Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

and begging on the streets?

walking into town today just near the kwik save there was a fella sittin there sayin spare change mate?

i started thinkin if i do you probably spend it on booze or drugs.

if he really did want to get out of the situation he was in he could do quite alot to get himself a job etc

as for housing there's quite alot of homeless shelters and again surely if they go through the system then a house should be provided for them?

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

IMO no one should be without a shelter.

But there are those who have more important things to worry about like drugs,Booze ect.

Most people if they didnt have shelter could find somewhere to go for help, just most, but not all, in that situation probably cant be bothered for the above reasons.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

yeah i mean if they are legal uk citizens then in a way they shudnt be on the streets begging really

even if they're illegal there's still places etc

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

I remember the very first time I saw soneone on the street begging. It was in Paris in the late seventies. At that time I hadn't seen any in England, not even London, and certainly not around here.

Cut to ten years later, and London was awash with them, and they were a real pain. I never gave money when pestered by beggars. Although I have given food, drinks, and cigarettes to them, if they seemed in need of whatever kind of sustenance was applicable.

It's sad to see people living on the streets for whatver reasons, but I hate seeing people begging. I always promised myself that if I ever found myself in those circumstances I would play a penny whistle or something. As I believe you should never get anything for nothing, and it would restore my morale if I relied on my wits, rather than on the charity of others.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

Mani, the homeless legislation doesn't state that just because you are homeless that you are entitled to a home, believe it or not!The authority that you "reside" in have a duty to offer advice and assistance... and many homeless hostels are full in this area alot of the time.They then would assess you under the homelessness act but straight away if you are single with no medical need then you are not classed as a priority!

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

It isn't as easy as "Oh I'm homeless - off to the shelter" Many shelters are full and without a home it's pretty impossible to get a job or even claim benefits. As to the drugs you are more likely to find a drug addict in london wearing a designer italian suit on £1M a year than you are finding a homeless addict.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

little story for you mani. in manchester about 6 years ago this guy hit me for money, i said NO, but i'll take you across the road to the cafe, n buy you a brew n summat to eat. he said NO THANKS and walked off up piccadilly,so since that day i say STUFF EM.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

I t gets me mad that we have homeless in this country yet shelter thousands of immigrants, surely our own citizens should take priority.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

Down London we saw many & this was xmas/new year,when it was freezing.Never gave anyone if they were in a group,but if they were on their own we'd give them a few quid....well they seemed genuine,iv'e been there but not to that state of desperation.That place made me realise it certainly is a place of those who have & have not.Disgusting really:(

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

I can relate to Cashman's experience. There was a bloke who used to sit in a doorway in Warrington, near Boots, asking for money. One of my colleagues went into Boots, bought a sandwich and gave it to him when she came out. She walked off down the road and then turned round - just in time to see him put it in a litter bin.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

It's not a scientific survey, just what I noticed whilst living in London, either chatting whilst waiting for the bus, or when helping out at a shelter.

A lot of the homeless men living on the streets were ex-forces, and found life on civvy street difficult, especially after having their accomodation taken care of for twenty odd years. A divorce, a couple of missed mortgage payement, very often resulted in these people becoming homeless.

Frightening and quite sad really, some of their stories.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

mani I gave thet man a pound he always sits there, I would neverpass by without giving him something, the place he sits is out of the sun and must be very uncomfortable for him, he mighn't not want to go in the system he may be a con man but I doubt it, his mental state may not enable him to hold a job down, I think he is the only one left now as you rightly say begging, that means the homeless situation (if he is homeless) is being addressed in Hyndburn.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

I have heard something on the telly about what rindy has said but cant quite rem what or where so im not going to contribute .
But what i will say is here in blackpool is that we have so many "homeless" its ridiculous ...
The council even have electronic signs in the middle of town telling you not to give to them..
One of my sons works next to a derilict building which is owned by his boss and my son and his workmates often go into the building to re board it, and it is full of needles etc.
I once came out of a nightclub with my friend who thought it was so generous to give this guy a fiver to get food for himself and his"dog " than five mins later he was seen buying booze .. so that taught her a lesson ..but the moral of this is , my sympathy only goes so far, for the homeless because there are so many options open for them ..ie night stays , leading to permanent stuff if only they wanted it, but the problem is most dont want them ...and yes !! most do turn to drugs .but if they wanted to get off thier backsides most would realise there is something worth goin for.... I know they sometimes get into a catch 22 situation but the answer is dont give up!! which unfortunatly most do..

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

It is quite true garinda ex -service men make up a large proportion of the homeless, as the forces was their family and many had nowhere to go after completing their time, but for the British Legion the situation would be far worse, it is a sad fact that the MOD does not take responsibility for these people as they may also have mental problems caused by their service.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

I don't really believe there's an excuse for homelessness in this day an age. What I mean is there should be adequet safety nets to help people hard on their luck.
Some people have addictions and mental health problems so they need extra care and help to get their life back on track. I don't want to see despair and feel pity when I walk down the street in town.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

The safety net got a lot smaller under Thatcher, when a lot of homes for those with mental health issues were removed from their long term placements, when the various hospitals were closed down, and were then left to fend for themselves, supposedly assisted by 'care in the community' programmes, through which the holes in the safety net are massive enough for all but the most determined to fall through.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

yes its a way for somone to make money

i saw a program called skint where they followed a man around who was on teh dole seeing how he coped

the guy would salvage what got left behind after car boot sales and sell what he got teh week after in his own stall

the other way he made money was to buy copies of the big issue from their distributors and then sell them at a proffit in town just like the people you see down accy, teh big issue gets its money gurenteed up front but teh poor sod who buys them has to hope that he sells enough papers even to break even

my biggest gripe with teh big issue is taht a few years ago there was an undercover documentary about these idiots that fire bomb animal test ceneters and injure doctors and their families who work at abortion clinics and they showed that money from teh big issue company was donated to help keep these people terrorisoing doctors and their families instead of working



as for been homeless their is no excuse for it , most people are homeless through choice you can always get a roof over your head if you are willing to get of your backside and do somthing about it

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

Going back six years or so when I worked for the Police, arranging the ID Parades, I was Mrs Wonderful for the Big Issue sellers. They all knew me by name and would call in and ask if they could attend for a parade or two. It gave them a tenner which was good for them and I always did my best to include them. It also taught me that what you see isn't always what you got. A lovely bunch of lads with good manners, I found.

At the other end of the scale of things. We spent a lot of time in Weymouth during the Nineties and there was this old tramp that lived in the wine shop doorway. We christened her 'Dora Doorstep'. When she popped off, it came to light that she owned half of Weymouth.

It doesn't pay to speculate.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

Just goes to show you dont know how genuine these people are, I usually buy the Big Issue but thats about it really, I wouldn't give money to a beggar.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

Neither would I. We have these 'Rose Ladies' in Tenerife. They come up to you and ask for a penny for a rose but when you open your purse they, by slight of hand, nick your credit cards.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

You'd be gutted wouldn't you, thinking your doing them a favour then getting your cards nicked, will remember that and say no I think.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

That reminds me of our Tunisian thief. I gave her a few dinars for letting us take a photo of her and her grandchild (as is expected) and she reached in the car and grabbed all my change off the ledge that I was keeping for the toll roads. I've still got the photo of her! :D

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

Send it the Tunisian Crimewatch programme.

Someone might get a community action reward if they can put a name to her.:D

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?
 

I suppose that it looks quite sweet if you are here on holiday and I expect lots of folk fall for it. I almost did, myself. Don't stop for anyone, even if they just want a light for their ciggie. Best advice is not to take your handbag with you. Wear clothes with pockets for your bits and bats, especially at night or around a market area.

Re: Should anyone truely be homeless?