ElleGee

Maybe they had the cell phone/clothes previous to them becoming homeless. You don't know what their job was before becoming homeless. You don't know how long they have been homeless for.

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Unicornmom77

My mom and I talk about this all the time, she hates when she has to go ask for assistance and the people in line with her have on Nike's and stuff like that, but they get a lot of that stuff free... if not hey they have no rent or bills to pay, what else would they spend their money on, drugs n booze, or some nike's...

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jonette5

Judgemental much?

Let me tell you a true story. I have a friend who became homeless two years ago (she is not homeless now). Before hand she was an RN making $60,000 a year, had nice clothes, nice home, nice car, cell phone, computer etc... Due to no fault of her own she lost her job. Even with her degree it took her over a year to find a job. She lost her home, sold nearly everything she owned and was homeless. She really was not "homeless" another friend of ours had a room in her basement that she could stay in but in all essence she was homeless. She only had unemployment to live off of and that even ran out before she found work, but she did keep her cell phone so she could call and get calls about jobs. She went to the career center or library to use the computer to post her resume. She still had nice clothes and a nice cell phone, but that did not mean she wasn't having hard times. You never know what is going on in others lives, so I would say don't judge until you have walked in their shoes.

shadowcats

they sell quite swanky pay as you go phones everywhere now a days and hell even if your living under a bridge , if you had to chose between having a phone to call 911 or an idiot trying to kill or rob you ,,,,,,heck i'd bum money myself so i could at least be able to contact someone,,,,,, and theres electrical plug ins everywhere nowadays,,,,,,, not too many places you cant find one if your looking for them,,,,,,,,,,, when katrina hit,,,,,,, we didnt have a cell phone ,we arent rich but we not that poor we couldnt afford one , we just didnt think we needed one WRONG,,,,,,, it was hell , so many people evacuateing the coast every public phone from here to the georgia line was in use , couldnt find a phone open anywhere ,,,,,,,,,, couldtn t contact family to say we were out,,,,,,,,,,lol ,,,,,,,,,so think twice when you complain about someone homeless having a cell,,,,,,,,,heck it probley would be the first thing id beg money for ,,,,,,,,,saw a documentary on tv the other nite, on homeless and the panhandlers ,,,,,,,,, it really opens your eyes to how hard this economy is on people ,,,,,,,,,, i grew up in new orleans and i know there are alot of scammers out there but the majority of them are people that could be us in the furture,,,,,,,,,,,,
sharon

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my son joshua when he was 18 now deceased in 2002 , always remembered always loved

Mini

I agree..just cause your homeless and have a cell phone dont mean much anymore. I mean heck some homeless people still have contact with family members and they could possibly have a phone through them thats paid by them. LOTS of homeless people like to stay in contact but they wont go live with family. Could be any number of reasons. With the economy the way it is and even people with good jobs going homeless having nice clothes is a given for some(not to mention stealing them and etc)

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To see the future you must forget your past...otherwise your past will become your future

Jenefer3

Just because someone has name brand clothes doesn't mean much. There's a "store" next to the homeless shelter here where anyone is allowed to go in and get a bag of clothes at a time (there's limits but I don't know exactly what they are). A lot of the stores like Macy's, PacSun, Fred Meyer, etc. donate a lot of their clothes there. A friend of mine is the the manager at PacSun and she takes stuff in all the time, it's brand new and brand name...like Volcom, Fox, etc. If a homeless person goes in there and "shops" then they'd have brand name clothing (not all of it is brand name stuff from the stores).

And homeless doesn't mean penniless. It just means they don't have a home. They could be getting money from something but it not be enough to pay for a home.

My family is lucky that we've never had to be homeless or wonder where our next meal is going to come from. We've also been blessed to be able to afford clothes, shoes, and whatever else that we need or want.

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I don't make mistakes; I create learning experiences.

Jolie Rouge

I have been homeless too. I lived out of my car, sold plasma for gas money so I could look for a job, left a friends' address and phone # as contact information. I showered at a local truck stop, knew every soup kitchen, food pantry and nightclub "free buffet" in town.

I posted this article because I think it is a waste of money to buy cell phones for the homeless, there are a great number of them that claim to be "homeless" that are not ( my friend was one of those ) who hid assests so that they could claim goverment benefits rather then have to get a JOB and WORK. Not everyone who recieves benefits is on the take ... but they are not all "helpless victims of circumstance" eigther. JMHO

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Laissez les bon temps rouler! Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.** a 4 day work week & sex slaves ~ I say Tyt for PRESIDENT! Not to be taken internally, literally or seriously ....Suki ebaynni IS THAT BETTER ?

anothersta

I've been homeless, too. Many people have at one time or another. Funny how folks think you haven't walked a mile in their shoes lol

My point is, our country's homeless have cel phones, nice clothes and food. So, why is this country bashed for not taking care of its poor?

Back in my day, I'd have sold the Nike shoes and saved up for some rent. You could pick up a pair of shoes for .50 at goodwill back in those days. I think sometimes it's a matter of setting clear priorities.

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If you can't get to DC on 9/12, come on down to Quincy! http://www.quincyteaparty.com

anothersta

Did youall get the free gov cheese? OMG, that was so good. I liked it even better when they gave it away in the Spring/Fall cause you could put it in a cooler on the porch to keep it fresh.

I didn't have a fridge, couldn't afford one, had to pay rent.

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If you can't get to DC on 9/12, come on down to Quincy! http://www.quincyteaparty.com

whatever

Okay I guess I'm more practical and I can see both sides of the coin on this one. Instead of using money for a phone and minutes. Why not save the money they would be using on it and use it to get a room, food etc.
I don't see the harm in a phone. But a phone is not a necessity IMO.

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My "adopted" brother. Gone but not forgotten. 8/23/09

pepperpot

It's somewhat ironic.......there were those who 'scolded' Jennifer Anniston for spending too much for hair care....money she earned and paid taxes on....at a much higher rate, I may add, than the 'average Joe'...... It is very common to see the 'wealthy' chastised for spending their money..... However, the guilt and 'judgmental' attitudes get thrown around like candy at Halloween when someone dares 'question' a supposedly downtrodden person receiving the benefits of the working tax dollars.... And usually, the ones who are raising these questions, I have found, are the 'working poor' and middle class who are themselves working, paying taxes, sacrificing and 'questioning' something that they either cannot or can barely afford....... ironic how one group of people are allowed to be judged and burned at the stake but the other is not allowed to be questioned....

And yes, it is the few, but ever growing, 'bad apple abusers' that make it 'look bad' for the rest....

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Mrs Pepperpot is a lady who always copes with the tricky situations that she finds herself in....