Posted on 02/02/2017 3:30:09 PM PST by rey
Am I the only one to notice this?
I had an appointment canceled so I was in a local sports bar. I noticed the homeless guy who had replaced the previous homeless guy on the street corner with a sign. I always joked that it must be an union job as they seem to have limited hours and worked shifts. A few stop and give him change. Eventually, a young woman approaches and gives him a wad of money larger than a coffee mug. He passes her a bag. They talk a little. She leaves. He panhandles another few minutes and leaves. About 30 minutes later, this happens again with another homeless person.
Since then I have watched these people closer. Always similar undertakings.
Now I am no cop and have very little knowledge of the underworld, but if I can figure this out, what is wrong with law enforcement? I am convinced that a large portion of the homeless are involved in some sort of nefarious activity.
HA!
10 years ago a couple confessed to making $90K per year in the “homeless” racket, here in Denver.
People tend to focus their attention AWAY from the homeless so it's a perfect cover for operating illegally out in the open.
SHHHHHHH! Bible smugglers...
In many 3rd world cities, panhandlers are controlled by gangsters. You can’t even beg for pennies without belonging to a racket.
Sounds like you have seen something similar, except that the concept is being used for larger-scale crime and racketeering.
Who says it is his money? He may simply be a bag man.
*HOMELESS
*VETERAN
*PLEASE HELP
*NEED FOOD
*GOD BLESS
One time, there was something wrong with the traffic light, where people exited the plaza; so, for while traffic was backed up.
The beggar left his post. As I waited for traffic to move, I watched him fold up his sign and walk over to the parking area of the strip, and get into a brand new SUV. A far nicer car than I drive. LOL
So there ya go. Scammers. No sympathy.
If he is legit homeless, he probably wouldn’t be trustworthy enough to be used as a street dealer. So I’m guessing this could be a non-homeless person just “dressing up” as a panhandler to avoid police scrutiny.
The cops see a teenager dressed in flashy hip hop threads hanging out on the corner all day, they will know instantly he’s a drug dealer. The cops see a homeless looking guy hanging out on the corner all day, and they will probably shrug and ignore it.
Well, I know the one guy I give some change to is legitimately homeless, because if I leave early enough for work, I can catch him sleeping under an overpass nearby.
The rest of them I just ignore because they mostly come off as scammers.
I watched a guy who had been panhandling in a wheelchair wheel himself behind a store, put his wheelchair in the trunk of a fairly late-model car and drive off.
In muslim countries *donating to poor* is a major tenent; hence there are lots of beggars of all kinds.
When they ID you by being an American or tourist, they follow you down the street. After a while, you learn to ignore them, no matter what.
What I saw in Turkey were children sitting next to a parent begging. We were told that it was customary for a parent to purposely maim their child, so they could earn a living by begging. I think it was Ataturk who *outlawed* this practice.
I hear the Syrian refugees have crowded out the locals to take over the best begging sites.
{{{sigh}}}
I lived in New York for several years, around 1980. There was a beggar on the sidewalk outside Grand Central, all the time. Many years later, I read that he had a daughter in college, a house in New Jersey, etc., all the years he was panhandling.
Won't work in Albuquerque. The city has put street signs on the corners where the homeless panhandle stating they can call 311 for help and shelter. That way the police do not have to worry about them.
Being a wise-@ss, one day I asked her if she *had a dime*. She reached into her pocket, pulled out a fistful of change and offered it to me. I smiled and said no THX .... she was there religiously, rain or shine; I'm sure she did OK.
Where I work, in a famously-upscale town, the homeless have proliferated during Soetoro’s corrosive reign.
The flaming leftists who run the town took out the standard bus-stop bench across the street and replaced it with hinged seats that only work under leg tension: no slouching, much less sleeping. They also erected a keyed iron-bar barrier (a wall!) in the shopping center in the recessed area between the two strip buildings to prevent the homeless from sitting on the curb (where they mostly rested or chatted: the actual panhandling - which still occurs - was/is done directly in front of the main store).
The hypocrisy of the compassionate communists knows no bounds.
In Seattle, the city provides free drugs to junkies, the latest liberal idea to clean up cities. Been going on for awhile, anyone know how it’s working out?
dyslexic veternarians pray to the dogs.
The man with the crooked face-C. Doyle/S holmes
Excellent!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.