Homeless Man Bails Out Banker

[OneGrassRoot]

This is priceless... :)


Chicago - A year ago, everything was going right for a woman we'll call Sandy. She had a good job at a bank in the suburbs. She and her 10-year-old son had a safe home.

But then the world came crashing down around the 39-year-old. She lost her job. She lost her house. And she and her son moved into her truck. Police found her and DCFS threatened to take away her son if she didn't find a safe place to stay.

She moved into a hotel with the help of a social worker who paid for a few nights stay with her own money. That's when Sandy's knight in shining armor showed up. And he's kept showing up, every day, paying her hotel bill, so she and her son can stay off the streets.

But Sandy's Good Samaritan isn't a Chicago big shot. He isn't living in a Loop highrise. He doesn't even have a job.


Full Story Here: http://www.dailygood.org/more.php?n=4605

[drm604]

1. We have to find a way to guarantee the basics of life for everyone.

I've been skeptical of the idea of a basic income guarantee, but more and more I've been coming around to the idea.

[izquierdista]

7. Not that hard to find

It's all based the equalization of wealth. If EVERYBODY was a stockholder and EVERYBODY was getting monthly dividend checks, that would guarantee the basics of life. Unfortunately, there are no rules that EVERY worker gets shares in the company, no, those stock options are only passed out at the very top level. To make capitalism work for everyone, two rules would have to be adopted: (1) a percentage of every worker's pay has to be in shares of the company employing him and (2) those shares have to pay a dividend. Rules like that would equalize wealth (guaranteeing some basic income) instead of the current rules that allow wealth to be vacuumed up by the top 1%. Unions missed the boat when they settled for pensions and benefits instead of getting profit sharing. Now, the unions are so beaten back that wage scales are becoming two-tiered, with fewer benefits and pensions disappearing in the bankruptcy court.

What is ironic is that the citizens of the Former Soviet Union ended up with a better deal than will the citizens of the Former United States. After the breakup of the FSU, people inherited their dwelling from the state, modest as it may have been. When people of the FUS look at their balance sheet, they are only going to have debt left on it judging from the number of homeowners that are under water now.

[Ghost in the Machine]

2. My faith in the human spirit was just renewed a lot more...

Wonderful story, thanks for posting it!

K&R

[JHB]

3. Is it significant that the source is Fox News Chicago?

http://www.myfoxchicago.com/dpp/news/metro/homeless-chicago-man-curtis-jackson-donates-thousands-to-sandy-lost-job-son-truck-hotel-20110511

Not that it's not a good story, but the Fox connection pings my suspicio-meter about how it's framed. The woman worked at a bank, but does that make her a "banker"? And the "homeless man gives thousands" headline? Is that just "man bites dog" headline-writing, or to leave the impression "You see? These homeless people don't need your help. When they want to they can hustle up enough money to support themselves."


Thanks, Rupert Murdoch, for making me suspicious of a story about one person trying to help out another.

[OneGrassRoot]

4. I hear you....

I notice it every time there is a story shared on a Fox affiliate site.

There really are so many posts linking to such Fox affiliates sites -- stories that progressives would resonate with -- that I'm getting away from worrying about it.

;)

[MrScorpio]

5. What's the point of humanity if we all don't look out for each other?

Otherwise we're just running around in pointless circles.

[mmonk]

6. Recommended.

Excellent.

[OneGrassRoot]

8. kick for lunch crowd n/t