Panhandlers are like pigeons

An anecdote: three of us were heading into a local delicatessen in Ottawa yesterday. A homeless man had taken up a position just outside. He said he was hungry, so one of my companions bought a beef sandwich and gave it to him--he devoured it on the spot.

Millionaire mayor of Ottawa Larry O'Brien wants to deal with the problem of the homeless. His solution? Stop feeding them. That's the way to get rid of these pigeons, just like any other pigeons, he says. The toonies you give them all go on crystal meth anyway.

Give them a bus ticket to Montreal, his CFRA host, the vulgarian Steve Madely, chimes in.

mp3 (click here to download)

While the two good ol' boys crack a bottle of Gevrey-Chambertin, and slurp down another helping of prime rib au jus, readers might wish to note that the homeless in Ottawa are already dying at relatively early ages, mostly of HIV, cancer, liver disease and heart problems. Starving them to death, as His Worship suggests, may not be necessary to rid us of these "useless eaters."

H/t to Ken Clavette, of Ottawa's Labour Community Services.