You know, any other day... I would have said "Yes, completely immoral, it is reckless and irresponsible" etc.etc.
Yet, after recently watching a documentary based on Jack Kerouac's writings, presented by the rather idiosyncratic British comedian Russell Brand, my viewpoint on it has changed somewhat. For those who don't know, Russell Brand used to be a TV-presenter for MTV Networks... until he was fired. The guy was a trainwreck; yet he was a hilariously funny trainwreck to watch on TV. He was a drug addict, and his life was quite visibly going down the drain for all to see.
Anyway- enough context! Whilst travelling across America in homage to Kerouac's 'On The Road' (the book that practically carved way for the entire beat generation), Brand found himself in a certain hood that had a lot of homeless people. He approached them for their opinions on the lifestyle/views laid out in Kerouac's spiritualist book, and was astounded by their positive attitude and comradeship. You could tell that it reminded him of his own previous years when he was down and out. Russell and the rest of the crew generously dished out lots of Dolluh and moved on.
However, soon after an American council-worker approached and gave them the lecture that is basically emerging in all of the above posts. "What the hell are you doing? Those people are well-known crack addicts, and you just gave them money that will help them further their habit and destroy their lives" etc.etc.
It was funny seeing Russell Brand - very publicly known as being a turned-around addict - being lectured by some random civil service worker. His response is now what (partly) shapes my opinion on it today:
"When you're living freely like that on the streets, you take every day as it comes. These people have literally nothing in their lives, and today is all that matters to them in their addicted short-sighted mind. If I can give them happiness and joy right here and now, in the miserable existence that they have- then I will do that."
Touché I thought, touché. Was very in line with the focus of the documentary: living and deriving the greatest pleasures in life from the beautiful spontaneity of 'now', the present.
libertarian benefit collector - anti-academic super-intellectual.
http://mixlr.com/the-little-phrase/