Admiral Beez
Superstar
What I’d like to see is an in-depth investigation into if rackets are running Toronto’s roadside begging. It certainly gives the impression of being organized, with almost shift-like rotation.
@MTown Thank you for willing to help me out. I will be reaching out to you shortly over private message to discuss further.
Can I say how genuinely impressed I am that you give your time, empathy and money in that way, particularly so for doing it as often as you have.
I consider myself a charitable soul; I do give sometimes to panhandlers, but admit a certain fatigue in seeing so many.
I've only stopped to really listen to a story once or twice. I remember seeing a woman outside the Loblaws at Leslie/Lakeshore about this time last year.
It was a cold night and heading well below zero and she was not dressed for it.
I stopped to ask after her.......I won't share the whole story except to say she had been locked out of a place she had been sharing and she had actually phoned the City and been told all the shelters were full.
I was apoplectic on her behalf.
Couldn't fix the situation for her on the spot, but gave her enough money to stay on transit all night if need be and stop for a coffee or three.
Taking the time can be both rewarding and enlightening, and more than a tad disheartening. Good on you investing in folks that way.
I don’t like the term panhandling. They’re beggars, just the same as the beggars we see in poverty stricken nations abroad. Our local beggars shouldn’t get a different term.
The solutions to begging are close at hand. In Sweden begging is predicted to essentially vanish as they moved to a cashless economy. That doesn’t eliminate the need or the means to help those who were begging, as those in need seek help from charities and government services that are funded by the same folks who previously gave to beggars.
An immediate small fix is enforcement of the Safe Streets Act and HTA, preventing beggars from entering the road space to beg at car windows.
And just to clarify, I’m not some heartless Scrurge-like character who wants to open work houses, et al. But the Canadian and Ontario homeless industrial complex needs to be shaken up, since we’re paying millions in taxes and donations to fix an issue, with little result. Around my home in downtown east there must the hundreds if not thousands of people who make their living on the perpetuation of homelessness, mental illness and addiction, but have no accountability or measurable goals connected to reducing homelessness (and begging) in order to get their continued funding.
The US has similar issues...
The Homeless Industrial Complex Problem
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/carey-fuller/the-homeless-industrial-c_b_9092426.html
Is There a Homeless Industrial Complex That Perpetuates Homelessness?
http://www.povertyinsights.org/2013/08/05/is-there-a-homeless-industrial-complex-that-perpetuates-homelessness/[/QUOTE
This is nothing if not predictable. As a first step, how about selecting Canadian information sources?
I'm supporting my claim that the US has similar issues. It makes sense to cite US information sources in support of that claim.As a first step, how about selecting Canadian information sources?