BEGGARS DEFEND LIFESTYLE (Follow up to "Affluent Beggars"

Medford Mail Tribune (Oregon) ^ | January 13, 2006 | DAMIAN MANN

[ApplegateRanch]

Putting a face on the fraud:

From left, Jason Pancoast, 3-year-old Adrianne, 3-month-old Synclair and Elizabeth Johnson say people are upset by their panhandling because they don’t fit the stereotype of beggars. Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell

Looks like their gravy train may jump the rails sooner than they expected. I just hope that the IRS, the USDA Food Stamp Program, and OR Dept of Revenue all take a closer look at them, now that they have been publicly outed.

[AppyPappy]

I bet he gets a visit from the IRS.

[ApplegateRanch]

Ping to follow-up of "Affluent Beggars" story of last Sunday.

[Ramius]

The IRS part will be fun to watch.

[Sundog]

I bet they know how to say 'Please', 'Thank You', and smile.

(I have heard anecdotal evidence of a Seattle homeless man who panhandled 6 months and vacationed 6 months, then left $300,000 to charity when he died.)

[T.Smith]

This a logical extension of the socialist agenda. I can't see why in the world the leftists in Oregon should be upset by this.

[notpoliticallycorewrecked]

Nothing like a panhandler with an attitude.

[randog]

But former Ashland mayor and local businessman Alan DeBoer, who gave Johnson $200 before Christmas, said that after learning more about the couple, he believes they are conning people — even using their 3-month-old baby as a prop.

This man was mayor and he was that clueless about the "homeless"?

[rellimpank]

---this isn't exactly new, either. When I lived in San Francisco twenty-some years ago, there were plenty of them doing this and I'm sure a good percentage of the current Las Vegas crop are doing the same--although it's a bit unusual to subject kids to that life--

[untenured]

The whole episode reminds me a little bit of the Sherlock Holmes story "The Man with the Twisted Lip."

[Dr.Zoidberg]

Even if they are driven out of this community, they'll just relocate and it's back to business as usual.

Seems they have a good racket and I doubt they will give it up. A change of scenery will go a long way towards making them invisible again.

The moral of this story, if you live an "Unconventional" lifestyle, don't go dancing nude in the front yard.

[SoCalRight]

Put a sign around "Synclair's" neck: "Help! My Momma and Daddy can't spell!"

[Polyxene]

"Ultimately it may seem like a cakewalk, but it takes a lot of energy to deal with it,"

EXCUSE ME?? It takes a lot of energy to be a BUM?? Why don't you take some of that energy, put it into a real job and support your family, you ignoramous!!

[sarasota]

They "make" $30k-$60k/year and can't afford housing? But stay in a motel?

[TC Rider]

I bet he gets a visit from the IRS.

I bet they pack up and move to another town within the week.

[Mr. Jeeves]

Pointing to the expensive homes on the hills surrounding town, he said, "Is this community theirs or is it ours?"

Who pays the property taxes, nitwit? ;)

[AppyPappy]

BINGO!!!!

[martin gibson]

Nothing like a panhandler with an attitude...

geeze, Cleveland is lousy with 'em...

[liberty_lvr]

Pancoast, who estimates he and his wife can make $30,000 to $40,000 a year panhandling, said he doesn’t understand why someone with the kind of wealth and influence of DeBoer would begrudge him from using the money to keep his family safe.

Un-freakin-believable. In this country, much to the consternation of our resident socialists, we create security for ourselves and our families by getting a

J-O-B

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Pointing to the expensive homes on the hills surrounding town, he said, "Is this community theirs or is it ours?"

I'd say it belongs to the people on the hill, who pay for the land you're panhandling on, not to mention the Food Stamps and other government perks you're taking advantage of on your $9,000.00 a month tax-free "lifestyle."

What an @ss.

P.S. Please ping me when the IRS visits these con artists. :)