[COtoOC]

Originally Posted by corey

I agree that the homeless and transients are completely different groups and shouldn't be confused with one another. Every time I go to Pearl Street Mall in Boulder there are always some aggressive panhandling young transients hitting you up for money, and often giving you shit when you refuse. People half my age that could easily be working and not be societal parasites. I guess it's gotten worse since the legalization of marijuana. They can really taint my otherwise enjoyable experience of hanging out on the mall for the day. I've seen the same kind of transients in London, Barcelona, Paris, Venice, Rome, Amsterdam, and pretty much every city that has any kind of "scene" and especially tourists to mooch off of. Homeless people, especially elderly or mentally ill, have my compassion and support.

I go to San Francisco quarterly for work and stay downtown... nothing much different there than downtown Denver regarding the panhandlers. While it's sad that people have sunk that low in life, you just have to ignore it. I took my kids down to the 16th St. Mall last Friday and saw a few of them here and there, but no one bothered us. The only people I talked to were friendly people waiting for the shuttle and an old couple that wished me a happy Father's Day. I did give a buck to some dude playing the saxophone. I don't mind those people (if they have talent) since at least they're trying to earn the $$.