Photo-a-Day  (Thursday, 20th December, 2018)

Good photo Rev. I noticed the back right leg, difficult to help out from a distance.
Does Wigan have a wildlife Centre where injuries could be treated?
Still lots of discussions on "To do or not to do"

A nice Photo, with gradely intro'. And perhaps the stricken ('nearside? rear leg') creature had found something cheerful to eat from the bird food.

Aww,poor thing, I hope somebody does feed him/her,I hate to see any creature hungry.

I wonder if any of the people living rough on the street would have an affinity with this creature. Both are cold, hurt, starved and at the mercy of situations beyond their control. Survival of the fittest is not a recipe for the human race.

DTease,I'm sure they would,every time we go down Lord St at Southport I give to the homeless money or nip into the bakery to buy pies for them..I don't profess to be a do gooder,I just cannot stand people or Gods creatures being cold and hungry..if I was well off I would buy all the homeless duvets to keep them warm at night..I know they're not all genuine, but how do you differentiate between them..there but for the grace.....

DTease,I'm sure they would,every time we go down Lord St at Southport I give to the homeless money or nip into the bakery to buy pies for them..I don't profess to be a do gooder,I just cannot stand people or Gods creatures being cold and hungry..if I was well off I would buy all the homeless duvets to keep them warm at night..I know they're not all genuine, but how do you differentiate between them..there but for the grace.....

Just lately I have seen women begging in Wigan town centre - that's something new it always seems to be men. It's always in shopping areas- never see them at all where I live. I noticed a well dressed man in his sixties sat down with a box in front of him. Like Maureen says it's hard to tell if they are genuine.

Well said Maureen, it's good to know that not everyone has a downer on them. In your case Maureen it's twice as good.

Maureen, If you spent your money on Duvets it wouldn't last very long, no matter how much you had.

The poor thing really does look malnourished. Very difficult to decide what to do about it, if anything.

Ken.
As you've touched on, the best thing to do with this stricken animal, is to get it in for a closer inspection; even though the chances of repairing its damaged leg might prove to be limited, if not futile. It's a handsome 'devil' though, isn't it.
Maureen.
If only the 'Down-and-Outs' - and, seemingly, the powers that be - would realize that they all have various types of hidden talent, and as such, are also valued, then their self-esteem would surely be heightened. Although self-appraisal is sometimes achieved only by a 'gradual graduation' that takes years, others seem to kick-on like meteors in no time at all, so Well-Done to them.
And perhaps those unfortunate lads and lasses in Southport had gained cheer from your hospitality. . . Of course they had.

Thank you DTease and Philip,the ones that I give to are mostly the very thin people,I like to think I can tell if they're druggies or not,most of them have dogs for companionship ,I don't think druggies would own a dog..I'm sure I would know if they were there under false pretence...It honestly gets to me when I'm snuggled under my warm duvet to think of them sleeping in doorways on freezing nights..

Maureen, it cheers my old soul to know that there are still people like you left in this poor, benighted country of ours.

I apologise if I'm going on but..the latest news report estimates that 600 homeless people died in England and Wales last year.that is truly shameful.

I know it's hard to tell the genuine ones but radio Manchester last week stated that something like 40 to 50 percent arent actually homeless some even were seen at the end of each day driving to there homes , I know it's hard but the mind boggles.

When and if money is given to these lost souls,or a cup of soup even,its seems like a drop in the ocean and it's not getting to the root of the problem. I was in Wigan the other day and a woman marched up to me and asked for money- she looked as fit as a fiddle
- she didn't look 'down and out' at all. I turned to watch her.She carried on and went to other people as well. I've had people asking for 50p to make a phone call and given it- but they could do that with 10 people and they would have a fiver in their pocket. I think it's brazen to ask someone for money really. I do think it's time something was done for the unfortunates roughing it on the streets. Perhaps there should be Lodging Houses like there used to be years ago.

BUM BUM

I don't give to anyone that's asking for money,on Lord St there are so many shops that are closed and the doorways are full of people huddled up under an old coat or whatever,they look absolutely starving and cold,they are the genuine ones.

It's all about self respect and retaining it when the chips are down.

Self respect is a fine thing Poet, but it’s a very thin veneer. Self respect soon goes by the board when you are sick, tired and hungry.
The fact that we are prepared to tolerate the situation we now have says more about the rest of us than it does about them.
Not only do we tolerate the situation but we justify our idleness by condemning the victims, “They’re druggies”, “They’re not really homeless”. “They all go home in Rolls Royce’s”.
Does a druggie or an alcoholic not need help?
In the end it’s a decision that we all make. Do you try to help or do you pass by on the other side of the road?

I'm reminded of this years holiday in Italy. We were warned not to give any money to beggars as they were everywhere. I had a packed lunch which I didn't really fancy eating so I gave it to a 'down and out' in a long line of them on a bus station. He thanked me and put it inside his sleeping bag. I boarded the coach awaiting the group - looked out of the window and lo and behold hundreds of pigeons landed and the chap was feeding them with the packed lunch I had just given him! They can be very choosy these 'down and outs'! Actually I think they were probably immigrants.

I think it's far more preferable to support charities through reputable agencies. I support two through my church throughout the year at least the money is being well spent. I agree more needs to be done for the genuine homeless.

DTease, by giving money to the charities which aid the homeless I'm able to help and pass by on the other side of the road at the same time. Giving beggars money directly risks fuelling a drug addiction. We should be wary that well meaning humanity doesn't kill with kindness.

Some thought-provoking responses....
As far as the fox is concerned, it hasn't been back since this visit, so we haven't had to think about how we might help it.
As for the homeless, we're told by Government Ministers that their policies are not to blame for the numbers of homeless - or their deaths. So that's that, then....
Thankfully, whether they feel responsible or not, I'm pleased to see that many folk from Wigan drop items into the food bank bins on a regular basis, and make generous donations to organisations like The Brick. Anyone who has doubts about giving to beggars should consider joining them, if they don't already do their bit in those or other ways.
Outside St Anne's Church in Manchester yesterday, my attention was drawn to a bronze figure on a bench, huddled beneath a blanket, with just bare feet protruding from one end. Each foot bore the mark of where the nail had been driven in....

Veronica, Poet, how much do the Charities take from your donations in “Expenses” and salaries for the professional money gatherers?

Perhaps it's time the government reduced the foreign aid budget Dtease. That would go a long way to helping the homeless I'm sure. I will go on doing what I have been doing and donating to the Food Banks and various charities. With respect I would rather do that than drip feed money to individuals - in my eyes that's fair and my personal preference.

Veronica, I hope it didn't come across that I was implying any criticism or judgement. I certainly didn't intend it that way. I think you can tell from the comments made that we all have difficulty knowing what to do for the best. But I have no doubt that whatever is done is done with the best of intentions.

Hopefully that's all we can do Dtease - without sounding trite my conscience is my guide in everything and sometimes it can weigh heavy.

Veronica and DTease,wouldn't it be a boring old world if we all had the same train of thought.

Just let nature take its course.

There is a realisation here that people do everything to avoid . The Labour leader , like Tony Benn , uses , compassion as a weapon , like, those do with religion. Social Responsibility has to come first , in every issue . Not my family , not my community, ,
but me , myself . We are no better than the Fox here , but we think we are . What is the difference with this fox and food banks ? Each and every time we use emotive terms to avoid social responsibility. We are becoming a dependent society, expecting others to provide for me . This fox knows !
We are not exclusive as humans , we are only part of . Compassion is a massive political weapon . It can lead to emotional blackmail and guilt , It has to start with me !
If you are a single mother , compassion moves in as a matter of decency to protect .
But by rejecting the error , we move to acceptance and dependence we see everywhere. Without social responsibility our society, any society will fail .

We would fail even more as a society if we didn't have compassion for the vulnerable. Thankfully the majority do take responsibility for themsleves. There will always be the weaker members who need a helping hand for varyious and different reasons. Hitler tried to rid society of the vulnerable and succeeded by exterminating them. We wouldn't want a society where that happened Julie.