Homeless make a buck selling Humor Times

We've been working with an organization that helps out homeless people in San Francisco, giving them copies of the Humor Times to sell on the street. It gives them a way to make a few bucks, while spreading the title around and hopefully making a few new fans of the paper.

It's feels good to be able to help unfortunate folks help themselves. People walking on the street like to help out homeless people more when they see that they are being productive in some way. They might even discover they like political humor too!

Call it our little stimulus package -- stimulating the economy on the street, while stimulating your funny bone at the same time!

We hope to be able to duplicate the effort in other localities. Let us know if you have any good ideas for us. And if you see a homeless man or woman offering you the Humor Times one day, don't ignore them, help them out. Buy a copy, and then share it with a friend.

The good vibes will just keep spreading out that way! And Lord knows, we need more of that these days. Thanks.

He's B-A-A-A-C-K!

Yes, I'm back. And blogging once again. Sorry for the long absence... I get lazy sometimes, I admit it. If anyone is out there reading this, leave a comment now and then -- if I know you're out there, I'll be more inspired to write!

I am not an Oprah watcher, although I have nothing against her -- she's done some good things with her fame, so good on her. This clip from her show came to my attention recently, and I wanted to share it.

It's about the 'tent cities' springing up everywhere, this one is in Sacramento. I rode by it recently on my bike, it's MUCH bigger than these filming angles show. I saw what looked like hundreds of tents. A few months ago, there were only a handful.

Lisa Ling, a former Sacramentan, does this report, and her interviews are heartbreaking, but worth watching, as I think we tend to "other-ize" the homeless -- that is, think of them as a different sort of people. Most of those living in this growing tent city had lost jobs recently, and their homes. They're just like you and me.

http://www.oprah.com/media/20090218_tows_tent-city