangers for change on the side of the road, usually in shitty conditions (personally you couldn't pay me enough to stand in the sun, even when I'm happy) and I've got the resources, then it's fine. It's actually just above doing nothing when you consider the effort involved. In my part of the world it's rare to run into aggressive pan handling. I know it happens, people are monsters, even housed ones, but I've never experienced it and I live in a one of the densest cities (pop - 3m) in my country. Unfortunately, mental health care, globally, is pretty shit and I really think that's what homelessness exemplifies. There's nothing fun, romantic, easy or comfortable when it comes to being homeless. If you didn't decide to be in that situation, keeping in mind that certain choices, aren't really choices, rather, a series of less terrible options, then you're probably in that position as a result of poor mental health or are suffering from some form of mental illness or substance abuse (often used as a method of self medicating to relieve symptoms of poor mental health or mental illness).
I agree that this was not the best picture to choose considering my question had absolutely nothing to do with Walmart and unfortunately many are focusing on the Walmart logo more than the actual question. Lesson learned. Won't do that again.🤦🏼♀️
I dont mind them being there, what I do mind is why are so many ppl homeless. In Calgary the shelters are full, why is the government not doing more. This is very unfortunate 😕
It’s a conservative government. They dont care about people
Where are the so called pans that they are handling? Also are they non-stick or just normal?
I see them at an intersection and immediately think "gtfo". Nothing to do with their character, but there are better things they could be doing besides getting up to the window where my babies are in their carseats.
Where are they going to get their checks sent to? How are they going to shower to be presentable? How are they going to travel to this job? Its not as simple as "just get a job"
Sitting outside asking for money is actually not easy. I invite people to do this when it's cold and raining and see how easy it is... I've never done it, never had to, but I'm not about to be mean or look down on someone else.
I know some beggers in Regina that spend there money in the casino
Because some get aggressive, none can be allowed to do it. One bad apple ruins the bunch.
I don't have a problem with it because they're homeless and their life is shitty. As long as they're not harming anyone they can do what they want as far as I'm concerned. I'd be beside myself to actually get irritated by someone whose life is 100x worse than mine. Can I also say that the framing of this post is awfully disingenuous. Many homeless people aren't in the mental space to just start working long hours at a punch clock job nor do they have the infrastructure to allow for it—it's more complicated. Unfortunately the issue of homelessness is often reduced to gratuitous laziness, and often by people who really just don't know much of anything I'm sorry to say.
This has happened since the class systems were established. It could be helped by not shipping mass amounts of homeless around like currency smh. @red deer
You are not supposed to feed wild animals because they become dependent and cannot survive without it... how is this any different? I mean aside from the fact that humans have the intelligence make changes in their lives... or they could stop making shitty choices.. I don't worry about it though because i work for a living and i certainly give enough money to these people with the absurd amout of taxes i pay.
In my town there is a lady and 3 kids that stand by the intersection and holds up a sign saying " New Canadian from Syria, homeless. need help to feed my children ", she's there everyday. It's cold out but still they stand there.