Helping homeless seen
as boon to commerce
Outreach workers are stepping in now when potential conflicts arise between transients and Portland businesspeople.
By Tom Bell tbell@mainetoday.com
Staff Writer
PORTLAND - Last Friday afternoon, Michelle Souliere found a homeless man passed out drunk on the doorstep of her bookstore on Congress Street, the Green Hand. Instead of calling 911, she called the city's Homeless Outreach & Mobile Engagement Team.
From left, Jesse Flynn, Peggy Lynch and John Dana, part of the new Homeless Outreach & Mobile Engagement Team, walk along Preble Street in Portland on Wednesday. Their aim: Help the homeless and help the city.
Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer
Jesse Flynn, background left, and outreach partner John Dana, members of Portland's Homeless Outreach & Mobile Engagement Team, speak with two men at Congress Square Plaza during their walk through the city Wednesday. Team members say they serve two groups of clients: homeless people and local business owners.
Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer
A white van pulled up, and out jumped John Dana and Jesse Flynn, outreach workers for the "HOME Team," a public-private initiative that began on July 1.
They woke the man up and gave him water. After seeing that he was OK, they asked if they could take him somewhere out of the hot sun, such as the Oxford Street Shelter. The man said he wanted to go to Amistad, a nonprofit on State Street that helps people with mental illness. They took him there.
Souliere said the program helps the homeless and business owners who want Congress Street to be an attractive place for shoppers and families.
"It seems to have worked out for him," she said of the homeless man. "And it has worked out for me."
Modeled after a program in Burlington, Vt., the initiative is funded with a $100,000 community development block grant, a $35,500 contribution from the Portland Downtown District and in-kind services donated by Preble Street, the Milestone Foundation and Portland's Health and Human Services Department.
The Milestone Foundation, which operates an emergency shelter and detoxification program on India Street, is the lead agency.
The project is a blend of two initiatives, said Doug Gardner, director of the Health and Human Services Department.
The city and other social service agencies wanted to fund a van to take homeless people to programs and shelters. Mercy Hospital wanted to address the high cost of emergency room services for the homeless.
At the same time, downtown business owners wanted outreach workers walking the streets and helping to handle intoxicated people who were yelling at people, urinating in public, fighting and panhandling aggressively.
Gardner said it's cheaper and more effective for trained outreach workers to serve the needs of the homeless than it is for police and rescue personnel.
Tom Allan, executive director of the Milestone Foundation, said it makes sense that the agencies and businesses are involved in the effort.
"It's an honest-to-goodness, authentic community response to a problem that belongs to all of us," he said.
There are two two-person outreach teams: a morning team that works from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, and an afternoon team that works from noon to 8 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
They patrol Congress Street from Lincoln Park to Longfellow Square, the Bayside neighborhood, and occasionally along the waterfront.
Dana, a licensed alcohol and drug counselor, said he has two types of clients: homeless people and business owners. helping homeless people get services, he said, he can help create a better environment for commerce without compromising his ethics.
Sometimes, though, he can't please both kinds of clients.
For example, he has told business owners that there's no law against being intoxicated in public, and that he can't force a person to leave.
Flynn, who as a teenager was addicted to drugs and lived on the streets in Portland and Boston, said that homeless people often feel isolated.
"They get the feeling nobody notices, nobody cares," he said, "and we are out there showing them that we do."
Staff Writer Tom Bell can be contacted at 791-6369 or at:
tbell@pressherald.com
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194 COMMENTS
tim said...
Make panhandling ilegal and then the bums won't get drunk as often and require medical care. Portland has gotten so bad that I only go there because of work. Otherwise I go to Freeport or some other nice town that has absolutely no bums, no grafetti, and very nice floral arrangement. Oh yes. Free parking as well. If the city wants to destroy itself by allowng panhandlers and loitering, I guess no one can stop them.
July 8, 2010 at 6:03 AM Report abuse
Biddy said...
Panhandlers are going to go to Portland and other cities because that's where the people and social resources are. Freeport has no homeless shelters or other social resources. How interesting it would be to see how many Freeport natives are homeless in Portland or other cities. But the buck is passed from the 'burbs to the cities. And Portland and other city taxpayers are stuck with the bill. The homeless aren't going away. It's a growing population. Each town should pay it's share.
July 8, 2010 at 6:20 AM Report abuse
Govt2Big said...
Tim has made a great point, but the extreme liberals don't care if they ruin Portland. Since "the initiative is funded with a $100,000 community development block grant," this is yet another example of how our tax dollars are being wasted on Far-Left political projects with one clear goal - get more voters for the Far-Lefties. Sad but 100% true.
July 8, 2010 at 6:22 AM Report abuse
chet said...
I don’t know where to start. Milestone Foundation is funded in part by HUD, and Maine State Housing Authority. I personally do not think HUD should be funding this. $100,000 community development grant, more taxpayer’s money. (Probably from the stimulus fund) Mercy Hospital has high emergency room costs, (don’t let them in) Homeless yelling at people, fighting, urinating, etc. etc. etc. I feel the problem is enabling the homeless to live in Portland, cut all the services and they will go else ware by fall, or freeze to death.
July 8, 2010 at 6:34 AM Report abuse
tonella said...
Freeport-Kennebunkport has no homeless,OOB sets them up in a motel-room,we pay for that Saco is another ,if they can get away with it they will slum areas in Biddeford,free suppers then they have enough for cigarettes-booze,unreal
July 8, 2010 at 6:34 AM Report abuse
Biddy said...
And what is the alternative to the program? At least it is trying to accomplish something by easing the tension between the homeless and the businesses. You see the Right never has any answers to anything besides name calling, mindless characterizations, and false pretenses. They build a case on straw men and propose alternatives that end up either moving the problem or costing more in the long run. Arresting these people and jailing them at $20,000 per year per prisoner won't end the problem. It WILL cost more. And does any person in control of their senses believe that making pan handling illegal is going to stop it?
July 8, 2010 at 6:38 AM Report abuse
beulah said...
This is disgusting. Portland will self destruct with an attitude like this. What needs to be done is to stop all aid to the homeless. This is Maine, they will not stay here. If they are veterans, or legitimately need help they will get it. Homeless people are not stupid; they have a network of places that they know will support them. All you have to do is stop the support.
July 8, 2010 at 6:42 AM Report abuse
coreyt said...
Tim - Portland isn't exactly the South Bronx in 1970. You can go wherever you want but avoiding the entire city of Portland because of a few panhandlers seems like an overreaction. Portland actually has some nice floral arrangements and 'free parking' (note that free parking is not actually free). Also, I don't think this article says anywhere that this program is designed to increase or maintain the current levels of panhandling.
July 8, 2010 at 6:45 AM Report abuse
beulah said...
Biddy> OK here is my plan. Tough love, the three strike plan. You get help three times after that your on your own.
July 8, 2010 at 6:48 AM Report abuse
beulah said...
Liberals make it attractive to homeless. Don’t make it attractive, and I guarantee there will not be as many homeless. Will there still be people in need? Sure there will, but I bet it would be 95% less. Spreading the wealth has never worked anyplace in the world, when will Libs realize this.
July 8, 2010 at 6:54 AM Report abuse
jude said...
Whether this program is a "boon to commerce" is debatable. It's biggest benefit is freeing up police time to deal with more important issues like cracking down on motorcycle noise.
July 8, 2010 at 7:06 AM Report abuse
tim said...
Biddy, This is my solution: make panhandling and loitering illegal, then they will not have money to buy booze and will get drunk less. Also, if you provide free stuff, you reduce incentives for people to work; you know, most people feel they are too good to work for minimum wage and argument made hollow by the "work tax credit (sic?)." It's called incentive, something long studied by behavorial economists but ignored by libersls.
July 8, 2010 at 7:08 AM Report abuse
jude said...
And speaking of motorcycle noise, that's where Portland is the equal of Freeport and Kennebunkport. They suffer form the criminal Harley crowd just as much as we do.
July 8, 2010 at 7:10 AM Report abuse
ScottTopsum said...
I would love to hear the comments that would come from all the anti-Portland, anti-public services folks on here if Portland ever did stop providing services to the mentally ill and homeless -- and they all returned to the towns you folks live in, which is where the majority of them come from. Then your selectmen would have to deal with the problems that come with them and you're really have something to complain about. The reality is that any society will have a certain percentage of members who are incapable of caring for themselves. This was recognized from the very beginning of European settlement in New England and every town or county established a "poor farm" or "keeper of the poor" (a title that still is the legal title for the welfare director in at least one town I know of). As a large town, Portland had a large poor farm. The ball park, expo, football field, and ice rink now occupy that land. These people exist and have to be cared for, as they always have.
July 8, 2010 at 7:16 AM Report abuse
MainenCrisis said...
We desperatly need a pan handling law and a drunk in public law. Remember, stop filling the bird feeder and the birds leave.
July 8, 2010 at 7:16 AM Report abuse
notspot said...
"floral arrangements" lmfao
July 8, 2010 at 7:17 AM Report abuse
Scrib said...
It will always help your business if you can find a way to get that 250lb passed-out wino out of your entryway...
July 8, 2010 at 7:17 AM Report abuse
MainenCrisis said...
Biddy, stop generalizing about the right, you don't like it when its done to you. Drunk and passed out on the streets is a CHOICE not an unavoidable illness. Enabling it doesnt help.
July 8, 2010 at 7:18 AM Report abuse
notspot said...
Tim would like to live in a mall.
July 8, 2010 at 7:19 AM Report abuse
hillgirly said...
It is a fact that other cities along the east coast give their homeless, or soon to be homeless free bus tickets to 04101. And it is also true that alcohol/drug addiction is a disease. Seems like we have created a vicious cycle, especially when you throw in a dose of mental illness. This outreach program is da bomb! Showing/helping one homeless person at a time will have results, it has to start on the streets.
July 8, 2010 at 7:20 AM Report abuse
JWR said...
Might I chime in here for a minute ? First of all, please stop with the 'Liberal' nonsense, OK.. So, some think the problem will just vanish if there are no service. Really ! They built the Oxford St. shelter in the 1980's, anyone remember why ? Because 12 homeless people froze to death in the winter. Has anyone ever been there ? It's barely one step up from laying on concrete. Milestone is a joke, it's become a revolving door, of which you actually have to be intoxicated to get in there. And finally, if you took the average homeless person off the streets, clean them up, fed them some decent food. After 6 months they would only look better, they still would not be able to get and hold a job. You see, after 1 year of homelessness some form of mental illness starts to set in, within 3 years of homelessness most will reach the point of no return. And all that if your not drinking or doing drugs. It is at epidemic proportion all over the country. There are no easy solutions.
July 8, 2010 at 7:25 AM Report abuse
Biddy said...
So the Conservative right would rather pay $20,000 per year to house ONE prisoner then pay $100,000 from a grant to help many homeless find services or stay out of the way of businesses? That kind of fuzzy math can only be attributed to those who want to pass problems on rather than solve them. Does anyone who has their full wits actually believe that the homeless will disappear because panhandling is illegal? Why haven't drugs gone away? They've been illegal for years. The problem will never be solved completely. It CAN be alleviated with proper funding of key programs and interventions like this.
July 8, 2010 at 7:28 AM Report abuse
middleone said...
"Liberals make it attractive to be homeless". LOL. What is attractive about sleeping on the streets in the cold, rain, snow? Most of the street homeless have severe mental illnesses and / or addition problems. Whatever happened our moral compass in this country? It is the responsibility of all of us to "feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and shelter the homeless".
July 8, 2010 at 7:33 AM Report abuse
BSmart said...
First, why on EARTH isn't it illegal to be drunk in public. Especially if you're urinating, vomiting, panhandling and causing trouble??? There's a law in this city prohibiting "pigeon feeding" for god's sake. PASS A LAW. START ARRESTING PEOPLE. After the drunk in public law, next outlaw panhandling. That's a good start. I might be expensive to make arrests at first but once word gets out arrests are being made maybe some of these people will choose another city to drink in.
July 8, 2010 at 7:36 AM Report abuse
middleone said...
So, BSmart, the solution for these people is to just pass them along to another community? How about actually trying to help them? There are a lot of homeless in Portland because of other towns just passing them along to my city. That is not a solution. How about we just ship them to your neighborhood?
July 8, 2010 at 7:41 AM Report abuse
T3V0aG91c2VSYXQ%3D said...
95% or better of the homeless choose to be homeless. At least they choose to live on the streets. They would much rather spend every cent can scrape up on drugs and booze than on housing. Free eats at the soup kitchen, welfare checks to help with the habit, and shelters when the weather gets too bad. Stop the hand outs and they will move on to some other liberal city...most likely Boston.
July 8, 2010 at 7:43 AM Report abuse
Biddy said...
BSmart. The thing is that the problem never goes away. Arresting someone with substance abuse or mental illness issues just fills the jails. The people go back on the street and do the same thing again. Plus it costs money to keep people in jails. Housing mentally ill prisoners costs more because more CO's are needed. How about properly funding community mental health programs, more substance abuse rehab programs, etc.? It would help alleviate some of the issues but it won't make them completely disappear. There are plenty of places with the same problem as Portland's.
July 8, 2010 at 7:49 AM Report abuse
jack33 said...
Well, it IS hard to believe anyone cares. There was a story yesterday in DC about a man the police found in a park sweltering in the 103F heat. He had been discharged from a hospital the day before and had no where else to go. He was even still in his hospital shirt. It was very sad.
July 8, 2010 at 7:50 AM Report abuse
JWR said...
BSmart,--They are being arrested if they are seen with an open container. It is the policemen's discretion. And to be honest about it, some of the beat police in the area watch out for some of the characters. They have known them for years, and most are harmless. The task force is going after the aggressive panhandlers and those who cannot maintain a sense of decorum. I don't want to see vigilantism happening, as what occur some months back when a group of young people where spotted from an office building window pushing 3 homeless people in the ocean. They where rescue by a contractor who also witness it, as he was doing some work in that office building. 2 of them could not swim, and the 3rd one had to hang on to some pilings because he was in a daze. Those are only the ones we hear about, it's happening every day in Portland. The homeless are being attacked. THIS MUST STOP NOW ! Let's put our heads together,instead of tossing cute antidotes back and forth.
July 8, 2010 at 7:51 AM Report abuse
notspot said...
"95% or better of the homeless choose to be homeless." And this "fact" is because 4 out of 5 dentist say?
July 8, 2010 at 7:51 AM Report abuse
JazzBox said...
Govt2big, would you prefer the tax dollars and time be tied up by police, rescue and hospital personnel? Can you actually look at an issue without automatically partisanizing it? My goodness people. Until you take off your political blinders and start looking at problems objectively, and seeking the best solution rather than just "your guys" solution, you're going to keep destroying my country. Grow up! Educate yourself! Be your own person!!
July 8, 2010 at 7:51 AM Report abuse
gowens said...
95% or better of the homeless choose to be homeless. At least they choose to live on the streets. ------------------- Here we go again, let's make up statistics.. Oak, you're a joke.
July 8, 2010 at 7:53 AM Report abuse
america said...
i do not believe there is one homeless person who is not mentally ill. alot of these people would be in an isitution if we did not close them. arrest them? atleast they would have shelter and food(the ones that did not die from detoxing with no medical help)at only $20,000 a year. if we can take care of the m.r. at over 100,000 a yr per person, we should be able to spend 20,000 a year on people with m.i. no-one wakes up one morning and decides being homeless is the way to go, realy people, how can u not see this?
July 8, 2010 at 7:57 AM Report abuse
2B said...
Life is what you make it. The homeless are where they want to be.
July 8, 2010 at 8:06 AM Report abuse
cooper said...
How come none of you who have all the answers are getting off your computer and doing something to solve this problem?
July 8, 2010 at 8:07 AM Report abuse
scrabblemck said...
So,let me get this straight,the answer to the homeless problem is to let them freeze or starve to death? If you were to cut services to the homeless, the crime problem, which is already bad enough, would skyrocket. What's really sad here, by reading these comments, is that people think that being mentally ill and homeless is a walk in the park, like these people asked for this. If everybody would take just a bit of their precious time to help one of these people, and that's what they need most, not money or a handout, they need people to help them with a substance abuse problem in many cases, I know it sounds naive, but they need to know someone gives a crap. To generalize and lump the homeless into one big category is to deny that these people are individuals, who do not always have the same problems as the next guy. Somehow, these people need individual help, for their specific problems.
July 8, 2010 at 8:08 AM Report abuse
XPortlander said...
It is another for of enabling. And of course Biddy the Iddy thinks it's great. How about stopping the handouts....period!! A friend, who is a fireman went on a call to the super 8 fr a 911 call with the ambulance..... a woman was complaining she wasn't feeling well, paramedic asked where they where from and they replied Georgia, they asked what they were doing in Portland and they replied "because Prtland gives ut the most money and benefits for homeless"... Those are the stories that need to be told not the enabling ones.
July 8, 2010 at 8:08 AM Report abuse
beulah said...
I agree with America we should have never did away with insane asylums, and orphanages. They filled a need, and helped people. They just needed to be policed more; to stop the abuse that happened in some of them.
July 8, 2010 at 8:10 AM Report abuse
yardbird said...
this ought to suck bums in from all over the world
July 8, 2010 at 8:16 AM Report abuse
Sam said...
HMMM. "Someone" has to pay to provide that "free" parking. Isn't that (gasp) socialism?
July 8, 2010 at 8:18 AM Report abuse
GURRY70 said...
hillgirly - "And it is also true that alcohol/drug addiction is a disease." Alcoholism may be a disease and may well be an inherited disease...drug addiction is NOT a disease.
July 8, 2010 at 8:19 AM Report abuse
chet said...
I am sorry that I said homeless people should freeze to death. I do not feel that way at all. If I encountered a person freezing I would help them. I guess I just wanted to sensationalize my comment. SORRY
July 8, 2010 at 8:19 AM Report abuse
JWR said...
XPortlander,--That's the great Portland Myth. It's simply, 'out of sight out out mind'. And most every city in America has gone that route, just to get them out of the business/downtown districts. Anyone can toss money at a problem, still doesn't solve it when there is no one with creative solutions. Just warehouse them until they die.
July 8, 2010 at 8:20 AM Report abuse
Biddy said...
I guess my overall point was to praise this program. I volunteered a few years ago in a soup kitchen and got to know a few homeless people fairly well. Homeless people are a varied group just like the rest of us. Some of the comments here are very dehumanizing towards them. Like they were some kind of object or something. They're people folks. They just have a few more problems than most.
July 8, 2010 at 8:22 AM Report abuse
Jane said...
Wouldn't it be nice if we also found them HOMES? I know, radical.
July 8, 2010 at 8:28 AM Report abuse
root66 said...
Great work you guys atleast someone cares about fellow man.Keep it up.
July 8, 2010 at 8:43 AM Report abuse
JWR said...
Jane,--Most cities did. They built homeless shelters, although Portland is only one of 2 in the nation that is actually operated by a city. The others are farm out to private, so called non-profits, and then the cities give them some funding. Now, the problem with that is once again, simply warehousing them. Most shelters including the Oxford St. shelter here in Portland are nothing more then a slow death sentence, and sometimes quite 'literally' even sooner, from disease, violence and eventually total insanity. The staffs are not properly train, and even less in the private shelters where the core underpinnings are run by the homeless themselves. But it helps get them out of the publics eye and they are cheap to operate. Homelessness in America is fast becoming the new capital venture, much like privatizing the prisons in the 1990's was. Once again, there are no easy solutions. Fear keeps us from doing something really constructive. Some are only 1 check away from insanity.
July 8, 2010 at 8:57 AM Report abuse
america said...
california was going to do away with institions for the m.r., but then they looked at maines model and decided not to go that route, maybe maine needs to look at other states and see wuhat is working, because our solution is't. you cant just close these places and throw them on the street or privatize them and spend hundreds of millions on them, the money is going to run out. the nonprofits are bleeding this state dry,and now we are creating more? oh and btw, i am a democrat, that seems to matter alot here,lol
July 8, 2010 at 9:06 AM Report abuse
america said...
california was going to do away with institions for the m.r., but then they looked at maines model and decided not to go that route, maybe maine needs to look at other states and see wuhat is working, because our solution is't. you cant just close these places and throw them on the street or privatize them and spend hundreds of millions on them, the money is going to run out. the nonprofits are bleeding this state dry,and now we are creating more? oh and btw, i am a democrat, that seems to matter alot here,lol
July 8, 2010 at 9:06 AM Report abuse
jake007 said...
Having read all the comments I believe that ScottTopsum had it right. Growing up in the Rockland area,I remember the "poor farm" on the Old County rd.I also remember more involvement from churches of all faiths. ie,soup kitchens,clothing and food banks,transportation to and from needed services etc etc. I am not saying that churches do not help today,I just believe that they were more on the "front line" back then as opposed to local and state goverment. "Welfare" as it was know back then was intended mostly for unwed mothers,children and the truly disabled. Just my point of view.
July 8, 2010 at 9:16 AM Report abuse
Citygirl said...
What is the van picked them up and drove them out of town.
July 8, 2010 at 9:19 AM Report abuse
Dhiff said...
I still don't get the economic benefits here. Who wants to shop and/or eat in an area full of pan-handlers and public miscreants? Are these helpers packing? I grew up in Portland and I feel uncomfortable when I am on a quiet Congress Street at 6am, around Preble Street at 4pm, and in the Old Port after 9pm. Police are trying, but the laws should be changed to make the punishment for loitering, drinking, panhandling, etc STING.
July 8, 2010 at 9:25 AM Report abuse
eugene said...
Lets be honest, the street bums pandhandlers, low lifes, like the streets. It is there home, they are in control, they dont abide by any rules, could careless about changing there lifestyle. Leave them alone, but dont make it easy for them to get free food housing free medical care etc etc. A bum is a bum, his or her choice, the america way. The city turns off a lot of customers by there aggressive pandhandling ( lack of enforcement). In worcester mass, where I worked for a long time, street bums and pandhandlers were a rare sight, worcester now is a pandhandlers common bums dream, it turned a thriving downtown into a rats nest to avoid at all times.
July 8, 2010 at 9:33 AM Report abuse
Zumo said...
Glad to see that despite all these morons that are worried about their pretty little cars and bank accounts being affected by taxes, there are still a few people out there that are willing to show unconditional love and empathy for the less fortunate. Your good deeds make the world a better place. Thank you. I'd gladly pay double my tax rate to help all the ones that are still out there.
July 8, 2010 at 9:34 AM Report abuse
NMR said...
I am curious, why did we abandon the poor farms? Why shouldn't they work for their food and shelter? No work no food not a bad concept.
July 8, 2010 at 9:37 AM Report abuse
SL said...
More services and free rides = More Drunks I am 100% for getting these folks some assistance, once maybe twice! It is a choice to throw ones life away. Don't give me the disease argument, Parkinsons, Alzheimers, Cancer, CF, MS, MD are all diseases and to lump being a drunk in with them is an insult to every man, woman and child fighting for their lives with diseases that they didn't choose to inflict on themselves each day. If the tourists nknew the real Portland, before arriving, they wouldn't come. Being regurgitated from a cruise ship is one thing, coming back is another.
July 8, 2010 at 9:37 AM Report abuse
trisailer said...
Really the point is if we value all human life, shouldn't we be looking for better ways to deal with this issue? Most of the solutions suggested by the righty's have been tried. England shipped the poor overseas to America and Australia. When I was 14 I worked at the fish factory on Commercial and had to run the gauntlet of drunks that lived in the allys straining sterno. There is always going to be a percentage of people who cannot or will not be productive members of society. Biddy is right that the most cost effective and humaine approach to the problem should continue to be explored. There is so much we don't know about the brain and addiction. This is a byproduct of the capitalistic system where it is sink or swim. As this system has become more challanging there will be many more falling behind. As always the righty's only come up with simplistic and ineffective solutions.
July 8, 2010 at 9:41 AM Report abuse
Bole said...
Republicans don't help the homeless and unemployed. It costs too much, let them rot. Now about that new destroyer.........
July 8, 2010 at 9:42 AM Report abuse
Townie said...
stop filling the bird feeder and the birds leave. Or, they start eating your garden. The fact is that Portland could make all manner of laws against public drunkeness and panhandling and then, the homeless issue would, once again, become a police issue. At least this way, the people aren't criminalized, when, for the most part, they should never be. Elliot Liebow wrote a fantastic book called "Tell Them Who I Am", and his point is that homeless people are homeless because they don't have a place to live - not because they are addicts or mentally ill, and in fact, most of them are neither, and they shouldn't be treated like criminals. There is no one solution, but at least someone is trying to do something besides ignoring the problem. Kudos to the HOME team!
July 8, 2010 at 9:46 AM Report abuse
mainelycyn said...
correlation is not causation
July 8, 2010 at 9:48 AM Report abuse
beulah said...
Communities took care of the destitute by warehousing them on "poor farms," the common name for land set aside for paupers. Throughout the Northeast, these institutions lasted for roughly 100 years before big government programs made them obsolete. When social security was established around 1935 the poor farms went by the wayside. The old were mailed checks and the insane were put in asylums. I personally think we should bring back the poor farms.
July 8, 2010 at 9:48 AM Report abuse
MainenCrisis said...
I will say it again. Drunk in public and panhadling is a choice. How does it benifit any of us to make this easier for those who choose to do it? Biddy, Spot, Gowens, et al, You aren't really helping them and you aren't helping our city or society, you are only enabling it and making it easier to do. I've stopped picking Bobby up when he crashes in the street and the sidewalk, Im not really helping him when I do so why should I bother, he isnt helping himself and doesnt care why should I? Enough is enough.
July 8, 2010 at 9:50 AM Report abuse
XPortlander said...
If all yu do gooders are soooo concerned about these homeless and helping then continue their homelessness, then why aren't you bringing them into your homes to provide a warn bed, roof over their head and a good meal? Oh that's right, "n we don't want to do that, we want everyone else to take care of them and pay".....it is the liberal way.
July 8, 2010 at 9:50 AM Report abuse
Walker said...
I agree, panhandlng should be against the law. I'm sorry, I have no sympathy for these manipulative, quasi criminals. I walk through Portland every day on my way to and from work, and its like Calcutta. That said, I appreciate the good work of the social workers who are trying to help them. This sounds like an excellennt program. Most of us are not hard hearted to those with mental illness, but, we have a right to walk through our city in safety too.
July 8, 2010 at 9:51 AM Report abuse
nancy said...
The work farms were in many communities in the past. Work was done in exchange for food and shelter. My thought is that the people who occupied these institiutions were not of the variety that we seem to have here. I would like to try to envision any of homeless people I see around Portland doing public service jobs, but wonder if they too would need a job coach beside them 24-7. Work always builds self- esteem, but these are people who have loss theirs. Clouded by drugs and alchol, they are empty vessels. Work and therapy is perhaps the best way to help them restore their self esteem. How we view them is most likely how they view themselves.
July 8, 2010 at 9:54 AM Report abuse
JWR said...
SL,--What you fail to understand this is not unique to only Portland. This is being played out all over the nation. Some cities have taken a different route, and while the homeless populations have not dwindled, it has made a 'real' difference. I too do not want to shop or go into an area where I know I'll be accosted by such people. But I can survive that inconvenient hassle. Because unlike you and some others here I've study the problem and know the realty that they have very few choices to simply survive, that's all it is, survival. Some stay high to kill the pain. Their lives ended years and years ago and most will never, ever be productive members of society. This is not an excuse for them, I say this because that's life/reality. We deal with it or we complain about it, but' lets be careful we don't adopt a Stalin approach to the poor and the feeble minded among us, that's not my kind of America. Liberal or Conservative.
July 8, 2010 at 9:56 AM Report abuse
notspot said...
"Biddy, Spot, Gowens, et al, You aren't really helping them and you aren't helping our city or society, you are only enabling it and making it easier to do." Excuse me, sir...Just how do you know my views or my helping of the drunks? Speak for yourself, sir. I'm an enabler? Please post anything that I have posted today to make you post such a statement. You seem to have an image of me...As I do of you...But, sir, in this case you have no idea of my views. Good day to you.
July 8, 2010 at 10:03 AM Report abuse
T3V0aG91c2VSYXQ%3D said...
Work a soup kitchen....I did it once, and was so disgusted with so many of the bums and addicts I never went back. Some are very grateful for when they get and are truely nice people that either choose to live this way or know no other way. But more than a few feel entitled, are rude, critical of the food and volunteers efforts and go because it is free. Twice a day, with doggie bags in tow they line up at the feeder just like pigeons. And just like pigeons, some are friendly and visit while most just sh*t on you when the feed it gone.
July 8, 2010 at 10:06 AM Report abuse
backwrdstate said...
"Tim has made a great point, but the extreme liberals don't care if they ruin Portland.".........ho-hum, another day, another comment by a career airhead about some ill-defined group of people he calls "extreme liberals". What would he propose be done with the homeless. Put them in jail, buy them a bus ticket out of town, shoot them? What solution to drunks hanging around the city will not cost the taxpayers money? Govt2Big you are a mindless clown.
July 8, 2010 at 10:14 AM Report abuse
Iwatch said...
Ah yes. Burlington VT, another sanctuary city. My small city will not tolerate vagrants -- the sheriff drives them to wherever they wish to go and this is not a gentle ride. Needless to say, we have virtually no drunks or homeless here. Also welfare is not a snap to get. We support our law enforcement and there is very little crime here. Also no kids "hanging out". There are directed activities for them. The last time I visited Portland Congress Street, I was appalled at the amount of drunks, bars, and vagrancy. It sullies the place. Our teens are active in the community, healthy, and happy and so are we. Beulah makes a good point.
July 8, 2010 at 10:15 AM Report abuse
JWR said...
That is the truth. I too have volunteered. Those are the 'bums', and some think the world owns them something. But I've also met George Washington, Bonaparte, 2 nuns, a nuclear scientist and even Jesus. And 3 other loony's who jump in one time to protect me from the young hooligan junkies.
July 8, 2010 at 10:15 AM Report abuse
scrabblemck said...
@ Walker, Calcutta? That is funny comparing the worst slum on the earth with downtown Portland. Funny, and moronic.
July 8, 2010 at 10:17 AM Report abuse
trisailer said...
The problem is that all of the approaches to this issue are halfhearted and this is the result. The fact is that many of the homeless will never become contributing members of society and I would support putting them someplace where they could quietly drink or drug themselves to death. We supply the drugs and alcohol. In fact let's cut the BS and legalize all drugs and alcohol and make people take responsibility for their lives. Some of the most dangerous addicts are walking around with suits and ties.
July 8, 2010 at 10:23 AM Report abuse
skeptical said...
I am reminded of the time when I worked in a restaurant in Portland and was walking home with friends after a particularly busy night. We were walking on Congress St. and were approached by a panhandler (who truly *looked* like a down and out individual) and I said, "You know, I had a good night and you can have all my change.", and I gave the guy about $3.50. He looked at it and said, "But dude, cigarettes are $5 bucks!"
July 8, 2010 at 10:24 AM Report abuse
padman23 said...
To all the perfect people on both sides of this arguement....this is not as simple a problem to solve as it seems on the blog...for those on the right you have to help people in some way shape or form...if you are a member of any major religion it is one of the tenants of that religion. Also not all homeless are the same either, a lot of regular people have become homeless have gotten that way because of the recession. Remember not to cast those stones...And for the people on the left....public policies can influence greatly people's behavior.....take smoking as an example....while I believe it is your right to live your life as you please you also have a responsibility not to infringe upon the rights of others to live their lives as they please....The system should be designed to not tolerate the idea of being homeless. Again like most bureaucratic systems we have in this country, they do not lift you up they just keep you where you are.We should expect that all citizens do their part
July 8, 2010 at 10:26 AM Report abuse
middleone said...
People CHOOSE to be homeless? Yes, I'm sure that as kids they sat at home saying "when I grow up I want to live on the streets, scrounge for meals, urinate on the streets, be an addict, and get beat up on regular basis". Fat chance. Most of some form of mental illnesses, and have very challenging problems that are very complicated. Complex problems take complex solutions.
July 8, 2010 at 10:28 AM Report abuse
Biddy said...
I volunteered twice a week in a soup kitchen for a year. I'd still do it of my legs were better and I was able to stand longer. It was a very worthwhile experience. And people are people. Yeah, there are rude people in soup kitchens. And I also met a slew of rude people in my 35 years of running a walk in business. Many of them were well dressed and should have known better to act like that. There is good and bad in all walks of life. Some people need an extra hand. Some people are overwhelmed with what life dishes out. Some people just don't have the ability to survive alone. True, there are some criminals among the homeless that should be dealt with. There are also criminals in business and government that should be dealt with too. But they have the funds to buy their way out.
July 8, 2010 at 10:36 AM Report abuse
T2 said...
On the one hand I think this program is good. I think people should try to help people. It is after all a Christian ethic to do so. On the other hand I think Portland sort of creates this problem for themselves. There is nothing wrong with trying to help those who really need it and there are many of those. There are also many people we can help who will then help themselves. If we are really going to take money from hard working people many of who are scraping by to help these people then that help needs to come with responsibility and requirements. That is life folks. Otherwise I say make laws to stop panhandling and make it illegal to sleep on the streets etc.. and let the justice system deal with them. Stop making Portland a sanctuary for these people. If we did that they would all move to Mass where they have more money to take care of them anyway.
July 8, 2010 at 10:38 AM Report abuse
JWR said...
skeptical,--He wasn't homeless, just your everyday 'bum'. Where talking about those who have been homeless for years, and years. No respectable 'real' homeless person would ever say that. Only those who chose to be homeless. Something to remember, 20% who stay at the Oxford St shelter on any given night are because they can't go home,,,cause there wasted. 40% who eat at the Preble St. soup kitchen are not homeless, but low income can smell a sandwich a mile away, especially when it's free. But the biggest problem are the wasted resources on those you simply cannot help along with being able to recognize those who are gaming the system. The General Assistance office does require them to work through out the city in various departments, but that help is geared toward those who have lost a job and have fallen on hard times. The 'real homeless' are left to rot on the vine..
July 8, 2010 at 10:40 AM Report abuse
PaulPortland said...
I'm hungry. Give me a ride and free food.
July 8, 2010 at 10:44 AM Report abuse
truthbtold said...
Wow, a lot of you geniuses here have all the answers don't you? Seriously, who chooses to be homeless and how can anyone say that it is somehow a desirable situation to be in? Not all homeless have alcohol problems, not all have drug problems, in fact some are just people who have fallen on bad times or have mental or physical issues. In act some are families who have been booted from there homes because they have lost their jobs. This is not a left or right issue it is a human issue. Some of you here are so cold, so self important, sure hope none of you ever find yourselves in this situation - and it can happen to anyone in this living pay check to pay check world. Check your moral compasses people, your lack of compassion for your fellow human being is just plain revolting. Shame on all of you.
July 8, 2010 at 10:46 AM Report abuse
Biddy said...
And to the fool that brought up the issue about California and the Mentally delayed. That has NOTHING to do with this issue. Institutionalizing mentally delayed people is cruel and unusual punishment simply for a fate of birth. Many of these people live in group homes and work and volunteer to the best of their abilities. Others live at home and work in businesses with a work coach. Have you ever seen an institution for the Mentally Delayed? They aren't very humane places. That's why Pineland was closed.
July 8, 2010 at 10:46 AM Report abuse
ACHILLES said...
It appears that the censors at PPH have banned my postings for no other reason than that they run contrary to their script.
July 8, 2010 at 11:01 AM Report abuse
notspot said...
Wow, ACHILLES! I can't imagine any of your postings being inflammatory...
July 8, 2010 at 11:10 AM Report abuse
AFVET said...
Buelah: What ignorance! Your map doesn't include any Scandinavian countries, but that does not mean they are not there. And Social Security, the brainchild of Maine's Frances Perkins, involves the paying in from a worker's wages to the fund that ultimately yields a small check later on. It is not some sort of welfare as you imply. The spewing of dangerous nonsense by the likes of you typifies the right-wing posters here. That, and misspelling, incorrect punctuation, incoherent sentence structure, and faulty logic.
July 8, 2010 at 11:10 AM Report abuse
beulah said...
AFVET> Like I have said many times before, Liberals are smarter tan the average person, and they let you know!!! I did not say social security was welfare, I said SS is what started the demise of poor farms, can’t you read? Liberals: gotta love to hate them.><
July 8, 2010 at 11:15 AM Report abuse
SL said...
JWR...I am not talking of the poor and feeble minded. I am talking about those who choose to be drunk bumms! So you are telling me we should treat those who choose not to work and choose to get high and drunk each day with the same gloves we treat mentally handicapped and poor people? What an insult to the handicapped and poor folks that are out there working each and every day trying to make ends meet. TruthBTold..Go ask them why they choose this, after they shake you down for a 20 spot they will tell you what you want to hear and be gone. Plain truth is, it is what they choose. AND I am not even a republican!
July 8, 2010 at 11:16 AM Report abuse
backwrdstate said...
ACHILLES said... It appears that the censors at PPH have banned my postings for no other reason than that they run contrary to their script. ----------not exactly. Most of what you have ever written is either some form of hate speech, or mindless drivel. The PPH may do a lot of things wrong, but keeping you from posting isn't one of them.
July 8, 2010 at 11:26 AM Report abuse
JWR said...
SL,--Don't play games with me ! Read and try to comprehend what has been said. No twist and shout, OK. I'm the last person you can run a game on. And I don't give a rat's a-- what your political affiliations are.
July 8, 2010 at 11:27 AM Report abuse
pphreader said...
Whatever you do to the least of my brothers,that you do unto me....
July 8, 2010 at 11:38 AM Report abuse
MainenCrisis said...
spot, my apologies, since you seem to always disagree with folks on my side of these arguments and the context of most of your comments I'd have to place you more often than not with the left of center crowd. Sorry, its how you come across, I guess I'd be offended too. My bad.
July 8, 2010 at 11:42 AM Report abuse
PaulPortland said...
Social Security isn't welfare. It is a ponzi scheme. People who got in early paid little and got a lot. Everybody else pays in and ends up busted.
July 8, 2010 at 11:59 AM Report abuse
null said...
A long way back in what has been anything but a civil discourse, someone mentioned the topic of housing. What people seem to forget, or can't comprehend, is how difficult or impossible it is to get one's self "clean and sober" or better yet employed, when you have to constantly be worrying about where you're going to spend the night. While I've never been homeless myself, I can only imagine what sort of trauma that may be. People don't choose to be homeless, after all, why would you? People leave homes because of abuse; people are forced from their homes when they're laid off...What the recent openings of places like Logan Place and Florence House have shown us is that housing is integral to the human existence. M Maybe we should spend less time complaining and yelling at each other, and more time trying to find a quality community solution to a problem that effects all of us, whether we want to admit it or not.
July 8, 2010 at 12:02 PM Report abuse
null said...
This program could ease the burden on the PPD patrol units and the clogged criminal docket, which could save taxpayers money. Another added bonus.
July 8, 2010 at 12:12 PM Report abuse
AFVET said...
Beulah: SS was indeed enacted in 1935. But because the funding was generated by a payroll tax, the first monthly check was not handed out until 31 Jan '40. If the poor farms dwindled away between 1935 and 1940, it had to be due to factors other than SS. The original act did incorporate unemployment benefits, but I don't think it can be argued that they impacted the residents of poor farms. If you are arguing that poor farms did NOT constitute welfare or some component equivalent to welfare, then the correlation with social security is not as I took it to be in your posting. Otherwise, my reading of what you said is accurate, even if my conclusion depends on inference.
July 8, 2010 at 12:14 PM Report abuse
Dino90000000 said...
Complaining that a drunk and homeless person in front of a business would be given a ride away from this area and given food? How low can you go?
July 8, 2010 at 12:18 PM Report abuse
Eric said...
Have any of you even been to a real city?
July 8, 2010 at 12:20 PM Report abuse
null said...
Eric, good point. If you go to Europe, especially now after the economic downturn, you get a real taste for what many cities deal with. But the difference is that people actually take the time to divise solutions, instead of deriding everyone on the street as a vagrant, good for nothing person who has no future and no work ethic. If we decided to solve the multifaceted problem that is homelessness we could...but those days won't be here for a while if the comments on this board reflect a wider trend.
July 8, 2010 at 12:28 PM Report abuse
xcalibur1066 said...
"How about properly funding community mental health programs, more substance abuse rehab programs, etc.?" We can assume that if you make more than the average household ($34,000 +/-) for Maine that you donate the excess to homeless shelters. We can assume that in order to help these agencies to keep expenses down, you and all the other liberals here donate at least 10 hours per week at the facilities. We can assume that you have taken an at risk youth into your home and provided a loving, caring and supportive environment to break the cycle. Or would the liberals rather tax the good, hardworking people of Maine to pay for this? I think I know the answer.
July 8, 2010 at 12:28 PM Report abuse
CEMan said...
I KNEW this would bring out the knuckle dragging, mouth breathing denizens of the basements of Maine and it did. None of them have a lick of common cents, decency or intelligence. Most of you a-holes are a shinning examples of why this state is the most rednecked, backwards state north of the Mason Dixon line. Do you idiots REALLY think homelessness is a choice? Homelessness is almost always NOT a choice. No more so than being throw backs to the Neanderthal age is for most of you less than human beings. The best part is, when asked, most of you s(*theads will claim to be Christians. Carry on losers.
July 8, 2010 at 12:32 PM Report abuse
7199 said...
There are elements of truth in many of the posts on this complex issue. I accept the paradox that aiding the downfallen may encourage them to continue on their dysfunctional ways. However, most of the homeless are clinically depressed, addicted or exhibit other medical issues. A humanist desires to help the needy...give the homeless tough love where appropriate, but help them we must. I don't want to go to dinner with them, but we sure have an obligation to feed them, clothe them and try, try, try to get them to normalacy. Those who suggest that we simply ignore them, starve them and run them out of town are heartless beings. I suggest that they read some of Steinbeck's work and seek to reduce the anomie that swirls about them.
July 8, 2010 at 12:33 PM Report abuse
null said...
First of all, these programs are either for-profit or non-profit programs, not government run. Secondly, I don't understand how compassion and communitarianism were automatically "liberal," but if that's the standard now then I guess I'm liberal. Somehow I missed where caring about someone other than yourself became a partisan issue.
July 8, 2010 at 12:33 PM Report abuse
beulah said...
AFVET> I did not make this stuff up. I found out this information and more at the following link. http://archive.southcoasttoday.com/daily/02-05/02-20-05/a01lo633.htm
July 8, 2010 at 12:38 PM Report abuse
ModerateOne said...
MainenCrisis said... We desperately need a pan handling law and a drunk in public law. Sounds like more, bigger government to me.
July 8, 2010 at 12:39 PM Report abuse
beulah said...
Null, where do you think the money comes from? Sure some is from privat donations, but the last time I checked HUDD, and SMHA are government programs paid for by; gulp, taxpayers.
July 8, 2010 at 12:44 PM Report abuse
null said...
Depends completely on which organization you're looking at. Yes, HUD funds some, but that would be those that provide housing, imagine that. But the majority of the funding for places like Preble Street comes from private foundations or smaller private donations.
July 8, 2010 at 12:47 PM Report abuse
beulah said...
Having a program in place to help the needy is neither liberal nor conservative. Having a program that enables people to stay on the program, or provide way more than is needed is liberal. Liberals believe in spreading the wealth, unless it is theirs.
July 8, 2010 at 12:50 PM Report abuse
coreyt said...
hillgirly - "It is a fact that other cities along the east coast give their homeless, or soon to be homeless free bus tickets to 04101." I know most people don't read through comments after they leave one, but I would love to actually see evidence of your claim. It's been heartwarming to see some common sense in the more recent comments that aren't just saying "let them freeze."
July 8, 2010 at 12:52 PM Report abuse
XPortlander said...
I truly believe in most, not all cases being homeless is a choice. They choose not to be controlled by government, landlords, a boss, prefer to keep to themsleves, dislike people, live off the land, think that paying taxes is a crime in itself.....there are several reasons that people CHOOSE to be homeless. As far as SS...how about this for a concept....you dn't pay in, you get no pay out!!! Brilliant!
July 8, 2010 at 12:53 PM Report abuse
JWR said...
beulah,--It's not what you think. The city got appropriately 2 years worth of funding from the President's stimulus. Over all it was 2.1 billion dollars separate from all other stimulus monies for the sole purpose of helping the homeless in America. Now, Hud has set the criteria, and in Portland they set up the Rapid Rehousing Program, that has mainly helped those who can maintain an apartment when the funding ends. In other words those who have some sort of income be it a job or monthly SSI/SSDI checks. And there are quite a few legitimate homeless out here that have neither. So, had it not been for this President it would be much, much worst, nothing had been done for 30 years except through private enterprise. For 30 years it has been through private donations until now, but even that is only helping those who can help themselves. Between what Reagan and Clinton have done, it has set our nation on the course to third world status. Again, we fear to look in the face of it.
July 8, 2010 at 1:02 PM Report abuse
SL said...
JWR.."We deal with it or we complain about it, but' lets be careful we don't adopt a Stalin approach to the poor and the feeble minded among us, that's not my kind of America." Those are your words from 9:56am today. I ask you, what do the poor and feeble minded have to do with the drunk bumms in Portland, Me? I know many poor and feeble minded folks that don't drink and panhandle and they certainly don't passout on streets and urinate on door stoops. You were the one that lumped them in together, not me.
July 8, 2010 at 1:22 PM Report abuse
JWR said...
SL,--Nothing,,,except to those who try to paint the homeless as a certain stereotype. Your getting too fond of those words 'drunken bums'. Let's keep the parameter's quite distinctive. Shall we..
July 8, 2010 at 1:30 PM Report abuse
SL said...
JWR...OK. Those who, other than being intoxicated or high, could work for a living? What % of the Portland homeless do you think fall into that category (ages 15-100)? I think as you go up in age the percentage gets smaller, agree?
July 8, 2010 at 1:37 PM Report abuse
AR5 said...
Congratulations to those who have created this project and doing this very difficult work. It sounds like a win all the way around.
July 8, 2010 at 1:38 PM Report abuse
MainenCrisis said...
LMAO @ not so moderateone, since when is adding an ordinance to the city rule book bigger government. Bigger government is adding a department of homeless affairs to manage the number of homless. As bugs bunny always said, "What a maroon!"
July 8, 2010 at 1:39 PM Report abuse
othermissy said...
I love that the agency taking credit for it is not the actual facility treating them.. mostly for FREE!
July 8, 2010 at 1:48 PM Report abuse
Iwatch said...
Those who choose to be homeless, and yes they do, i.e., drug seekers, alcohol seekers and perhaps a few unfortunate mentally ill are the ones seen daily hanging in the same places. Those who choose not to be homeless yet are, go to shelters and find places during the daytime to bide their time. They may even have small j-o-b-s which do not pay enough for living independently. In many cases, if they were given homes, they would soon be back on the street. I have seen this from my own experiences in my previous employment.
July 8, 2010 at 1:48 PM Report abuse
SL said...
JWR... STUCK IN PORTLAND, NEED BUS FARE (seen that guy for a month now). Homeless VETERAN, vets have services, he just doesn't want to follow their guidelines of sobriety. FAMILY of THREE HOMELESS, the lady was stumbling drunk on the island near Union Station. I see the signs every day...they may change but the faces holding them don't.
July 8, 2010 at 1:49 PM Report abuse
JWR said...
Portland Maine breaks so many case study's. While you can go to L.A and most other big cities and see a direct correlation between up bringing later on substance abuse along with the criminal background, (i.e. the ex-con finds it hard to get a job) and if one where to visit a place like downtown L.A. you would be shock at the sheer amount and the decadence. But Portland for it's size has a mental illness problem that is so far off the charts it is disturbing. Mental illness if genetic will usually show up between 18-28 years of age. What we are beginning to see in Portland is exposure to environmental mental illness, in other words homelessness is driving them insane.
July 8, 2010 at 1:50 PM Report abuse
stpdmrn said...
"stop filling the bird feeder and the birds leave." ________ The birds may leave, but they're just hungry someplace else.
July 8, 2010 at 1:51 PM Report abuse
AFVET said...
B: Goren's story (Feb 05) does indeed blame SC for the demise of the poor farms. But, he says, those institutions lasted into the 1950s. That means that, assuming SC were the culprit, it took a decade for SC to take effect. But the story depicts conditions on the poor farms as wretched and mentions that all sorts -- infirm, indigent, insane, physically ill -- were tossed indiscriminately in together. So the demise of the poor farm was hardly to be lamented. And the advent of SC was to be celebrated, as those of us who get it today do celebrate it. But, of course, that's a 'liberal' point of view. As Master Shallow says of Jane Nightwork, "She cannot help but be old." Some of you more vicious posters may get there yourselves.
July 8, 2010 at 2:01 PM Report abuse
xcalibur1066 said...
"Congratulations to those who have created this project and doing this very difficult work. It sounds like a win all the way around." We can assume that your extra money will be donated to these great projects and that you will be donating at least 10 hours of your time to help keep the overhead down. Or do you want more of my money to fund them. Almost every funding mechanism listed in this article is taxpayer funded. Why don't you liberals fund it privately? Why are you so selfish? Do this : Drive up and down the streets of Maine. Go to each house that has a liberal bumper sticker on the car parked in the driveway. Ring the bell, pull out a picture of the homeless and ask for a donation. Addiction is a choice. Mental illness is not a choice. Not getting treatment for your mental illness, is for the most part, a choice.
July 8, 2010 at 2:03 PM Report abuse
padman23 said...
I think the problem is homelessness is being defined as a choice or not a choice....I don't think anyone believes that people wake up one day and say I want to be homeless.....What I think frustrates those of us who work and pay taxes is that we make choices to stay clear of drugs or alcohol and get up and do our jobs....The homeless who are alcoholics or drug users are making a choice not to get sober usually after a number of people who have tried to help them out....I think that is the frustration and then because they have civil rights to do as they please they can't be forced into treatment or the like....
July 8, 2010 at 2:12 PM Report abuse
AR5 said...
xcalibur, you are really bitter, huh? I donate A LOT of money to many different causes. And, I donate A LOT of my time as well. We all have tax money taken and spent where we don't want it spent (like wars, bridges to nowhere, politicians boats, etc)but I am fine with some of my tax money, combined with my personal donations, going to people in need. The fact that you aren't is just plain sad.
July 8, 2010 at 2:14 PM Report abuse
common_cents said...
Some myths about homelessness.......they want to live like you and me...time and time again, when do-gooder's put up shelters only a few people really stay for any period of time in them...'flop' houses, places in the woods or just endless wandering is preferred by the truly homeless......all people who panhandle are homeless.... Nope, begging is a way of life for many who live on the margins of society and many learn sales skills and transition into street vending
July 8, 2010 at 2:16 PM Report abuse
AR5 said...
commoncents, how long were you homeless for?
July 8, 2010 at 2:16 PM Report abuse
common_cents said...
Myths cont. LIBERALS love to take care of the homeless....nottry removing them from the streets and delivering them to Bowdoin or Bate's campus and watch the welcome mat roll up and security 'assist' them off campus Government should absorb the tenets of CHRISTIAN COMPASSION and care for the homeless, no matter what they do, i.e.'god's love'..NOT!A secular state with a diminishing number of real Christians has it's own agenda, budget priorities, etc. Liberal cities like Venice and S.F(Calif.) have learned the hard way that welcoming homeless only attracts them by the tens of thousands as they flood in from foreign countries....the bird feeder analogy is apt. ...I remember a guy who was asked why he didn't live in the new housing project for the Homeless...'too much noise, too dangerous, no freedom' right.
July 8, 2010 at 2:23 PM Report abuse
xcalibur1066 said...
" The fact that you aren't is just plain sad." You see, you don't know the first thing about me. I never made any judgments about you. Yet, you make judgments about me. Of course, we all pay taxes for things that we don't agree with. The problem with these programs is the perpetuate the problem. There is no personal responsibility. Go hang out near Oxford Street just after lunch is served. Until you do that, you can't understand just how destructive these programs really are. Help the needy, of course. We just differ in our opinion of "needy". I hold people responsible for their own lives. You don't. BTW, I have adopted 2 special needs older children. I know who is truly needed and who is not.
July 8, 2010 at 2:25 PM Report abuse
xcalibur1066 said...
My father taught me : "Compassion is giving people what they need, not what they want."
July 8, 2010 at 2:26 PM Report abuse
common_cents said...
AR5...when did you last chase down a homeless thief who broke a window in a car(in front of Portland's Art Museum)and took off with a back pack? and like a good liberal, what did you do when you went inside to get the security guard only to have him go into a don't bother me trance? And when was the last time you looked in the mirror and asked your soul whether the only reason you donate money was guilt over your desire tohave someone else keep the many problems as far away from your lifestyle at possible?
July 8, 2010 at 2:31 PM Report abuse
AR5 said...
"I never made any judgments about you." Now THAT'S funny! Wrong, hypocritical, but funny. There is no way that you or anyone else knows who is needy or not just by looking at them. Geesh, I make one comment congratulating the people doing this difficult work and you bash me for it. Nice.
July 8, 2010 at 2:34 PM Report abuse
xcalibur1066 said...
Calling me "sad" was not judgmental? Please quote my judgmental comments about you.
July 8, 2010 at 2:37 PM Report abuse
JWR said...
xcalibur1066 said... "We just differ in our opinion of "needy". I hold people responsible for their own lives. You don't. BTW, I have adopted 2 special needs older children. I know who is truly needed and who is not." //// Xcal I 'sincerely' applaud you for that, I have very little sympathy for most who stay at the Oxford St. Shelter or hang out at the Preble St. resource center. I too know who really needs the help. Your story brings back a recent memory of one of the many loon's I've met, who show me their adopted ant, it's unique because they where going to eat it, but decided to adopt instead. What's this all mean,,,who the hells knows.
July 8, 2010 at 2:37 PM Report abuse
AFVET said...
B: Goren's story (Feb 05) does indeed blame SC for the demise of the poor farms. But, he says, those institutions lasted into the 1950s. That means that, assuming SC were the culprit, it took a decade for SC to take effect. But the story depicts conditions on the poor farms as wretched and mentions that all sorts -- infirm, indigent, insane, physically ill -- were tossed indiscriminately in together. So the demise of the poor farm was hardly to be lamented. And the advent of SC was to be celebrated, as those of us who get it today do celebrate it. But, of course, that's a 'liberal' point of view. As Master Shallow says of Jane Nightwork, "She cannot help but be old." Some of you more vicious posters may get there yourselves.
July 8, 2010 at 2:37 PM Report abuse
common_cents said...
AR5 and when was the time when you had a 6'+ Black man standing in the intersection in your residential neighborhood ranting and raving for nearly a half hour? And what did you do when the police finally came and told you the guy's name, and that he was quietly placed by TEDFORD down the street in an apartment in a large house, and that he was having problems with his new meds, and wouldn't answer the question as to whether he posed a danger to the 6yr. old next door or the 7 year old down the street? Welcome to social welfare 101....I dare you to check and see how many child molesters live in your neighborhood!!....and then get smacked with a 'violation of confidentiality' reply when you dare inquire as to the dangers posed by Mr. B****.
July 8, 2010 at 2:39 PM Report abuse
AFVET said...
JWR Where'd you get such a great photo of AXol?
July 8, 2010 at 2:42 PM Report abuse
common_cents said...
POND SCUM DESCENDANTS, eh Spot?
July 8, 2010 at 2:45 PM Report abuse
JWR said...
common_cents,--Try to stay on topic 'ole' devise one,,,would ya. How in the heck do we get to there from here ?
July 8, 2010 at 2:46 PM Report abuse
common_cents said...
J...it's an evolution thing...one topic breeds with another and POOF! Actually, this was a raging topic in local government circles for decades as the situation in S.F. and several other Calif. cities got worse and worse. Wait until Portland's homeless decide they have a right to set up some kind of 'homeless business in the old Port and get a liberal lawyer to represent them...that's when the fun starts. In the 80's most of the downtown corners in San Francisco had thousands of homeless people squatting and vending there...they had to leave at night but reappeared every morning to claim 'their' squat. hundreds of services...meals,health care, bathrooms, hot showers, etc. They were quite resistant to regulation and preferred the hot tourist spots. Haven't been back in a decades...why would I?
July 8, 2010 at 2:54 PM Report abuse
xcalibur1066 said...
If the City of Portland offered this deal how many homeless would take them up on it : 2 hours of work for the city per day = 3 meals and 1 night shelter.
July 8, 2010 at 2:58 PM Report abuse
common_cents said...
The real shocker is that many of the homeless are Veterans with war related illnesses that make normal life impossible...PTSD, etc. ...and yet liberals sit mute while OBAMACRATS wage war in Afghanistan and who knows where else; filling planes with war wounded, over and over again! The 'new' Republicans will end this utterly stupid war; not Liberals like AR5, ad nauseum.
July 8, 2010 at 2:58 PM Report abuse
JWR said...
I'm well aware of that in S.F, but that stem from the counter culture of the late 1960's. And evolved into something else way after the kids went home finish their education and for a good majority of them became like you. Jump right into mainstream Corporate America where they embraced all that evil that so disgusted them. Homeless most as surly need a mouth piece, and just against the ignorant.
July 8, 2010 at 3:02 PM Report abuse
JWR said...
Don't get fooled by the Veteran spiel, OK. Believe this when I say that rap about PTSD is as over played as mental illness is itself. The Veterans you do see are mostly from the Vietnam era. Maybe in time the middle east vet. will surface but for now the service's are doing a good job taking care of their own. And the vet will always have the out reach, and resources. And despite what anyone may say the VA is not broken it's abused.
July 8, 2010 at 3:08 PM Report abuse
skeptical said...
JWR, part 1: You seem to be a reasonable person and your posts are well thought out. Being perfectly capable of reading, I understand what the gist of the discussion is, so I don't need you to point out what "[we're] talking about". Although you make some good points, you do make generalizations. The panhandler I told the story about is not someone I ever saw again. He may well have been an"everyday 'bum'" or he may have been a "respectable 'real' homeless person" (is there such a thing as an average homeless person?). I could not tell the difference, and I think you realize that you can not make a conjecture about an individual based on a anecdote.
July 8, 2010 at 3:10 PM Report abuse
Biddy said...
Mainencrisis. Passing ANY law or ordinance is costly in the respect it has to be enforced. The Police Dept. in Portland does a great job but like other PD's they are over extended chasing drug dealers, controlling traffic, and chasing robbers and violent criminals. Also domestic violence which often includes educated, well to do, people who should know better. If they don't enforce the ordinance it has no effect and people like you will scream about it being enforced. Also the cost in jail as I mentioned before. There is no simple answer to this issue. PD's all over the nation deal with it daily. And rest assured with Conservative policies in the wings the wealth divide in this nation will grow as well as the number of homeless.
July 8, 2010 at 3:10 PM Report abuse
peacemaine said...
I work in town and have for 27 years. I cannot leave my business and go grab a lunch or coffee without someone asking me for help. I work my tail off and have no sympathy for them. They are rude and harassing and have made the Old Port a place to avoid. It is sad and something needs to be done about the hand outs around here. We give them too much help. I do think this new Outreach program is a good thing.
July 8, 2010 at 3:11 PM Report abuse
skeptical said...
JWR, part 2: You say there are no easy solutions. I say there are no solutions (humanity is not math), only best case scenarios that are agreed upon by the majority. The principal of polarity ensures that no matter what the issue, behavior and opinion will manifest itself along the line of polarization. There will always be disagreement. The point being that no matter what programs, laws or rules we devise, we can not control all situations to have the most satisfactory outcome for everyone.
July 8, 2010 at 3:11 PM Report abuse
skeptical said...
JWR, part 3: Should we do our best to help those less fortunate? I don't know if any of us are able do our best, but we certainly should do what we can. However, a problem develops when one suggests another is not doing enough. Who is the one who gets to set the bar? The short answer in a democracy is: the people we vote in to run the government (from the smallest town to the biggest country). Of course, due to the polarity between honesty and dishonesty, and the polarity between political philosophies, these same people will not always give us the most satisfactory outcome. We have to make peace with the reality that we will not always get our way, but we do have to make our opinion known so that those who do set the bar have the clearest picture of what the majority believe is right. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few and our government can not be all things to all people.
July 8, 2010 at 3:12 PM Report abuse
Biddy said...
commoncents. You want to toss the war in Afghanistan onto Obama? That's a good one. It was Bush that sent troops into Afghanistan. It was your beloved GOP that lied our way into Iraq. I've got a suggestion. Arrest Bush and Cheney for official corruption for their lies about Iraq. Throw 'em in prison. Maybe it will make another President think twice before sending troops to war. That ought to eventually reduce the number of homeless vets.
July 8, 2010 at 3:16 PM Report abuse
xcalibur1066 said...
"And rest assured with Conservative policies in the wings the wealth divide in this nation will grow as well as the number of homeless." hahaha.. Liberals have ruled the roost for decades. Maine will always be a liberal state. Perhaps, the liberal leaning teacher's union will be willing to take a 3% pay cut to pay for more homeless programs. Why don't you send them an e-mail suggesting that. Let us know how they reply. You own a business. Do you hire the homeless? If a homeless person wanted to sleep in your place of business overnight would you let them?
July 8, 2010 at 3:17 PM Report abuse
common_cents said...
Sorry BIDDY, both the NYTIMEs and the Washington Post agree that this is now Obama's war..he ordered the drone s to attack innocent and guilty alike; he demanded and ordered appropriations to support the surge; he is the one following the LBJ strategy of winning the hearts and minds of the Afghan people---and we all know how that turned out. Bush & Cheney...weren't they too busy causing oil wells to blow out? I wonder if TOGUS treats B.D.R. (BUSH DERANGEMENT SYDROME)?
July 8, 2010 at 3:24 PM Report abuse
Biddy said...
xcalibur. The fact is I have hired a homeless person to do yard work for me before. Too bad he moved on from my town. He was an excellent worker when sober. Have you ever hired a homeless person or do you just retire each day to your creampuff home in the countryside and pretend they don't exist? And have YOU ever done a day's work? I don't mean sitting in an air conditioned office and scheming how to cheat and steal from others? I mean getting your hands dirty. Working up a sweat. Doing some REAL work? I didn't think so.
July 8, 2010 at 3:26 PM Report abuse
JWR said...
skeptical,--But will that solve anything ? I'm not so sure that even Portland wanted to do, (and it's not all that much) what they have done. Again, your finding allot of people up here from other area's in the country not so much because we provide the best for the homeless, they are moving up here for the General Assistance, and that does not help the 'real homeless' all that much. And then those who are Mainers are being dump on Portland because the cities don't want to deal with it. You notice how the 'real homeless' never get arrested for robbing a bank, a pharmacy or even a person on Congress St for their cash and shoes ? Why is that ? I fully understand the problem out there with the panhandlers, and they are working on it. I've learn also that even some of the homeless have put the word out to change the public perception and at least take a whiz in the alley. Among other PR moves.
July 8, 2010 at 3:26 PM Report abuse
xcalibur1066 said...
"Arrest Bush and Cheney for official corruption for their lies about Iraq." I wonder why Ms. Pelosi and Mr. Reid haven't done that? They control the agenda. Now, what could the reason for that be? Ummmmmmmm. Either it is not based in reality or they lied too. I wonder....
July 8, 2010 at 3:28 PM Report abuse
AR5 said...
It's ironic that many of these posts complain about panhandlers in front of businesses, yet also complain about a project to remove those people. Is there you don't complain about? You don't want to help homeless people? Then don't. But stop whining about those who do.
July 8, 2010 at 3:28 PM Report abuse
SL said...
I bet Libby Mitchell has a plan. I think it matches Hannah Pingree's handouts to everyone. Portland is a dumping ground and a mecca for the folks that simply don't want to earn their keep.
July 8, 2010 at 3:30 PM Report abuse
AR5 said...
"Is there you don't complain about?" s/b "is there anything you don't complain about?"
July 8, 2010 at 3:30 PM Report abuse
T3V0aG91c2VSYXQ%3D said...
Let them eat cake!!!
July 8, 2010 at 3:30 PM Report abuse
xcalibur1066 said...
" But stop whining about those who do." Do it on your dime, not mine.
July 8, 2010 at 3:33 PM Report abuse
Biddy said...
Did Bush and the Republicans withdraw from Afghanistan while they were in office? Of course not! They left a substantial number of troops there. And as far as Iraq it is well proven that there were falsehoods told to get us into that war. And Bush extended our comittment there before he left office. I agree we do need to get out of BOTH countries as soon as possible. I've said many times I disagree with Obama's widening of the Afghan war. And if it doesn't result in REAL withdrawl by 2011, as promised, he'll have problems with the left.
July 8, 2010 at 3:33 PM Report abuse
JWR said...
Attention Please: For all you right wing tea bags out there who continue to try an change the topic, let me remind that todays topic is about Homeless and Commerce. Thank you, now let's continue, and please stay on topic. I know it's a tough one, but we Americans are a tough breed.
July 8, 2010 at 3:34 PM Report abuse
AFVET said...
Ha'penny. When were you last at Togus? I go regularly and can tell you that the facility is overstrained at the psychiatric level. And it is mostly Vietnam veterans. Just look at their eyes. And, while you prate of BDS, that only blames the victims for the crime. I notice that you do not defend the smirking little frat boy (Phi of Delta Kappa Epsilon). Try it. I'd love to come back at you on that one.
July 8, 2010 at 3:36 PM Report abuse
common_cents said...
BIDDY..."Hello, I'm looking to hire a HOMELESS PERSON to do yard work" "Why yes, I'm homeless. how much are you paying" BIDDY....Um, $5 "IT's CHEAP LIBERALS LIKE YOU THAT ARE THE REASON WHY I'M HOMELESS"
July 8, 2010 at 3:37 PM Report abuse
skeptical said...
JWR: I am not trying to solve anything. As I said: There are no solutions, only best case scenarios. I do not believe that the "HOME Team" initiative is trying to address the issue of 'real' homeless (although the line of polarization tells us there are all different kinds of homeless - are any more 'real' than the others?). They are just trying to get the disorderly off the street so the cops don't have to and people can do business.
July 8, 2010 at 3:43 PM Report abuse
common_cents said...
BIDDY...by 2011, how many more dead and maimed veterans will there be? and I know as a liberal you don't give a rat's A**, but how many more civilians will be killed, maimed and made homeless under the regime of OBAMA? The clock started when he took office; and President Obama now faces a fateful choice. Either he must authorize the troops needed to achieve the mission he defined six months ago, or he must redefine the mission to comport with the level of deployments he decides the American people will accept. One thing is clear: If the president accurately characterized the stakes in March, then reducing our mission in Afghanistan means increasing the risks to the American people. If he chooses that course, he owes it to the country to describe the risks as bluntly as he previously described the stakes. William Galliston, Sept 29th, 2009
July 8, 2010 at 3:49 PM Report abuse
common_cents said...
JWR...many of the homeless are vets, whether vietnam or later vintage so the quality of care at Togus and their responsibility to provide a home is a critical portion of this discussion. Obviously, they don't have a cure for B.D.S. or AirFarceVet wouldn't be babbling about Bush and Cheney. the only tea bagging I know of is among progressing democrat's; please get your terminology straight
July 8, 2010 at 3:55 PM Report abuse
AR5 said...
"many of the homeless are vets, whether vietnam or later vintage " =========================== All the more reason why we should help them. And, all the more reason why the Iraq war is ridiculous and a waste of trillions of dollars. Thanks for making my point, Common
July 8, 2010 at 4:02 PM Report abuse
AR5 said...
common_cents = extreme lefty liberal
July 8, 2010 at 4:21 PM Report abuse
Janie said...
Hey folks, here's the solution, personal responsiblity! Anybody remember what that is? How about families taking responsibility for their own as well? Give me a break...mental shmental....what it is is lazy dazy bums! Only a handful have mental problems the others are willing to live like that because they are bums.
July 8, 2010 at 4:30 PM Report abuse
JWR said...
skeptical,--Change your 'handle', cause you are what's needed on anyone's team. Great observation, good post ! And that is exactly right and yet we cannot simply turn a blind eye to it and try nothing. " a little bit of something is still better then a whole lot of nothing" Some say not on my dime and yet cry the loudest to the chamber department. That's why where at this point with today's article. I'm as disgusted as most because it takes away from the real needs in any community. How can we expect the average citizen to tell the difference's, it's foolish to expect that. And so these characters give the 'real homeless' a bad name to the point where wayside kitchens no longer does the meals at the Preble St. soup kitchen, they are putting there resources into other areas of need like meals for the shut' in's and seniors etc. They saw the reality down there, the con, the selfish greedy drunks, junkies and self induced loons.
July 8, 2010 at 4:32 PM Report abuse
AR5 said...
Janie, please tell me you are kidding with that post. Brilliant.
July 8, 2010 at 4:45 PM Report abuse
JWR said...
For the record meals are still being served at the Preble St. soup kitchen. But it's now under total control of Preble St staff who also run the day shelter. And it is a total disaster. A free for all, went to volunteer last month and there was simply no organizational structure at all, and where not really interested in one. They just want the numbers because of their 'payed jobs', and the fact they are getting grease from numerous sources. They are recent college or even still college age who must think it's still the age of Aquarius. You can actually feel an aura of evil coming from the area. If I go down there again I'm bringing a Priest with me. Or this loon I met who thinks he's a voodoo warrior.
July 8, 2010 at 4:50 PM Report abuse
AFVET said...
Cents: Have you ever worn a uniform since Cub Scouts? If not, don't dare to demean any branch of the service. Oh, you had 'other priorities' as Cheney did? I still do not find you defending the disaster that was the Bush administration. Instead, those of us who see it as it was are somehow delusional. You, neighbor, have become increasingly the puppet of your bipolarity. I'll recognize you at Shaw's by your Bullough & Jones designer polo and will escape down the detergent aisle lest you try to steal my Ben Silver tie.
July 8, 2010 at 5:59 PM Report abuse
Scrib said...
Most of the bad cases can't be compared to down-and-out working/former working people who need some help to keep going. Learned my lesson yrs. ago as an idealistic collegian working summer at Nissons. One of many instances- took a begging guy to the diner next dr. to Joes Smoke to buy him bkfast- knew if I gave him $ it would go down the hatch. I paid clerk, wino made a deal with him (probably all set up), and raced out back dr. with money I gave for his meal. That was early 70s. Tried a variety things to help through the yrs- learned a lot. Was in the human service field fora long time. A great many of the really down and out helpless cases would be so much better off if we PUT them in a warm, inexpensive, clean place, while avoiding the mistakes of the past. And we'd save money. I knew one paranoid Schizophrenic guy who went off a dock in the winter and died. Then of course there are many out on the take who are just plain bad. Social workers need to be able to make distinctions.
July 8, 2010 at 6:29 PM Report abuse
WReader said...
The outreach worker tells businesses there's no law against public intoxication? Since when?!? You can get arrested in Maine for just having an open container in public. Let alone being drunk! Somebody correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure public intoxication is on the the books in Maine? Oh, and you've got to love the politically correct use of the word "transient" in this story What they really meant was bums!
July 8, 2010 at 6:44 PM Report abuse
middleone said...
Early this morning, I quoted the Bible. Since then, I've noted that the right wing bible thumpers have not mentioned it once - yet they quoted it repeatedly during SSM debates. The Bible is filled with directions to help the homeless and less fortunate, but too many of you ignore those directions, but find the 7 verses against homosexuality. The same folks are complaining about helping the homeless. WHY?
July 8, 2010 at 7:02 PM Report abuse
brightOne said...
"The same folks are complaining about helping the homeless. WHY?" - - - - - Hate, fear, and ignorance.
July 8, 2010 at 7:18 PM Report abuse
JWR said...
Scrib said... "Social workers need to be able to make distinctions." //// Bravo ! And if you can't handle the job find another profession. The disturbing part is that most are not trained social workers, and even the few that are 'think' they understand homelessness. One must really experience it to fully understand it. I don't fully understand it. That's the myth among those who work with the homeless. They may very well understand additions, and to a certain degree mental illness, but as one newspaper reporter I once read who spent a week out there said, you have no clue. He pointed out that it would require a minimum of 6 months actually being homeless. He pointed out leave the credit cards and cell phone at home. He mention how after only one week when he got in his car to drive home he caught himself in his rear view mirror talking to himself. He said that's the problem out here, after awhile you start going nut's and you don't even realize it's happening to you.
July 8, 2010 at 7:35 PM Report abuse
middleone said...
Brightone - You might be right. It certainly isn't about being Christian. The anti SSM folks should be arguing the loudest to help the homeless - but suddenly the Bible is irrelevant, and if we just stop giving them services, they will go away - an absolutely unChristian attitude.
July 8, 2010 at 7:54 PM Report abuse
WReader said...
"The same folks are complaining about helping the homeless. WHY?" Because they're not Jesus, maybe? Christianity acknowledges that man has free will, and they will "sin" So, I guess this is an example of a sin if you're a Christian? People have got to help themselves! Most bums have chosen the life they live. They are a drain on society, and contribute nothing. Offer a bum a meal or $5, and nine out of ten times they want the money so they can buy a beer. When it gets really cold in the winter, I call it good bum weather, because nature kind of eliminates the problem herself.
July 8, 2010 at 8:05 PM Report abuse
middleone said...
From Genesis through the New Testament, the Bible tells us to take care of the less fortunate. It does not BLAME them for being poor, and Christ makes a point of saying the poor are blessed. He tells us to welcome the less fortunate, the homeless, the lowly, because we could be entertaining angels. And, too many today said to starve them, deny them, and they will go away... how sad.
July 8, 2010 at 8:11 PM Report abuse
JWR said...
"Then he will say to those, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.' "They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?' "He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'
July 8, 2010 at 9:51 PM Report abuse
2SpeakUp said...
For everyone out there complaining, on either side of the fence: What in the world good are you doing to help? If you're as passionate in your doing as in your mouth flapping, maybe you'd actually make a difference. Educate yourself on what you're talking about; hate, blame and name calling serve nothing.
July 8, 2010 at 10:06 PM Report abuse
hillgirly said...
ok, ok. this really is an interesting topic for me, been there, done that. i think i have a solution....seriously, ship them all out, way out, to an island, where there is no alcohol or drugs, instead of a poor farm, it will be the poor island. that will be the only place services are rendered. they are tough, they would make it. look at that guy who's been stumbling around portland for years...heard he had a head injury when he was a teenager, cannot believe he is still alive, he would make it on the island.
July 8, 2010 at 10:39 PM Report abuse
JWR said...
Not practical ! And yes they are very tough, some just talk tough, they live it. First things first however. #1 Stop Giving The Panhandlers Money, donate it to agency's who are working with the homeless. And not places like the Salvation Army, while they may sound and look good on the surface they are as crooked as ever. I would suggest sending donations to the city's dept. of Human Service at city hall. At least they are trying to do some good without forcing them to listen to an ear banging weather from GOD or them or us. #2 Be thankful, because 99% of you posting here would not last a month out there. That includes me, and I was once bury up to my neck for 5 days while grub worms crawl all over my face. #3 Everyone was once someone's son and daughter, brother, sister maybe even a friend. #4 Once again, no easy solutions and from the looks of it it's not getting any better out there. It's easy to pass a sentence because this blight has a character.
July 9, 2010 at 6:58 AM Report abuse
beulah said...
JWR> Stop with the pictures already. The SSM crowds obviously are not the same people against enabling the homeless. Maine is one of the less churched States, yet we overturned our Ultra Liberal State Government on the issue of SSM. Logic would have you believe that Religion had nothing to do with it. I don’t know but I bet most homeless people at one point made the choice to live on the edge. Many probably started as runaways.
July 9, 2010 at 8:30 AM Report abuse
hillgirly said...
ps JWR, i LOVE your pictures.
July 9, 2010 at 8:38 AM Report abuse
beulah said...
Guess what? No more pictures.
July 9, 2010 at 9:04 AM Report abuse
Hawkeye9909 said...
"But for the grace of god, there go I" As a taxpayor and a political conservative, I fully support this program initiative to help our "brothers and sisters" and look forward to a report on its results.
July 9, 2010 at 9:22 AM Report abuse
JWR said...
July 9, 2010 at 9:53 AM Report abuse
beulah said...
JWR, Thats funny!
July 9, 2010 at 10:47 AM Report abuse
MarciG said...
I can't believe the cruelty, and inhumanity that seeps out of the comments about this article. Our economy is in ruins. Funding for mental health services have been drastically cut. The majority of people are not homeless because they want to be, they have no choice. Think about how many Mainers are one rent/mortgage payment away from being homeless. These outreach workers are paying it forward. We should all learn from example, not berate them for helping other human beings.
July 9, 2010 at 11:20 AM Report abuse
common_cents said...
Photos were 'protected' and shouldn't have been used without permission. Thanks J* for the source!....treasure trove of weird street people. Got panhandled a lot in Vancouver in May; but they are so polite...in S.F. you get cornered and intimidated, come evening on a deserted downtown street they are really threatening, esp. around Nordstrom's.
July 9, 2010 at 11:48 AM Report abuse
JWR said...
I thought you where posing under various alias, and the photo's are in the public domain. I'm not as slick as you, but I do have scruples.
July 9, 2010 at 1:50 PM Report abuse