Bush admin screws DC taxpayers

[TheEnforcer]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/artic...-2005Jan10.html (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A63896-2005Jan10.html)

U.S. Tells D.C. to Pay Inaugural Expenses
Other Security Projects Would Lose $11.9 Million

By Spencer S. Hsu
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, January 11, 2005; Page A01

D.C. officials said yesterday that the Bush administration is refusing to reimburse the District for most of the costs associated with next week's inauguration, breaking with precedent and forcing the city to divert $11.9 million from homeland security projects.

Federal officials have told the District that it should cover the expenses by using some of the $240 million in federal homeland security grants it has received in the past three years -- money awarded to the city because it is among the places at highest risk of a terrorist attack.

But that grant money is earmarked for other security needs, Mayor Anthony A. Williams (D) said in a Dec. 27 letter to Office of Management and Budget Director Joshua B. Bolten and Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge. Williams's office released the letter yesterday.

Williams estimated that the city's costs for the inauguration will total $17.3 million, most of it related to security. City officials said they can use an unspent $5.4 million from an annual federal fund that reimburses the District for costs incurred because of its status as the capital. But that leaves $11.9 million not covered, they said.

"We want to make this the best possible event, but not at the expense of D.C. taxpayers and other homeland security priorities," said Gregory M. McCarthy, the mayor's deputy chief of staff. "This is the first time there hasn't been a direct appropriation for the inauguration."

A spokesman for Rep. Thomas M. Davis III (R-Va.), chairman of the House Government Reform Committee, which oversees the District, agreed with the mayor's stance. He called the Bush administration's position "simply not acceptable."

"It's an unfunded mandate of the most odious kind. How can the District be asked to take funds from important homeland security projects to pay for this instead?" said Davis spokesman David Marin.
==================================================

Nothing like screwing the taxpayers to throw your own little party. First time it's ever been done too. I don't give a damn whtehrt it is Bush and Kerry on the campaign trail, where cities have been trying to get reimbursed for costs, or the inaugaration don't stick it to the taxpayers there for the bill.

[Nickatilynx]

Is it just me or is this story , in a way , moronic..



Surely ANY money the Gov't spends comes from taxpayers?????

Isn't it like me deciding whether I dhould pay for lunch with a check , CC or cash.

One way or another it comes out of my pocket.

[Peaches]

So they haven't spent it for 3 years, but it really needs to be spent on other things? Oh-kay.... :unsure:

And what do you want to bet they GOT extra money because of the higher security needed because the president IS there?

[TheEnforcer]

Originally posted by Nickatilynx@Jan 11 2005, 12:47 PM
Is it just me or is this story , in a way , moronic..



Surely ANY money the Gov't spends comes from taxpayers?????

Isn't it like me deciding whether I dhould pay for lunch with a check , CC or cash.

One way or another it comes out of my pocket.
Not really because unless you live in DC a whle shitload of it doesn't come out of your pocket. It comes from the people of DC's pockets and they have to use money they don't need to be spending on a party rather than for their own residents security, infastructure, and other needs. When the feds pass down an unfunded mandate it fucks the taxpayers of that state/city, whichever the case may be, and the taxpayers in that state get fucked over by the feds for soemthig they didn't ask for, need, or want.

[TheEnforcer]

Originally posted by Peaches@Jan 11 2005, 12:50 PM
So they haven't spent it for 3 years, but it really needs to be spent on other things? Oh-kay.... :unsure:

And what do you want to bet they GOT extra money because of the higher security needed because the president IS there?
IT'S NEVER BEEN DONE BEFORE PEACHES!! All previous inaugurations have used donated funds to the president and federal money to cover the costs associated with the party. And they got the money for the exact same reasons many other cities did, to shore up their security and response needs.

[TheEnforcer]

Oh an another thing. You have any money that is a bit old, that you haven't spent yet? Well then give it to me cause you haven't spent it yet and don't need it.


(Yes, I am a tad cranky today!) <_<

[Peaches]

Originally posted by TheEnforcer+Jan 11 2005, 02:01 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (TheEnforcer @ Jan 11 2005, 02:01 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-Peaches@Jan 11 2005, 12:50 PM
So they haven't spent it for 3 years, but it really needs to be spent on other things? Oh-kay.... :unsure:

And what do you want to bet they GOT extra money because of the higher security needed because the president IS there?
IT'S NEVER BEEN DONE BEFORE PEACHES!! All previous inaugurations have used donated funds to the president and federal money to cover the costs associated with the party. And they got the money for the exact same reasons many other cities did, to shore up their security and response needs. [/b][/quote]
This money hasn't BEEN there before :) Kinda hard for it to have been used for other inaugurations when the fund didn't even exist :awinky:

And again, I'm guessing these extra funds for DC exist exactly for situations like this. "money awarded to the city because it is among the places at highest risk of a terrorist attack." Seems like a presidential inauguration would fall into that category.

[rhymer11]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4162683.stm

Food for thought. Maybe they should eat cake.

[Peaches]

Originally posted by rhymer11@Jan 11 2005, 02:21 PM
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4162683.stm

Food for thought. Maybe they should eat cake.
The US provides free housing, food, utilities, medical care, education, legal help, etc. etc. etc. to everyone of our citizens INCLUDING the illegal aliens here. What more can we possibly do?

If someone is homeless, they choose to be homeless.

There was a story just recently about a woman here in ATL who was murdered and had been homeless for years. The community had offered her help, including a place to live, but she WANTED to be homeless.

If someone doesn't want help, there's not a lot you can do about it.

[rhymer11]

Originally posted by Peaches+Jan 11 2005, 10:42 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Peaches @ Jan 11 2005, 10:42 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-rhymer11@Jan 11 2005, 02:21 PM
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4162683.stm

Food for thought. Maybe they should eat cake.
The US provides free housing, food, utilities, medical care, education, legal help, etc. etc. etc. to everyone of our citizens INCLUDING the illegal aliens here. What more can we possibly do?

If someone is homeless, they choose to be homeless.

There was a story just recently about a woman here in ATL who was murdered and had been homeless for years. The community had offered her help, including a place to live, but she WANTED to be homeless.

If someone doesn't want help, there's not a lot you can do about it. [/b][/quote]
"Most people become homeless because of an economic crisis - like losing a job or being evicted or because their incomes just can't keep pace with rising housing costs."

Personally, I have done well in life, not because of aspirations of wealth, but fear of poverty. It is a great motivator. But unfortunately, not everyone is as lucky. And big cities are terrible places if you are poor and homeless. I grew up in a port city that still has a huge poverty and drug problem. I don't think many of those people are in that position by choice. They may, however, be there by choices....bad ones.

[PornoDoggy]

Seems to me that this is a bit of a tempest in a teapot. The Feds gave them money for homeland security ... now they want them to spend the money on the coronation.

If someone is homeless, they choose to be homeless.

Of course they do, honey. :rolleyes:

[Nickatilynx]

Originally posted by Peaches+Jan 11 2005, 10:42 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Peaches @ Jan 11 2005, 10:42 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-rhymer11@Jan 11 2005, 02:21 PM
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4162683.stm

Food for thought. Maybe they should eat cake.
The US provides free housing, food, utilities, medical care, education, legal help, etc. etc. etc. to everyone of our citizens INCLUDING the illegal aliens here. What more can we possibly do?

If someone is homeless, they choose to be homeless.
[/b][/quote]
OMFG!!!



You really don't believe that do you?


Seriously.....

[Peaches]

When I lived in the burbs I spend about 4 days a week working with the "poor" for several years. MANY were homeless. Without exception, every single one of them had somewhere else to go where they would have a roof over their head every night. Most had family and/or friends who actually came to the shelters trying to get these folks to come home with them. They didn't want to for whatever reason: Didn't like their sister, didn't want to impose, liked where they were, wanted to stay with their friends on the street, etc.

Many had mental problems - problems the government was more than willing to help with FOR FREE. Ditto the addiction problems.

If they wanted to, they had free food, clothing, a bed, and medical care. They could still be "homeless" and take these things. Many turned even those options down.

Those who didn't want to be homeless were offered much more. Including a free education, job training and placement, daycare, bus tokens and more.

It's there. If they don't want it, there's not a lot you can do to force them to take it.

If you don't believe me, spend a few months working with your local homeless.

[TheEnforcer]

Originally posted by PornoDoggy@Jan 11 2005, 01:52 PM
Seems to me that this is a bit of a tempest in a teapot. The Feds gave them money for homeland security ... now they want them to spend the money on the coronation.

If someone is homeless, they choose to be homeless.

Of course they do, honey. :rolleyes:
Protecting the president is the job of the SECRET SERVICE. Add funds to their budget to cover shit like this. Homeland security is HOMELAND security and for ALL the people to help protect, prepare, and limit any aftermath effects of an attack and not just protect one stupid party for one day of the year. Fucking waste of money. I don't give a fuck who the president is, dem or pub, fucking the people of a city like that isn't right.

[Nickatilynx]

Originally posted by Peaches@Jan 11 2005, 11:05 AM
When I lived in the burbs I spend about 4 days a week working with the "poor" for several years. MANY were homeless. Without exception, every single one of them had somewhere else to go where they would have a roof over their head every night. Most had family and/or friends who actually came to the shelters trying to get these folks to come home with them. They didn't want to for whatever reason: Didn't like their sister, didn't want to impose, liked where they were, wanted to stay with their friends on the street, etc.

Many had mental problems - problems the government was more than willing to help with FOR FREE. Ditto the addiction problems.

If they wanted to, they had free food, clothing, a bed, and medical care. They could still be "homeless" and take these things. Many turned even those options down.

Those who didn't want to be homeless were offered much more. Including a free education, job training and placement, daycare, bus tokens and more.

It's there. If they don't want it, there's not a lot you can do to force them to take it.

If you don't believe me, spend a few months working with your local homeless.
Firstly ...

I mean I'm nearly at a loss for words ,seriously , the proceeding posts by you have seriously flabbergasted me.

You mention your charitable works as a reference...

and yet reading it , you seriously lack the one feature necessary to perform charitable works...compassion.

Sorry the normally winky faced Nickatilynx dissappears on this matter as the crass , parochial , preceding posts , literally has me stunned that someone who carries herself as a warm cuddly nice person can be so ...fuck..I'm lost for words....!!!



Now some highlights of this article...

http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2003...-homeless_x.htm (http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2003-08-11-homeless_x.htm)



As Americans file for bankruptcy in record numbers and credit card debt explodes, more workers are a paycheck away from losing their homes. Now the frail economy is pushing them over the edge. With 9 million unemployed workers in July, the face of homelessness is changing to include more families shaken by joblessness.

Former neighbors and co-workers are on the streets, live with relatives or stay in shelters. Unemployed managers are living with their elderly parents. Families who once owned their own homes now sleep on bunk beds in homeless shelters. Job seekers in suits and ties stop by soup kitchens heading out to afternoon interviews. With no place to live, some homeless are camping out in their cars until work comes along.

"There is still a mind-set that the homeless are substance abusers who have made bad life decisions," says Ralph Plumb, CEO of the Union Rescue Mission in Los Angeles. "But more and more, they are individuals responding to a catastrophic financial event. The homeless are us. They're regular folk."


• Families with children are among the fastest-growing segment of the homeless population, according to the National Coalition for the Homeless. The Conference of Mayors found that 41% of the homeless are families with children, up from 34% in 2000. The Urban Institute reports about 23% of the homeless are children.

• Cities and shelters are also seeing the shift. In New York, the number of homeless families jumped 40% from 1999 to 2002. In Boston, the number of homeless families increased 8.3% to 2,328 in 2002 compared with 2001.

• An estimated 3.5 million people are likely to experience homelessness in a given year, the Urban Institute reports. People remained homeless for an average of six months, according to the Conference of Mayors survey — a figure that increased from a year ago in all but four cities.


While the economy is driving some of the increase in demand for shelter and food assistance, other factors include mental illness, substance abuse and low-paying jobs, according to the Conference of Mayors survey.

Jobs hard to find

For many families already on the edge, homelessness is a catastrophic reality. Less than a year ago, Kimberly Brochu was expecting a baby and living with her husband and four children in an apartment in Winslow, Maine. Then her husband, Allen, was laid off from his painting job.

Eight months pregnant, Brochu wound up on the streets with her family. They spent their nights sleeping in bunk beds at a homeless shelter and during the day camped out in their car at a Burger King. Today, she and her husband rent a duplex and are both working again.

"People think we get homeless because we're irresponsible, but it's hard finding jobs," says Brochu, 29, who works as a housekeeper and a waitress; Allen is a farmer's helper. "But my kids, if they become successful, they won't look down on people who are poor."

A growing number of families are vulnerable to homelessness because of the dismal job climate. The unemployment rate reached 6.4% in June, the highest since April 1994 before edging back to 6.2% in July. Last month, there were nearly 2 million unemployed workers who had been looking for a job for 27 weeks or longer, an increase of 276,000 since January, according to the Department of Labor.

For the homeless, getting or keeping a job without a place to live is a challenge. About 20% of homeless are employed, according to the Conference of Mayors.

More of those workers losing their jobs aren't able to afford a stint of unemployment. Nearly a quarter of Americans would be late on mortgages, rent or other bills if a single paycheck were delayed, according to a 2003 poll by Automatic Data Processing.

The proportion of disposable personal income that Americans are putting into savings was about 8% in the 1970s but has tumbled to less than 4% today, according to the National Center for Policy Analysis.

Layoff led to homelessness

All it took was a layoff to push Robert Garner over the edge. About a month ago, the 40-year-old was laid off from his job at a packing plant and could no longer afford the $475 rent for his mobile home in Lima, Ohio. So he packed a backpack with whatever he could carry — clothes, a razor and sleeping bag — and hitchhiked 122 miles to Cincinnati, where he wound up sleeping under a bridge. He sold his car because he couldn't keep up with the payments.

He went to soup kitchens for meals or worked odd jobs to pay for food. Drop-in homeless shelters provided a place for him to shower. In late July, he got a $9.50-an-hour job driving a forklift for the Ohio Valley Goodwill Industries Rehabilitation Center, which also provided him with housing.

"The economy has really taken a toll on manufacturing," Garner says. "It was hard. I don't like to take things from people. I like to help myself. In a way, you get a sense of hopelessness. But I tried to keep a nice, clean appearance."

Other factors putting more families and workers at risk:

•Soaring housing costs. The median price for existing homes is projected to rise 6% in 2003 to $167,800, according to the National Association of Realtors.

"The economy has been in a down phase before, but this time housing prices have really continued to skyrocket. It's been a huge factor in the explosion in homelessness among families," says Mitchell Netburn, director of the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, which coordinates homeless programs in the city and county. The median home price in the Los Angeles area for the first quarter of 2003 was $307,900. That's up 16.2% from the first quarter of 2002.

As prices go up, it becomes harder for the poor to purchase a home or even afford rent.

Nearly 28 million households — one in four — reported spending more than 30% of their income on housing, according to the Millennial Housing Commission. That amount is more than the government deems affordable, the commission reports. Median monthly gross rent in the nation climbed to $602 in 2000 from $481 a month in 1980, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

•Mounting debt. Consumer debt is growing, and more homeowners are taking out loans to pay credit card debts. Foreclosures are up. Last year, there were 1.5 million bankruptcy filings by individuals — the highest on record — up from 289,000 non-business filings in 1980, according to the American Bankruptcy Institute.

Though about 20% of the homeless live in the suburbs, the rise in homelessness is mostly manifesting itself in major urban areas.

In Boston, the number of homeless women increased by 10% in 2002 compared with 2001, according to a city census. In San Francisco, the city reports that the homeless population in 2002 was 8,640, an 18% rise over 2001.

•Lack of financial safety nets. The increase in homelessness and hunger is overwhelming some cities and shelters: An average of 30% of the requests for emergency shelter by homeless people — and 38% of the requests by homeless families — are estimated to have gone unmet in 2002, according to the Conference of Mayors.

In 60% of cities, shelters may have to turn away homeless families because of a lack of resources. Many cities have shelters that specifically accommodate families, but even then, husbands and wives often are separated.

In addition, more welfare recipients are reaching the five-year federal limit for receiving benefits. At the same time, philanthropic donations to homeless services are down along with overall charitable giving. That means there are fewer financial safety nets for workers who are already living on the financial precipice. And unemployment benefits aren't always a resource — in fact, less than half of laid-off workers qualify under varying state eligibility requirements.

David Smith, 46, worked in the stock room at Kmart until he was laid off earlier this year. He applied for public assistance but had already reached his lifetime cap for receiving federal benefits. Unable to pay his rent, Smith went to a homeless shelter. He is now living in housing provided by The Doe Fund, a New York-based organization that employs and supports the homeless in efforts to become self-sufficient through work.

"Without a job, I couldn't pay my rent," Smith says. "It's stressful when you go to the soup kitchen. I want to save money and get my life back on track."

Suit-and-tie homeless

Signs of the increase abound. Alfred Thompson, a job trainer at Goodwill Industries of Kentucky in Louisville, says one of his homeless clients lost his job and is living in his Mercedes, which is paid for, while he seeks employment.

At St. Bartholomew's Church in Manhattan, a mosaic-domed landmark near The Waldorf-Astoria hotel, more than 100 homeless men and women arrive on Monday and Wednesday mornings for a stick-to-your-ribs breakfast of beans-and-franks, corned beef hash or chicken stew.

"We see people dressed in suits and ties come in before they head out to look for work," says the Rev. John David Clarke, director of community ministries. "They can save a buck or two."

In Louisville, job seeker Reginald Cook, 53, dons his best interview clothes and shaves before heading out to try to land a steady job. At night, he calls the Salvation Army Center of Hope his home.

He arrives after 5 p.m. for a shower and reads a bit of a book before lying down on his dormitory-style bed to sleep. Before coming here, he'd lived with his parents in Birmingham, Ala., after being injured on the job. He left in hopes of finding better employment opportunities in Kentucky. Even though it's meant not having a home, he still believes the job opportunities are better in Louisville. "It's hard because quite a number of people are laid off, and you can't find the work,' " Cook says.

For William and Sue Kamstra, it took five months to lose everything. The couple and their three children were living in a three-bedroom home in Bellflower, Calif. They had a two-car garage and fruit trees in the backyard. He earned more than $40,000 a year working in customer service, providing operational support in the music division of Yamaha.

But then they were beset by personal financial problems, which caused them to miss house payments. Their home was foreclosed upon. They planned to rent an apartment, but then William lost his job, and they were unable to get back on their feet. An accident left their van totaled, so they had no way to get around. They stored their belongings and moved to a hotel until their money ran out in June. Now, they spend their nights at the Union Rescue Mission, a Los Angeles shelter.

During the day, William looks for work while Sue takes the children to the library. In 20 years of marriage, this is the first time the Kamstras have been homeless.

"If he hadn't gotten laid off, we'd have rented an apartment. We would have been OK," Sue says. The children expect to resume school in the area this fall.

"This is horrendous. You have a feeling of such alienation," says William, 43. His daughter is 14, and his sons are 12 and 11. "You have this view of homeless people, but I have one beer a year on my birthday, and I don't do drugs. But there are a lot of families here, a lot of children and babies in strollers."

[Peaches]

It's not just the US.

http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2...less/story.html (http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0210/homeless/story.html)

http://www.shareintl.org/archives/homeless...l-ch_Canada.htm (http://www.shareintl.org/archives/homelessness/hl-ch_Canada.htm)

http://www.melbourne.indymedia.org/news/2004/12/85179.php

Again, what can the governments do that they aren't already doing?

[Peaches]

AND....if the government is cutting funding, why aren't we humans taking over the slack?

I might be lacking compassion, but at least I'm willing to help the poor with my time, money and resources.

I also contribute time and money to small dogs with no noses. B)

[Nickatilynx]

Originally posted by Peaches@Jan 11 2005, 11:32 AM
It's not just the US.

http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2...less/story.html (http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0210/homeless/story.html)

http://www.shareintl.org/archives/homeless...l-ch_Canada.htm (http://www.shareintl.org/archives/homelessness/hl-ch_Canada.htm)

http://www.melbourne.indymedia.org/news/2004/12/85179.php

Again, what can the governments do that they aren't already doing?
If you don't believe me, spend a few months working with your local homeless.

and regarding that remark....

You have no idea of my charitable acts either finacially or in the form of time.

Why?


Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaulteth not itself, is not puffed up. - I Corinthians (ch. XIII, v. 4)

[Almighty Colin]

Originally posted by rhymer11@Jan 11 2005, 01:21 PM
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4162683.stm

Food for thought. Maybe they should eat cake.
Why should the government do ANYTHING about homeless people.

Get a fucking JOB! Hell, we're hiring.

[Almighty Colin]

Originally posted by Nickatilynx@Jan 11 2005, 02:46 PM
Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaulteth not itself, is not puffed up. - I Corinthians (ch. XIII, v. 4)
That's some good stuff. The Bible is filled with great quotes.

Of course, it has a lot of attempts too.

[darksoft]

Originally posted by Peaches@Jan 11 2005, 12:32 PM
It's not just the US.

http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2...less/story.html (http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0210/homeless/story.html)

http://www.shareintl.org/archives/homeless...l-ch_Canada.htm (http://www.shareintl.org/archives/homelessness/hl-ch_Canada.htm)

http://www.melbourne.indymedia.org/news/2004/12/85179.php

Again, what can the governments do that they aren't already doing?
Have you ever seen a homeless or out of work former congressman?

[Almighty Colin]

Originally posted by Nickatilynx@Jan 11 2005, 02:23 PM
and yet reading it , you seriously lack the one feature necessary to perform charitable works...compassion.
I myself lack compassion. I can admit that. Truth is, I don't really feel connected to the rest of humanity .. unless I need something. Then I can fake it.

[Peaches]

Originally posted by Nickatilynx+Jan 11 2005, 03:46 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Nickatilynx @ Jan 11 2005, 03:46 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-Peaches@Jan 11 2005, 11:32 AM
It's not just the US.

http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2...less/story.html (http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0210/homeless/story.html)

http://www.shareintl.org/archives/homeless...l-ch_Canada.htm (http://www.shareintl.org/archives/homelessness/hl-ch_Canada.htm)

http://www.melbourne.indymedia.org/news/2004/12/85179.php

Again, what can the governments do that they aren't already doing?
If you don't believe me, spend a few months working with your local homeless.

and regarding that remark....

You have no idea of my charitable acts either finacially or in the form of time.

Why?


Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaulteth not itself, is not puffed up. - I Corinthians (ch. XIII, v. 4) [/b][/quote]
I was merely referencing my personal experiences in working for years with homeless people, Nick :) If you have some personal experiences working with them, then I of course welcome your input and I will learn from that. I don't accept everything I read that was written in order to sell something - give me real life experiences from people I know and I can deal with them a lot better :awinky:

[Almighty Colin]

Fuck, I was homeless for 8 months in 1988. All I can say is "GET A FUCKING JOB" ;-)

[Peaches]

Originally posted by Almighty Colin@Jan 11 2005, 03:54 PM
Fuck, I was homeless for 8 months in 1988. All I can say is "GET A FUCKING JOB" ;-)
I was technically homeless for several months. I had a sofa to sleep on but that was it. And I had a baby and didn't even know I could get any kind of food stamps, WIC, welfare, etc. so I never got it.

But honestly, I NEVER considered myself homeless. I had a home. It was my Dad's sofa. :)

[Nickatilynx]

Originally posted by Almighty Colin+Jan 11 2005, 11:51 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Almighty Colin @ Jan 11 2005, 11:51 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-Nickatilynx@Jan 11 2005, 02:23 PM
and yet reading it , you seriously lack the one feature necessary to perform charitable works...compassion.
I myself lack compassion. I can admit that. Truth is, I don't really feel connected to the rest of humanity .. unless I need something. Then I can fake it. [/b][/quote]
I soooooo hope thats a quote from "American Psycho"

;-))))))

[PornoDoggy]

I've also worked with homeless people myself. Folks who are homeless for purely economic reasons generally don't stay that way for long.

The majority are mentally ill.

If you sober up the alkies and dry up the druggies, underneath most of them you will find ... the mentally ill.

The idea that medical care, housing, mental heath treatment is available for the asking is ... mistaken is a polite way to put it. Between the complexity of welfare reform and cost-cutting measures in most of the financially-strapped states, many people entitled to assistance can't get it, or can't get it in a timely manner.

I had a close friend of mine shot and killed by a guy who had appeared at a state hospital several days a week for more than a month, BEGGING to be re-admitted before the voices told him to hurt someone.

The mentally ill, in particular, have been slam-dunked by both sides of the political spectrum, by the way. Between do-gooders on the left who want to give a schizophenic the right to chose not to be treated (without taking into account the fact that they lack the capacity to exersize those rights), and cost-cutters on the right who've shrunk public mental health services to levels that cannot begin to meet the needs out there, they've been well and truly fucked.

[Peaches]

Originally posted by PornoDoggy@Jan 11 2005, 04:11 PM
I've also worked with homeless people myself. Folks who are homeless for purely economic reasons generally don't stay that way for long.

The majority are mentally ill.

If you sober up the alkies and dry up the druggies, underneath most of them you will find ... the mentally ill.

The idea that medical care, housing, mental heath treatment is available for the asking is ... mistaken is a polite way to put it. Between the complexity of welfare reform and cost-cutting measures in most of the financially-strapped states, many people entitled to assistance can't get it, or can't get it in a timely manner.

I had a close friend of mine shot and killed by a guy who had appeared at a state hospital several days a week for more than a month, BEGGING to be re-admitted before the voices told him to hurt someone.

The mentally ill, in particular, have been slam-dunked by both sides of the political spectrum, by the way. Between do-gooders on the left who want to give a schizophenic the right to chose not to be treated (without taking into account the fact that they lack the capacity to exersize those rights), and cost-cutters on the right who've shrunk public mental health services to levels that cannot begin to meet the needs out there, they've been well and truly fucked.
Good post, but again, what's the solution?

At least in ATL, we were able to get mental health care for those that would accept it. Few accepted it. Those that did weren't "hardcore" - they were people who were recently on the streets and realized if they wanted out they needed help. If we could prove they were dangerous to others or themselves, we could get them 72 hours in a facility but after that, we could do nothing until they showed up again and the cycle could be repeated until they learned not to come for any help at all because they didn't want to go to the facility. :(

We had MANY who had family willing to pay for top of the line mental care but again, they refused it. Some were even still covered under their parent's or spouse's health insurance.

What's the solution?

[Nickatilynx]

Calm now!

Sorry for the rant , peaches :)

[Almighty Colin]

Originally posted by Nickatilynx+Jan 11 2005, 03:03 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Nickatilynx @ Jan 11 2005, 03:03 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> Originally posted by Almighty Colin@Jan 11 2005, 11:51 AM
<!--QuoteBegin-Nickatilynx@Jan 11 2005, 02:23 PM
and yet reading it , you seriously lack the one feature necessary to perform charitable works...compassion.
I myself lack compassion. I can admit that. Truth is, I don't really feel connected to the rest of humanity .. unless I need something. Then I can fake it.
I soooooo hope thats a quote from "American Psycho"

;-)))))) [/b][/quote]
I WISH I could write like that. One of my favorite books ever.

[Peaches]

Originally posted by Nickatilynx@Jan 11 2005, 04:23 PM
Calm now!

Sorry for the rant , peaches :)
Nick, I raised a male from birth to 21. I've been ranted at SO much worse :) I'm fine - feel free to rant whenever you feel I've deserved it. I'm not opposed to learning stuff, ya know! :okthumb:

[Almighty Colin]

Originally posted by Peaches+Jan 11 2005, 02:58 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Peaches @ Jan 11 2005, 02:58 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-Almighty Colin@Jan 11 2005, 03:54 PM
Fuck, I was homeless for 8 months in 1988. All I can say is "GET A FUCKING JOB" ;-)
I was technically homeless for several months. I had a sofa to sleep on but that was it. And I had a baby and didn't even know I could get any kind of food stamps, WIC, welfare, etc. so I never got it.

But honestly, I NEVER considered myself homeless. I had a home. It was my Dad's sofa. :) [/b][/quote]
I slept in a warehouse with quite the rat population. Place burned to the ground a few months after I left. I was a funny 20 year old. I was so interested in reading books that I didn't want to work. Four years later I was at Yale.

So anyway while living in the warehouse I met this girl who let me move in with her. Later, I married her.

True story.

[Nickatilynx]

""'Soon everything seemed dull: another sunrise, the lives of heros, falling in love, war, the discoveries people made about each other. The only thing that didn't bore me, obviously enough, was how much money Tim Price made, and yet in its obviousness it did. There wasn't a clear, identifiable emotion within me, except for greed and, possibly, total disgust. I had all the characteristics of a human being--flesh, blood, skin, hair--but my depersonalization was so intense, had gone so deep, that the normal ability to feel compassion had been eradicated, the victim of a slow, purposeful erasure. I was simply immitating reality, a rough resemblance of a human being, with only a dim corner of my mind functioning. Something horrible was happening and yet I couldn't figure out why--I couldn't put my finger on it""

[aeon]

Originally posted by darksoft+Jan 11 2005, 11:48 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (darksoft @ Jan 11 2005, 11:48 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteBegin-Peaches@Jan 11 2005, 12:32 PM
It's not just the US.

http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2...less/story.html (http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0210/homeless/story.html)

http://www.shareintl.org/archives/homeless...l-ch_Canada.htm (http://www.shareintl.org/archives/homelessness/hl-ch_Canada.htm)

http://www.melbourne.indymedia.org/news/2004/12/85179.php

Again, what can the governments do that they aren't already doing?
Have you ever seen a homeless or out of work former congressman?[/b][/quote]
The homeless dont' whine about shaw giving them their amazon gift certificates...this rules - you tards let the neo con board whores in..

hehe - this rocks. How's it going stepchild?

[Almighty Colin]

Originally posted by Nickatilynx@Jan 11 2005, 04:00 PM
""'Soon everything seemed dull: another sunrise, the lives of heros, falling in love, war, the discoveries people made about each other. The only thing that didn't bore me, obviously enough, was how much money Tim Price made, and yet in its obviousness it did. There wasn't a clear, identifiable emotion within me, except for greed and, possibly, total disgust. I had all the characteristics of a human being--flesh, blood, skin, hair--but my depersonalization was so intense, had gone so deep, that the normal ability to feel compassion had been eradicated, the victim of a slow, purposeful erasure. I was simply immitating reality, a rough resemblance of a human being, with only a dim corner of my mind functioning. Something horrible was happening and yet I couldn't figure out why--I couldn't put my finger on it""
Mr Bateman, I presume.

[darksoft]

Originally posted by aeon+Jan 11 2005, 03:12 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (aeon @ Jan 11 2005, 03:12 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> Originally posted by darksoft@Jan 11 2005, 11:48 AM
<!--QuoteBegin-Peaches@Jan 11 2005, 12:32 PM
It's not just the US.

http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2...less/story.html (http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0210/homeless/story.html)

http://www.shareintl.org/archives/homeless...l-ch_Canada.htm (http://www.shareintl.org/archives/homelessness/hl-ch_Canada.htm)

http://www.melbourne.indymedia.org/news/2004/12/85179.php

Again, what can the governments do that they aren't already doing?
Have you ever seen a homeless or out of work former congressman?
The homeless dont' whine about shaw giving them their amazon gift certificates...this rules - you tards let the neo con board whores in..

hehe - this rocks. How's it going stepchild? [/b][/quote]
Damn, did you learn a new word? Or was someone helping you type that post up, as usual?

Please let me know when you actually matter. I might have to muster up the energy to give a rat's ass.

[leedsfan]

Originally posted by TheEnforcer@Jan 11 2005, 09:38 AM
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/artic...-2005Jan10.html (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A63896-2005Jan10.html)

U.S. Tells D.C. to Pay Inaugural Expenses
Other Security Projects Would Lose $11.9 Million

By Spencer S. Hsu
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, January 11, 2005; Page A01

D.C. officials said yesterday that the Bush administration is refusing to reimburse the District for most of the costs associated with next week's inauguration, breaking with precedent and forcing the city to divert $11.9 million from homeland security projects.

Federal officials have told the District that it should cover the expenses by using some of the $240 million in federal homeland security grants it has received in the past three years -- money awarded to the city because it is among the places at highest risk of a terrorist attack.

But that grant money is earmarked for other security needs, Mayor Anthony A. Williams (D) said in a Dec. 27 letter to Office of Management and Budget Director Joshua B. Bolten and Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge. Williams's office released the letter yesterday.

Williams estimated that the city's costs for the inauguration will total $17.3 million, most of it related to security. City officials said they can use an unspent $5.4 million from an annual federal fund that reimburses the District for costs incurred because of its status as the capital. But that leaves $11.9 million not covered, they said.

"We want to make this the best possible event, but not at the expense of D.C. taxpayers and other homeland security priorities," said Gregory M. McCarthy, the mayor's deputy chief of staff. "This is the first time there hasn't been a direct appropriation for the inauguration."

A spokesman for Rep. Thomas M. Davis III (R-Va.), chairman of the House Government Reform Committee, which oversees the District, agreed with the mayor's stance. He called the Bush administration's position "simply not acceptable."

"It's an unfunded mandate of the most odious kind. How can the District be asked to take funds from important homeland security projects to pay for this instead?" said Davis spokesman David Marin.
==================================================

Nothing like screwing the taxpayers to throw your own little party. First time it's ever been done too. I don't give a damn whtehrt it is Bush and Kerry on the campaign trail, where cities have been trying to get reimbursed for costs, or the inaugaration don't stick it to the taxpayers there for the bill.
what really sucks is the close the 12 million they spend on bush's fake inauguration, is almost what they initially gave to tsunami relief, before they got called cheap by everyone else.

i mean michael schumacker gave almost as much as the entire US govenement's first relief donation.

[Almighty Colin]

Originally posted by leedsfan@Jan 12 2005, 03:57 PM
before they got called cheap by everyone else.
Most all nations started on the low end and later increased their aid. It's amazing how people continue to find ways to criticize the GIVING of nations - whether it is the US, Israel, or Muslim countries in what is truly one of the most amazing world responses to a national disaster in history.