Now that hard times are back, I regard this fellow as a reminder that there are smart guys at the bottom who know the score.
By Roger Baker / The Rag Blog / September 10, 2009
One thing that most drivers here are familiar with is the car beggars who frequent the major intersections in Austin, a fairly tolerant city. I see the homeless regulars and some social help ministries. Even firefighters collecting with their boots. Now and then a squeegee windshield washer. The old vets, grandmothers, crippled beggars missing limbs. More women car beggars. I see sad little shelters under freeways that come and go. Occasionally I see the homeless paper peddled at intersections. I see few if any flower vendors that were familiar in years past.
This fellow at 32nd and the southbound frontage road at the IH 35 freeway stood out for sure. So I circled around snapped his picture from the car and gave him a few bucks for his brave message of honesty and class consciousness. You might want to slip him a little change if you see him. Now that hard times are back, I regard this fellow as a reminder that there are smart guys at the bottom who know the score. A reminder that we’re all in the same boat and need to work for social justice and a safety net as poverty and homelessness increase.
Want the latest details on increasing poverty? Go here.
Want to know who has been getting most of the gravy? Go here.
You got that right!
Great shot, Roger. Did you invite him to the next MDS meeting?
As long as we graduate slightly more than half our students from high school and over half our births in Travis county are to single mothers on welfare, the problem will perpetuate. Let’s be clear; poor choices on the part of the individual are the principal root cause of poverty. Do you think this guy has a skill? Do you think he has a substance abuse issue? Do you think he’s interested in conforming to rules?
Roger’s shows his agenda with the links to the ‘evil rich’ (the ‘gravy’ getters). Help me understand, who do you look up to, a bum harassing people for their hard earned money, or a Bill Gates or Michael Dell who uses their talents and energy to build a successful life that empowers and enriches thousands of others?