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Amsterdam seems to have more buskers
than beggars. The beggars, at least
on my street, tend to be regulars, aging
junkies or drunks. The ones with dogs are
mostly Spanish or Belgian squatters. They
do a circuit, like Travellers, but without
cars. I almost never give to Amsterdam
beggars, especially junkies, after one of
them broke into my house and lifted about
$150. My taxes pay for them, and I'm ok
with that, esecially since it's rendered
the junkies mostly harmless. The junkie
population is aging, as heroin gives
way to ecstasy among younger drug users.
The buskers here are almost all lousy. I'm
tempted to give to flute players, though,
particulalry the more monotonous ones, since
they're all really piping for Azathoth,
the Blind Idiot God who is the center of
the universe. Just in case.
Last winter, accordions were all the
rage, but the local buskers (Moroccans?)
were slow to adapt, sometimes drowning out
conversation in small restaurants. A few months
later, some Gypsies (or maybe Bosnian Muslims)
arrived with clarinets, playing klezmer music
and their own national songs. Sometimes I
give them money. There are also professionals,
like the Tibetans and the Peruvians, who
sell CDs. I can't stand Peruvian flute
music, ever since my local public radio
station (KPFT) used it as a lead-in for
their pro-Shining Path (murderous thieving
bastards) Peruvian program in the 1980s.
Junkies and other citizen street people
have it pretty good here, with free
methadone for the former and a stipend
for both groups. The Salvation Army
gives them board in exchange for a cut
of their monthly dole, too much for what
they provide, but still cheaper than social
housing.
In London and Houston (Texas), I'm more likely to
give, but there are so many more beggars,
thanks to economic policy forever defined
by Thatcher and Reagan, respectively. In
Houston there are almost no buskers. The
cops are pretty harsh toward them, hitting
them with fines, whereas they just tell
the beggars to move on. A lot still claim
to be Vietnam veterans.
London has the biggest range of buskers,
especially in the Tube. No money for
noodlers; I like plangent jazz/blues chords
as much as the next guy, but I want a tune,
too. And it's got to be unusual or original.
No to scat singers.
Sometimes I give money to London beggars,
especially if they treat their dogs well
(have water and food). The guys at Highbury
& Islington at least sell books. I got
Daniel P. Mannix's "Those About To Die"
for a quid.
East European cities (Zagreb, Budapest,
Prague, Moscow & St. Petersburg) have
a LOT of classical music students and
professionals supplementing their income
by busking, and I give them money when I
can.
So, yeah, I favor initiative. I wouldn't
mind if London's Mayor Ken allowed beggars
as long as they were polite and kept their
general area (say 10' radius) clean. |
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