patrick.net

The back of our office has a 3ft brick wall a few feet out from the building that creates a natural "homeless hangout". Had a guy who lived back there for about 6 months. He was a vet. Guy had some porno mags and liquor back there, but his area was basically clean. He didn't use the bathroom by our building, and didn't take drugs. For some reason people in my office didn't like him being there, and got a restraining order. So he left, and now we get random people back there weekly. Some just camp overnight, but others have used the area to piss, or talk VERY LOUDLY in small groups. The latter obviously didn't respect our office, and I was fine with shooing them away. But the vet, still don't understand what the issue was, other than homeless people make others uncomfortable.

I'm glad to hear that liquor isn't a drug. My "regular" homeless guy could have been my brother, with a beard and hippie hair. When I sold the office, last I saw, he must have reported it as his address to an emergency room where he was stashed. I saw him in the parking lot in a wheelchair, lolling and drooling, with his belongings tied in a plastic bag to the handle. The emergency room just dropped him off that way and gave him the wheelchair. He was clearly finally on his way out.

And so are these people.

NuttBoxer says

The back of our office has a 3ft brick wall a few feet out from the building that creates a natural "homeless hangout". Had a guy who lived back there for about 6 months. He was a vet. Guy had some porno mags and liquor back there, but his area was basically clean. He didn't use the bathroom by our building, and didn't take drugs. For some reason people in my office didn't like him being there, and got a restraining order. So he left, and now we get random people back there weekly. Some just camp overnight, but others have used the area to piss, or talk VERY LOUDLY in small groups. The latter obviously didn't respect our office, and I was fine with shooing them away. But the vet, still don't understand what the issue was, other than homeless people make others uncomfortable.

The issue is that they are supposedly mostly with shame in their eyes with their head dread-locked and full of mange when they ask you silently for a buck. At least that's how the Everlast song goes (which I like) and how the left portrays them when it suits them til they criminalize them when they come too close to their Hollywood mansions. And maybe that used to be how they were and I have seen many of those in other countries as well. And I feel bad for them and occasionally give them food or coffee. However the reality these days here is that 1 in 20 is like that, and the other 19 are either coked out, crazed out, or hyper aggressive, hissing, threatening, flinging shit at you and throwing back the food and coffee you gave them because it wasn't a $20 bill. Or all of that. No shame, just pure aggression and crazyness. Where have the nice homeless gone? If you threaten people you better get the fuck out of my way and straight to jail. The empathy stops right here.

Goran_K says

The University of North Carolina did an experiment 3 years ago where they attempted to gauge the cost of homelessness. Moore Place has 120 units, and was built at a cost of $12,000,000 (not counting staffing and maintenance cost per year). So to house 120 homeless people, it cost an instant $12,000,000 hit, and whatever the continuing cost will be to keep the property, maintain it (utilities, meals, etc), and fully staff it. These startup costs are much cheaper in North Carolina than they are in Orange County.

Good point. They need to figure out some way to entice homeless people into moving to less expensive housing markets. Unfortunately the weather and generosity of rich Southern Californians (to panhandlers) gives the homeless all the incentive to stay in places like Orange County. Beggars can make up to $300-400 per day. Tax free. What's not to love?

Goran_K says

Direct personal attacks get scrubbed.

Correct. If you're attacking the user and not his point, the comment should be deleted.

It's the difference between "Your point is incorrect" and "You're an asshole". The first one is great, especially if you have evidence. The second one is disallowed, since it harms the whole discussion.

This is how Frank Jordan cleaned up Art Agnos' homeless mess in The Beautiful City by the Bay back in the day, I tell ya.

mell says

Where have the nice homeless gone

Who knows? Mostly the crazy ones and the druggies are the ones I see these days. I won’t give them a bent pin. The economy improving and jobs are plenty, but they want to sit around and make their surroundings worse while they drink and use drugs until they pass out in a puddle of piss on the sidewalk. Then I have to answer uncomfortable questions from my kids as to why we need to walk into the street to avoid the diseased plague rat on our way to the donut shop.

There’s talk on my neighborhood watch page of placing signs to discourage giving to panhandlers in the neighborhood. We don’t want them there, and giving them money just helps them continue to be a problem.

www.youtube.com/embed/yggQ3HbO0Wg