Tim and Rachel gone horribly wrong
January 19th, 2007 by Wayne Garcia in Whatnot"Sir, the peasants are revolting."
"I’ll say, they stink on ice." — Mel Brooks, responding as King Louis XVI in History of the World Part I
I was trying soooooo hard to avoid writing about Tim the taxi guy’s racially insensitive outburst this week, but then rachel* had to go and take on the homeless and I am left with no choice.
We’ll start in reverse. Earlier this week, a newly emerged Rachel Moran posted a rant about St. Petersburg’s panhandling homeless dudes bugging her and her sis during a recent soiree out for cocktails. I’ll let you absorb it for yourself here, but suffice it to say the attitude was 1) how grody 2) why can’t the cops do something about them 3) it’s not funny that people beat up homeless people (but not unfunny enough to prohibit writing at length about your friends who do so) and 4) I really hate it when the local bleeding-hearts give them a few bucks cuz it only encourages them.
Rachel has a point about the need for a more comprehensive solution for homelessness. But she — like Mayor Rick Baker — seems deeply callous and imperious (hence the Brooks quote above) when she cavalierly suggests we shouldn’t ever directly help a fellow man. As my earlier post about Baker said, the Bible has something to say about this. I’ll check and see if the Quran does likewise, but I’m guessing it does.
As my post yesterday certainly made clear, I am not a fan of the blogging phenom that is rachel*. Her stuff was borderline interesting when she stuck to writing about sex and partying. As a social commentator, she should write more about sex and partying.
CL’s Alex Pickett has been writing a lot about homelessness, and the approach taken in Clearwater seems to provide a holistic setting of support for those who — for myriad reasons — do not have shelter.
Finally, there is Tampa Taxi Shots’ post, "Racist Holiday Rammed Down Our Throats." I’m not even going to attempt to summarize his questioning the validity and/or value of MLK’s birthday as a national holiday. I’ll only suggest that he, likewise, write about what he knows: driving a hack. (Although, in a grand bit of irony, he is extremely compassionate toward the homeless in this post.)
January 19th, 2007 at 3:53 pm
Let’s not forget that two homeless men were murdered earlier this week because someone with a gun viewed them as less than human.
To respond to rachel’s comment — “How many girls in their twenties are afraid of walking alone in the well-lit areas of suburban Des Moines?†— as resident of Des Moines for eight years I can say that city, like the rest of country, is dealing with the same problems. When I volunteered for a Des Moines youth shelter five years ago, the director told me that Des Moines has the largest population of homeless youth in the country. As far as homeless in suburban Des Moines? Check out the Jan. 19, 2006 issue of their alternative weekly on the rise of homelessness in the city’s suburbs.
http://www.dmcityview.com/archives/2006/01jan/01-19-06/cover.shtml
Facts — they are such pesky things.
January 22nd, 2007 at 3:34 pm
I believe you should talk to Tim personally – I think you could have taken him out of context….
Jerry in Tampa
January 23rd, 2007 at 4:34 pm
Jerry — while always glad to continue the conversation, I don’t think I have taken him out of context, especially since I chose not to boil down his comments but instead linked to them so that anyone reading this can make up their own minds. My only characterization is that his posts were racially insensitive, and that has nothing to do with context.
January 27th, 2007 at 5:44 pm
Tim was not taken out of context. Tim also has a history of writing racially insensitive posts.
February 22nd, 2007 at 8:16 pm
I’m not a social commentator. I’m a girl with a blog, like a billion other girls with blogs.
Pffft, sounds like someone’s making me awfully important. :)
February 23rd, 2007 at 9:11 am
As Spiderman was told, with great power comes great responsibility.
May 21st, 2007 at 1:48 am
Yknow, I had Wayne mixed up with someone else. I love this man. I love you. I am glad I am learning to find my way around the blog land o sphere.
Thanks for this.
May 21st, 2007 at 10:26 am
Glad to hear I am not mixed up any more.