This been a strange week so far. I have many things to talk about and many topics keep coming up that I want to talk about. So I'm going to try to hit a few today. Yesterday's post I want to cover first. I'm not sure many read it right or maybe I didn't explain myself well enough. Remember folks I'm a gay southern redneck hillbilly person and sometimes my words come out that way. Homeless people I do understand that some are there for reasons that was beyond there control maybe lost there job, house or a loved one and couldn't deal I understand and I'm not coming down on them and I have helped at soup kitchens ya'll know that. Just last Christmas me and my gang was at a shelter in Florida helping with meal and giving out gifts to children so please don't come down on me like I'm a heartless person when it comes to a human life. What I was asking is it right for a homeless person to have a pet? I also said I was tore over this topic I see the good and the bad in it.
The group of homeless that I ran into that had the dog and that made some you readers mad at me was when I feed the dog and the homeless man ask what about me and I went off on him and told him to get a job. See to me what I see was a group of drunks that was concern about getting drunk and having smokes and not concern about food or shelter for the night. Look I know that sometimes things get out of control for some people and they hit rock bottom and need help I have no problem helping people but some people don't want help and are happy just being drunks. A few years ago I remember a storm came through and knock down trees and shit at out farm and I remember Dad going up to where some homeless people hung out and had them signs will work for food and he ask them if they wanted to a few bucks and they ask doing what he said some yard work they said they would rather just have the money laughing and Dad ask anyone interested? There were like 6 guys and a couple girls there and not a one took him up on it not a one.
Back home in Florida a few months ago around Christmas time there was this guy and his family I'm talking mom kids and grandma standing on the corner to the mall entrance. They were holding up signs lost job need help homeless god bless. This reporter was doing a story on them when he said he just didn't feel right about there story so he follow them when they left he reported they got in a new mini van and drove to this house that many would die for. He went up to the door make a long story short he ask them why the dad said people are stupid and he makes a killing begging for money. I'm just saying some choose to be there and I believe some are there by no choice but it happen but I also believe that help is out there if they ask. I will buy a homeless person a hot meal anytime but you offer and they would rather have the money than the hot meal I wonder why? We all know why if this makes me a mean person than so be it.
Next is Peta yes I do some work for them but ya'll know me if I see something I don't think is right I say something. Two things Peta is doing right now I don't agree with. First is them trying to free Tilly the killer whale for seaworld. I agree that Tilly needs to be free from seaworld but putting him back into the wild I'm not sure is a good idea. I don't know if he could make it on his own and him being used to people what if he goes up to a ship or worse one of the whale ships that hunt and kill whales. See I don't agree with cutting him back into the wild I do think seaworld needs to let him go but he needs to be somewhere he can be protect and cared for. Next is in the news today you will see about Peta euthanizes over 90 percent of the dogs and cats relinquished to its headquarters in Norfolk, Va. I have talk to them about this and as much as I get the same answers many people do on why they do this I have to call bullshit on Peta. I do believe they do a lot of good work this is a black eye for them and has been for a long time and they need to stand up and do something about it. Peta stop putting animals to sleep the excuses you give just not flying just stop it ok!!
Damn so long winded today I wanted to cover my thoughts on the Nascar wreck and there ruling I so know how ya'll love my Nascar posts hehe. Maybe tomorrow I will get to it. I have some stuff I need to get done and I'm out of time for today folks!
Later!
The group of homeless that I ran into that had the dog and that made some you readers mad at me was when I feed the dog and the homeless man ask what about me and I went off on him and told him to get a job. See to me what I see was a group of drunks that was concern about getting drunk and having smokes and not concern about food or shelter for the night. Look I know that sometimes things get out of control for some people and they hit rock bottom and need help I have no problem helping people but some people don't want help and are happy just being drunks. A few years ago I remember a storm came through and knock down trees and shit at out farm and I remember Dad going up to where some homeless people hung out and had them signs will work for food and he ask them if they wanted to a few bucks and they ask doing what he said some yard work they said they would rather just have the money laughing and Dad ask anyone interested? There were like 6 guys and a couple girls there and not a one took him up on it not a one.
Back home in Florida a few months ago around Christmas time there was this guy and his family I'm talking mom kids and grandma standing on the corner to the mall entrance. They were holding up signs lost job need help homeless god bless. This reporter was doing a story on them when he said he just didn't feel right about there story so he follow them when they left he reported they got in a new mini van and drove to this house that many would die for. He went up to the door make a long story short he ask them why the dad said people are stupid and he makes a killing begging for money. I'm just saying some choose to be there and I believe some are there by no choice but it happen but I also believe that help is out there if they ask. I will buy a homeless person a hot meal anytime but you offer and they would rather have the money than the hot meal I wonder why? We all know why if this makes me a mean person than so be it.
Next is Peta yes I do some work for them but ya'll know me if I see something I don't think is right I say something. Two things Peta is doing right now I don't agree with. First is them trying to free Tilly the killer whale for seaworld. I agree that Tilly needs to be free from seaworld but putting him back into the wild I'm not sure is a good idea. I don't know if he could make it on his own and him being used to people what if he goes up to a ship or worse one of the whale ships that hunt and kill whales. See I don't agree with cutting him back into the wild I do think seaworld needs to let him go but he needs to be somewhere he can be protect and cared for. Next is in the news today you will see about Peta euthanizes over 90 percent of the dogs and cats relinquished to its headquarters in Norfolk, Va. I have talk to them about this and as much as I get the same answers many people do on why they do this I have to call bullshit on Peta. I do believe they do a lot of good work this is a black eye for them and has been for a long time and they need to stand up and do something about it. Peta stop putting animals to sleep the excuses you give just not flying just stop it ok!!
Damn so long winded today I wanted to cover my thoughts on the Nascar wreck and there ruling I so know how ya'll love my Nascar posts hehe. Maybe tomorrow I will get to it. I have some stuff I need to get done and I'm out of time for today folks!
Later!
Ryan, I am glad you touched base on PETA killing as those animals. I unfortunately find it completely impossible to work with them for reasons that include they have cost me money, and I am glad that you took time to reiterate what you were wanting to say in your previous post, that just did not come out right.
And to bad you can not make it up to Michigan. A party with you sounds like it would be awesome. lol
Travis
This is one tough subject. I know what you said yesterday, and I found that I couldn't fault your actions..., any of them. I have to say that I am of a similar bent. In these cases I will do whatever I can for those that want my help, but I really have no time for those that aren't prepared to help themselves.
Not the most giving nature..., but it is all that I have. To me it all comes back to the age old saying..., "Give a man a fish feed him for a day, teach a man to fish feed him for a lifetime." I really believe that.
You're a good person dude..., never change, ok?
Hugs, Courage and Honour!
Octavius.
PS: Say hi to that brother of yours. Keep kicking his ass mate, to get him back up and running.
I guess we agree that there are people who would rather panhandle than work, even people like the phonies the reporter followed, and people who are homeless because they can't find work that would pay the rent. There are alcoholics who would rather drink than eat. There are people who have mental problems. I have no firm statistics about how many fit in each category, but I'm inclined to believe that most are not homeless by choice.
Sometimes if you've been homeless for a long time, doing what you need to do to survive (panhandling, going to soup kitchens and homeless shelters), maybe you get used to it, even comfortable with it. That's tragic, but I think it's also human nature.
Long term, society needs to find ways to enable people not to become homeless in the first place. But while there are homeless people, we need shelters and soup kitchens. We also need programs at the shelters that help people become employable, get work, and find a home they can afford. With some people, we may need to remotivate them to want a better life than the one they're comfortable with on the street.
And there may be some who have reached a point where nothing we can do will turn their life around. They are still our fellow human beings.
I go with a group I'm in a couple of times a year to cook and serve dinner at a nearby homeless shelter. The clients are respectful, orderly, intelligent, and friendly, in my experience.
You are allowed to feel the way you feel about people. If you don't like those homeless people with the dog, you are allowed your feeling. Fuck everyone...you are allowed to be who you are.
Berkeley, my former town, has tons of homeless people. As does San Francisco right next door. It's kinda like a subculture that everyone sees but can't understand. Idunno, A lot of them were really young too. Makes me wonder that possibly these kids just made some bad choices along the way. I can see the older folks having more 'out of their control' type reasons, but not these younger ones. Of course one you could argue that they came from abusive homes, but even then, there are agencies, orgs etc that meant to help such kids. I know I'd rather be fed and housed in some crappy foster house than on the streets. But what do I know.
Let me build on what Cash is saying, if I might. I live in Oakland, which is actually right next door to Berkeley (San Francisco is across the Bay from both cities) and yes, we have a damn lot of homeless people. It sounds glib but I promise it's not: the weather's so nice here, it makes sense there are so many people living on the street. We're blessed to have an area where living on the street doesn't expose you to weather so extreme people die.
So is it responsible for people on the street to have pets? I don't know, and I don't think there's a blanket answer. But goddamn, am I happy to live in a place where we get news stories like this. For all the bad things we've got going on, this one made me smile with tears in my eyes (happy ending, promise).
Read the first link, then read the second. It's worth your time, I swear, and might at least anecdotally provide you with some food for thought.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/02/09/BA0L1BUHFB.DTL
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/02/10/BAAJ1BV43M.DTL