On the Street

Turning our attention this Christmas 2014, to those less fortunate people lining the streets of Cork in all weather.

Here I came across this woman who was visibly shaking beneath her blanket. A hot coffee no doubt proved to be a welcome, if somewhat temporary, relief. Though wracked with desperation and a sense of fear, her face still contained an air of grace and beauty.Lady begs on streets of Cork

At this time of year let us all try to remember those less fortunate than ourselves.

16 thoughts on “On the Street”

  3. Cork has the highest number of homeless per capita in Ireland. I am one of the contact points in Cork for a great charity called Jacket off your back. They take coats we no longer use and redistribute them to charities in Ireland. We bagged 12 black sacks last week.
    Interesting how differently some of us view those who beg.

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    1. Tric, everything in the news on RTE seems to be centred on the homeless of Dublin, it is after all the capital and (almost certainly) has the highest number of homeless. It is, of course, a problem in every town and city and your opening stat is an interesting and disappointing one.

      My own view that is that the majority of those that beg are homeless and have genuine ‘issues’ and need help. There are also those band of beggars that are opportunists and exploit the situation – probably now moreso than ever, coming up to Christmas and in light of the homeless situation being highlighted by the media.

      One of the more frightening elements of today’s world is that more and more of the world’s wealth is being concentrated on such a small percentage of the population. Is this really right and is it sustainable? We need to question this as a society.

      Have a good Christmas Tric and best wishes for the coat collection, another friend in Cork, MM 🎅

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  5. I never, ever give money to travelling gypsy beggars. Around here they’re not only begging, but they’re also responsible for a whole lot of crime like burglaries, shop theft, rape and robbery. Plus some of them are also selling drugs. Except from rape & robbery, I’ve witnessed all of these crimes and crime statistics say that, as a group, they’re highly over-represented.

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    1. Unfortunately there are plenty of crime groups associated with nationalities (Italian Mafia, Chinese Triads to name but a couple). Organised begging is in my view exploitation of goodwill and damages those that are truly homeless and down on their knees. Another reason to support charities and not go directly to individuals.

      In the case of this lady she did not appear to be part of an entourage (as is so often the case) or dragging a child around with her. In this case I reserve judgement, it was very early in the morning and she was alone.

      Keep warm and have a good Christmas Cardinal. MM 🎅

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    2. While I don’t understand your feelings because I am not in your shoes, I see beggars in a different light.

      There but for the grace of God go I.

      I always give what I can.

      p.s. If you read my post, you know that I was robbed a few weeks ago. It was traumatizing and costly, (and now I have an expensive security system) but I will not blame everyone because I can not blame someONE. Please know that I don’t mean this as an affront to you personally, but just the philosophy that you have.

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      1. I haven’t read your post on being robbed, but when a people, as a group, are highly over-represented on crime statistics, they shouldn’t expect any pity from me. I think that there should have been death penalty for intruders that behave like they do. The begging is also a way to launder money.

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      3. I too have been burgled and it was quite traumatic. I wish they could have got the b*****ds and thrown them in the cell. They’re still out there somewhere. Of course I am still lucky, I have a roof over my head…..I very much like your attitude Whimsey.

        Sometimes I think we need to look at society’s role in all of this – I remember the trial of a man convicted of murder, but when you looked at what happened to the man as a child and growing up, one has to say it was only a matter of time – who is responsible here? Not just the individual, the man was failed from birth onwards and had no-one to show him how to go about life. Very, very sad for all those affected.

        The only point I would take form Cardinal’s comments are that one cannot be naive about giving to ‘beggars’.

        Have a good hearty Christmas Whimsey, MM 🎅

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  6. Hi, met! I wish you Happy Christmas! Can you have a look on it? https://www.google.ie/search?q=gypsies+houses+in+romania&espv=2&biw=1366&bih=667&tbm=isch&imgil=jWPh7zcaCEdS0M%253A%253BvZUJFEIOEr7lMM%253Bhttp%25253A%25252F%25252Fwww.huffingtonpost.com%25252Fkisa-lala%25252Fthe-new-nomads_b_929580.html&source=iu&pf=m&fir=jWPh7zcaCEdS0M%253A%252CvZUJFEIOEr7lMM%252C_&usg=__W2tB7hXMkQre_qawMhIEpz4q3UA%3D&ved=0CCwQyjc&ei=c6CSVMC_LoyBPZbVgMAH#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=vxs8ScU4fwE4aM%253A%3BgrWNkWnuw3yktM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.betterphoto.com%252Fuploads%252Fprocessed%252F0930%252F0907250944181_dsc0597g.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.betterphoto.com%252Fgallery%252FdynoGallDetail.asp%253FphotoID%253D8719868%3B800%3B531

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    1. Hi Tofan, I had a good look at this and the buildings are amazing. I cannot claim to understand all that is going on here, the inference is that someone is making a lot of money out of this. The question is who? and are the people we see pawns and victims, or profiteers?

      Personally I only tend to give money to charities supporting the homeless or (as in this case) buy a cup of coffee. Unfortunately there will always be unscrupulous individuals (or gangs) exploiting situations. Enjoy your Christmas Tofan and may you be warm and well, MM 🎅

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  7. We’ll never really understand it! Can you have a look on the following link?
    https://www.google.ie/search?q=gypsies+houses+in+romania&espv=2&biw=1366&bih=667&tbm=isch&imgil=jWPh7zcaCEdS0M%253A%253BvZUJFEIOEr7lMM%253Bhttp%25253A%25252F%25252Fwww.huffingtonpost.com%25252Fkisa-lala%25252Fthe-new-nomads_b_929580.html&source=iu&pf=m&fir=jWPh7zcaCEdS0M%253A%252CvZUJFEIOEr7lMM%252C_&usg=__W2tB7hXMkQre_qawMhIEpz4q3UA%3D&ved=0CCwQyjc&ei=c6CSVMC_LoyBPZbVgMAH#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=vxs8ScU4fwE4aM%253A%3BgrWNkWnuw3yktM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.betterphoto.com%252Fuploads%252Fprocessed%252F0930%252F0907250944181_dsc0597g.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.betterphoto.com%252Fgallery%252FdynoGallDetail.asp%253FphotoID%253D8719868%3B800%3B531

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