A Quality of Life Crime

I am addicted to opportunity. That sounds almost positive out of context, but the opportunity I'm talking about is cigarettes. I hardly ever buy a pack but, I'll bum a couple in the course of a week. Being attentive to the 'bumming market', I know that there is a geographical threshold downtown where free smokes end and 50 cent lucy vendors loiter. By the bus stop it seems almost impolite to ask a stranger for a free smoke. To pay a stranger, or at least offer payment, is a courtesy acknowledging that individual's financial obligation associated with paying for his own vice. But overall bumming a cig requires trust and sometimes a conversation while waiting for the bus. Responsible panhandlers rely on the social support of the groups around them and must be prepared to repay that social support at a later time. I spoke with a man (Mr. H; not pictured) who escaped being arrested for asking for a cigarette.




Mr. H told another story where he saw street preachers having their freedom of speech revoked. He continued by extrapolating his experience to a more extreme example. He seems to suggest that there is no limit to the absurdity of the law and violated freedoms.



The question remains whether quality of life laws stifle the natural social dynamic of the street or truly benefit the public. The bus stop in Rochester is a gathering place lower income urban population. Many of the folks who ride the bus do it because they have to and have no choice. I don't like my two hour commute but I can't afford a car. The presence of police at the bus stop who attempt to ensure our safety the quality of our commuting experience does little to dignify the bus as a commuting option. The degradation of quality of life and basic comfort is a result of a failing commuting system. A system which is losing customers who ride the bus by choice, rather than by consequence of their socioeconomic situation. These are the people asking you for some change or a smoke.