It's so sad to see that place go downhill the way it has over the years. I can remember when there was the ducks hanging in the windows right on 7th street. This would have been in the early 1990's.

Also, this before they built the MCI center and there was a pet shop across the street from it on 7th st as well.

I wish that it was a real Chinatown and not somewhere known for constant drama. I believe there is a methodone clinic nearby and that might be a reason for the concentration of crazies that are constantly over there.

That issue would be greatly alleviated if not fixed completely if St Elizabeths was upgraded to the point where it could house on a permanent basis those that are mentally disabled to the point where they need to be properly monitored and cared for.

Yep

Ok could've but I didn't. I was around back then and saw that stuff first hand.

As much people talk about things they don't know anything about. I frankly don't want to hear it.

Definitely nothing new and those kids that it was happening to back then are parents now. It's a shame that people don't learn.

People were definitely getting hurt for coats and shoes back in the 90's and even as a child I thought it was dumb to keep wearing that clothing.

Fast forward nearly 30 years later and I still don't wear clothes like that. I actually forgot how I got like that but this post reminded me of it.

Also, people use the term "victim blaming" entirely too much. No matter what a person does it considered wrong to say it's wrong and that's wrong in itself.

Oh wow that's awesome

What do you propose be done then?

Thank you. I'm glad someone else understands and cares about that.

They got a bunch of bigger ones at Ikea for $19.99

They have a bunch of them at Ikea. $19.99 and they are pretty big. White Bird of Paradise to be more specific.

That's cool.

Yep.

That addressed was posted doesn't seem like one of those areas

Goodness, that sucks. No wonder people aren't buying them and fixing them up. My problem is the companies buying properties and not being forced to fix them up.

Depending on the condition of the house you might be better off just getting it bulldozed and start over from scratch.

Yes it does. It's annoying to me that people that have the ability to make changes keep talking about it but don't ever really solve the problem. You don't have to do any studies, we know what the problem is, we know why it's that way and we know how to fix it. All that's left is actually doing it.

It's very sad that there is money that could solve this problem but that it's not being used for that purpose.

Ok, thanks so much! So let's say that 75% of the homeless population could be in a stable environment. That knocks things down quite a bit for people that need complete permanent help.

That's a lot of people that could be working and providing for themselves eventually. Not nearly as bad as I was expecting it to be

Those people do indeed need resources as well that's true. What I think needs to happen is that people are classified based on why they are homeless.

1. Loss of job or something else. They need a place to stay temporarily until they can get back on their feet. In the meantime they need to eat and have medical care.

2. People with mental illness that can be treated and they can hold down a job and just need some stability for the time being.

3. People with mental and or physical illnesses so severe that they honestly CANNOT hold down a job. As a result, they will always need to be provided with a place to live, food and medical care as well.

4. Likely there will always be at least a small group of chronically homeless that don't want to live in a traditional home or a shelter. Whether it's because of mental Illness or not I don't think you can force them to live somewhere if that's really not what they want to do.

How many chronically homeless folks would you say are in Baltimore City? Also, what is the conditions of the shelter you have experience with? Percentagewise how many of those chronically homeless are due to severe chronic mental illnesses that realistically won't allow them to work even if medicated?

Ding, ding, ding!! Who's more trustworthy? A person who helps you privately or a person that does good makes themselves look and feel better?

Good. So we have people who are without traditional places to live of their own. What CAN be done about it and what WILL be done about it?

The problem is not a secret and there is an ability to fix it, sadly not much desire to change the status quo

It's not complicated to see that you and and another person actually agree on something but that the actual discord is caused because that other person worded it differently than you

Very well said. Oh and by the way... West Baltimore is any thing west of Charles St.

People fail to understand that Baltimore is quilt city and you have patches of good and patches of bad. This isn't to say that the people who live in each patch are all good or bad per se but that the area may be dangerous to be in especially if you aren't from there. Or it could be really nice neighborhood with plenty of amenities to enjoy.

Oh and if you think people are doing bad because you say mean things about their neighborhood. How do you account for a time when people referred to them by some really mean words and actually treated them as if they were less than human?

Arguing over semantics is a distraction from the real issues and sadly people get caught up in that all the time here

What if a person is genuinely content with where they live? Maybe they do live in a tent or somewhere we don't normally think of as being a home, but why is that so awful? If you don't have enough money to afford rent, does that automatically mean you should only live where other people tell you to?

Those other people being folks that have a traditional place to live and have plenty of money as well?

Not to say that a person should be able to put a tent or tents just anywhere of course but at the end of the day there should be places where they can go. It seems to me that there are those who have solved their problem and just want to be left alone.

So rather harass them, focus on those that want to change their situation instead.

You also have the issue of there being some in the homeless population that aren't capable of maintaining a household. Sure, it may sound nice to give their own apartment or a room somewhere but who's going to maintain it if they cannot?

Now if you have proper facilities where their medical and other needs can be met then ok. But this isn't some monolithic group and can't be treated as such as a result.