Unusual News : Vancouver tries to clean up problem of people defecating in street

Sympatico / MSN News : Unusual News : Vancouver tries to clean up problem of people defecating in street

For years there has been this ongoing discussion in Vancouver.
The homelessness here is unlike anything I have ever seen. It is despicable that we as a community would allow the situation to get so out of hand.

I took this quote from the article:

"There's a considerable cost involved. In the Downtown Eastside we're going to need a supervised bank of toilets and that's going to cost in excess of $5,000 a month," said Bob Ross, a city engineer working on the issue.Open urinals are also in the mix of strategies being considered."I'm not sure our culture is ready for that. It seems to me it's an undignified and humiliating way of dealing with the problem, but one that also seems to be working in parts of England and Amsterdam," Ross said.

$5,000.00 dollars a month! Couldn't that go to the costs of proper housing and care for these people so they can deficate in their own homes, with privacy and dignity while keeping our streets clean?

Kim Kerr, general manager of the Downtown Eastside Resident's Association, said he is disgusted with the plan.

"This is a ghetto where people are turned out to rot, we're talking about adults with the mental capabilities of 10-year-olds who are addicted to drugs. They have no home, they have no toilet. What do you expect," Kerr said.

"We are worrying about the mess of piss in the street while homeless people are dying. Let's spend the money on toilets on houses. We treat human beings in this city with less concern than we show animals."

This reflects my point of view. It's gotten so bad.
A few years ago my sister sent my nephew up here from NY, hoping to "straighten him out a bit." To be honest, I didn't see too much that needed to be straightened out except maybe for his annoying obsession with various designer logo's shoes and electronics. He was absolutely delightful. As sweet as the first day I met him as a baby, and just as charming.
He was a big strapping kid from the inner city of Brooklyn, Baby.

This was a kid who was used to passing through metal detectors just to access math class. He was used to dealing with the tough, turf terrorists known generally as gang bangers, and how to hold his own when avoidence wasn't an option. My nephew, is no "bleeding heart liberal mamsy pamsy". Yet tears welled up in his eyes when he saw one after another after another homeless person panhandling for change, kid's, risking life and limb to acrobatically launch themselves on slow moving and stopped cars, in the hopes of earning a few coins with their dime store squeegie, dumpster divers looking for breakfast and saleable itmes tossed out by the cities more affluent denizens. These scenes of desperation were not taking place in the DES (Downtown East Side), the worst 10 blocks of Vancouver housing the largest open drug market in all of North America, perhaps even in all of the developed world. No this all took place on our walk through the downtown core. The worst scenes took place right outside of our internationally recognised art gallery, in the heart of our city.

He went from saying things like Auntie, if I lived in a city like this I'd never get in trouble ever again. Why risk it? Its so beautiful here. To, "Auntie how can this be? How can such a beautiful city have so many people in need?"

I felt such shame of my city.
I felt so much pride for the heart that beats in the chest of my nephew.