http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/fort-lauderdale-charges-90-year-old-two-pastors-feeding-homeless-n241971

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=holUoUluZx4

This week two pastors were cited for feeding homeless as it is against the Fort Lauderdale law.

What are your thoughts?

So the law is telling "Let people die of starvation"?

 

The human kind stupidity will never stop to amaze me.

So the law is telling "Let people die of starvation"?

 

The human kind stupidity will never stop to amaze me.

 

You know, because homeless people are visual pollution, they are smelly and simply lazy people who refuse to work and instead prefer to live off the Government and hard working citizens. They should have started their own business with the change their were given, like that guy did with 1 dollar, and live the dream but they prefered to keep living between some boxes.

 

I love when Governments don't give a fuck about their own people.

So the law is telling "Let people die of starvation"?

 

The human kind stupidity will never stop to amaze me.

 

No, that's not what the law says in any way.

 

The law says that you cannot provide services or food to homeless people within 500 feet of a residential property.

 

The intent of the law is to keep homeless people out of residential areas where there have been instances of crimes such as trespassing, assault, burglary, and robbery committed by homeless people who are desperate and looking for money or jewelry or other property they can sell for money. The intent and purpose of these laws is to protect the hard working citizens of the area and prevent crimes, and encourage homeless people to utilize the government funded shelters and food banks. If a citizen wants to volunteer to help the homeless, they should go volunteer at these facilities.

 

Over 30 major US cities have these laws including Seattle, Los Angeles, Pheonix, Dallas, and Philadelphia.

 

This is nothing new, and the only reason it made the news is because the two guys that are the subject of the article are "pastors", which is completely irrelevant, and because the media and the public in this country are on the bandwagon of "police over reach and rights violations". These two people were given warnings first, advised of the 500 foot rule, and asked to move. When they refused to comply with a lawful order, they were cited.

 

Don't break the law, and the police won't bother you. If you disagree with a certain law, take it up with the politicians that made the law, not the police officers on the street. It's really that simple, yet most of the American public doesn't understand and doesn't want to learn how our system has always worked.

Edited November 7, 201411 yr by johnclark1102

I can understand why this is a law. I have nothing against helping people because you don't know their circumstances, but the last thing I want are a bunch of smelly homeless people laying outside of my house. I support this law, because it makes perfect sense.

   I can certainly understand the problem facing all these cities across the US.  There are a host of issues revolving the homeless.  I don't think though that these laws are created to help deal with the issue, they're really just pushing the homeless out from the major areas (out of sight out of mind right?).  I found the video disturbing when I originally watched it.  I find it troubling when government is using the police to confiscate food for the hungry and arresting/citing those that are volunteering their own free time and money/resources to help those that have nothing at all.  At the same time what are they doing to help with the problem?  Creating more laws?  And who has to deal with the immediate feelings of anger and frustration, not to mention the bad PR?  The police, not the government officials that enacted the law.  If I'm not mistaken the issue was that they didn't have the proper sanitation services and bathroom facilities to comply with the law.  So instead of meeting the groups halfway, maybe say provide porta-potty's, so that the groups are complying with the law, instead they choose to prosecute and confiscate food.  Taking food as evidence?  Really?  You can't just video record or take photographs and give out the food to those that need it before it goes bad?  This case is going to court I expect the city to lose the decision, as they've already been sued by that pastor before and lost.  These people have nothing and our answer to help them is to ignore them and push them out of the city so we don't have to deal with the problem?  Maybe I'm too much of a humanitarian, but this just feels terribly wrong on so many levels.  Murica.....