So here is some poor guy who just got off of work. Lets say he worked eight hours on a loading dock. So now, along with trying to raise a family, concerns about the economy, and all of the other challenges that face the average person, he has to worry about possibly “offending” someone’s sensitive nose and risk a $500 fine or even jail. Jail! For not smelling properly!!

Make note of the idiots who proposed this: Councilman Rod Tam and Councilman Nestor Garcia.

Now I know that someone is going to say that this is simply aimed at those homeless people who don’t bathe for days, you know, “those people.” Well, even if I did accept that it was just aimed at, you know, “those people”, I wonder how long it would take for Mr. I. M. Superior to decide that our loading dock worker is “offensive”. My guess, not long at all.

But let’s get back to the homeless guy. I have been on buses and trains with that homeless guy. Yes, he does reek. But should that keep him from being able to ride on a bus? He probably has more than a few strikes against him. For whatever reason he is homeless, and yes, he smells. So we add to his problems by banning him from public transportation.

And here we come to another problem. For many years I rode the “T” in Boston, to and from work. Without fail there was usually more than a couple people on my bus or train who, like me (and unlike the homeless guy), woke up that morning and took a shower. Unlike me however they then splashed on way too much cologne, after shave, perfume, and in some cases, all of the above. And, though freshly showered and sporting some nice clothes, they reeked. Not like the homeless guy but just as offensive.

So what of these people? Do we make categories of smells? Sweaty work guy smell: 6 months in jail. Smell that comes from a bottle: Have a nice day!

Like many things in life there are no easy answers. Sadly, there are some people (like Councilors Tam and Garcia) who insist that there are and when they have the power to force their easy answers on others they rarely fail to act. Usually they act stupidly. For them, homelessness is not seen as a complex problem. They view it in simplistic terms. The outcome of their simplistic views is to ban people from what is otherwise “public” transportation. I do not expect the Honolulu City Council to solve the problem of homelessness. Nor the “problem” of workers who smell either from a long day of physical labor or from splashing on too much Old Spice. What I do expect, sitting here in Maine 5112 miles from Honolulu, is some clear thinking, some compassion, and some common sense.

Want to read the original story? Check it out here at the website of KITV: http://www.kitv.com/mostpopular/20679481/detail.html

How Can Magic Help Rip-Off-People?

Magic, Magic, Magic. Are you so poor that you need to endorse a product that preys on poor people? On top of the questionable tactics of Jackson Hewitt now you have partnered with Rent-A-Center. Shame on you!

I have lived in poor neighborhoods for most of my life. When you announced that you had HIV I remember people in a storefront church praying for you. In my neighborhood people looked up to you and wished you well. Though we were in Boston you had more than your share of fans. And these fans transcended basketball. When an article was published about some business venture of yours people were proud. Years later the yellowed newspaper clipping was still posted in the local grocery store.

Rent-A-Center Truck (On Monday)

I am not sure of when I first realized that there were companies like Rent-A-Center. I remember going into one of the stores and, in short order, turning around and leaving. Nothing spelled scam to me like paying many times the retail cost for a sofa. Sadly some of my neighbors and friends were not so wise. They fell for the spiel and the allure of having something they desired even if they truly could not afford it. Oh, they could afford the payments. That is until a child got sick, the car broke down or they lost one of the jobs that contributed to their household income.

How many times did I ask friends to “do the math” only to hear some rationalization for the purchase? These rationalizations were helpfully provided by the sales people and TV hucksters. So eloquent and yet so wrong. And so it continued and today I am in a different neighborhood in a different state, and the story is the same. Usually on Friday a Rent-A-Center truck pulls up and unloads the bright, shiny, goodies. But when I see the truck on a Monday it usually means that someone is going to lose a fridge, some furniture, or most sadly, a computer that the children have gotten used to using for school. A computer that they have already paid $400 for. And, if they had saved, or if they had real credit, $400 probably would have bought them all the computer they would need.

But hey, that’s not Magic’s fault, is it? No, of course not.

In one of the commercials Magic talks about his Dad working double shifts to give his family a better life. The same is true for most people today. Sadly there are pressures and temptations that even Mr. Johnson did not face. One is a company telling him, as society joins in the chorus, that they can provide “the good stuff your family deserves”. How can you deny your family something they “deserve.” And who is pushing this? Someone they prayed for, cried for, and cheered for. Someone they respect. In one of the commercials Magic is even talking about respect as we see trophies and photos of his career roll by. Respect. Magic earned it and now he is using it to shill for the loan sharks.

If you do a Google search you will find many sites that detail the crimes and deceit of Rent-A-Center. I will quote one of those sites just to show you some of the theft perpetrated by Rent-A-Center.

“Last month, Washington State Attorney General Rob McKenna sued Rent-A-Center. The lawsuit charges the company with “unfair and deceptive business and collection practices.”

McKenna says customers cannot figure out how long it will take them to own an item, because the company “consistently fails to provide the true purchase price for each item that’s being rented. We’ve seen people pay $3,600 for a fridge, $4,000 for a laptop, $6,600 for a used TV set,” he says.” – From MSNBS ConsumerMan

Magic, have you no shame? $3,600 for a fridge, $4,000 for a laptop, $6,600 for a used TV set!!! Where is the respect in directing vulnerable and manipulated people to a company that rips them off? These people prayed for you when you were at one of the lowest points of your life. They cheered for you both on the court and as you began to have business success off the court. And this is the thanks you give them? So sad.

Shame on you Magic Johnson.