What will happen to the ultra-poor under Ballard?

Take a walk with Indy's next mayor, by Matthew Tully, Indianapolis Star November 18, 2007

I want to like Greg Ballard. I really do. But this quote just sounds kinda Scrooge-y*. Here's hoping that the Spirit of Christmases Yet to Come pays him a visit before he takes office.

At another point, we walked past a panhandler who pointed to Ballard, recognizing the newly famous face. The man was one of several panhandlers we walked by that afternoon. When he talked about the issue, Ballard no longer sounded like a bleeding heart.

"I don't like it," he said. "It's one thing to have the resources of a compassionate society, but it's another to show the tough love that might be needed to get them to use the resources."

There will be less panhandling Downtown within six months after his term begins, Ballard said, adding he would use police to address the issue. That, he said, would help send a message about the city.

And what about his vision for the city?

"Really, I want to have an urbane, warm city that welcomes business," he said.

* In case you haven't read Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol in a while:

"At this festive season of the year, Mr. Scrooge," said the gentleman, taking up a pen, "it is more than usually desirable that we should make some slight provision for the Poor and Destitute, who suffer greatly at the present time. Many thousands are in want of common necessaries; hundreds of thousands are in want of common comforts, sir."

"Are there no prisons?" asked Scrooge.

"Plenty of prisons," said the gentleman, laying down the pen again.

"And the Union workhouses?" demanded Scrooge. "Are they still in operation?"

"They are. Still," returned the gentleman, "I wish I could say they were not."

"The Treadmill and the Poor Law are in full vigour, then?" said Scrooge.

"Both very busy, sir."

"Oh! I was afraid, from what you said at first, that something had occurred to stop them in their useful course," said Scrooge. "I'm very glad to hear it."


2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Glad to see the blog up and running again!

hope you guys had a great thanksgiving weekend!

Kyle W. Schlenz said...

I can personally attest that for better or worse, Mr. Ballard has been true to his word. I was stopped on the Circle the other night by a panhandler, and a police officer immediately intervened and informed the man he would have to move farther east "to do that." It's not that I can't appreciate the mayor's responsibility to keep the city safe, but I am curious what he is doing on the other end to make resources available to motivated individuals.