Omghi2u :)
I'm trying to raise awareness about a program thats about to happen in Brisneyland this coming thursday and friday (18th,19th Oct) about our local homeless population.
Its basically an interactive experience for people aged 18-25, where participants will spend 2 days and one night living on streets and doing a bunch of activities like visiting drop in centres and selling the big issue etc.

We're organising a bunch of speakers to talk about their homeless experiences first hand, and trying to help people understand the full range of issues that affect the homeless population.

I think its an awesome cause, worthy of your attention, and would appreciate any feedback/support you brisbane bums could give.

I've done a post with more information here , and also im trying to promote it via digg if you wanna help spread the word.

This is a non profit venture, and I also don't display ads on the post above for the cynics thinking im profiting from this in any way. I just desperately want to see this first trial run succeed and generate interest so it can get a grant, and become an annual event.

I hope this isnt out of line by posting because I guess its close to advertising, but if we can be subjecting to the wang dance then you can spare 30 seconds for this :oP

Will the homeless be taking money and spending it on drugs/alcohol? They really need to fix that before I do anything

Good work!

We have a pretty good support network for the homeless in Australia, it's just the attitude that needs to change.

No fun being homeless, everybody should do their two bits.

Just do what the Chasers did last night.

Thanks for highlighting the exact attitude problem this program is trying to fight, crazy keed.

last edited by smashcrab at 15:57:07 11/Oct/07

last edited by smashcrab at 15:57:23 11/Oct/07

i have always wondered why the homeless can't live on government welfare but old age pensioners can...

might get back to substance addiction/mental health issues i guess.

i have always wondered why the homeless can't live on government welfare but old age pensioners can...

might get back to substance addiction/mental health issues i guess.

Pretty much.

You can't just "live" on welfare unless you have a problem (mental or physical), otherwise they cram you down into $10/hr absolute pit jobs. I've seen people live a comfortable life off there $340/fort, then when they're forced into a 40 hour week dishwashing job they head back to drugs and everything explodes again.

I avoided it by studying, unfortunately that's not an option for a lot of people.

i see what your saying chub, but the difference between homeless people (ie people with a mental problem) and us normal people is simply will power. A will to do what is right and just, and don't rely on anyone but ourselves. We see the conceqences of our actions and choose our lifesyle accordingly.

The homeless have made a choice. Its like religion. They are old enough to figure out for themselves what they want. Leave them alone, cos if they wanted to change they would.

I'll do my bit by getting drunk and sleeping on the chair out the back of my house. Then I might harass people people as they walk down the street and insult them about having a job cause they wont buy my magazine.

lol, who said homeless people are mentally ill :) I know plenty of homeless/former homeless people that have a solid head on their shoulders. If they got off the street, they would not be given Centrelink to live off, rather forced into s***ty jobs and end back out again.

Not saying we should just give everyone money, just pointing out infi's post again.

So whats the deal with homeless people anyway? What is the most common reasons they aren't working or working for the dole?

got a dolla bruz?

when someone asks me for change for the train, at the train station, I like to f*** them off by saying no worries where are you going to? I'll buy you a ticket

the $2 I'm risking by offering to do this is well and truly worth the priceless look on the face of some punk kid who's trying to scam $2 for metho

Well I've only worked for NSP/HIV programs so I would say drugs.

Mental illness goes hand in hand, but it's a bit of a chicken/egg scenario.

To top it off, work sucks...

:)

the $2 I'm risking by offering to do this is well and truly worth the priceless look on the face of some punk kid who's trying to scam $2 for metho

I usually ask where they're going and buy the ticket.

I don't give out random money, it's not always beneficial to the person.

last edited by CHUB at 16:27:28 11/Oct/07

did you read my post?

when someone asks me for change for the train, at the train station, I like to f*** them off by saying no worries where are you going to? I'll buy you a ticket

Yeah I did, I was just backing you up :)

oh ok well yeah, I do love to s*** stir people, especially rude people

If I wanna piss off a homeless person when they ask for $2 for the train I will just offer to buy them the whole ticket if they tell me where they're going to.

The looks of disappointment I get....

yeah, I do the same, if someone asks me "spare us a $ for a cup of coffee/ticket/food?" etc, the look on their faces when I offer (genuinely) to buy them the ticket/food/coffee etc "na mate, can you just spare the change?"
"nope - sorry, not gonna happen"

I've lived life as a bum for a few years when I was a teenager (absolutely no reason for it - just a lazy scumbag) - then one day I woke up an realised I was being a tard an got productive with my life.

At least now I can afford the amount of beer I drink :)

where participants will spend 2 days and one night living on streets

I'll just head back to my house when it reaches this point.

there is no such thing as homeless now days, everyone has choices and the choose to be there. o and yes I have lived on the streets and hit rock bottom so kiddies don't start

Wow, awesome post.

You fail.

Also what measures are in place in case someone takes up the challenge and gets assaulted. Is there some sort of security in place where they will be sleeping?

f*** the homeless. Last time i was in the city, i won money at the casino and gave a homeless guy 20 dollars cause he looked tired and hungry. He walked over to the bottleshop and bought a bottle of something then pissed off and drank it.

You can take a horse to water, but you can't make it drink...

f*** the homeless.

Wow, awesome post.

You fail.

no you do

Anyone who thinks of giving to the homeless should see South Park "Night of the Living Homeless".

f*** the homeless. Last time i was in the city, i won money at the casino and gave a homeless guy 20 dollars cause he looked tired and hungry. He walked over to the bottleshop and bought a bottle of something then pissed off and drank it.

You can take a horse to water, but you can't make it drink...

f*** the homeless.

What would you do with $20 if you were homeless, at least be realistic.

If they were hungry, I would expect them to buy some food, but other then that wtf is $20 going to do...

let me put it this way

If you want to do good for disadvantaged people in society, don't give your money to people who choose a condition. Give the money to an organsiation or charity that helps people who didn't choose their condition, ie cancer etc.

'Nuf said.

Silly Hardware.

While medical research is very important... I would rather help a teenage street kid that was abused (and hence left home) then a 60yo with cancer because he smoked a pack a day for his entire lifetime.

Cant we just harvest the homeless organs and use them for medical research.

I'm not talking about lung cancer - most of the time that's a chosen condition! You didn't listen chub. Give the money to a charity or organisation (or volunteer for them in some capacity) that looks after people with forced conditions that are detromental to their lifestyle.

I said give the money towards helping an unchosen condition
Don't give the money towards a chosen condition

Oh and BTW chub - there are plenty of organisations around willing to help young people out on the street - my fiance works for the dept of child safety so i should know....

last edited by Mr Hardware at 17:31:29 11/Oct/07

Hardware, why does it matter who it's going to... it's helping someone, regardless.

Have you got some kind of emotional investment in your donation? I don't see why it would matter.

Yeah I know there's a good support network, read my first post... the attitude needs to change as you can clearly see from this thread.

It matters because people that chose to be f***tards dont deserve to be given money.

Wow, awesome post.

You fail.

no you do

And the homeless, they fail too.

Homeless people are useless, all they do is keep Coolabah, Stanley, and Sunnyvale in business.

While medical research is very important... I would rather help a teenage street kid that was abused (and hence left home) then a 60yo with cancer because he smoked a pack a day for his entire lifetime.

Bad generalisation. 'Medical research' also encompasses s***ty incurable conditions like MS that strike anyone without warning.

Not saying that every homeless is there because of their own choices, but many are.

I think some of you guys who say donating to charities is the best thing would be made sick about how little of the donated money actually goes directly to whatever cause you're donating to. When I fly I sometimes see those little pouches that ask you to donate whatever pocket change you have. My first reaction was, "what a great idea..." but then I thought about it a little harder: unless they have volunteers counting the money, the change in my pocket wouldn't even cover the wage of whoever was counting it. And even if it was a volunteer, there time would be better of going towards something more tangible.

Smashed crab you dont know a girl called Justine do you, juzzy ?

wow. i'm overwhelmed by how insensitive some of you people seem to be. i don't think you can stereotype or judge these people without really knowing their situation, you have no idea how they got there or whether it was their own choice or not. I personally would never choose that lifestyle. smashedcrab, do you have any further info about it? i might be interested in taking part.

there is no such thing as homeless now days, everyone has choices and the choose to be there.

Too right. My friend works with homeless people. While he feels for their situation and circumstances, he completely acknowledges that they are their by choice. I've got another friend who works for Centrelink, he says homeless people can get help. I'm not going to help people who won't help themselves. I'd also like to add the Big Issue sucks balls...

wow. i'm overwhelmed by how insensitive some of you people seem to be.

QGL is hardly the place to go shopping for care bear stares.

I personally would never choose that lifestyle.

Exactally. Their life choices lead them to that place, there is sufficient recourse for them to choose to do some thing about it... but they dont.

yeah f*** oath, you could get yourself off the street purely by government and organisations etc, but aslong as people keep feeding them for free and etc

Some people do need help.

s*** I even had to supply syringes to a 12 year old.

Jigzie - Yeah, Justine is who got me interested in the program :)

Trixx - Awesome, but I don't know too much more than what I've posted here and on my blog, your best bet would be to fire off an email to stepintomyshoes_crew@hotmail.com

Chub - Resphect, one of the few responses that didn't make feel sick and dissapointed in people.

Most others - Stop with the random stereotypes and oversimplifications. Nobody's asking for donations here, the idea was to ADJUST ATTITUDES by letting people experience something close to homeless life in the city..

i seen homeless in brissy, they setup camp next to the union building just before the willy jolly bridge, under the trainway there

we'd drive past in the morning, and were amazed at all the furniture they had amassed (beds, chairs, cars)

then they got moved on

and all moved down to the river at west end

u walk along there up behind pauls, and theres like a shanty town!

they dont look like they are doing it that tough to me . .. .

last edited by Spook at 20:06:47 11/Oct/07

shanty towns sound awesome
you can buy all the realestate for like $50

seems like more bums in toowong lately

someone must be giving em money

If a bum asks me for money for whatever reason, and I genuinely have some spare change then I will probably give it to him or her. Yes, the person may well intend to use the money to go get loaded, and even have told a porky pie about what the money is for. It doesn't concern me.

If they enjoy getting loaded as I myself do, what harm is there in giving a stranger a little fun.

If on the other hand they have a substance abuse issue keeping them on the streets, then (a) better they spend my spare change than be tempted to resort to theft and (b) they will have to 'hit bottom' before willingly seeking help, the sooner they do so the better.

Can i've some money? I need it for err... food.
Beer is food right?

homeless people are dumbstupids hahaweeeeeeeeeeeyeowdiddywoop

i'm overwhelmed by how insensitive some of you people seem to be.

And here I was thinking that QGL was solving world hunger and curing cancer.

i don't think you can stereotype or judge these people without really knowing their situation, you have no idea how they got there or whether it was their own choice or not.

But I just did.

Most others - Stop with the random stereotypes and oversimplifications. Nobody's asking for donations here, the idea was to ADJUST ATTITUDES by letting people experience something close to homeless life in the city..

Welcome to the Internet, have you been living under a rock or something.

I'm curious as to what homeless people can get from centrelink?

You need an address, some proof of ID and whatnot just to get centrelink, if you don't have those, how do you go about getting welfare?

http://www.centrelink.gov.au/internet/internet.nsf/services/homeless.htm

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z70/saritsuko/those-are-my-shoes.jpg

Whaaa... what about the kids who's parents are drug addicts or who beat them? Yes they have a "choice"... but it's not much to choose from. My mum has worked with homeless kids who are "choosing" to get their life back on track and go back to school (a school for drugos/homeless etc) and it's not like these guys wake up one day and go, "you know what? I might drop all my possessions and try sleeping in a gutter. Yeh. That sounds like fun."

no actually f***it....


if you've let yourself go that far that it effects your spawns then the people helping you should have a duty to let the authorities know


I've watched drug addicts/phsycos/alcoholics beat their kids, wives and friends for no good reason - and still recieve the support and goodwill of our societies various volunteer carers.


It's a f***ing disgrace that I'll never again have anything to do with.. with the exception of providing opportunity for my daughters to see part-time volunteer work. It's a character building excercise that more of us would do well do have more than just theory on

hey what the hell happened to Ziggy? I was going through Toowong a couple of weeks ago and I couldn't see him or his telltale plastic bags. Is he dead?

Yeh he's been missing for months now.... :/

he moved off didn't he? somewhere into hiding or something after someone threw something that was on fire at him

he's living it up in las vegas afaik.

he didnt appreciate the molotov.. but he just looked so cold.

I was under the impression he had retired to a quiet park. Something about his work was done ... seriously ... saw it on channel 7 news or some crap.

he moved off didn't he? somewhere into hiding or something after someone threw something that was on fire at him

Pretty sure he stuck around well after that. It could have been the reason he moved but it didn't happen straight away.

no no thats right

he moved after someone threw a milk crate that was on fire at him, i don't think it was the first time he had had something on fire launched at him

geez it's dangerous to be a hobo.

What people don't realise is that a lot of these homeless people can't get jobs or the dole because they don't have a f***ing home.

Without a home they can't get ID, a bank account and heaps of other things, they have almost no identity, so unless other people look after them they are kind of stuck, nothing they really can do, they aren't lazy like you dumb f***s think.

I have a friend living on the streets, had an abusive father and a hopeless addict mother, finally the father left and the mother got with another guy just as abusive, moved interstate after two weeks and refused to take her son with her.

He had around 3 friends that he stayed with for a while but he couldnt expect those familys to take him in all the time so having no other family he went to a homeless shelter, he said he has never been more scared so he left for the street, so he didnt really have a choice in it did he ?

last edited by Deathwalker at 11:38:10 12/Oct/07

theres no excuse, if you don't have a job it's by choice
we currently have the lowest unemployment record in a long long time, if you can't get a job on a factory production line or in a laboring profession, you aren't trying hard enough

maybe some of them just want attention?

oi deathwalker, go read the link scooter provided in post 51. Someone already thought about this before you, and there are services in place for this.

What people don't realise is that every issue that has been brought up in this thread, there is a govt service or a charity specially designed for these issues headed by fully qualified and competent people.

I don't see the point to step into my shoes because it isn't helping the people with the 'problem'. There are dozens of avenues to help the problem, and this isn't one of them.

theres no excuse, if you don't have a job it's by choice
we currently have the lowest unemployment record in a long long time, if you can't get a job on a factory production line or in a laboring profession, you aren't trying hard enough

maybe some of them just want attention?

Did you even read what Deathwalker said?

He was spot on.

Secondary to that, a lot of have mental health problems.

What do they ask you for when you go for a job?
Bank Account Details, ID etc.
What do you need for those things.. Money, Fixed Address and another form of ID (whether it be birth certs etc. which also cost money to obtain).

Could they do something about it? Perhaps, but there is also learned helplessness.
Then you have depression (or other MH issues) on top and suddenly you have a complex issue, not one as simple as you describe it to "just go get a job".
Could they find a cash in hand job? Maybe... would it pay much more than food to live? Probably not... How about quitting an addiction/dependence (more than likely cigarettes/alcohol/weed at most) without any Social support/Peer support?

Secondly, Transitional Housing Commissions aren't unlimited resources, even they are scarce and hard to get into.. and funnily enough, they still require payments from the client living there.
Hostels/Free homes - people tend to move around alot, hard to get dole/pensions delivered to a NoFixedAddress.

last edited by J at 11:49:31 12/Oct/07

then I thought about it a little harder: unless they have volunteers counting the money, the change in my pocket wouldn't even cover the wage of whoever was counting it. And even if it was a volunteer, there time would be better of going towards something more tangible.

you know they have these machines that sort and count coins these days..

I'm not saying that the cause of homelessness usually isn't unfortunate.

I'm saying that there are plenty of govt services, charitys and aid organisations available for these homeless people to go to.

Usually, but not always, it is their own choice to stay homeless, and this may be through a lack of logical thought process brought about by mental illness, but how do you fix someone who refuses to be fixed?

@ ara:

doesn't matter, i think the point billy is making is who pays for the machines?

ACA or some drivel show like that did a story last year on the homeless in sydney, they set some reporter up as a homeless kid and he collected $1500 in one day

they said they gave the money to charity but f*** me, I want $1500/day

@ ara:

doesn't matter, i think the point billy is making is who pays for the machines?

business donations.

look at HP/compaq for an example with the starlight foundation.

all their computer kit is HP/compaq. when kids request pcs as their wish they also hand them over.

HP has a simular arrangement with the wesley mission in sydney.

last edited by ara at 12:06:16 12/Oct/07

loki I like how you ask mr hardware if he even read deathwalker's post, when it's clear he did, and that you totally glossed over his valid response to deathwalker.

as for needing id and an address to get a job, give me a f***ing break, there are so many building industry blokes who'd give you a cashie with no identification whatsoever. it's so easy to get started working in this country with absolutely nothing but the right attitude, that it's not even funny

heh, well fair enough =)

but i think what he's saying about how a large proportion of a donation (depending on the charity) doesn't go directly towards whatever the problem is - a lot is lost in admin, salaries, etc.

just like alot of your salary goes into tax

that doesn't mean you shouldn't earn money

likewise

that doesn't mean you shouldn't give money to the right organisations. They need trained professionals (psychologists etc) to guide the organisation so that the money that is actually used on the receivers of the service, is used to full effect


I'd prefer to give $20 and have only $9 of that actually benefit someone than give $20 to some random homeless and let him frit it away on something that doesn't beneift his situation in the long run.

it's so easy to get started working in this country with absolutely nothing but the right attitude, that it's not even funny

Jim speaks the truth. We as unqualified (in this matter) individuals can do nothing to help these people. The only way is to give our money or time to organisations that can.

last edited by Mr Hardware at 12:17:34 12/Oct/07

If I wanna piss off a homeless person when they ask for $2 for the train I will just offer to buy them the whole ticket if they tell me where they're going to.

The looks of disappointment I get....

Haha, even better would be the look on your face when they say they need a ticket to Rockhampton.

you are wrong if you think every single homeless person is employable if they choose to be so.

I've seen some pretty retarded kids working behind the counter at mcdonalds.. im sure a homeless hobo could do better than lots of their staff infact

also whats stopping some yobo getting a cloth and bucket + washing windows
if they wash 1000 windows in the day and 1 in 10 of those cars gives them $2, they make more money than your average wage earner (mostly because they dont pay tax on that $200)

no your wron'g demon

there are laws against that teq

probably the general steriotype homeless is capable of getting a job if they chose to do so... but i assure you, not all of them can. i know a guy with brain damage that cannot control his motor nerves so he can barely walk, can't pick anything up in his hands without dropping it, he is barely understandable when he talk, he cant write coz his hands shake too much. he has no family or friends to support him & he can't get a disability pension coz he doesn't have an address. he cannot get a job, he can't even contribute to community based disabled workshops... coz he can't even do that simple work. he is unemployable.

In that situation demon, a social worker could get him an address which leads to a disability pension and he's home free for the rest of his life, it's just the first step that sucks.

On the topic of the homeless making money, anybody seen that young kid that has like a baby/child xylophone (has like 5 keys) and he plays melodies near central station on it.

Damn catchy, they get stuck in your head :)

chub is right, there are plenty of organisations/services that can help demon's friend's situation. there is no homeless person who NEEDS to be homeless.

loki I like how you ask mr hardware if he even read deathwalker's post, when it's clear he did, and that you totally glossed over his valid response to deathwalker.

I'm glad you glossed over my post to see I wasn't even responding to the person you think I was.

I'm also glad you work with homeless people, know any, or work with anybody with a MH or the services to have any real clue to what these people are actually like other than "omgz just go get a job"

Alot of people are so thought disordered and disorganised they COULDN'T hold a job or perform the duties required to get paid.

last edited by J at 14:01:36 12/Oct/07

oh noes
teq's post was equally as valid

I know heaps more about this than you

probably the general steriotype homeless is capable of getting a job if they chose to do so... but i assure you, not all of them can. i know a guy with brain damage that cannot control his motor nerves so he can barely walk, can't pick anything up in his hands without dropping it, he is barely understandable when he talk, he cant write coz his hands shake too much. he has no family or friends to support him & he can't get a disability pension coz he doesn't have an address. he cannot get a job, he can't even contribute to community based disabled workshops... coz he can't even do that simple work. he is unemployable.

This is your brain on pills (and bad music)...

i didnt wanna name any names... but yer... the guy is obes. :D

but he could go to a shelter, he could get assistance to be placed in a home, he could get government hand outs, he could have government care from public nurses

theres no need for him to be cluttering up my tax payer funded bus shelters when he could be out of site, out of mind, in my tax payer funded housing with tax payer funded nursing

I know heaps more about this than you

Read about it on the internets?

Dont you work in IT field.

Haha, even better would be the look on your face when they say they need a ticket to Rockhampton.

No one wants to go to Rockhampton.

Dont you work in IT field.

i don't know if what he does is IT. sure he runs websites, but the wrangling with the goats to get the pictures is something altogether different.

probably the general steriotype homeless is capable of getting a job if they chose to do so... but i assure you, not all of them can. i know a guy with brain damage that cannot control his motor nerves so he can barely walk, can't pick anything up in his hands without dropping it, he is barely understandable when he talk, he cant write coz his hands shake too much. he has no family or friends to support him & he can't get a disability pension coz he doesn't have an address. he cannot get a job, he can't even contribute to community based disabled workshops... coz he can't even do that simple work. he is unemployable.

the public service could hire him!

oi oi none of that

I've been in south america for about 8 months or so now, and the homeless actually have to be creative to get a handout! For example, shoe shining, window cleaning, juggling at stopped traffic lights, selling random stuff on the street (CHEESE GRATERS, GET YOUR CHEESE GRATER!), weigh yourself on my scale for 10c. Going to be funny coming home and having some 15 year old jerkoff ask for a dollar for the train.

^ Don't come home :)