Sitting outside Coles/John Lewis the other week I was watching a Big Issue seller trying his best and being really polite when he got the knockback so often. Coles being Coles is rather expensive and the people who shop there must have rather more disposable income than those who frequent the Haymarket. One thing is certain, the shoppers I saw that day visiting Coles were ignorant tight fisted peasants, coming out with their big bags full of expensive garb and not having the common decency to even say "sorry" never mind part with a quid bit, having just spent many pounds on themselves. I hope I never end up out on the street but I know it can happen to anyone all so quickly.

:wink: http://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=970&highlight=

Thank you for the URL.

However, my topic was about 'Respect' and not about sellers of the Big Issue or if there are too many of them or not.

Yes muffin i have a great respect to the people who sell the big issue in all kinds of weathers but i feel there are too many of them

Okay then lets put it another way, its about the DISrespect some people have as they swan in and out of shops ignoring the big issue sellers (whether they be good or bad). So many times on this forum we read about how nice and friendly Sheffielders are, but not friendly enough to utter even a grunt when asked to contribute to something they might not believe in. It doesn't take much to be polite does it? Infact its FREE!!

Originally posted by "mouse"

Okay then lets put it another way, its about the DISrespect some people have as they swan in and out of shops ignoring the big issue sellers (whether they be good or bad). So many times on this forum we read about how nice and friendly Sheffielders are, but not friendly enough to utter even a grunt when asked to contribute to something they might not believe in. It doesn't take much to be polite does it? Infact its FREE!! Have a walk down the Fargate on a Saturday and you will get fed up of big issue sellers and people with clip boards trust me most of us are polite (but enough off the Fargate run how much can we take)

It's true, unfortunatly, that there are too mant Big Issue sellers in our city. Because in an ideal world nobody would need to sell the Big Issue.

Certainly there are too many people on Fargate selling junk/doing surveys/getting in the way - the council should put a stop to this. I feel the Big Issue should move out from the city centre and ask some of their sellers to take patches in the suburbs.

I always buy a copy. And I always try to say "already got one, thanks" to the other sellers, rather than ignore them.

I always politely say 'no thanks' and the best ones normally say something along the lines of 'have a nice day' which is cool. 100 times worse than Big Issue sellers are people who come and ask you for money so they can 'buy something to eat'. You feel very intimidated and find it a lot harder to refuse. I always feel like teling them that they can get free food and shelter if they go to a homeless refuge.

I remember 1 particular person who I ran into numerous times in a few differing locations. He always asked for 20p to 'use the phone'. He had shaggy black hair and looked a bit like Hagrid. I've not seen him for a while now though, so he might have moved on.

to be fair though, I don't ask to be bothered by big issue sellers when shopping in town. if I am walking around with someone having a conversation and it is rudely interrupted by someone trying to sell me a magazine I don't want, I do not feel obliged to disrupt my conversation and answer the big issue seller. maybe if they set up stalls and let people approach them rather than vice versa, they may increase their sales.

When I lived in Newcastle I had a friend who worked in an Off license...obviously establishments like this attract alcoholics. An alcoholic used to frequent this beer off and because of his illness got a hell of a lot of money from the Benefits Agency as he used to flash it about... anyway he used to get hold of some Big Issue magazines and used to earn a tidy little sum by flogging them and getting money off the dole!!!!! ...I'm no way implying that Big Issue sellers are thieving Pikey's but it does put you off buying one....... There also used to be a couple who would stand and beg near the students halls of residence. With the change they used to get they would go to the offy and buy a bottle of Strongbow...they also had a flat nearby too....shocking or what!

...........something that disturbs me greatly is that NO ONE should be homeless in this day and age

Originally posted by "MISS SIXTY"

I'm no way implying that Big Issue sellers are thieving Pikey's but it does put you off buying one.......
Whats a theiving Pikey?

There's another thread covering this. Basically pikey is a derogatory name for a gypsy.

When buying the big issue only buy from vendors with badges - this means they are registered to sell the big issue. Before getting registered they have to meet various criteria and are only allowed to sell it for max 2 years. Working with the big issue they receive training, education and help/advice, to give them better options and to get them off the streets.

Selling the big issue is often the only job they can get, and approaching people gives them confidence; teaching them skills of working with the public - having to talk etc to strangers.

For more info read: http://www.bigissueinthenorth.com/

Please remember to say "no thank you" rather than "sorry"

Originally posted by "Miss_Sixty"

anyway he used to get hold of some Big Issue magazines and used to earn a tidy little sum by flogging them and getting money off the dole!!!!! ...

Simple Rule, look for the badge, all Big Issue sellers have photo Id badges for precisely this reason.

If everyone went up to the big issue sellers just to say 'sorry no thanks' then they would have an equally hard time.

I don't say to the Star sellers 'sorry mate already got one'. I buy the big issue mainly because it's actually quite a good magazine and peripherally because it 'helps the homeless help themselves'.

It's a great idea, and has been copied worldwide.

Anyone comes upto me begging for money for food and I will offer to buy them some. If they accept I'll ask them what they want and we'll go and get it. If they refuse, it's usually because they didn't want it for food.

I was asked for change by a beggar on the tube once, and he said he needed it for a ticket. i offered to buy him a travelcard for the day and then he admitted
'son, eem jus' an ol' alkie lookin fer is nex brew'. So I gave him some money and became his best friend.

I agree with t020 about a stall, it would give "them" (without trying to pigeonhole anyone) the opportunity to sell things other than just the big issue. If the council can put up with and sanction street selling, then maybe it could fund such an enterprise, I'm sure the cost would be small. As for being interupted during a conversation, does the same apply when you bump into someone or is there then time to say "sorry"? Its just a few seconds wasted in a whole lifetime. Its not a lot to ask really. I can understand anyone ignoring the sit down beggars in the underpasses ie bottom of Norfolk St.

if i bump into someone and its my fault of course i say sorry, but thats not quite the same as being interrupted by a big issue seller, if anything, they should apologise for interrupting. i don't see why its rude to ignore them if i didn't ask to be bothered by them, and the same goes for people who take surveys and people who ask you for "some money for the bus home".

In Liverpool...

Police have accused up to 60 Big Issue sellers of being involved in a heroin and crack cocaine dealing ring. A total of 54 people - not all of whom sell the magazine - have been arrested in the crackdown by Merseyside Police.

Thirty of them have been charged, four released and a further 20 are still being questioned.

The Big Issue said it had no way of knowing if those arrested were genuine vendors because the police had refused to give them any information, and accused the force of carrying out a publicity stunt.

Detectives say they have recovered Class A drugs, a replica gun, a sword and a number of knives during the operation, which has been going on for 15 months.

Superintendent Alan Cooper from Merseyside Police said: "We were investigating claims by the city centre business community that aggressive beggars and other people who frequented the city were actively involved in the sale and supply of heroin and crack cocaine."

source (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/3199592.stm)

OK, so it's not Sheffield but I bet it goes on here too. So the majority are just poor unfortunates trying to better themselves? I bet most of them laugh their a*ses off at people who buy their crap magazine. :loopy: Still, as a new boy in town at least I now know where to go to score!

Good to see the Big Issue taking it seriously by dismissing it as a publicity stunt though. :rolleyes:

put a TV guide in it (TV companies whoever just let them do it for humanitarians sake!). Or why don't Big Ish ask "TV choice" if they can staple just the terrestrial (saving space) TV pages inside and give them half of what the TV mag costs (20p) and add this to the top of big issue. (whats 20p)

Vendors could then buy an interview suit (haircut, gilette, toothpaste etc..) with the quadrupled sales and get a job letting another hard luck story have their patch sooner. And so on actually adding meaning to "helping the worthless off the streets"

At 40p "TV choice" would still keep their cheapskate couch taters who obviously wouldn't switch to Big Ish. and they'd get more revenue from Big Ish. So TV choice are winners and Big Ish vendors would be.

So why hasn;t someone done it ?

Big issue is becoming tired and annoying concept now.

The Big Issue has been banned from sale in Liverpool. See here (http://www.bbc.co.uk/liverpool/vote/index.shtml)

I'm not sure I understand why Liverpool Council have banned Big Issue sellers. Sure, some of them may be involved in drugs, but isn't the Big Issue a way out of that world?

Part of me thinks that the council simply think that there's no room for homeless people in their 24 hour always happening super-dooper world class city of culture.

It's just been reported that the ban has been lifted. Bah.

What is starting to annoy me walking around town is people promoting clubs and bars, pushing fliers into my hands. Can you imagine if the big issue sellers were doing that?! Going to work the other day and walking through Hallam uni on the way to the station a girl promoting Gatecrasher even stuck a sticker on my back :(

Also along devonshire street there's been lots of posters attached to lamp posts etc with those plastic ties that stick out with quite a sharp edge at eye level. Another danger to navigate on my way to/from work & bars.

Big issue sellers aren't a problem for me compared to the above. I feel they are people down on their luck, working harder than most to make a living and I have a lot of respect for them.

I'm sorry I've gotta say this but yesterday I was walking my dogs down the moor for summat to do. I had just got down my road
( this really long deserted road ) when I saw three people just stood waiting around. I recognised one of them as a Big Issue seller from town so I smiled at the guy.
Anyway I kept on walking and was almost around the corner when I looked back and saw that a drug dealer was giving them drugs!! It was drugs and not fags ( believe me I've seen this drug dealer before ). It did kindof annoy me that this guy was selling the Big Issue but was still on drugs.
A few months ago I saw many a begger and the occasional Big Issue guy use the yard at the bottom of my garden for getting high. Thank goodness that the council cleared it up after yonks. A few times my garden has been used for getting high too.
The point is shouldn't the Big Issue be monitering they're guys to stop them from doing this junk??
Otherwise whats the point of training them if they haven't been sorted out??

I have alot of respect for the Big Issue guys too.

If the Big Issue sellers put as much effort into finding somewhere to live or getting a job as they do in selling their poxy magazine then they wouldn't have to sell it would they.

Also i think it's fair to assume that any money they earn from selling the Big Issue is classed as income. I wonder how many declare it when they sign on?

Originally posted by Escafeld1889
If the Big Issue sellers put as much effort into finding somewhere to live or getting a job as they do in selling their poxy magazine then they wouldn't have to sell it would they.

Also i think it's fair to assume that any money they earn from selling the Big Issue is classed as income. I wonder how many declare it when they sign on?

Agreed. These scum litter the streets and should instead get proper jobs and properly contributing to the economy, not the drugs black market.

Oh dear...I fear for human kind.

8) Nah Den Ace......

Originally posted by t020
Agreed. These scum litter the streets and should instead get proper jobs and properly contributing to the economy, not the drugs black market.

Student
Conservative
Upper Class
Moron

Instead of slagging people off who are less fortunate than yourself, maybe if you let go of your mummy's apron strings and got a proper job you would be properly contributing to the economy!!!

Regards,

Spacehopper.

I think street licensing laws should be inforced to stop them hassling people and they should go and get a proper job. Get their a*ses along to just about any McDonalds or supermarket and they will find vacancies... just have a wash first.

Why would anyone "fear for humanity" because some of us (perhaps most) don't like being hassled walking along the street? Us "more fortunates" pay taxes which are used to support a welfare system, which in turn provides support to those "less fortunates" (and rightly so). With a welfare system in place I don't see why I should have to put up with street sellers and beggars and reserve the right not to like them!

I can only hope that those who see the less fortunate as "scum" never find themselves in the same position. It can happen to anyone. Even though I have a job, I still fear it could happen to me.

The hypothetical situation: I'm an IT professional, and I'm made redundant with little notice. The IT job market is pretty stagnant, and I find it difficult to find a new job. The small amount of redundancy pay is still paying for rent, bills, council tax, food and so on, but is almost running out. So, I apply for jobs at supermarkets, fast food outlets - anything to tie me over until finding another IT job, only to be told I'm "over qualified" for the position. I have no job, I have no money. The landlord won't accept housing benefits, so I'm evicted. I'm on a housing list with the council, but it may take up to three months to find a house/flat for me. What do I do? I now have no home - I need shelter, I need food, I need money from somewhere to get me back on my feet, so, I turn to organisations such as Shelter, and the Big Issue.

I'm desperately trying to sort my life out - I'm unemployable because I have not permanent address, and I can't find a permanent place to live because I have no job, and thus no money, and the little money I earn from selling the Big Issue is spent on food, and buying the next issues to sell. It's catch 22, it's a viscious circle, which may take months or even years to escape.

The question: If you saw me, would you view me as "Scum"?

Hodge, most people selling the Big Issue are nothing like what you have described. Most are not even homeless i.e. a street sleeper.

If your landlord threw you out because he didn't take DSS then move to somewhere that does. There are lots, just look in the local paper. Besides, if someone is truly homeless then the local authority is obliged to provide accommodation, even if it's only B&B. I don't believe that there are genuine cases of people in the catch 22 situation of can't get a job without somewhere to live and can't get somewhere to live without a job.

In terms of employment, most supermarkets would not turn you down for being over-qualified. Training requirements are minimal as are wages. They therefore accept that most people aren't looking for careers and expect high staff turnover. Same for fast-food outlets, petrol stations etc. etc.

There are some people on the street because they have mental health problems that I feel sorry for because they will not all have received the help they needed. Other than this minority, most are people who have shunned help or are drug addicts, drunks, dealers or plain and simply lazy. Some are scum, some are just a pain in the a*se and some are no really bother but make the place look untidy. Which of these categories would you fall into? I wouldn't like to say... hypothetical stereotyping doesn't work!;)

Fair enough Zamo, but I'm not saying that most people are the way I described, I'm saying that it could happen to anyone - in fact, the situation I described was quite similar to a vendor I spoke to a couple of years back. The council may very well be obliged to accomodate people, and idealy this would happen instantly, but unfortunately in this instance it took weeks. I'm also saying that it's far from fair to simply put them all in the "scum" bucket, if you'll parden the pun - which was the point I was trying to make. It's possible to go from riches to rags, as well as the other way round.

I also know of a couple of people who have been made redundent over the past couple of years, have found difficulty finding a job in their profession (because of the lack of them), and have even been turned down for temp work due to over qualification (thanfully, they're sorted now).