Bums and how to deal with them

a reply to: Fools

I realized the other day that our suburban Chicago "bums" are higher caliber than those we see in California. Most of them have cars...and live in them.

I don't think the bums will like it.

a reply to: Fools

It sounds like indentured servitude, and not very cost effective. I don’t think it would pass muster.

See the world! Be a hobo!
Sorry, I grew up close to the tracks. My mom never said much about the bums but I was always getting lectured about using the shortcuts crossing the tracks.
Do we still have the hobos? Think if I was young and homeless I'd prefer to hitch a ride in a train car and travel around.

I'm afraid that you should consider having a portion of your building fitted for families and be prepared to discover that some of your "bums" are college educated people with jobs that have just found their rents rising far faster than their paychecks.

After free meal and free bed. Free meal, and free bed, and free meal, and free bed, After free meal and free bed. Free meal, and free bed, and free meal, and free bed, After free meal and free bed. Free meal, and free bed, and free meal, and free bed, After free meal and free bed. Free meal, and free bed, and free meal, and free bed, After free meal and free bed. Free meal, and free bed, and free meal, and free bed...


Does your money dry up and you’re begging for government assistance to provide for your private assistance?

originally posted by: vonclod
Admirable to try and find a solution, but there wouldn't be many takers I think..especially in spring/summer.

I think the shelter would be packed. It would not solve the bum issue but it sounds like easy street to me. Unfortunately the crime and the lawsuits that follow would ruin the project. I live in a very bum-friendly part of N.W. Florida, mostly nice weather most of the time, the sheriff is hamstrung by the ACLU, people give and give at every street corner. It's Bumtopia. Some folks you just cannot convince that there is a better way to live.

a reply to: Fools

You know absolutely NOTHING about what a bum is, or what a homeless person is. You wont solve any problems, so please leave those poor people alone, they have a hard enough life, without some mindless drone with a "solution" tries to destroy their lifes any further.

If you want to make any real changes, you should take a look at the society, that creates those bums as you call them. Many of those people DONT want to join society, because it is rotten to the core!

EDIT: I never heard of anybody that would accept "help" from somebody who looks down at them. If you really want to help, you need to climb down from your pedistal first..

"My idea is that if you give certain people baby steps to understand that work is the way to being responsible then if they take that step they might start understanding how things actually work."

But not all alcoholics are people who don't know how to follow rules or don't know how to work or how to be responsible. In fact, people might be surprised at how many "successful" people are raging alcoholics. A lot of alcoholics are actually highly talented, highly intelligent, type A personalities.

Some of them get lucky, like Subaeruginosa said. And some have people who will cover for them and clean up their messes and protect them. Some don't have that, and don't get lucky, and crash and burn eventually. I'm an example of that. I had an incredibly competitive, incredibly difficult-to-get job, which I got because I worked my ass off and became one of the best at what I do. Then in my late 20's, my alcoholism activated BIG time, and as is typical of some women alcoholics, I went down FAST. Blackout drinking and having to drink around the clock, and it caught up witth me eventually via missing a job, which you do NOT do in the position I had, due to its high-profile nature.

So I lost that and everything else, but it sure wasn't because I needed to understand that "work is the way to being responsible."

Your plan has promise, but there should be more categories and therefore different rules, etc, for different general situations. There are alcoholic bums who also have serious mental issues, and those need to be addressed. Then there are alcoholic/addict bums who just had the bad luck and/or ran out of people and family who would help them, but they don't have major mental issues. Then you have just your bums with straight-up mental issues that won't be able to follow your rules because they can't function in society with their illnesses. Then bums who don't have drug or alcohol problems or serious mental issues, but just who don't like to work. Those are the ones that might benefit from your "show them that work is the way to being responsible" program.

Probably ALL of them suffer with depression, though.

Anyway, good thread. It's a daunting issue, no doubt. 😢

a reply to: dawnstar

a reply to: Fools

It might work. Though who is going to pony up the cash to build this facility. Most of the issues we have today were they just bring them in and then on the streets again, seems to be because it keeps people in jobs. I think closing down all our mental hospitals or loony bins was a mistake.

And also, may not work out all that well and your projection of helping out 1 out of 10, is right on the money. Also most of them are not on any soft-core drugs like alcohol, maybe things like meth, its in the price range of alcohol, and who knows what else there on.

And well, good luck trying to get them to get in there cells by midnight. You would have to drag them in, most especially the meth heads as one of the side effects is that they dont sleep for days, there basically walking talking jabbering nonsense zombies.

Basically what you propose will work, but only on those who already want to turn there life around, and like a bit of structure or a foothold to move through. The rest? Well not going to happen.

a reply to: DukeMisterio
Here's my reasoning.

There are 2 or more different kinds of homeless. There is the temporarily down on their luck, I think they might take it up..maybe that segment fills a facility?
The others, being hardcore addicts, or just plain street people, not so much.
They want to be outside, unrestrained, free to do their drugs, hustle..etc.

The homeless shelter in Oahu across from Kmart did what you want to do. The problem was they needed a bigger building. Once the word got out , free breakfast and dinner, well its downhill from there. A bum is a bum. A vagrant is a vagrant and a homeless person not wanting to go to a homeless shelter is either on the run or simple can't and won't follow the rules of the shelter and considered not trustworthy to be in a homeless shelter. And they all know that the FBI these days do a swab of any coffee cups they drink from. Your ass is grass if you are on the run and check into a homeless shelter these days and many now have face recognition . Beware bums...

mocked, agreed with, perhaps this is what it takes. Much less stringent than the military. Their method is clearly not working. Then maybe structure is needed in their lives. the alternative is much worse. Your choice

We should make sure to supply the Bums with enough toilet paper so they do not embarrass us.

a reply to: Fools

Do you think it's easy being a bum?

People look down on bums

I was a bum once…well not really.

Here’s the story. I was a young guy in NYC Penn Station and somehow didn’t have the money to get back on the bus to Jersey.

What could I do? For at least two hours I had to roam around Penn station and panhandle bus fare back to Jersey.

THAT WAS NOT EASY!

I hated doing it but had no choice.

I didn’t look like a bum so I figured I’d get the bus fair in no time flat.
Forget about it...

And I’ll tell you it’s not east asking strangers for a little change, and people are very selfish.

And It was long and tedious going. I don’t remember the amount I needed, maybe a dollar seventy at the time.

But ever since then I’ve learned to have respect for bums. It’s a hard job panhandling, believe me.

I got a nickel, dime here and there and started to panic until a very generous Hispanic gentleman went in his pocket, (wherever he is today God bless him) and gave me the needed amount.

And I immediately went to the nearest liquor store to get that fifth of ripple I really NEEDED and guzzled it down!

No no no no no just joking...

Anyway, seriously, I got back to Jersey safely. What I learned though is that It’s not easy being a bum. And in reality, most of them are plagued with some kind of mental disorder. So every now and then I’m glad to go in my pocket and give them a little money and say a little prayer in my heart for that person to get better.