Veteran's Day, Homeless, Citing a 90 Year Old

The Folks in Fort Lauderdale are taking a lot of heat for citing an old guy who has been handing out food to the homeless in public.  The issue is a little more complicated in my opinion.  Feeding the homeless makes sense and regulating where they get fed also makes sense.  Living in Miami and for more than a few years of having to pass by the Miami Rescue mission on the way to and from my car I'm aware there are programs for the homeless and in many ways they are both inadequate and at the same time encourages some less than shining behavior which gives ammunition to those that paint the homeless with a broad brush as lazy and shiftless, and criminal.

The tourist businesses worry about aggressive panhandling expanding beyond intersections and busy corners to beaches and boardwalks.

The homeless don't vote and the local mayors and police respond to the folks that do vote and sometimes it is hard to judge their motivation(s).

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