San Francisco built an outdoor urinal

a reply to: SeaWorthy

I see your socialism & raise you 1 petrodollar. Them wars ain't goin nowhere.

For the record I couldn't agree more with what you said, especially that last paragraph.

The biggest problem I see is getting people to use the facility.

Instead of peeing on a tree, the sidewalk, alcove, alley, etc.

I want your pee going in the sewer.

originally posted by: Annee
a reply to: Xtrozero

I'll take stink over spread of disease.

There is a maintenance crew. They've developed special materials and paint to not absorb orders, etc.

They tried Porta-Potties which were vandalized and destroyed.

As said -- it's an existing problem -- a realistic solution was needed.

I feel the solution is not realistic the solution should look to what we want for the future of our country, do we want to become India or Africa.

Urine is sterile while it is in the body. The moment it comes out of the body and hits oxygen and other elements is when it starts to not be sterile which is why it starts to smell - bacteria start growing
It can contain the bacteria/virus of some very serious diseases--SARS for one typhoid for another herpes is yet another and there are more. (Yes there are a few thousand cases of typhoid carriers in the US that shed the bacteria in their urine for months.)

originally posted by: Esoterotica
a reply to: SeaWorthy

I see your socialism & raise you 1 petrodollar. Them wars ain't goin nowhere.

For the record I couldn't agree more with what you said, especially that last paragraph.

A lot of mentally ill don't want to be "caged". They want to live free as best they can.

Didn't we evolve from putting the "undesirable" behind closed doors so as not to disrupt Polite Society?

originally posted by: SeaWorthy

originally posted by: Annee
a reply to: Xtrozero

I'll take stink over spread of disease.

There is a maintenance crew. They've developed special materials and paint to not absorb orders, etc.

They tried Porta-Potties which were vandalized and destroyed.

As said -- it's an existing problem -- a realistic solution was needed.

I feel the solution is not realistic the solution should look to what we want for the future of our country, do we want to become India or Africa.

Urine is sterile while it is in the body. The moment it comes out of the body and hits oxygen and other elements is when it starts to not be sterile which is why it starts to smell - bacteria start growing
It can contain the bacteria/virus of some very serious diseases--SARS for one typhoid for another herpes is yet another and there are more. (Yes there are a few thousand cases of typhoid carriers in the US that shed the bacteria in their urine for months.)

REALITY --- pee goes in sewer --- not elsewhere.

Having lived and worked in "The City" for 7 years, you become desensitized to all things unusual and bizzare. You'd have to live there to understand, as SF is a unique city unlike any other I've seen. It's almost like its own little country. I could write a very entertaining (and disgusting) thread of the insane things I witnessed in my time there. Once you've seen a man in a$sless leather pants walking another man on a leash and collar on all fours, you become numb to the insanity. Men who dress as women, selling themselves on the street, crackheads and heroin addicts using on the sidewalk. Homeless homosexuals fornicating in an alley. I nearly killed a man who used our work dumpster as a bed- the 300 lb appliance I discarded somehow managed to miss him. Forgot to lock the lid and didn't knock before dumping. Installing fireplaces in a large downtown loft, I encountered a homeless man on the ground floor, watching the girls walk by the window, pants on the ground, willy in hand, going to town. These are just a few examples of the insanity, so please excuse me if I don't think an outdoor urinal is a bad idea. You can blame liberals all you want if it makes you feel better. Don't research the closing of California's mental institutions in the 80's, because it won't jive with your narrative. Of course, it didn't help having the CIA flood the inner city with crack, either. Oh well, what are ya gonna do? You can raise your kids in a fairy tale world or you can educate them about some of the harsh, ugly realities. Your choice.

a reply to: Annee

You think schizophrenics & god knows what else are happy wandering & living on the streets, digging through dumpsters, harassing/begging from pedestrians? The phrase mentally ill must not have a very strong connotation to you. Have you ever lived in a city or area with high homeless population & had to walk by hordes of them every day going to work & been verbally accosted by people who have no idea what's even going on around them? I have on many occasions just living in San Francisco alone. My last trip there (a 6 hour layover on the drive to Portland) I gave money to a very messed up homeless pregnant woman & a very old homeless grandpa who was sitting in a corner taking to himself on haight street in the middle of a rather populated area.

You're against building government funded public health facilities to house these people & give them a community? They should live on the streets because...freedom & liberty?

Im sure I could go on but I don't want to pop that little bubble around you, wouldn't want you to fall off such a tall horse.

a reply to: Tuomptonite

You can raise your kids in a fairy tale world or you can educate them about some of the harsh, ugly realities. Your choice.

Things are as we let them be. To my ear it sounds like you are saying it's bad here so let's just let it be bad and live with it in a manner befitting this place.

a reply to: Tuomptonite

LOL, love your post.

As said, I live between Long Beach/San Pedro and Venice Beach. San Fran is more condensed, but I see the same things in areas down here.

Stuff happens everywhere. You can't just shove it in some back room and slam the door shut.

REALITY IS the HEALTH issue. You want to get pee in the sewer, same as you want to provide safe places for needle disposal and clean needles if necessary.

We do not live in a squeaky clean world.

originally posted by: Annee

originally posted by: SeaWorthy

originally posted by: Annee
a reply to: Xtrozero

I'll take stink over spread of disease.

There is a maintenance crew. They've developed special materials and paint to not absorb orders, etc.

They tried Porta-Potties which were vandalized and destroyed.

As said -- it's an existing problem -- a realistic solution was needed.

I feel the solution is not realistic the solution should look to what we want for the future of our country, do we want to become India or Africa.

Urine is sterile while it is in the body. The moment it comes out of the body and hits oxygen and other elements is when it starts to not be sterile which is why it starts to smell - bacteria start growing
It can contain the bacteria/virus of some very serious diseases--SARS for one typhoid for another herpes is yet another and there are more. (Yes there are a few thousand cases of typhoid carriers in the US that shed the bacteria in their urine for months.)

REALITY --- pee goes in sewer --- not elsewhere.

I see New York is planning on following suit. Can we agree dear Girl that when we make a move in this country to do something well thought out or not, it becomes a precedent? It is the same way we made the mad dog function of the IRS.

I see your point of deal with the problem quick and as easy as possible but we can do better in America I am confident that we can we just need to force the people's wishes as to where we spend our tax dollars.

a reply to: Annee

You yourself indicated the type of person who pees in the public park will probably not even use these facilities it will just say to the ones who used to walk to the nearest restroom "no need pee here", as well as imho open a door for molesters and perverts to be safe doing their thing.

a reply to: SeaWorthy im saying yes, things are bad. The reason it's so bad is because TPTB would rather ignore the problems instead of taking proactive steps to fix them. I'm just a construction worker, I don't have all the answers. I do know that the 10-15 thousand homeless in SF have bodily functions just like me and they gotta go somewhere. I'm not saying these outdoor urinals are gonna fix everything but I believe it's a step in the right direction to at least consider their biological needs. Of course, we can always ignore the situation and hope it goes away.....

a reply to: Annee
Thank you, your posts are spot on in my book. When you cram 3/4 of a million people on a 5x5 mile peninsula, things get a bit hectic and crowded. After a Giants game 42,000 people walk the streets to Bart, CalTrain, parking lots, etc and I've experienced the need to relieve myself in the middle of a city, without a restroom in sight. So this case isn't just about homeless, it's large city on a tiny patch of land problem, I suppose. Every oz of urine that ends up in the sewer instead of streets, sidewalks, etc, is a positive thing.

a reply to: Tuomptonite

If women can hold it so bloody well can men.

Disgusting.

originally posted by: SeaWorthy
a reply to: Annee

You yourself indicated the type of person who pees in the public park will probably not even use these facilities it will just say to the ones who used to walk to the nearest restroom "no need pee here", as well as imho open a door for molesters and perverts to be safe doing their thing.

I've peed in public out of necessity. Humans are humans with bodily functions. "When you gotta go, you gotta go".

The biggest appeal to molestors is isolation. An alley, stairwell, etc --- not an open air toilet.

Perverts need an escape. They tend to hide until a victim comes near, do their thing, then split.

Anything with a door means privacy. There is a maintenance crew that has to inspect evey facility, every night, to prevent "over nighters". Which means the facilities are probably locked at night.

What swinish behavior.

originally posted by: Obsrvr
a reply to: Tuomptonite

If women can hold it so bloody well can men.

Disgusting.

Women are built different. They have larger bladders.

Yeah! About holding it. That sucks. And I have peed in public because I couldn't hold it.

a reply to: Obsrvr
What exactly do you find so disgusting about urinating? The urine itself is the "disgusting" part, so doesn't it make sense to offer places that divert that disgusting waste into the sewer? whats disgusting is 10,000 people on the street with nowhere to perform their natural bodily functions. I'm sorry if your "equipment" doesn't allow you to casually and fairly discreetly relieve yourself in an outdoor urban environment. For every man that utilizes this facility, that opens up one more "proper" toilet for s woman to use. Maybe you've never experienced the need to pee without a bathroom in sight.By the way, I've seen plenty of women copping a squat in the city. Life happens, get over it.

a reply to: Tuomptonite

Hey, if you want to emulate the animal kingdom be my guest.

Don't expect everyone to subscribe to such disgusting behavior.

I've suffered from an overly full bladder on plenty of occasions. I've always behaved as my parents taught me, with decorum.

But I wouldn't expect certain types of people to exercise discipline. It's obvious that some here have none.

Good on them! Don't really see the issue or problem or why it's even newsworthy?
Or is it because of the prudes?