Services for the homeless...

[Editor]

Hackensack says storefront can't shelter homeless

[just watching]

Well, it's time for someone to step up to the plate and give Robin Reilly another job caring for the homeless.  Perhaps the County or some private organization. And if she takes a position helping the homeless in some other County, that's fine too.  Could you imagine how many homeless would be herding towards Paterson if she took a position there.  Hackensack would lose half its homeless.

Even her critics (I am one of them) readily admit that she is dedicated to her mission.

[Hope Donnelly]

Something happened that has nothing to do with the fact that she was operating a drop-in center in a retail space, and the story will likely come out, not right away, but it will.  The city approved a block grant for FAITH only two years ago, and the situation was no different then than it is now. Those grants are very difficult to earn.

It would be great if each town could come up with a way to take care of its own, but until they do, the homeless will be deposited to Hackensack.  When laws change that "protect the rights" of the mentally ill, then perhaps those who cannot make informed decisions on their own behalf will be taken care of and not discarded, the way they are now, not only by society, but by the very agencies who receive tax dollars to do so.  When the child "welfare" agencies clean up their act, then you will see a decline in homeless populations everywhere.

[just watching]

Here's a quote from 19th century philosopher and successful businessman Wallace D. Wattles:

 "Do not spend your time in so-called charitable work or charity movements; most charity only tends to perpetuate the wretchedness it aims to eradicate. I do not say that you should be hard-hearted or unkind and refuse to hear the cry of need, but you must not try to eradicate poverty in any of the conventional ways...The poor do not need charity; they need inspiration.  Charity only sends them a loaf of bread to keep them alive in their wretchedness, or gives them an entertainment to make them forget for an hour or two. But inspiration can cause them to rise out of their misery. If you want to help the poor, demonstrate to them that the can become rich.  Prove it by getting rich yourself. The only way in which poverty will ever be banished from this world is by getting a large and constantly increasing number of people to practice the teachings of this book".

Interesting food for thought. I'm sure more than a few people will choke on it. I'm reading his book right now. I don't agree with everything in it, especially his beliefs regarding science and the power of human thought, but he does put an interesting perspective in some modern problems.

[Hope Donnelly]

Isn't he the New Thought author and philosopher, the same guy Rhonda Byrne plagiarized?

Anyone who has studied the history of social services, poverty and mental illness knows that the poor and otherwise afflicted have been viewed as slightly better than lepers, not only in the US but for centuries in Europe.  They cost money to care for, which is why poverty levels are often set very low, so that they don't qualify.

I would like to see how Wattles inspires a schizophrenic whose parents are poor and mentally ill themselves.  Wattles, if he is the same guy, opines that a person's situation is created by their thoughts.  Makes me think of one homeless guy I know in Hackensack who has a PhD and used to be a professor at NYU until full-blown schizophrenia manifested in his late 30s.   Every now and then he could quote any number of authors - Shakespeare, Robert Frost, etc. - but couldn't remember his own name.  Did he run out of inspiration and decide to be homeless?  No family, no ability to make his own decisions, which is required of mentally ill people as judges are fearful of committing them, he is now homeless. 

Taxpayers should go visit Orchard Street during dinner hour and see if they can inspire those who are talking to themselves, paranoid and picking fights, and delusional (and these are the ones CAP hasn't banned!).  How about the elderly women who look like anyone's grandma, who are scared to death 24/7, yet so far have found no housing and few consistent services?

The media loves to spotlight the few who appear to have some resources within.  It is a great way to sway popular opinion about the homeless and where tax dollars go.  Taxpayers should go undercover and experience the abuses, waste and corruption in any of the tax-paid social service programs, police departments and hospitals if they really want to get inspired. 

[just watching]

Of course there are multiple different types of homeless, and your point is well taken.  I bet that Wattles would also have been against FDR and the New Deal, had he lived long enough to experience that era.

Remember that homeless guy that made himself famous stinking up the library in Morristown, NJ about 15 years ago.  That's the type of homeless person that Wattles is probably referring to. That guy in Morristown (Kreimer ?) just didn't want to work and just didn't want any responsibility.  He was educated and intelligent and made himself a spokesperson. A small percent of the homeless are of this stereotype.

[Hope Donnelly]

Wattles was referring to everyone, not just a particular group - this is the guy Rhonda Byrne plagiarized with The Secret. 

The homeless are a microcosm of the entire population.  For instance, the guy in Morristown is the homeless version  of any slacker, like my current boss, who relies on others to get her work done while she collects a paycheck.  There are very kind, sweet, hard-working homeless people, violent ones, pedophiles, caretakers, elderly, many who are not addicted or alcoholic, and many who are.  The one thing I have found is that they don't hide behind facades - no suits, uniforms, etc. - you know you're dealing with a crazy person, a felon, a pedophile, and even a con artist.  The same can't be said for the same people who are "gainfully employed" and doing well.

[just watching]

I did some investigating into "The Secret" because 2 people have recently suggested that I read the book.

It turns out that Rhonda Byrne credits Wattles' 1910 book with giving her inspiration.  The charges of plaguerism are flying all through the internet. Most of the charges are focussed on evidence that she has copied her work from Christian theorist Norman Vincent Peale's book "The Power of Positive Thinking", but she took out all the God references and made a New Age version of Peale's work.

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2007/mar/24/bthornb-the-secret-has-a-very-familiar-ring/

And there's another author who is also crying plaguerism, which is Vanessa J. Bonnette.  She seems to have less evidence.

[Editor]

Gotta have FAITH

Kelly: Mission of 'boutique' proved too unfashionable

[Editor]

Homeless 'boutique' closes

Haven for street people closes

Star Ledger Video

[Editor]

Aaron: One less avenue for those hoping to help

[just watching]

I think it's objectionable that The Record reporters, editorialists, and columnists are portraying the administration in Hackensack as anything less than the good-hearted civic-minded persons that they are. Hackensack officials have made the correct decision to enforce the codes, and to advance economic development on State Street which is in the best interests of the neighborhood, the city, and to all city taxpayers.  I have to post it here, because The Record refuses to post my reader comments at the end of their articles.

Yes, Robin Reilly does good work. Since the rest of the homeless advocacy community respects her work, she'll have no problem getting a position at another agency, public or private, to continue her mission in life. That might be in Hackensack, or it could be somewhere outside of Bergen County entirely. If she reads "The Secret", she'll know that this is true. I picked up my own copy of "The Secret". It is not a continuation of Wattles' thinking, and it is well worth reading for anyone who feels they have a mission in life. Reilly has a mission in life, as do I.  I would love to see Robin Reilly implement her mission in some big city setting where she could help so many more people.  She could help 100 times as many people than she could in Hackensack. In some ways, she's like a modern-day Mother Theresa.  God bless her, and may her good work continue somewhere, where it is most needed. As described in "The Secret", the thoughts of those in need will pull her to whatever destination that may be.

[Editor]

Hackensack was right to close FAITH center

[Editor]

Film director to unveil documentary on Hackensack's homeless

Thanks Bob.

[Editor]

Aaron: Sad ending for homeless storefront