Homelessness Examiner
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Saturday, November 14, 2009
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
Boycott CVS Pharmacys
One of the stupidest things I have ever seen happened to me the other day. I had a friend send me $50 through Moneygram, which can be retrieved at many different locations. I chose CVS Pharmacy in Statesville, NC.After receiving the moneygram money order, I discover that CVS will not cash it even though they just issued it to me and know it's good. If it wasn't good, the terminal wouldn't have told them to issue it to me, right? Walmart wouldn't take it because they didn't issue it, but would have cashed it if they had. I called CVS Corporate offices and spoke to a girl who assured me that it has always been company policy NOT to cash money orders of any kind, even if it is from one of their offered services like Moneygram and they just finished issuing the money order to you. I begged to differ, because other CVS Pharmacy locations in other states HAVE cashed such money orders before, when I had to have spending money sent to me on my job I had out of Chicago.
The girl tried to tell me they didn't have a license to cash them. I asked to be transfered to someone in corporate, and the next person I talked to said it's always been policy not to cash them, but disputed the first girl's claim that it has something to do with a license. Walmart said they don't have a license, nor do they need one.
Here is the rub! CVS doesn't care if you now have to spend gas and time to take that money order to your own bank or a check cashing place. They just want the Moneygram fees. It is just another example of corporate greed.
If CVS didn't do Western Union and I came in with a Western Union money order to be cashed, I could fully understand them not wanting to cash it; but when it's one they just issued through a service they're licensed to offer, it just boggles the mind that they would not cash it right there, or give you cash instead of a money order.
Until CVS decides to reverse course and start talking better care of their customers, I see no more need to shop there, nor encourage anyone else to as well.
With that in mind, I am promoting a boycott of CVS.
Tags: Strange | Statesville | CVS ph
Attitudes Threaten Southside Progress
[q url="http://www2.statesville.com/content/2009/apr/19/attitudes-threaten-southside-progress/news-opinion/"]
By Gary West88
Published: April 19, 2009
For almost 20 years, I have spent a major portion of my life in the area of our city known as the Southside. I have seen days of celebration, days of despair and everything in between. I have been a part of meetings and marches, discussions and evaluations related to the betterment of that community. I have known both encouragement and criticism.
Over the past few years some good things have happened. New housing has developed under the auspices of the Statesville Housing Authority. Old abandoned dwellings have been demolished. Efforts at cleaning up have been scheduled. Programs are in place to give guidance and support. A new shelter facility now stands on Fifth Street.
While I find these new realities to be most uplifting, there are still occasions that cause me frustration and anger. On Sunday, April 5, an incident occurred that fueled those emotions, especially the anger.
My wife was leaving the shelter after carrying out an assignment. Our granddaughter was riding with her in the back seat of the car. As Patti drove down Fifth Street, she noticed a group of young men, numbering a dozen or so, standing in the middle of the street. Over the years this has become a common feature, especially on weekends, in the evenings and during the warmer times of the year.
Those who stand in the street, adult and youth alike, will make no haste to move. As one drives through, they will most likely be subjected to cursing and perhaps even the hitting of one's automobile.
On this particular day, however, the situation escalated. A young man jumped up on the front of the car. Others began to kick and hit the vehicle. A successful attempt was made to open the doors, and the doors were swung back and forth.
Both my wife and granddaughter heard someone in the group call my wife by name.
She was finally able to pass through the crowd and speed away.
In my more terribly cynical moments, when I think of the effort on the part of so many to revitalize Southside, I sometimes feel like asking, "Why add new sidewalks? A relatively fair number of folks do not walk on the sidewalks already there. They walk down the middle of the streets. Slowly. Defiantly."
My cynicism finally pushes me to say ENOUGH.
There are a lot of folks, both on the Southside and throughout the city, who have labored hard to make a difference in that area, and they seem to be willing to continue. But something else needs to happen. What is needed is not going to occur until some of the residents of that area take responsibility, stand up and speak out.
It may mean telling the young people to get out of the streets and onto the sidewalks. It may mean rolling over on the drug deals and drug houses that are down the street or right next door. The police do what they can, but they need the help of the neighborhood. It may mean taking a stand against increasing gang activity. It may mean that the neighborhoods take responsibility for clean-up instead of acquiescing to other groups coming in and doing the work for them. It may mean the elders, faith communities and any other willing souls must somehow find a way to teach that in order to be respected, an individual must show respect.
I realize that these words may be to the chagrin of some. I am quite willing to say that perhaps I need more understanding. I am willing to listen to anyone who could offer me the needed correction and edification. I only place one condition to such an encounter. First, allow your spouse and child or grandchild to drive through a neighborhood and be attacked violently by a group standing in the middle of the street and be frightened beyond belief.
Then come talk to me.
Gary West is executive director of Fifth Street Shelter.[/q]
This is what happens when you have 19 years experience and tick off a lot of people by throwing people out of a homeless shelter who feel they were wrongly thrown out. You develop enemies. He says he's willing to listen to anyone who wants to correct him or edify him, but to place such a condition on it is not right. Perhaps the scuttlebut on the street is correct and that if he changed one thing, he might not make so many enemies. That one thing is to stop basing your opinion on someone on the first "bad" thing you hear about that person. There are always 2 sides to a story, not just the one you hear first!
Tags: Culture | Statesville | Fifth Street Shelter
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Pilot Screams in Horror
(CNN) -- A pilot who parachuted from his disabled Marine Corps jet last year said he was horrified to see it smash into a <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 />California home, newly released documents say.
The four-page document details in technical terms several attempts Neubauer made to keep his crippled F/A-18D from crashing. When it became apparent that the plane was going down, Neubauer parachuted out.
"I looked down to see where my plane had crashed and saw that it had gone right into a house. I screamed in horror when I realized what had just happened," Neubauer said in the document.
Neubauer landed in the backyard of another home and was not injured. The pilot had been trying to reach the nearby Marine Corps Air Station Miramar when he started having problems with his fighter jet.
The jet crashed into Dong Yun Yoon's house, killing his wife, his two young children and his mother-in-law. An unoccupied house was also destroyed.
Days after the incident, Yoon said he did not blame the pilot.
"Please pray for him not to suffer from this accident," Yoon said. "I don't blame him. I don't have any hard feelings. I know he did everything he could."
Could you be this charitable after a military jet crashes into your home and kills your whole family? With cutbacks on everything these days, it makes you wonder how much more will be cut back on when it comes to safety. The Military will probably never tell us exactly what brought the plane down, but you can bet that in part, it was due to cutbacks in maintenance. We are seeing cutbacks in all things, including commercial airline safety. I don't see how it helps us to be any safer in the skies to recruit air traffic controllers right out of high school.
So what can be done these days to be safe in any aspect of life when we're plagued with budget cuts, shoddy foreign workmanship on products, living in a nation of disposable products and little oversight in making sure they're made right? PRAY! Pray you don't get injured or killed by inferior products. It's all you can do at this point.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Preacher gunned down at his pulpit
Pastor gunned down in Illinois church Posted: 02:38 PM ET
(CNN) — The pastor of a Maryville, Illinois, church was shot to death during a service Sunday in front of horrified parishoners who then tackled the gunman, state police said.
Fred Winters, the pastor of the First Baptist Church, was shot and killed during the 8 a.m. service, while his attacker and two parishoners suffered knife wounds, Illinois state police spokesman Ralph Timmins said.
The gunman walked in during the service and walked up to the pulpit, opening fire when he was met by Winters, Timmins said. The man’s .45-caliber pistol jammed after he shot Winters, and he pulled out a knife and turned it on himself before being tackled by some of the roughly 150 worshippers attending the church,
Timmins said.
Two of those who went after the attacker suffered non-life-threatening injuries, while the suspect’s injuries are “very serious,” Timmins said.
Thankfully in my Baptist Church we have 2 police officers who wear their guns under their suit coats during services. My heart goes out to the congregation and families at that church in Maryville IL
Four arrested in mall assault facing upgraded charges
Tammy Moulder, 35, and Phillip Greene were arrested around 5:30 p.m. Tuesday for common law robbery, assault inflicting serious injury and obtaining propery by false pretense. The two were apprehended at a convenience store on Salisbury Road after police received a tip that they were there.
Jeremy Melton, 26, and Melissa Link, 23, were apprehended at Fifth Street Shelter Wednesday night.
Statesville Police Department Chief Tom Anderson said the four are now facing felony assault charges as well as conspiracy after investigators learned the noticed the elderly woman at a pharmacy and followed her to the mall.
The four are facing charges after two men grabbed the purse of a 90-year-old woman as she got out of her vehicle in front of Belk's Tuesday, and she was knocked or fell to the ground, breaking her jaw and causing other injuries. She is being treated at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem.
Statesville Police rolled in 8 deep to The Fifth Street Shelter like they were looking for Osama Bin Laden. The Shelter is where I currently reside. I watched as Melton and Link were led off in cuffs. Nice eh?
Tags: Culture | Statesville | Local+North+Carolina+witness
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