Homeless man called a bum, maybe this will change your perspective

Originally posted by Sippy Cup
reply to post by SuicideBankers

 

Homeless but not a bum!!

I'm in the same boat as you, since last November I've been homeless, but maintain a job.
I just cant afford my own place , and its due to child support taking so much, but I do have a truck and some friends that help me out (their internet right now)
During the winter was ruff in my truck with blankets and warm clothing , when I ran out of gas trying to stay warm, I thought "how do others live through this cold with less"

I also remember having an apartment and for 6months I didn't have a refrigerator, you really don't know what you have till you don't have.


and Im going to leave with a quote that I love "unknown author"

"There once was a man complaining because he had no shoes, then he met a man who had no feet"

I am no longer homeless I made it off the streets about 10 years ago. Sorry if you guys thought I was currently homeless.

I was living out of my Mazda 323. Talk about a tight fit. I was also lucky to have bottomed out in southern California. Mild weather was very helpful. Seems so long ago now. Hang in there. Stay strong and hold your head up high. society may look down on you but that don't mean you have to look down on yourself. Be proud of the good person you appear to be. Don't let the hecklers or the streets break you.

Originally posted by JiggyPotamus

Originally posted by Hopechest
Most of the homeless people are there because of poor decisions they decided to make in their lives. Many are alcohol and drug abuse victims, but it was still their choice to partake in that.

I have little sympathy for them because they chose to give up.

This is an example of stereotyping, and it just shows not only your ignorance on the issue, but also your unwillingness to change your views based on factual evidence. I have long wondered why so many Americans have little compassion for people. They attempt to rationalize their racism, bigotry, and profiling by saying things like the person I quoted in this post. They attempt to dehumanize people, or say that anyone can change their lives based on hard word and effort. This is just not true. The "American Dream" died long ago. In this day and age a person may not be able to support themselves with a menial job, much less a family, and this was not always the case in America.

And so many people have bought into the university racket, yet what percentage of those who graduated from a university still do not make enough money to support themselves? Even specialized careers, like airline pilots, who are in charge of the safety of hundreds of passengers, if they are lucky may make 20 grand a year. There are airline pilots who have to work other jobs to support themselves and their families, and some are even on food stamps. Yet there are people who say that anyone who is on food stamps of government assistance is lazy. The fact that these are pilots for major airlines apparently means nothing. These pilots are just lazy and that is the bottom line. What a load of crap.

The same is true of homeless people. Many are homeless today because of the housing bubble that took place recently. People still want to blame everyone but Wall Street for that, which shows how ignorant they really are to the rackets and cabals present in this country, especially in the financial industry. Republicans are so against helping people, claiming self-reliance, etc., because they do not wish to open their eyes to the truth. They want to dehumanize people based on how much money they make. Yet they still take advantage of people in their corporations, for those who are involved in them. They are part of the problem, yet they still do not see that fact.

And where was the Republican outrage when we the people had to bail out the crooks on Wall Street, who are intimately connected with the large banks and investment banks? Wasn't that a handout? The hypocrisy is astounding.

Great post Jiggy!

Let me share a bit more of my story. Once I was off the streets I did my best to better myself. I went back and got my high school diploma at the age of 32. I started community college courses and I worked the low end jobs until I could find something better. I moved up to better paying jobs. About 3 years ago I was working an assembly line for a major corporation. They make house hold appliances. I was busting my rear going for a team leader spot and blew out my hips and ended up with nerve damage in my lower back. It was a repetitive motion injury because the line wasn't set up properly. This corporation who was so active with habitat for humanity and the community terminated me and tried to deny me workman's comp and the surgery I needed to repair my right hip. They refused to even treat the back issues. Now my left hip is going and my right hip is still very painful and my lower back is a mess. The settlement I received wasn't nearly enough but I accepted it because my mother ended up with a stage 4 brain tumor and I was desperately trying to get back to Colorado. My attorney told me I couldn't go back till the case was settled. I couldn't be there when my mother went in for brain surgery. She survived thankfully and we got another year with her. she passed this year on January the 22nd. The point is I tried to be the good little corporate puppet and when I was of no use to them anymore they threw me out like trash. Once again I am very close to ending up on the streets. Thankfully I have friends and family who will never turn their backs on me unlike the corporation that promised me a dream and gave me nothing but nightmares. Still all in all I count myself as one of the lucky ones. I have family and friends that love me. So many others don't even have that.

reply to post by DZAG Wright


I think you may be spot on there, some people see all the "pretty ones" put forth no effort aside from turning food to waste and are handed their every heart's desire, all the while they are forced to spar to justify their own existence to the rest of the world and end up becoming quite bitter.

People like this never see all the hidden costs and trade-offs that go with that, though - to go through life as a token without ever having developed a skill or anything else to offer ... at least a dancing bear knows deep down that it is still a bear.

Great post!

reply to post by purplemer


Good post. I think its disgusting the way many cities are banning these people from asking others for a dollar. I know many of them may just use it for a beer but so what.

We have no idea what kind of hard life these people have had and to pass judgement on them is evil.

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God bless him.

Originally posted by LastStarfighter
reply to post by purplemer

 

Good post. I think its disgusting the way many cities are banning these people from asking others for a dollar. I know many of them may just use it for a beer but so what.
We have no idea what kind of hard life these people have had and to pass judgement on them is evil.

That might be as silly as Sauron\Darth Vader saying homeless people are there by choice.

let me see if I get this right...That guy over there is homeless..Ill give him a few dollars and if he chooses to get drunk or high with it..who cares..he has had a tough life recently but at least he can have a tall cold one tonight.

Is that the general gist of you message?

reply to post by Hopechest


Forget trying to rationalize why you wouldn't help someone. Instead, think about why you WOULD.

Helping someone actually helps you more, because it is literally a declaration of security. If you share what you have, you MUST feel you have an abundance of whatever you're sacrificing. You are experiencing what you believe to be true, thereby enforcing its validity. I've always said that giving is its own reward.

You don't share what you have because you're insecure about it. A person who feels wealthy (beyond just the concept of money) doesn't dissect the person they are helping, rather the benefit they will receive from the gesture.

It may sound self-centered, but everything we do is for the self, whether we acknowledge it or not. Just as your unwillingness to part with spare change only reminds you of how your really feel about your financial security: there's not enough. You'll instantly have enough when you allow yourself to part with it.

I volunteer for a homeless shelter twice a month. I can verify that 85% of the people that come in have no drug history. Its alot of tragic stories, veterans, and the occasional young person traveling the country in the cheapest way possible. Since volunteering my time we've only kicked out 5 people in 3 years for drug related situations. MOST people that are homeless have just run across hard times.

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Did I get everyone who decided to discuss a member of the site, rather than the topic at hand?

No? Yes?


Can we stick to said topic?

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Watch the video, or don't. Respond to said post about said video. Or Don't.

DO NOT ATTACK MEMBERS FOR THEIR BELIEFS.

That's not how we play here.

Carry on.

the topic is not my post.

the topic is the video in the opening post.

the video is not how a member is scrooge or how I am a jerk for actioning all the posts that were not discussing the topic.


that's the last warning y'all are going to get.