I’m appalled: Five friends and a bottle of wine
posted: October 22, 2008 | category: community, faith
tags: policy, politics, you can help
I just posted this on Facebook:
CHANGING THE WORLD WITH FIVE FRIENDS AND A BOTTLE OF WINE? SOUND LIKE FUN? Ok, what are you appalled about? Me? Homelessness, poverty, hunger, lack of substance abuse and mental health treatment for the poor, childhood trauma, the Church’s abdication of its responsibility to do social justice — the list […]
Homeless people struggling to access county substance abuse treatment services
posted: October 22, 2008 | category: community, homelessness, mental health, substance abuse
tags: alcohol, crack cocaine, policy
Homeless people are having difficulty accessing substance abuse treatment in Greensboro. Many have told me that they’ve called or visited Guilford Center, the county mental health agency, and just been given the phone number for Bridgeway, the county treatment center. But when they call Bridgeway, they get a recording telling them to leave a name […]
Read More..>>Addicts and entitlement programs
posted: October 13, 2008 | category: substance abuse
tags: alcohol, crack cocaine, crime, policy
I have literally lost track of the number of alcoholics and addicts I know who have used their disability checks, utility checks and food stamp cards to get alcohol and drugs. I have concluded that putting any kind of benefits check or a food stamp card directly in the hands of someone with a […]
Read More..>>Miami housing and tent city activist Max Rameau coming to Food Not Bombs
posted: September 24, 2008 | category: community, homelessness
tags: events, Food Not Bombs, homeless news, housing, news, policy, politics
From Liz:
Max Rameau, Miami housing activist and founder of the Center for Pan-African Development, will be speaking at Food Not Bombs on Monday, October 6 in the Nussbaum Room of the Central Library on N. Church Street. His visit is particularly timely given the rise in tent cities around the country, and the imminent closing […]
Families and children will lose housing when City closes Coliseum Inn
posted: September 22, 2008 | category: community, homelessness
tags: Greensboro, homeless news, housing, policy, politics
On Friday, I heard from a Guilford County Schools employee that there are a number of students living at the Coliseum Inn. I already knew that there were children there, because we see them when we do outreach. The City has bought the property and will be closing the motel. City staff is exploring […]
Read More..>>Homeless: Discharged to the street in Greensboro
posted: September 19, 2008 | category: community, homelessness
tags: downtown, Food Not Bombs, free meals, Greensboro, homeless news, police, policy, stories, Ten Year Plan
On Thursday afternoon, I went by to see friends on the block, at Lee and Eugene, and to let them know about dinner at the HIVE. One of my friends asked for help for his friend, who had just gotten out of the hospital. He’d had major surgery, and then been discharged back to the […]
Read More..>>Investing in people
posted: September 14, 2008 | category: community
tags: policy, politics, poverty
From Ed Cone’s 09/14/2008 News & Record column, “Socialism!,” also on his blog, here:
“…Some objections are voiced when public money is used to shore up the private sector (Kentucky Sen. Jim Bunning used the S-word after the Fannie/Freddie deal was first discussed this summer and last week compared Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson to ‘the minister […]
Not paid to care
posted: August 30, 2008 | category: community, homelessness
tags: day center, homeless needs, policy
I talked to a friend about his thoughts on the structure for the proposed day center for homeless people in Greensboro. My friend suggests that for every day center task force member who is “paid to care,” that there be a member who is not paid to care, to balance it out. He suggested using […]
Read More..>>City loves Trouble?
posted: August 20, 2008 | category: community
tags: blogging, Greensboro, police, policy
Phone call from a cop:
“Explain to me why I can get on The Troublemaker from a City computer, but Chosen Fast is blocked?”
Dude, good question. Anybody?
Update:
Earlier today, I spoke with Ben Holder, heavyweight champion of the world and author of “The Troublemaker.” Here’s his explanation of why my site is blocked by the City, […]
Much drama: How sidewalk seating affects public safety downtown
posted: August 8, 2008 | category: community
tags: downtown, Greensboro, news, police, policy
“Much” drama surrounds GPD’s enforcement of the City’s sidewalk cafe ordinance (Sec. 26-244.) Read the back story at the YES! Weekly blog here.
From a comment thread on at Ed’s:
“I’m still trying to understand the connection between cafe seating for paying customers, and latenight loitering.” — Ed Cone
and
“Only a bureaucrat at a nonprofit who gets […]
