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Paradise Lost: California to Provide Free Cell Phones for Homeless
BreitbartĀ“s Big Government, ^ | 10 Dec 2012, 11:20 AM

Posted on 12/10/2012 3:09:05 PM PST by drewh

In California, the unemployment rate may be above 10.2%, and the state debt may be above $16 billion, the state’s GDP may be in serious trouble and businesses may be leaving in droves due to ever-increasing tax rates, but that isn’t going to stop the gravy train for the state’s poor and dispossessed.

The California Public Utilities Commission is all set to greenlight a new program that would give homeless and low-income people free cell phones – call them Obamaphones – with free service.

The idea is to help them reach out to possible job opportunities and stay connected with family.

San Francisco’s head of homeless initiatives, Bevan Dufty, was overjoyed: “This is great – it is transformative for homeless and low-income people.

I expect San Francisco to be in the forefront and a model city for this program. Fundamentally, to be in the mainstream of our society you have to have a phone. And really, for the homeless population, you need a cell phone because they don’t have a home to hard-wire one into. We really need this plan.”

Dufty is pushing an effort to allow the homeless to call 311 to find out where there’s an available bed at a homeless shelter.

The state has funded phones for the poor for years, but they were always hardline phones, not cell phones. The new program will give beneficiaries some 250 minutes of time and 250 free text messages every month.

(Excerpt) Read more at breitbart.com ...


TOPICS: Government; News/Current Events; US: California
KEYWORDS: cpuc
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To: drewh
The idea is to help them reach out to possible job opportunities and stay connected with family.

What a waste. There's an organization here that provides unemployed people with a phone number and voice mail for $5 a month and they operate "resource centres" with free access to phones, fax and internet for free. You don't need a free phone to connect with a job.

21 posted on 12/10/2012 3:27:39 PM PST by Squawk 8888 (True North- Strong Leader, Strong Dollar, Strong and Free!)
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To: drewh

I’d settle for a few more port-o-pees.


22 posted on 12/10/2012 3:27:39 PM PST by Huskrrrr
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To: okie01

I’d say a ready made market for Obama’s solar cell buddies. If Solyndra coulda only hung in there a bit longer.


23 posted on 12/10/2012 3:28:00 PM PST by technically right
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To: drewh

Well, those FREE Obama phones beat the heck out of “shovel ready” jobs that these people wouldn’t have taken anyway.


24 posted on 12/10/2012 3:28:15 PM PST by Gator113 (**WHO in the hell gave the damn order to NOT rescue our men in Benghazi?**)
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To: fso301
Now they will charge their Obamaphones in public libraries while watching internet porn.

Internet porn: Isn't why the internet was invented?

25 posted on 12/10/2012 3:30:35 PM PST by dearolddad
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To: drewh

The whole concept originated as a means to help indigent elderly have phone access for emergency and health care calls. While today it will include text data service, be assured soon they will have to have full internet browser capabilities “so they can look for a job.” What a crock. It would be interesting to perform an audit on any 10 Obamaphones to see what they were used for. Would job search calls show up as using 200 minutes? 100? 10? 5?

The Democrats want Republicans to spell out all their tax plans, yet never show the return on their misguided handouts. Oh- sorry - they can show a great return on the investment of our tax money in these handouts - Zero got reelected.


26 posted on 12/10/2012 3:30:57 PM PST by LibertyOh
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To: drewh

When to the Democrats get charged with BUYING VOTES because that is what they’re doing? Multiple felonies committed by 0bama during this last election, to include unilateral overturning of federal immigration law in exchange for Hispanic votes!!!


27 posted on 12/10/2012 3:31:47 PM PST by Obama_Is_Sabotaging_America (IMPEACH OBAMA)
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To: okie01

Hopefully you will provide the electric when they come to be sheltered in your residence!


28 posted on 12/10/2012 3:37:17 PM PST by Mouton (108th MI Group.....68-71)
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To: drewh

If you make the poor comfortable in their poverty what incentive do they have to keep off or get off the dole?


29 posted on 12/10/2012 3:42:52 PM PST by Brooklyn Attitude (Obama being re-elected is the political equivalent of OJ being found not guilty.)
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To: drewh

The real reason Romney lost:

Romney said, “When I’m elected, I will put Americans back to work,”

and 51% said, ...... “F That!!”


30 posted on 12/10/2012 3:43:24 PM PST by rolling_stone
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To: drewh

You know... I’d have less of a problem with this if it were just for the “employable” homeless.

You just have to KNOW that every crackhead, skid-row bum, and welfare brood mare will have one too.

Just damn.


31 posted on 12/10/2012 3:44:26 PM PST by clee1 (We use 43 muscles to frown, 17 to smile, and 2 to pull a trigger. I'm lazy and I'm tired of smiling.)
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To: Michael.SF.

Is he the one in the white dress?


32 posted on 12/10/2012 3:46:42 PM PST by forgotten man (forgotten man)
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To: drewh

Gee, if more bums and hand-out recipients have these phones, the Democratic Party can reach their voters easier come election time. That is the real reason why the whole Obamaphone scam was created — and it worked great in November.

The Universal Service Fund provides for some faceless, unelected bureaucrats to raise the taxes, er...fees, charged to paying customers, to whatever amount they deem is needed to carry the freeloaders. The California PUC is just enabling new categories of takers; I doubt the “State” intends to pay a penny.

The USF might have been created to help a few elderly people, handicapped, etc., but has become an income redistribution/Democrat Party get-out-the-vote program run amok. Please contact your representatives today and demand an end to this rip-off.


33 posted on 12/10/2012 3:47:35 PM PST by Chewbarkah
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To: okie01

...two words...solar panels..


34 posted on 12/10/2012 3:55:50 PM PST by telstar12.5 (...always bring gunships to a gun fight...)
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To: drewh
I, as I'm sure many are, am becoming deeply disturbed over the failure of the Government to provide free tickets providing entery to major sporting events. Then at the games government officials could throw gold coins into the crowd, distribute free Nike Basketball shoes and tickets redeemable for free bread and beer.

Are we a great compassionate people or are we mean spirited niggardly wretches.

35 posted on 12/10/2012 4:03:57 PM PST by AEMILIUS PAULUS (It is a shame that when these people give a riot)
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To: drewh
I, as I'm sure many are, am becoming deeply disturbed over the failure of the Government to provide free tickets providing entery to major sporting events. Then at the games government officials could throw gold coins into the crowd, distribute free Nike Basketball shoes and tickets redeemable for free bread and beer.

Are we a great compassionate people or are we mean spirited niggardly wretches?

36 posted on 12/10/2012 4:04:17 PM PST by AEMILIUS PAULUS (It is a shame that when these people give a riot)
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To: drewh
The idea is to help them reach out to possible job opportunities and stay connected with family.

  as if

37 posted on 12/10/2012 4:11:47 PM PST by tomkat
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To: drewh

Every American has a right to a government-provided cell-phone. Call it “free speech”.


38 posted on 12/10/2012 4:12:37 PM PST by Rapscallion ( OBAMA: You own it now. See if you can govern it.)
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To: YukonGreen
Communist/Marxist agenda, get rid of all land line phones. Then knock out the cell phone towers, no one can communicate and takeover begins. A great plan by Obama and his ilk.

Some ten years ago, I talked to an attorney who mentioned a nationwide cell tower lease consolidation project - lots of new and revised leases, being signed and recorded in land records offices all over the map. I looked up the info one of the companies that he mentioned - and found a Soros reference. Could've been a legit business investment, but anything that Soros touches makes me think the worst.

BTW, I suspect the LightSquared thing was part of some communication shutdown plan.

39 posted on 12/10/2012 4:14:02 PM PST by Charles Martel (Endeavor to persevere...)
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To: tomkat

Like California has all that extra money to “spread the wealth” with. The idiots are sooooooo deep in the tank they will NEVER dig themselves out. How stupid can they get? But then, the homeless do vote, they just use someone elses address.


40 posted on 12/10/2012 4:14:33 PM PST by DaveA37
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