Dear kids...

[venusinpisces]

I've read every word you've written in this thread. This was the quote I was replying to, in addition to the comment about all travelers being rich.

Conditions are a LOT worse in many other places. The fact that we live in a country affluent enough TO waste so much that we can dumpster is a gift beyond which many people can imagine.

Just because people can eat out of the trash here does not mean everyone is wealthy. As I mentioned on the previous page, Latin American countries typically have a much more developed sense of community and extended family that simply does not exist here. That's why it's socially acceptable for Mexicans to live with their mom well into their 30s. It's not considered to be shameful like it is with white people in the U.S, where many parents toss their kids out the second it's legally permissible. We do have a lot of other benefits that these other countries don't have but my point is that it's not as simple as "Americans are rich! We have everything!" Anyone who thinks that's the way it works just isn't aware of how bad it can get here.

 

[stove]

Ah I was under the impressino that you were responding to my second comment, not my first. I would, however, still argue that your statement above is wrong. Your example of trailer parks in Alabama are a fascinating example: At least they have a trailer.

I'd love to continue the discussion, but I don't want to tally hijack the thread. Perhaps in another thread or over PMs if you don't want it to be public? I'm fascinated.

 

[cranberrydavid]

because travel *IS* for the rich. Perhaps not necessarily middle-class or whatever, but travel is a luxury, to be sure. In the case of many of the runaways, tramps, street kids and freegan/rainbow/whatever freelovers, it is the luxury of freedom, not money, but it is still a luxury.

I think I get your point, but I don't agree. The right to move when the shit gets too deep is as fundamental as any right. Animals do it and people have done it since the beginning of time.

It doesn't matter if you're moving from famine or war or the law or family or looking for work or your heart's broken or you just need to see something new. If you need to move you'll find a way, and you'll meet people who understand and will help you if they can. And when they do you gotta say thank you.

 

[venusinpisces]

Ah I was under the impressino that you were responding to my second comment, not my first. I would, however, still argue that your statement above is wrong. Your example of trailer parks in Alabama are a fascinating example: At least they have a trailer.

I'd love to continue the discussion, but I don't want to tally hijack the thread. Perhaps in another thread or over PMs if you don't want it to be public? I'm fascinated.

I don't really see it as hijacking the thread so I will continue it here. If you want to start another topic then I will respond there as well but that could be challenging as it would require the context of what's already been discussed. Personally, I've hitched through Mexico and, from what I saw, rates of homelessness were very low compared to what you see in the States. This is largely because of the absence of "quality of life" laws which make long term squatting nearly impossible here. Here is an article which confirms this. Learning from Mexico on homelessness In one place I stopped, there were huge encampments where people had built their homes out of car parts and other scrap materials. A lady at one of these took me and my road dog back to stay with her and it seemed relatively unpoliced because there were literally hundreds of such dwellings and they looked to be fairly well established. The trailer parks I was referring to are without utilities so their conditions are comparable to those in Mexican shanty towns. Also, in the U.S., homeless people are constantly being rousted which means you basically can't have any possessions or cooking facilities which is even worse than someone living in a shanty town in some ways. There are more examples I could cite but I'll stop there.

 

[stove]

Sigh. Living in a utility-less trailer park here in the states must really suck. I wonder how a Bosnian whom has to go into the forest and cut wood for his family to avoid freezing to death in the winter would feel about that? Considering that he is taking his life into his hands in doing so, due to the profusion of [US-made] landmines distributed around the country? Or the Koreans living around the DMZ? The Vietnamese parents who worry that their children will die from UXO (unexploded ordanance) left over from the Vietnam war 40 years ago, which looks conspicuously like small shiny toys?

My thinking is not purely on the social scale, but on the idea that SURVIVAL, in itself, is difficult. The fact that we, as Americans, regardless of our economic status in this country, have luxuries such as freedom from persecution and access to basic necessities such as clean drinking water and shitty factory-farmed GMO Wally world canned food.

The mexican slums sound rough; when the Federales start raping children and murdering whole villages, I might have a different view of them. Until then, I'll continue to group what you have described with my own experiences squatting in utility-less communities. Yeah, it's rough. I know a few Malians whom would trade their homes for an Alabama trailer park or a mexican shany-town in a heartbeat.

 

[venusinpisces]

Living in a utility-less trailer park here in the states must really suck. I wonder how a Bosnian whom has to go into the forest and cut wood for his family to avoid freezing to death in the winter would feel about that? Considering that he is taking his life into his hands in doing so, due to the profusion of [US-made] landmines distributed around the country? Or the Koreans living around the DMZ? The Vietnamese parents who worry that their children will die from UXO (unexploded ordanance) left over from the Vietnam war 40 years ago, which looks conspicuously like small shiny toys?.

My thinking is not purely on the social scale, but on the idea that SURVIVAL, in itself, is difficult. The fact that we, as Americans, regardless of our economic status in this country, have luxuries such as freedom from persecution and access to basic necessities such as clean drinking water and shitty factory-farmed GMO Wally world canned food.

That's a good question(or series of them). I think the idea that all white people are racist and wealthy is one that has been useful for elite interests since the more infighting that happens amongst regular people, the less attention is focused on CEOs of companies like the ones you mentioned, which forcefully occupy land that could be used for housing and subsistence farming. To cite one example, the history of indentured servitude in America is every bit as brutal as slavery yet most textbooks minimize or outright deny the fact that servants' families were separated, women were raped and they were routinely beaten and even killed. Maybe if the actual history was taught there would be less racial warfare since people would have a better understanding of how America is entirely based on the economic exploitation of all people. We are still very lucky to have certain liberties such as freedom of the press and similar. However, the situation regarding the criminalization of "homelessness" is dismal and there absolutely are people being persecuted as far as that goes.

 

[Beegod Santana]

I for one am not of the opinion that most traveler kids are from the upper middle class. I think most come from either major cities with punk scenes, or crappy little towns in the bumfuc lands.

In any case, whenever someone takes to the road in this country, whether they realize it or not, they're taking part in a tradition and a lifestyle that goes back to before the white man landed. In recent decades there's been more and more attempts by various government entities to eliminate or handicap nomads in this country. The way this is justified to the public is by pointing to examples of travelers / homeless as dirty, violent individuals with no respect for local standards or laws. When you decide to act like a douche in public, you make us all look like douche bags. Lucky for us there is still a need for seasonal migrant workers in this country and the government continues to tolerate us, if not somewhat grudgingly. However, if they ever decide that its time for the travelers to disappear, getting pulled off a train or getting arrested for vagrancy could very quickly get you a lot more than 30 days or a fine. Despite what you may have learned in history class, our government does imprison and execute citizens without trials and they do it often.

If the nomad lifestyle is going to survive in this country then we all need to try our best to represent ourselves as people you'd actually want in your town. Whether it be spanging, busking, flying signs, whatever the fuck, part of what you make is based of skill, but the other part is based off the generosity and kindness of the people around you. When you abuse people's generosity, you're not only being a dick, you're helping endanger my lifestyle as a whole in my eyes,

The "hobo code" thread pretty much says everything else I wanna say at this point.

 

[AnarchistRon]

Woah! I really did not expect such a positive reception to this claim. Clearly I misunderstood this forum, or the people do not understand anarchism.

I should make a few things clear: I am a practicing anarcho-communist, not a traveler. But I do not have to be a traveler to oppose some of the unfounded accusations you have made below.

I'm writing this cause I've become fucking disgusted with the state of the traveler scene and feel some things need to be said about traveling in general, so here goes.

NO ONE OWES YOU ANYTHING!!!! "Fuck you pay me" is supposed to be a joke, not an actual lifestyle choice. I don't care how fucked your parents where, or how many people have a status advantage over you. You are only worth what you've earned. Whenever someone hands you money for sitting on your ass or holding a piece of cardboard, count it as a blessing. Flying signs is not ""work," busking is not "work," work is busting your ass. That $ you make panhandling doesn't belong to anyone, especially not you, you're just blessed to be in possession of it for a short period of time. In some parts of mexico, skilled carpenters make under $1 /hr. The fact that you can get drunk all day sitting on a street corner drinking $5-7 sidewalk slams is a testament to how great this country really is.

Every human being, in a sane, just and righteous society would have the fundamental right to every variable necessary to support life: This would include a sanitary shelter, nutritious food, and clean water. It is not a matter of being "owed" something from someone, it is a matter of understanding the innate value of life and creating the mechanisms sufficient to support that life. Correct me if I am mistaken, but to escape from any context is a result fundamentally of an opposition to the principles present in that context, being applied to the individual in question: Whether to escape from a prison or a city. The enlightened mind recognizes that if submitted to the regimentation of city life, some prick will at all times have authority over our fate; I do not know why the common traveler picks this life style, but if I had the opportunity to leave my current condition, I would depart for that reason, among many others. Furthermore: You should consider studying the few socialist nations in this world who do not have any homeless to drink sidewalk slams.

YOU HAVE NO GOD GIVEN RIGHT TO BE A BUM!! In many many countries on this planet the transient life is near impossible. Refusing to work can get you imprisoned or killed all over the world. No matter how low you are in American society, you still have it better than literally millions and millions of people.

There is no god to give anyone a right to anything. The concept of a "right" is a social evolution; a trademark of the continued progression of humanity's standards. With every passing generation we have an ever expanding set of "rights". It is an immense detriment to humanity's progression to identify the flaws in one land with the intention of preventing social advancement in another land.

TRAINS ARE NOT FOR TRENDY PUNK KIDS! Train hopping is for people who straight up can not live in normal society. Trains kill, trains are dirty, trains drop you out at sidings in the middle of nowhere, trains take you places you wish you've never been. Just because you've read all the threads on stp doesn't mean you know shit. Its not an easy road, and the last thing the traveler community needs is a bucha kids from the burbs trying to prove how "punk rawk" they are.

That is entirely up to the individual to decide. It should be the duty of a society to preserve a quality life. But upon matters where the boundaries of curiosity and danger blur, society should not infringe but rather provide the opportunity for the few more courageous in the population, to embrace this danger, understanding that in return great adventures and experiences lie ahead.

TELL THE TRUTH ABOUT HOW LONG YOU'VE BEEN ON THE ROAD!!! I have 1000x more respect for the kid who'll tell me that they took off from there mom's house a month ago and rode the greyhound then the fake ass punk kid lying about how long they've been traveling and where they've been. Whether you realize it nor not, real travelers see through your bullshit in a second.

Certainly. The fact that anyone would lie about these trivial matters is a reflection of the values of this society, which does place an immense emphasis upon image.

GETTING DRUNK IN THE SAME CITY EVERYDAY DOES NOT MAKE YOU A TRAVELER!!! I don't care if you don't have a shopping cart, if you just spange the same places and get drunk in the same city /town /county, you're a fucking homebum. Deal with it.

True.

SHARE BITCH!! Like I said earlier, that money doesn't belong to you. If you got something for nothing, fucking share it with other people who have nothing. Some of the most generous people I've met where also straight up junkies. Few things piss me off more than someone banking with a sign who then hoard it for themselves as if they earned it legitly. Don't worry, what comes around goes around, I'm living proof.

I doubt this will make anyone share, but agreed.

CLEAN UP YOUR SHIT!! One of the main reasons towns get harsh on travelers is because of the fucking messes you kids leave. Leaving trash at the spot you where just flying is a HUGE insult to the people who just helped you out.

All right.

 

[venusinpisces]

Every human being, in a sane, just and righteous society would have the fundamental right to every variable necessary to support life: This would include a sanitary shelter, nutritious food, and clean water. It is not a matter of being "owed" something from someone, it is a matter of understanding the innate value of life and creating the mechanisms sufficient to support that life.

Agreed.

 

[lalt]

Busking is part work, part begging I say. I have been on the sidewalk and people just see you, me and my buddy play and they might watch for a bit, throw in a dollar and then be on their way. That's when it feels more like begging. When we have people surrounding us asking for songs and singing along then it feels more like a paid gig.. but I would say it's like work because then you are entertaining people and any kind of string isn't very kind to your fingers after hours of playing straight plus your throat can get pretty worn out also trying to be loud enough on a busy street. There are other times when it feels too much like work.. when someone will come up and put in a dollar and request song after song like you owe them hours of entertainment now or like you are some sort of quarter machine. Those are the times that it doesn't feel that great. But how the fuck can I complain.. I was getting paid for doing what I do for free!

 

[MiztressWinter]

When I'm on the road, I take care of myself, period. If I fly a sign, I'm appreciative for those that kick down, and I make sure they know that. If I busk, I sing my heart and soul out for those that care to hear, and appreciate what comes of it, even if it isn't much. I don't ask anyone for food, liquor, drugs, etc. If I can't get it on my own, then I just don't get it. Why in the world would I ask another street kid that's in the same boat as me for something?

As far as sharing goes, I don't mind sharing food if I have it, as long as someone isn't trying to take advantage of me. For ex: I will buy you a sandwich today. But when I go to the store tomorrow, and the day after, please don't follow me expecting the same EVERY day. I applied for foodstamps, you can too. It isn't that hard ya know? It's not that I mind helping people...I don't mind at all. But I DO mind helping people that refuse to help themselves. And I'm sorry....but in general I don't hand out money to people for alcohol or drugs. If you have a habit, you have one because you CHOSE to have one, so ...support your own damn habit! If we're hanging out and I think you're cool and I offer you a beer that's one thing....I'm talking about people that hit me up right after I fly a sign with *i'm so dope sick help me!* or *i'm dt'ng HELLLP*. Dude...did you just see me stand in the hot ass sun on that corner with a sign for the past four hours? You can do the same.

Good stuff here though. Enjoyed this post.

 

[Riot]

Couldn't have been said any better.

 

[IIIbonesIII]

squat the planet, a place to continuously remind me how much everyone feels the need to remind everyone else, how much everyone else sucks. sweet

 

[Beegod Santana]

squat the planet, a place to continuously remind me how much everyone feels the need to remind everyone else, how much everyone else sucks. sweet

Funny story, I wrote this rant drunk in Shawnee OK a month or so ago for a lack of anything better to do. These types of rants show up occasionally, and I expected that this would get a response or two and fade off into the void. I'm honesty quite surprised at how much attention this threads' gotten. At this point I'd honestly like to see it locked, I was venting out frustrations, not trying to write the "laws of being a traveler" or anything like that. Think of this as an "airing of grievances."

 

[Rambler]

Really stoked on this thread, I was really under the assumption that most rail riders are dicks. Im happy thats not the case, well at least in this thread : ) preach on brotha!

 

[bip]

exactly. sorry but i hate spanging. everyone can do SOMETHING.

 

[Beegod Santana]

exactly. sorry but i hate spanging. everyone can do SOMETHING.

Actually I'm totally fine with spanging, its all about the attitude you have while doing it.

 

[Lizzzzz]

Really stoked on this thread, I was really under the assumption that most rail riders are dicks. Im happy thats not the case, well at least in this thread : ) preach on brotha!

they are. they're just not on this site. get out and figure it out dude. stop sitting at home asking questions. the kids on this site are but a sample of the demographic on the road/rails. there are a lot of rail kids that suck ass, drink hard 24/7, beat the shit out of their dogs, and talk shit on anyone that isn't covered in train grease and patches. seriously though, enough with your lame posts. GTFO and figure it out yourself.

 

[Lizzzzz]

exactly. sorry but i hate spanging. everyone can do SOMETHING.

spanging is doing something. it's being direct with your needs, asking someone that has when you have not. instead of sitting there quiet and not getting what you require. someone once told me "if you don't open your mouth, you can't eat". if spanging gets you what you need, then it works.

 

[MrD]

spanging is doing something. it's being direct with your needs, asking someone that has when you have not. instead of sitting there quiet and not getting what you require. someone once told me "if you don't open your mouth, you can't eat". if spanging gets you what you need, then it works.

>implying you deserve money for just sitting there