Posted on 03/18/2015 6:26:18 PM PDT by DaveMSmith
SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) — KCBS has learned that Saint Mary’s Cathedral, the principal church of the Archdiocese of San Francisco, has installed a watering system to keep the homeless from sleeping in the cathedral’s doorways.
The cathedral, at Geary and Gough, is the home church of the Archbishop. There are four tall side doors, with sheltered alcoves, that attract homeless people at night.
“They actually have signs in there that say, ‘No Trespassing,’” said a homeless man named Robert. But there are no signs warning the homeless about what happens in these doorways, at various times, all through the night. Water pours from a hole in the ceiling, about 30 feet above, drenching the alcove and anyone in it. The shower ran for about 75 seconds, every 30 to 60 minutes while we were there, starting before sunset, simultaneously in all four doorways. KCBS witnessed it soak homeless people, and their belongings.
(Excerpt) Read more at sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com ...
Actually, it was under Governor Reagan that the institutions closed in CA (1975) - to balance the budget.
But many of the homeless do not respond rationally. Many are drug addicts/habitual drunkards/mentally ill people who threaten each other as well as anyone who approaches them, and who set up repellent, unsafe and unsanitary conditions at any handy doorway rather than go voluntarily to clean, safe, free shelters. I'm sure the Catholic Church in SF has paid out far more $$ for the shelters than for the sprinklers.
Seriously --- I ask this with real concern --- what would you do if they were camping out, urinating, defecating, and ingesting drugs and alcohol at the doors of your home, church, or place of business?
““How the Federal Government Destroyed the Mental Illness Treatment System”: That subtitle is the opening shot across the bow in this jeremiad of a book by the psychiatrist Dr. E. Fuller Torrey. It could just as well have read: “How a group of well-intentioned, starry-eyed idealists made a hash of mental health care.””
“Reform was well underway when President John F. Kennedy endorsed this new era in mental health in a 1963 speech, calling for a “bold new approach” in which “reliance on the cold mercy of custodial isolation will be supplanted by the open warmth of community concern and capability.””
“The last piece of legislation President John F. Kennedy signed turns 50 this month: the Community Mental Health Act, which helped transform the way people with mental illness are treated and cared for in the United States.”
In my 12 step group, I hear peoples stories of how they were helpless, hopeless and homeless living out of a box. As an addict, I can relate to mental illness. 12 step programs SOLVE this issue but at times, there has to be inspiration. Could be a priest or someone else in the program.
The largest mental facility in CA is the Los Angeles Co jail where they are involuntarily locked up. Same goes for many other parts of the country.
No they were closed nationwide in a push to deinstitutionalize, lead by Californians like Szaz and others. It was felt that the civil rights of the mentally ill were being violated and that everything would be roses once the patient were on their meds in the communities. Outpatient treatment centers were to meet their medications and counseling needs and they would live independently.
This was foisted upon us by ignorant, leftist lawyers who had not a clue of what mentally ill people need or do.
E. Fuller Torrey is a quack. He maintains today that cat feces causes psychosis.
I think it was a great idea. These churches regularly have people voiding and moving their bowels on the foyers. So hose them. Makes sense.
The archdiocese has facilities already. But what if you have a lot of people who don’t want to use shelters etc? Remmeber that feel-good story of the NY cops who bought the homeless guy a pair of shoes out of his own pocket? Two weeks later the guy was walking barefoot and it was winter. He doesn’t like shoes.
This is an acceptable practice in other building in SF.
Just another attack on Christians.
The DID NOT put up warning signs, they wanted to drench the sleeping homeless and wet their belongings.
You keep paying down irrelevant information about unrelated topics, when this church and it’s actions are the topic.
They have been busted, God knows how much money they paid for all this or why they wanted to get the homeless wet, rather than put up a warning.
If they go to shelters, they must be sober....they don’t like that.
The illegal plumbing system is not legal, that is why they will have a plumbing contractor remove it.
And are you sure that this water wastage is legal, or are you making that up?
What does that have to do with JFK and his 1963 Mental Health bill to empty the asylums?
As I’ve said above, take care of this or big government will. The solution is spiritual for these people.
Mentally ill, or just plain people with “problems.” It is hard enough to cure alcoholics. The do-gooders have this myth which has it that human beings are these rational creatures all of whose problems can be solved by having more knowledge. The old adage is, however, the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.
As Paul put it, more or less. I know what I ought to do but I do not do it. Or I think that what I am doing is not such a bad deal. Or “Who are You to tell Me what to do—directed to parents, teachers, bosses, cops or anyone else in authority. It goes the same for his conscience. I think it was Chesterton who said that if their is any Christian doctrine that has been shown empirically to be true, it is original sin. Cutting off one’s nose to spite one’s face.
As a man of the cloth (or not) would I first spend a lot of money on an illegally installed, unpermitted plumbing system and deliberately post no warning, so that I could ambush the homeless in their sleep and wet them and their winter clothes and sleeping materials down, in winter, (or summer)?
I wouldn't do that, I have never handled my problems with the homeless like that.
Meaning the homeless are slow-learners? After the first hour they should have known to stay away. Any stray dog would have learned that lesson. Surely the word got around.
What was that 1975 bill signed by governor Reagan?
When you find it, which state mental institutions did he close?
Big Government is run by people who think that institutions are evil. That’s a paradox:
The lack of warning may have been an oversight. Or maybe they naively thought that these guys were as smart as any stray dog.
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