Letter: Homeless aren’t like Mary and Joseph
It’s almost laughable to compare homeless people to Joseph and Mary. It would be laughable if it weren’t so ridiculous. Joseph and Mary never rifled through garbage cans or hung out in front of City Council chambers claiming they were being treated unfairly.
Am I being insensitive? I don’t think so.
For a group of people like this to somehow make themselves try to appear as a persecuted group is offensive. Why are a group of 40 to 50 people trying to skirt the laws of a community?
I’m sure there are 40 to 50 people who enjoy running red lights, or shoplifting, or anything else for that matter. Should we just ignore those laws because some people don’t agree?
Of course not. Those laws are in place for a reason, you sleep in a park, you get a ticket. If you don’t pay the ticket you go to jail. If you don’t like the treatment, don’t break the law. If you don’t like the law then work on getting it changed.
But, alas, working on changing a law would require a lot of hard work, which is something for the most part that homeless people avoid like a bath.
If you have your personnel items on private or city property what do people expect is going to happen? Stolen shopping carts full of things all over the place is what would happen if this continues to be allowed.
I know all of the arguments that people make about the plight of the homeless. They can’t find a job without an address, nobody wants to hire homeless people. Those arguments are more like excuses for people to continue to have their hand out and let other people take care of them.
And they have a rural legal assistance attorney representing them as a group? Who’s paying his salary? I’m hoping it’s not mine or any other hard working person’s tax dollars. Why don’t these people spend this time that they are wasting trying to make people see them as victims of a harsh society on something productive, like working or finding a places to live?
Jeffrey Cox,
Madera
Why is it so easy to pick on any one group of people because of their current state of living? You should thank God every day that you have a job, a bed, a family that supports you.
I can understand your argument that the homeless are drunks, drug addicts, illegal, mentally challenged or any other label you want to put on them. However, have you walked in that persons shoes?
I used to think that way. That these people made a choice to be homeless. They chose to be out on the street. Their illegal lifestyle keeps them there. I have even had students make fun of the homeless and they were completely ignorant in their remarks and callous jokes. Yet, many of them are on free breakfast and lunch. So they may also be one rent check or welfare check away from the very people they so heartlessly joke about.
Let me educate you in real life, being homeless for many is just one paycheck away.
Just ask the families in line at the Rescue mission in Fresno. Or ask me! I sure didn’t choose to be homeless.
I know, because despite my teaching credential and my Masters degree, as well as excellent references and evaluations it happened to me. Budget cuts can happen to anyone. Especially in rural areas like Madera.
Believe me when I say it was not a choice lifestyle for a woman of my age. I lived in my car for three months. I even had to beg for gas money. Thank God I was able to come back to my family. I’m not homeless now, but am still one paycheck away like thousands of others.
I’m not supporting any one side, but they deserve to be heard just like you. CRLA is doing their job and that is why our tax money supports them. Because we the people saw the need for those that need repesentation and cannot afford it.
And one other thing, it is hard to get a job when you are homeless. I challenge you to spend a few days without and on the streets. Then you can tell me if you have a voice in our community, or if you could find a job. Of course you won’t , it is just too easy to pick on the homeless from where you sit. So what is the community really doing for the homeless? A bed, a shower, a few vouchers for food. A lot of looking the other way? Blind to the problems of a few? There are a lot of good people trying to help, but you don’t seem like one of them.
So before you criticize and condemn count your blessings that you are not a homeless person.