Maybe Not, But It Is An Appropriate Response To Protect The Public…

Plans to introduce tough new powers to tackle begging in Southampton have been criticised by a homelessness charity.

The chief executive of the Society of St James (SSJ) says he opposes the plans as "threatening people with legal action is not an appropriate response to dealing with complex social issues".

No, but it is an appropriate response to allow ordinary, hardworking people to shop unmolested by drunks/drugged beggars.

Labour council chiefs say the plans, which could see begging banned in five areas of the city and beggars handed fines or arrested, are designed to crack down on "bogus" beggars who are not homeless but making up to £200 a day on the city's streets.

Nice ‘work’ if you can get it…

As is mooching off the state in one of the ‘service industries’ that feeds off these people:

Trevor Pickup, chief executive of the SSJ which works with homeless people in the city, has written a letter saying that he opposes the move.

He says: "We understand that the issues are complex and that many of the people who have been begging are not homeless.

"There are also people who are homeless and sleeping rough who are not begging.

"SSJ undertook a survey in the summer and spoken to 51 people who were begging.

"The most common reason given for begging was to get money for alcohol and drugs, with 75 per cent of them saying they were dependant on drugs and alcohol. "

I think you’ve rather proved the Labour council chiefs point there, Trevor…

"Another issue that was raised was that of problems faced by people trying to access welfare benefits, due to the tougher demands faced by claimants."

Working as intended!

He says issues should be addressed by offering "more effective" outreach services to help get homeless people into alcohol and drug treatment programmes and "educating the public not to give to beggars but to donate to charities and local agencies", saying both approaches are being considered by the council.

You can offer whatever you see fit, but if there’s no element of compulsion, you’ll never stop people begging or giving to beggars.

The only option left is, therefore, to remove them.

"We believe people should be supported to help them overcome their issues.

"Begging is a symptom of complex problems in people’s lives and criminalising this cannot be seen as a humane response in the 21st century."

Tough. It’s a crime. It has been for a long time, and for good reason.

Oh, Give It A Rest!

Mr Julian, who has worked on his family’s stall in Ridley Road for 45 years, said: “The impact will be long-term.

Traders will be in a position where they won’t be able to afford to pay their rents to trade the way they trade.

“I can understand the council can’t subsidise everything and they do pick what they feel is most important.

“Our market is really diverse – it’s a multi-racial area and a fantastic place for individuals and groups to meet every day. I feel the council could have helped subsidise us slightly in respect of the market for the coming years.”

And I'm sure we all agree, that being 'diverse' and 'multicultural' shouldn't mean that you get to dump your rotting garbage in the street for others to bear the cost of cleaning up...

Cllr Demirci said the market could help keep down cleaning costs by separating waste properly.

So do that. Quit whining, and expecting your VictimhoodPoker card to be an ace in the hole.

They Sound Eminently Reasonable To Me...

Judge Lynn Roberts has made a care order which means the couple must share parental responsibility with Essex County Council to ensure the youngster's welfare needs are met.

The judge said the couple had an entrenched mistrust and a lack of respect and appeared to assume no non-medical professional involved with their daughter was to be trusted
.

Sounds like they have their heads screwed on right then!

Family courts and care orders are, of course, famously secretive, and no details have emerged on why they might feel this way (other than the social services' well deserved reputation in Essex, of course). Are there any clues?

Judge Roberts said the girl had complex medical, physical and psychological difficulties and concluded a care order was necessary.

She said: "Her father is very protective of his daughter for understandable reasons.

"He considers he has had to fight hard to get her the services she requires."

Aha! Say no more. The farmer doesn't like it much when the sheep objects to being herded or shorn...

It Doesn't Take The Detecting Skills Of Sherlock Holmes, Does It?

A celebrated DJ and his fiancé claim they were subjected to homophobic abuse by staff at a central London department store.

Who would do such a thing? Are there any clues?

DJ Fat Tony, real name Tony Marnach, claims he and partner David Graham were threatened with violence and called “batty men” by a security guard at House of Fraser.

Hmmm....

Mr Marnach, 50, has been DJing for 30 years and counts Boy George among his friends. He said he asked the workers what their “problem” was, only to be told: “I ain’t got no problem with you.”

He alleges the worker kissed her teeth at him.

Elementary!

Calming Fears...

Councillor James Holmes, who represents Trinity ward, where the park is located, reassured residents that this sort of crime remains very rare in the area.

He said: “What happened is obviously a very upsetting incident and it’s bound to be a worry for local residents.

He added: “It appears to be an isolated incident. It’s important not to treat it as anything other than that unless there’s evidence otherwise.

“These things will trigger a review over anything that could be changed in the park, but it shouldn’t be with an expectation that anything has gone wrong.”

Chief Inspector at Merton Police, Mark Lawrence, said: “The South Park Gardens incident is an isolated incident between parties that knew each other.

“We continue to be one of the lowest crime boroughs in London. Crime in Merton is actually down on last year.

“Incidents like this continue to cause us concern, but Merton continues to be one of the safest boroughs in London and people shouldn’t be alarmed.”

Translation: "Just a shit-on-shit attack, folks, nothing to see here, move along..."

Meanwhile, in Bromley:

Ch Supt Hafford said...“This was an unfortunate one-off incident which ended up causing some distress for shoppers.

“Bromley is not a designated ‘gangs borough’, however, a recent Home Office peer review identified that, in common with many other places around the country, we are experiencing emerging gang issues.

“We are working with the council and other key partners to take action to keep our borough the safe and pleasant place it has always been.”

Councillor Kate Lymer, Bromley Council’s portfolio holder for public protection and safety who met with Ch Supt Hafford on Tuesday, said the row involved young people from another borough.

She said: “I want to reassure residents and shoppers that this was an isolated incident, nothing to do with terrorism, and involved young people from outside the borough fighting amongst themselves. 

“Nonetheless, I can appreciate it was undoubtedly alarming for those who were there at the time.”

And in Hull:

Superintendant Darren Downs said he was sure community was very "shocked and surprised" by what happened.

But he said: "I would like to reassure the communities that Humberside Police are investigating the incident and have two people in custody and are actively seeking further individuals we believe we are involved."

He said: " I would reassure people that, at this moment in time, it appears an isolated incident between individuals that are known to each other.

"At no time did Humberside Police fire any shots and we believe that it is safe for the public to revisit frequent and utilise the area around St Andrew's Quay."

Hmmm, do these people all work to a script?

'Mail' Discovers Public Are Ignorant About Zoology Too!

Well, of course! I mean, everyone knows lions are from the North Pole and zebras from the South Pole, so they'd never....

Wait.

Starting The New Year Off With A Bang...

...for all local newspaper photo editors everywhere, What would we do without you?

Sunday Funnies...

Well, sure, but who cares? It's just entertainment! *grumbles* Spoilsport scientists!

Well, No....

A college education no longer functions – if it ever did – as a ticket out of poverty...

...because it's not a magic golden ticket, if you have too many other issues. And boy (girl?), do you have other issues!

...especially not for people at the crux of different forms of discrimination. As a trans person of color and survivor of LGBTQ youth homelessness, I struggled after graduating from college. Actually, that sentence belongs in the present tense: I am still struggling very much.

Ummm...

OK, so who is Christopher Soto?

Christopher Soto (aka Loma) is a poet and activist living in Brooklyn. Their (sic) chapbook Sad Girl Poems is forthcoming from Sibling Rivalry Press in January 2016.

Wha..?

I graduated in May with my master’s degree from New York University. I have not been hired for full time work yet...

Gosh! The poetry business ain't hiring? Shocker!

Maybe you should have studied something else? I mean, it must be your fault that..

Oh.

There is enough money in my savings account to last me until the end of February but, if I do not find work by then, I’m not sure what will happen. What is a survivor of LGBTQ youth homelessness going to do if they are facing employment discrimination, housing discrimination and have no familial support to help them during the transition out of college?

Yes, it's 'discrimination' that must be the answer.

I thought getting a higher education would make things different, but it turns out demographics have been stacked against me the whole time.

Yup, demographics are to blame. Not you. Of course.

This is a structural problem, so we need structural solutions. The LGBTQ movement should take notice – and take care – of the homeless youth (of color) in their community that struggle into young adulthood because of circumstances such as employment and housing discrimination.

Ah, because you're special, over and above anyone else. How nice!

Homeless LGBTQ youth need free and optional housing to supplement the estimated 4,000 beds available for homeless young adults nationwide, only about 350 of which are LGBTQ specific, the Ali Forney head told NBC News last year.

TANSTAAFL, chum...

We need affirmative action in the workplace and in housing (there are employment laws and housing laws to protect against gender-based discrimination but laws aren’t always followed).

So laws aren't followed, so we need more laws..?

We need to focus on decriminalizing sex work (as suggested by Amnesty International this year) and decriminalizing drug use (Portugal did it 14 years ago, and the prevalence of drug use dropped).

Wait, what? How on earth did this demand creep in, and .... why?

Homeless LGBTQ youth sometimes turn to alternative forms of income such as sex work and selling drugs in order to survive. This, in turn, means frequent contact with the police. People should not be criminalized for poverty.

Ah! Right. No, dear, you don't get busted for 'poverty', that's not on the statute books, but for prostitution and drug dealing. You don't need to do that, you could study (a genuine subject this time) and get a job.

Like everyone else.

We need healthcare and doctors who understand the trans community.

That might be a tough ask. Frankly, you're mostly hysterical and incoherent, at least, the public 'faces' of transgender, the squeaky wheels getting all the media grease, anyway.

You don't understand yourselves.

We need to be able to use the bathrooms and locker rooms of our choice and move through the world safely (gender discrimination guidelines like the ones New York City just passed are a start).

While you have the plumbing of a male, you'll use the male toilets. And vice versa. Don't like it? Get it cut off!

We need opportunities to help us succeed into our adulthood, to become the adults that we want to become.

You've had them. That you haven't made the most of them is....well, frankly, it's on you, isn't it?

Don't Mention The War Truth!

Zac Goldsmith’s mayoral campaign team is investigating a claim that one of their canvassers made an Islamophobic remark about the Labour candidate, Sadiq Khan.

Gosh! What did he say?

That Muslims are behind most of the wars in the world today? That their system of government is vile and misogynistic? That they increase tensions in communities with their incessant demands for capitulation to their (alien) culture?

The unidentified man was said to have been distributing leaflets for the Conservative candidate when he allegedly referred to Khan as “the Muslim” in a doorstep exchange with Perry Pontac, of Streatham, south London.

Ummm, so....isn't he a Muslim, then?

Are we supposed to not notice?!?

Pontac told the Guardian that the exchange occurred at lunchtime on 22 December. He said that as he returned home from shopping, he saw a white, middle-aged man standing in the front garden who indicated he was distributing leaflets.

Pontac said he opened the door and picked up the “Back Zac” flyers before offering to hand them back to the canvasser. “I told him: ‘You can have these back because I’m not voting for him, I’m voting for the MP for Tooting [Khan],’” he said.

He claimed the man replied in a disdainful tone: “You’re voting for the Muslim?”

So, it was his tone he objected to? Did he really expect any other response, when he mounted his high horse, strapped on his buckler of Righteousness and sallied forth?

Pontac, who was born in the US but is now a naturalised UK citizen having lived in Britain for 45 years, said he had never met Khan and lived just outside of his constituency.

He said he was a Labour voter and was once a party member but dropped out when Tony Blair took the UK into the Iraq war.

As a writer, he said, he was careful with words and was sure that he did not mishear the canvasser. “I am very careful about what I say because I don’t want any holes to be picked in what I say ,” he said.

No, I bet. I hope getting your name in the Guardian for this provides you with the warm glow of (self)satisfaction you're clearly searching desperately for, Mr Pontac.