Global warming, my eye. So say the residents of upstate New
York who've suffered through 146 inches of snowfall this past
week with more on the way. New York City has so far managed to
avoid the worst of nature's wintry assault, but it has been
bitterly cold, and my heart goes out to those poor souls sleeping
in the street. The question to ask is, why are they there? We
have warm city shelters that these individuals refuse to go to
because they claim they're unsafe. Common sense says the city
should make them safe and move the homeless off the streets. The
ACLU says otherwise and thus insanity follows.
Is there or is there not something insane about a business suing
the homeless parked outside its door for a million dollars? The
ACLU claims most vagrancy and loitering laws are
unconstitutional, arguing, along with litigators anxious to sue
any entity with big bucks, that we are free to park our carcasses
anywhere.
Imagine, if you will, you are a shopkeeper and your business is
your sole source of income. Customers are reluctant to enter your
premises because a homeless individual has set up residence near
the entrance. The sorry individual exudes offensive fumes that
radiate several feet from his body. Your sales are nonexistent.
You call the police, and they tell you all they can do is ask the
man to move. In other words, the homeless man has more rights
than a taxpaying business owner.
Small business owners can certainly understand the frustration
that made Karl Kemp, owner of an antique store on Madison Avenue,
sue four homeless individuals for a million dollars. But perhaps
the suit should been made against the city for failing to provide
a safe environment for doing business.
I can hear the bleeding hearts out there crying about the man's
civil rights being violated, but, I'll bet no one's really
interested in providing him with shelter in front of their own
homes and businesses.
A few years ago, I interviewed a homeless man named Dennis who
had taken up residence outside a local bank. He appeared to be in
his early 40s and had become a neighborhood fixture of interest
because he would sit on a milk crate scribbling mathematical
equations in a notebook. His reddish gray hair was matted with
the remains of what looked like shoe polish and something far
more unpleasant.
At the time, I wanted to address the homeless situation, which
had been in the news because homeless men were allowed to take up
residence in front of a Fifth Avenue church. I offered Dennis $5
for a short interview. His blue eyes sparkled as he related his
animus against the NYPD. In my column, I wrote that he was a
native Staten Islander. I don't know whether a relative of
Dennis's read the article, but I do know that shortly after my
column appeared Dennis disappeared from that spot.
Last summer, as I was walking to Sunday Mass, lo and behold, I
spotted Dennis crossing the street. He was virtually
unrecognizable. He was neatly dressed in a shirt and jeans, his
beard groomed perfectly. He was carrying a shopping bag and
reached into his pocket and pulled out a set of keys which he
used to enter an apartment building. Dennis was no longer
homeless.
I couldn't help but wonder what miracle had turned Dennis' life
around, but I was also so grateful he was spared the fate of
another homeless man I had written about in that earlier column.
That man was deliberately set on fire and burned to death in a
car where he had sought shelter. The homeless are prey not only
to the bitter cold but also to marauding youths.
This city and the multitudes of private nonprofit agencies
probably spend more money on providing housing and shelter to
those in need than any other American municipality. Those that do
not take advantage of this assistance need more than shelter.
There's nothing charitable about allowing individuals with mental
health problems to wallow in their urine-soaked clothes,
presenting a health and safety hazard to themselves and the
general public.
The global warming alarmists can't explain why East Antarctica is
getting colder. They also have no comments on this winter's
deathly toll on the homeless throughout the nation. For these
poor unfortunates, global warming is a myth.