The new Sequim (Seattle, Quilcene, Ronald: sex offender, crime, hotels)

[CalWorth]

Originally Posted by rodentraiser

Well, that certainly cleared that up. LOL

I tend to believe CalWorth. I remember the 80s when the homeless were first starting to be noticed and mentioned on TV and in the news. And people were blaming Reagan even then. I had friends who were cops and I'd hear them talk about how even during the 60s, they'd never had to deal with people who were so mentally unstable after the institutions were closed and the patients put out on the street. It was during the 80s that rent started going sky high, too, forcing many people out into the street, myself included.

Thank you. I was there then & I worked in the system. I'm not just taking this out of re-written "history books".

[CalWorth]

Originally Posted by Hemlock140

I worked ion downtown Oakland CA in the 1980s, and there were plenty of homeless there then (near 12th St Bart). I remember some mornings driving into our parking garage at 5:45am there would be homeless people with small fires burning on the sidewalk as they were trying to keep warm. Going back even further, I was in graduate school at Sacramento State in 1975, and there were a lot of homeless in the K Street Mall area.

Yes, we are more or less in the same era, I was just at the other end of the state. There were always homeless. There was always Skid Row in DTLA. We both know that. But it has never been like this, & I know that you know that. I hope your mom will be OK in Sequim. Fortunately, I'm in the sticks but I still have to come to town & this is what I see now.

[CalWorth]

Originally Posted by pikabike

You did not answer the question of whether Sequim differentiates between panhandling and aggressive panhandling. Most people put up with the former. That has nothing to do with politics; it is about feeling safe to do ordinary activities.

See post#25. From what I can tell, you do not live in the state of Washington. Maybe you should focus on your own community.

[pikabike]

Originally Posted by CalWorth

See post#25. From what I can tell, you do not live in the state of Washington. Maybe you should focus on your own community.

I read that post long ago, before you kept bringing it up again. I also noted that your first post says you went shopping in Sequim, not that you live there or did live there. Frankly, the fact that you still have not answered the question about panhandling vs aggressive panhandling makes me think you don't really know their present rules.

I did live in WA, not long ago, and Sequim was nothing like what is being described in this thread or in some others from the last two years.

Maybe you should read the forum rules that state anybody can post in any thread. Especially those of us who do know some things about the region. You won't be driving anybody out just because they don't live there right now.

[pnwguy2]

Sequim can expect the same problems of central Puget sound. Homelessness is not just a big city problem. It is now almost an every city problem. I prefer not to do a diatribe of why, instead just realize that this is reaching small towns. There are many reasons why this is occurring but bottom line is mental illness and lack of jobs for our neediest. That said, those who deny help are also part of the problem.

[rantiquity]

Originally Posted by pnwguy2

Sequim can expect the same problems of central Puget sound. Homelessness is not just a big city problem. It is now almost an every city problem. I prefer not to do a diatribe of why, instead just realize that this is reaching small towns. There are many reasons why this is occurring but bottom line is mental illness and lack of jobs for our neediest. That said, those who deny help are also part of the problem.

The difference between small towns like Sequim and large metropolitan area like Seattle is this: Panhandling in Seattle can be very aggressive at times while the panhandling in places like Sequim the panhandlers are passive for the most part. I personally has never been approached at a personal level for a hand out. Most of the panhandlers sit with a cardboard sign at varies intersections and try to look like they are in need.

Homeless people in Sequim for the most part is a new phenomena and I think as many other that the Jamestown MAT clinic is a major draw for homeless people in Sequim.

[jertheber]

Originally Posted by pnwguy2

Sequim can expect the same problems of central Puget sound. Homelessness is not just a big city problem. It is now almost an every city problem. I prefer not to do a diatribe of why, instead just realize that this is reaching small towns. There are many reasons why this is occurring but bottom line is mental illness and lack of jobs for our neediest. That said, those who deny help are also part of the problem.

The problems surrounding poverty, crime, mental illness, drug addiction, and homelessness, are spreading around the globe, and certainly across all of America. I'm a bit surprised that so many have felt that their own backyard was somehow exempt from all of that, as if the relative isolation of Sequim and the OP area in general would provide some immunity.

I've crossed this state many times in the last fifty years doing my hobby of photography and have noted the growth of pockets of affluence butted up against the spread of what appears to be a type of rural/suburban neglect. In the downtown areas of most Washington state cities one can see the attempts to rejuvenate the once thriving small town economy, and usually failing to compete with the big box giants located conveniently between these populated areas.

Poverty has never been a pretty sight, but the fact of it's long history and the collective failure of most programs designed to alleviate it, has allowed it to grow out of our sight. But nowadays it's here on our streets, parks, and highway right of ways. And that is what drives the complaints, not the poverty and all that it implies, but moreover, the up close and personal appearance of all that social dysfunction. We were able to hide the worst of out problems at some point, but now the population growth has brought these issues to our doorsteps, and we still can't find the will to address them in any meaningful way. Moving may help but, people should be aware that these problems are indeed statewide..

[pikabike]

Originally Posted by rantiquity

The difference between small towns like Sequim and large metropolitan area like Seattle is this: Panhandling in Seattle can be very aggressive at times while the panhandling in places like Sequim the panhandlers are passive for the most part. I personally has never been approached at a personal level for a hand out. Most of the panhandlers sit with a cardboard sign at varies intersections and try to look like they are in need.

Homeless people in Sequim for the most part is a new phenomena and I think as many other that the Jamestown MAT clinic is a major draw for homeless people in Sequim.

There is more panhandling competition in big cities, so when they bus their way to smaller towns, some of them do much more aggressive “marketing” tactics, right up to and including literally shoving a free lollipop (taken from, say, the local bank’s kiddie treat bowl) in your face and staring at you, expecting the target to defensively dig out a few bucks to make them back off. OR the target can push the candy back at them and shake the head, walking onward. There is NO ordinance against saying NO to panhandlers.

We had this happen to us in PT, which normally sported passive panhandlers and self-proclaimed buskers, most of whom could neither hold a tune nor play an instrument. (There did exist some genuine musicians and artists.) Walking by and ignoring was usually enough to stop further pursuit. But because some people coughed up a reward for bad behavior, there were always more bums coming in. Visibly more every year.

At that time, we did not encounter panhandlers in Sequim. But obviously, things have deteriorated. Bus service runs through both Clallam and Jefferson counties, and they connect. Let’s not forget that PA—only 15 miles from Sequim—had problems, too.

**** I looked up Sequim city ordinances, and aggressive panhandling is both defined and not allowed. However, one sentence is ambiguously punctuated, so it is unclear to me whether it applies only between dusk and dawn! Way to go...it really is up to individuals to resist.

[texasdiver]

I gotta think in a cashless plastic society, panhandling is going to decline. I pretty much NEVER carry any cash anymore. Never. So even if I ever wanted to give a couple bucks to a panhandler out the car window or on the street I can't. Sorry dude, I don't carry cash.

What are they going to start doing, swiping your card with their smart phone or beg on Venmo? I don't think so.

[rantiquity]

Originally Posted by texasdiver

I gotta think in a cashless plastic society, panhandling is going to decline. I pretty much NEVER carry any cash anymore. Never. So even if I ever wanted to give a couple bucks to a panhandler out the car window or on the street I can't. Sorry dude, I don't carry cash.

What are they going to start doing, swiping your card with their smart phone or beg on Venmo? I don't think so.

Good points...