San Francisco...No Peace & Love in Haight-Ashbury! Police shuffle homeless along!

Later this month, San Francisco's finest will be enforcing a spanking-new ordinance that bans loitering (camping out) in the bustling city streets.

In particular, the men-in-blue intend to focus on a posse of homeless down-and-out beggars who hang out at the curb panhandling (and what-have-you) in the Haight-Ashbury district.

"They disrupt our businesses," one shopkeeper lamented to one eager reporter bent on nabbing up a scoop.

"I've seen them selling drugs on-the-sly," another hissed to all within earshot in disgust, in so many words.

In response, one irate transient was quite vocal about the upcoming purge about to descend in the trendy city by the Bay.

"They can't do that. This is Haight-Ashbury! Peace and Love, and all that, man!"

City dwellers may recall that the once-colorful bohemian neighborhood was a mecca for a gang of free-spirited hippies who flocked to the West Coast way back in the sixties (in the era of the anti-war "flower" movement).

Like Yorkville in Toronto (my hometown), the quaint pocket of - "a free society" - went by way of the dinosaur decades ago, and was transformed - OMG - into an upscale shopping attraction.

And, Haight-Ashbury is now a dynamic hub for enterprising businessmen, out-to-make a quick buck on the ghosts of the celebrated past.

The police have noted that they have been slow to enforce the ordinance because they are waiting for fliers to be printed up in English and Spanish which will provide information on local shelters and outreach programs where the "displaced" may take refuge when they are pushed out.

Bottom line?

City officials are anxious to sweep the nasty eyesore out-of-sight - as spring awakens - and tourists start flowing into San Francisco once again as the economy builds steam.

Once the ordinance is ripe for enforcement, where will the homeless go?

In the words of immortal Bob Dylan:

"The answer is blowing in the wind!

Or, may be in the hands of Civil Rights Advocates, anxious to take a stand in the local courts.

After all, it's a sad state of affairs, when individuals can't be free in the streets.

Is a police state (or a George Orwellian society) just around the corner?

News at 11!




http://www.thetattler.biz

Prince William...sleeps rough in slums! Homeless plight triggers compassion in Royal son...

To the shelter born!

Unlike most spoiled rich kids - born with silver spoons in their mouths - Prince William has managed to keep his feet on the ground and have compassion on the less fortunate.

A case in point?

This past week, in the dead  of winter, the handsome young Royal - Princess Diana's eldest son - braved the hardships of the desperate streets in the slums of London to better understand the plight of the homeless..

Wills was not entirely alone, however.

Seyi Obakin (a represenative from a homeless charity by the name of Centrepoint that the Prince is a patron of) agreed to tag along and hold forte alongside the Prince at Blackfriar's Bridge in a seamy part of town where the hands-on all-night vigil took place..

The idea for William to spend a night on the streets - known as "sleeping rough" in Britain - was drummed up earlier this year.

Obakin commended the young Prince for taking it upon himself to embark on the painful journey in an unselfish effort to better understand the full range of problems a homeless young person might face in the mean streets of the city.

A candid still taken by the Charity - a shot of Prince William in a gray hooded jacket, jeans, and knit hat hiding his lovable mug - imparted the image of a regular street urchin down-on-his-luck.

Maybe Wills should take up acting?

All kidding aside, Obakin admitted to the media that it certainly was not fun and games, by any stretch of the imagination.

"It was a scary experience," he blurted out to all within earshot.

"Out of my comfortable bed. Out there in the elements. Out there on an extremely cold night, with down to minus 4 C (24.8 F) temperatures. And it was the same for Prince William. But he was determined to do it."

Although the adventurous twosome found a secluded spot - hidden behind a riot of worn garbage bins where they would hopefully escape detection - the stark night was still demanding on their psyches nonetheless.

"There was no shielding from the bitter cold, or the hard concrete floor, or the fear of being accosted by drug dealers, pimps or those out to give homeless people a 'good' kicking," Obakin noted for the record.

What did the Royal charge take away from the experience first hand?

"I cannot, after one night, even begin to imagine what it must be like to sleep rough on London's streets night after night," William noted with heartfelt emotion to reporters.

"Poverty, mental illness, drug and alcohol dependancy and family breakdown cause people to become and then stay homeless."

In sum, it appears that Lady Diana's tireless efforts on behalf of charitable causes impacted her son, who now follows faithfully in her Saintly footsteps..

In spite of the dalliances, though, Prince William appears to have his heart set on a more macho line of work, as a rought-and-tumble Royal Air Force search-and-rescue pilot.

He'll cut a fine swath, for sure!

Hang in there, Wills!

http://www.julianayrs.com

Shelter..."coming out" film refreshing in approach!

As I waited for the ushers to cart out the trash from the first screening of "Shelter" at the Regency Theatre, an elderly woman sauntered out of the pitch black and struck up a bit of idle chit-chat with me.

"The film is about two gay guys. But, not much goes on in the movie," she assured me.

"No fights, nothing."

Not having screened the film yet, I was inclined to respond in an upbeat fashion.

"Maybe that's the message. Maybe life doesn't always have to be an ordeal."

When the curtain fell, and the storyline unfolded, I was forced to consider the woman was either out-of-her-cups or had fallen asleep during the movie.

Yes, the film starts off fairly routine.

An appealing young man is holed up with his sister and her young child in a spotty part of San Pedro (in that respect, a downer for sure!).

Although a relationship with a pretty young gal appears to be on keel, he is struggling - on the other hand - to achieve success as an artist.

On a trip to pick up some gear at his best friend's house in an upscale part of town - he casually runs into the older brother - a handsome virile surfer.

One thing leads to another - and suddenly - the pretty dudes end up in-between the sheets together.

The romance unfolds so naturally, and believably, that it appears for all-the-world to be a kind-of fairy-tale love story.

Only in the movies, right?

But, as fate would have it, loved ones - a sister, for instance - throw a damper on things.

"I can't deal with you being a fag right now, not with all my problems," she whines.

Suddenly, the young man goes into a tailspin, doubts his feelings for the surfer, and ends up going through a traumatic period of angst, denial, and uncertainty about the lifestyle that possibly lurks ahead.

As the kinks work their way out, the predictable happens.

The winsome twosome reunite in a classic Hollywood-style ending.

Yeah, gays are not immune to the bull**it producers doll out under the guise of marketability.

"Shelter's" strong suit springs from its strident capacity to take a fresh approach to otherwise cliché material over well-travelled territory.

Yes, this project is a long cry from its groundbreaking forefathers such as - "Boys in the Band", "Lone Companion", and "Brokeback Mountain".

There is a lot of eye-candy scattered about the landscape to gobble up, too - lush beach settings, for instance - populated by tanned yummy-looking people.

Who knew Prince Charming was so easy to stumble upon in a world of tortured gay men?

However, I found one aspect of the feature a bit troubling.

In spite of the fact the surfer is older and has obviously slept around a bit - the issue of HIV status and "safe sex" - is never broached.

I found the producers negligent in this regard and their actions unconscionable.

In fact, this film sugar-coats a number of important gay issues.

In the final analysis, "Shelter" ends up being sheer fantasy.

A bad message to promote to the young gay community.