Homeless man assaults and robs good Samaritan who gave him a coat on New York City sidewalk

Mag Grand ^ | January 13, 2022 | James L

[DIRTYSECRET]

One was sleeping on the sidewalk in front of the door. Deliveryman had to poke him lightly to get him to move. He humped up and acted like he was having all these spasms.

Another was threatened with a club when he started acting crazy. When threatened they aren’t that crazy.

[dainbramaged]

I gave a nice warm coat that didn’t fit me to a street guy a few years ago, he was so thankful he broke down and cried.

[mac_truck]

476 Fifth Avenue is the iconic NY Public Library...in front of Bryant Park and a couple of blocks from Grand Central Station, probably as close to the center of mid-town Manhattan as it gets.

The inmates are running the asylum

[Magnum44]

That was you?

Nice coat.

[blam]

It’s not his fault, they ought to give him more.

[nickcarraway]

In college, I was at a feeding the homeless event and one told me he was Macbeth. He was interesting. He may have been putting me on about Macbeth, but I do think he had mental issues.

Definitely read Nikolai Gogol's The Overcoat story. Not about homelessness, but the heart of all Russian literature.

[montag813]

Stupid of the GS to put the coat ON the sleeping dude. This isn’t your kid in their bedroom. This is a guy who sleeps on the street and has to fend of thieves and thugs, who is among a population with a very high percentage of serious mental disorders. He clearly flipped out. Wake him up. ASK him. Or best of all, leave him alone. Sheesh.

[SaveFerris]

(Stupid of the GS to put the coat ON the sleeping dude.)

Yeah I wouldn’t do that either.

[Sans-Culotte]

More evidence that there is such a thing as too much compassion.

Yep. Ever notice that when a news story involves a "good Samaritan" it is usually in the context of the good Samaritan being a victim?

[robel]

The streets are todays mental health asylums.

[faucetman]

No good deed goes unpunished.

[muir_redwoods]

There are a lot of untreated schizophrenics on streets. They skip their medication and then can’t be relied on to seek treatment. It’s a destructive circle. Obeying the rules in a shelter is a problem when one thinks the shelter is the enemy castle.

[Roccus]

Yup!
And for that you can thank the Kennedy clan!

[Jean2]

I try to avoid them.

[aimhigh]

It is best to give/donate through a charity that specializes in homeless outreach. They know how to handle the recipients.