I have homeless men ask me for cigarettes all the time and quite often I oblige if I have a surplus.

One time I was walking down 17th past that Safeway in Dupont and a man asked me for a cigarette. I was smoking my last one and told him so (even apologizing that I didn’t have an extra to give him!) and he replied “then gimme that one!” I almost died!

According to the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, homelessness in the DC area rose in 2005 for the fourth straight year. It is estimated that there are more than 14,000 homeless men, women and children in the metropolitan area, more than 6,000 in DC proper.

That’s 14,000 men, women and children without shelter.

Homelessness can result from substance abuse, mental illness, family dysfunction or a myriad of other individual problems. A sudden job loss or domestic violence can also push a family out of their existing housing.

Another factor contributing to the growing number of homeless individuals and families in Washington is the skyrocketing cost of housing. According to the “Washington Post,” “district home prices have risen so rapidly that more than 80 percent of the properties for sale last year were financially out of reach for the average city household.”

Rents, too, have risen sharply, partly as a result of the dwindling supply of units. The Fannie Mae Foundation reports that “a substantial number of rental properties that have long provided shelter for low- and moderate-income residents are being sold to new investors, renovated as luxury housing or converted to condominiums.”

- http://www.cihn.org/dc_homeless_stats/

i hope that the next time you decide to be generous and help a person out, you can lose some of the judging. if you’re going to complain about a persons response without knowing their situation, it sorta takes the selflessness out of the act.

eddie - couldn’t you have just walked away at that point. you didn’t have to be a dick. and instead of giving him money, you could have bought him some food. i think that if you don’t want to help the homeless then you shouldn’t. but if you are willing to help, then you can’t be an asshole about it.

just because someone is hanging out near mcDs doesn’t make them homeless. sometimes it just feels good to get a little attention, and if you can get a free drink and a free cigarette then that’s good too. AM I RIGHT LADIES!!!!

liz, you are hilarious

I don’t think this article is selfish, spoiled, condescending or ignorant. If I gave money/food to everyone that asked me on the sidewalks of DC (Greenpeace, Care, Unicef, homeless people) - I wouldn’t have anything left.

It’s bad manners to look a gift horse in the mouth. Just like you mother used to say (about the hideous christmas present your great grandmother gave you) - say thank you and smile.

I also think that if they ask for something specific, then we should try to oblige.

“Yo, pennies is money too…”

-YSL to the panhandling community at large

@wow -
“eddie - couldn’t you have just walked away at that point. you didn’t have to be a dick. ”
i did walk away, and no, i wasn’t a dick. he was. some of you enabling fucking retards want to hand the world to every loser drunk that calls themselves homeless.

i know there are certainly homeless people in need and not the ones who take every bit of change/whatever they get from people and spend it on booze. i think they need help and it is good there are shelters for them and volunteers and charities, etc.

but don’t give me shit for telling a guy that is stinking of alcohol and telling me how much i should give him (after i already gave him money i shouldn’t have) what i think of his actions. and you telling me i should have bought him a meal? eat a dick, wow. your bleeding heart should be saved for people REALLY in need and you shouldn’t be wasting your energy scolding me for telling a drunk a block from my house and badgering me to give him more “because he saw i had more” what i thought of his bullshit. anyone who is saying “oh, that is horrible the way you treated that guy!” is an enabling idiot. people in need do not equal drunk pestering losers. next time you think about giving me shit for that, go punch yourself in the face.

love,
eddie

I think the author’s main problem in this article was mistakenly identifying a person as “homeless” when clearly what they were dealing with was a bonefide HOBO. A homeless person is just a person without a home…a HOBO is a dirty traitorous malingerer who conspires to steal our pies, stone our dogs, and overthrow our government. A pox on the whole surreptitious brotherhood!

When there are people that are actually in need…I give them what I can. I’m not exactly made of money and sure…I could see that they get frustrated with their lot in life. Why the hell wouldn’t they? But that doesn’t mean I can’t complain when they are just flat out rude to me. There is a guy at the 7-11 on 11th street that ALWAYS opens the door for me and asks for some change on my way out and I ALWAYS give him whatever I can spare. Even when my funds are pretty damn low. He doesn’t get mad if I don’t give him two dollars. And you know…I bet he gets a lot more money than the hobos that yell at people when they don’t get as much as they’d like.

I don’t think it’s difficult to get disenchanted with giving money to hobos/homeless people when, time after time, you see the same ones high off their ass or belligerent and getting slammed to the sidewalk by the cops. Or when you offer to buy them food and they refuse…why would they refuse you buying them a 5 dollar meal in favor of a dollar?

It’s a touchy subject, I’ll admit. But it’s not insensitive to bring these matters up. I think it opens up for debate an issue that doesn’t often get very much coverage.

N.,

You hit it on the head in my case. I thought this article was obnoxious and uninformed…so I made an obnoxious joke, thinking someone might read, see and understand my jerking knee. Way to solidify, homes.

-YSL

P.S. I’m not anonymous…I just never comment

I’m going to have to echo Sara in that it seems like the author of this article doesn’t have a true sense on who it is that populates our streets and the situations that continue to contribute to the increasingly large DC homeless population.
While it’s easy to sound self-righteous arguing these types of points, it’s pretty disheartening to see how flip and ironic people feel the need to be when it comes to an issue as serious as this. The idea that there should be some kind of quid pro quo (you giving money, the homeless fulfilling you with the self-satisfaction of doing something good) during these kinds of interactions completely undermines the direness of the individual’s circumstances while articulating just how shallow your intent was. Wow, you gave someone your 75 cents?! Could a Nobel prize be next? This is nothing more than an issue of entitlement. “He doesn’t want my sandwich! But I was being so generous by offering him/her something!”
This type of interaction doesn’t offer the positive self image that one feels that they deserve by giving money to a homeless person. Just by volunteering or giving money doesn’t mean that there isn’t a condescention present; it can also be manifested in a hegemonic worldview or inflated self-concept.

Let’s say you just bought your significant other a birthday present. That person turns to you and says “I really wanted something different, can you get me something different instead?”

Would you make the same commentary to someone who just related the above to you? Of course not. You’d agree. You’d say “What a bitch!” or “what an asshole, you should dump him.” DTMFA, right?

But because it’s the “homeless” and you get the same reaction it’s suddenly being insensitive. Get real. They’re human beings. They don’t get a free pass because they are assholes. An asshole is an asshole is an asshole. Don’t want the fifty cents or the Egg McMuffin? Fine. Give it back so I can give it to someone who appreciates it.

beggars can’t be choosers. but if i was in a situation where they asked for food instead of money i would ask if they had a preference. i mean the number five really isn’t going to cost much more than the six. but if they get upset about the amount of money i give them, i just keep on walking. well i used to, i just don’t do it anymore because that started happening. that and i would much rather give them food than feed any sort of addiction, but that’s probably me being self-righteous and judgemental.

michael,
it is not fair that you always come up with these simple and effective analogies saying exactly what i wanted to say (yet couldn’t come up with), but better. shut up.

Awwww! I wanted the 40oz Mickeys not Colt 45! mbufuckinbyaachusucker

eddie,

let’s face the most important issue: this “article” was a poorly written rant. I hesitate to use rant because traditionally it has connotations of passion or a thesis behind it which as I can tell, this article does not. It read to me (and from the general tone of these comments) like a pithy attempt at edgy social commentary or humor. Even if you agreed with the sentiment of the article, did you really believe it was any good?
As someone who has contributed to BYT, I feel as though I am a stakeholder in maintaining some kind of quality control here. All of this back and forth allows us to lose sight of the main problem: this is a poorly written, uninformed article that makes the writing on this site seem sophmoric. Look, I understand this isn’t exactly the New York Times but c’mon!
But to directly address your accusations, I don’t think I need to tell you that a great deal of the individuals who panhandle suffer from a wide range of mental illnesses some of which that get worse from years of life on the street, schizophrenia and PTSD being two such examples. Due to their conditions it is extremely difficult to get them off the streets and most social programs lack the sufficient resources to adequately meet the demands of the complicated histories of these individuals.

Buying copies of Street Sense from homeless/poor vendors is also a good way to help. When’s the last time you picked up a copy? The next time you see a vendor, drop $1 and stop and talk awhile. Try thinking about the person instead of making yourself feel better. It could open your eyes.

whatsoever ye do unto the least of these
that you do unto me
_Jesus Christ, the Most Famous Homeless Man in History

Michael,

Are you seriously arguing against donating to places like central kitchen? Bums don’t just need food. I frankly don’t care if getting a bum off the street requires the “intrusion” of someone trying to get them the help they really need.

DV - the only thing I really argue against is a lack of reading comprehension, which is being exhibited in spades.

I stated that telling a bum where to go and find food rather than giving them food or money is wasting breath - they already know where the free food is and they don’t want to go. They want some semblence of still being in charge of their own station in life and that’s what a lot of do-gooders don’t get. You all think they’re retarded puppies who need your superior guidance and wisdom as though they don’t KNOW they should get a job or as though they don’t know where they can find food and counseling.

They don’t want it and most do-gooders need to get that through their thick skulls. You aren’t saviors bringing enlightenment to idiots. Yes many are mentally ill and many have substance abuse problems. Some of them, though, have just given the fuck up on whatever it is that makes people think that a house and car and job is important and don’t give a shit about any of it.

Never in any of my statement did I argue against donating time or money to a homeless shelter or food kitchen. Give all your money to them if you wish. I simply stated that telling a homeless person where the free food is is a waste of breath.

people keep saying that this article is supposed to be funny. well, if this is in fact an “article” and byt is trying to be some sort of an online “magazine” then perhaps the next “interns” they get should be writers and editors. the comments seem as though they started because this is a very poorly written piece with no real point and comes off as extremely condescending and whiny, especially because it is addressing a very real problem in DC.

Haven’t you people ever heard of a little thing called HUMOR?!?

CLEARLY…this article was written to provoke thoughts and arguments so obviously it was successful!

Congrats Lauren G…another job well done! Can’t wait until your next “sad, selfish, spoiled, and condescending” article ;)

nihilistic - yes, people do choose to be “poor” (I put it in quotes because typically for people like this it is YOUR standard that makes them poor, and not theirs) and homeless because of a variety of reasons. Again - you’d know as much if you bothered to talk to them.

There are people - gasp - who choose to live in home-built shelters in the middle of nowhwere without electricity and do all their hunting for food. Gasp.

“Haven’t you people ever heard of a little thing called HUMOR?!?

CLEARLY…this article was written to provoke thoughts and arguments so obviously it was successful!

Congrats Lauren G…another job well done! Can’t wait until your next “sad, selfish, spoiled, and condescending” article ;)”

horribly mistaken. lauren g., you should be embarrassed. if this was meant to be humorous, you’re way off. not a good writer. but then, when has byt really cared about the quality of the people that work for them for free?

*then* not *than*. sorry

Cale - and that dude who built a house by hand in the wilds of Alaska. You can buy the DVD of it everytime PBS runs one of their “give us money-a-thons.” It’s really fucking cool though.

And no, nihilistic, I was not talking about hippies. I’m talking about anyone who chooses to live off the grid. The rest of your post didn’t make any sense because you’re trying to argue semantics.

But I’m glad you see that all it takes to be rich is choice. /sarcasm.

my uncle was homeless for awhile. he chose to be. he hitch hiked from north carolina and lived in alexandria for almost a year. he had his social security checks sent to my house and my mom would cash them for him and take him the money. he never asked anyone else for money, and he didn’t push around a cart. he really didn’t look homeless. he spent all his time watching and writing. he used to be a professor at east carolina university and was a journalist for awhile. he lives in leesberg now and works with the local homeless shelter and has an online business.

Sorry, np, but I’m not sure anyone can comprehend what you’re trying to say.