# Aloha! Tom Brower(D) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 20, 2013, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341 "2013-11-20T13:08:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/21 "2013-11-20T17:09:51Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > How much would it cost to send out a large truck to round up all loose carts and then return them to the stores for a nominal bounty? I object to destruction for the sake of destruction. Has anyone asked the stores whether they even want them back? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/22 "2013-11-20T18:16:50Z")
He distinguishes between identifiable and unidentifiable carts, so I assume he does return the ones that are marked. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/23 "2013-11-20T18:22:12Z")
And assumes the unmarked ones are stolen. Where’s the poi? There’s supposed to be poi. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/24 "2013-11-20T18:26:24Z")
He probably assumes\* all\* of them are stolen, and in 99% of cases he’s probably right. It’s still a dick thing to do, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/25 "2013-11-20T18:32:36Z")
This sounds like more than just a campaign against the homeless – this guy has serious anger issues, I’d bet. Didn’t he also say he yells at people who fall asleep at the bus stop? ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/26 "2013-11-20T18:33:47Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > This is the first time I’ve heard about this official “suburb” policy-cite, please? Official? Probably not so much. Happens? Fuck yeah! [http://articles.philly.com/2012-05-25/news/31839355\_1\_inlet-section-atlantic-city-rescue-mission-bader-field](http://articles.philly.com/2012-05-25/news/31839355_1_inlet-section-atlantic-city-rescue-mission-bader-field) > [@](#): > > William Southrey, president of the Atlantic City Rescue Mission, the largest shelter in the state, said nine counties in South Jersey regularly “dump” people in Atlantic City without referrals or treatment plans, or county reimbursements. > > “They’re using the term Greyhound therapy,” Southrey said, > **[Four Suburbs Said to Have 'Dumped' Homeless in L.A.](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2005-sep-24-me-dumping24-story.html)** > > LAPD officers report seeing other police departments dropping off people. Three of the cities say their policies prohibit doing that. > [@](#): > > Officers from the Los Angeles Police Department said they have observed police cars from at least four suburban departments drop off what appeared to be homeless people on the streets of downtown Los Angeles in the last year, their captain said Friday. [http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/stories/2003/06/23/story4.html?page=all](http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/stories/2003/06/23/story4.html?page=all) > [@](#): > > City council members and, more privately, some homeless service providers, tell stories of homeless people being handed one-way bus tickets to Atlanta or police from jurisdictions outside the Perimeter dropping people off at downtown shelters. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/27 "2013-11-20T18:33:52Z")
> [@](#): > > …It’s still a dick thing to do, of course. Bah. A Japanese penis move. Arizona buying bus tickets for their mentally ill to dump them in California with zip, zilch, zero, nada damn thing…that is a **Dick** Move! ---
**Author:** ![Strassia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e8c25b/32.png) [@Strassia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Strassia)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/28 "2013-11-20T18:34:09Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Apparently, crap like this will actually work in his favor in that state:They actually evict the homeless from the state without letting other states know about their upcoming “gifts”. > [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > And I’m not sure what the motivation is for the homeless person to take that one-way ticket anyway. If the option is be homeless in Hawaii or be homeless anyplace in the continental U.S., I choose Hawaii every time. This is actually a big problem in Hawaii. I only lived there four years, but I used to regularly volunteer at a Honolulu school that had something like 20% of its students living in shelters or a park. Desperate people from the homeland would save up enough for one way tickets to “paradise” for them and their kids and show up with no job, no money, and no family or friends. There is plenty of beach and the weather is nice, so it is a lot easier to survive in a tent or or sleeping bag than some place like Boston. > [@The Great Sun Jester](#): > > Which may partially explain why this guy is making homeless in Hawaii a less attractive option. > I have no cites so am willing to accept calls of “urban legend”. But I’ve heard of similar practices in big cities on the mainland where, with a biting winter on the way, homeless are given a bus ticket to someplace nice like L.A. or Miami. [http://www.kgw.com/news/Several-cities-providing-homeless-one-way-bus-tickets-to-Portland-230134681.html](http://www.kgw.com/news/Several-cities-providing-homeless-one-way-bus-tickets-to-Portland-230134681.html) > **[Homeless Get One-Way Bus Tickets Out Of City](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/homeless-bus-tickets_n_2458344)** > > Homeless Get One-Way Bus Tickets Out Of City [http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2012-07-19/news/fl-busing-homeless-20120718\_1\_homeless-problem-homeless-people-cars-or-couch](http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2012-07-19/news/fl-busing-homeless-20120718_1_homeless-problem-homeless-people-cars-or-couch) In the best case, homeless people are given a ticket back home to family who are expecting them. Other times, they are convinced that some other city will be better for them and just sent to be homeless there. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/29 "2013-11-20T18:43:47Z")
> [@Mr.Miskatonic](#): > > Official? Probably not so much. Happens? Fuck yeah! > [Inquirer.com archives](http://articles.philly.com/2012-05-25/news/31839355_1_inlet-section-atlantic-city-rescue-mission-bader-field) > [Four Suburbs Said to Have 'Dumped' Homeless in L.A.](http://articles.latimes.com/2005/sep/24/local/me-dumping24) > [http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/stories/2003/06/23/story4.html?page=all](http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/stories/2003/06/23/story4.html?page=all) Sumbitch! Thanks for the cites. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/30 "2013-11-20T18:44:58Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Didn’t he also say he yells at people who fall asleep at the bus stop? I assume he means homeless people sleeping at bus stops. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/31 "2013-11-20T19:20:27Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > And let’s face it, there is a political angle at work here. Conservatives are going to love to make this national news - they get to showcase an elected Democrat being an asshole to poor people. Brower’s going to be all over the media and who’s going to step forward and defend him? Well, [CNN](http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/20/us/hawaii-homeless-lawmaker-carts/index.html?hpt=hp_t2) declined to identify his party (as of this writing). ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/32 "2013-11-20T19:54:44Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Well, [CNN](http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/20/us/hawaii-homeless-lawmaker-carts/index.html?hpt=hp_t2) declined to identify his party (as of this writing). Funny you bring that up. I included that little detail precisely because of the glee we all take in saying, “Just as I thought! (R)” when we hear about a d-bag politician acting like a d-bag. Sort of a recognition that people are dickheads first, and then they pick a political bandwagon to jump on. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/33 "2013-11-20T20:01:37Z")
> [@The Great Sun Jester](#): > > Funny you bring that up. I included that little detail precisely because of the glee we all take in saying, “Just as I thought! (R)” when we hear about a d-bag politician acting like a d-bag. Sort of a recognition that people are dickheads first, and then they pick a political bandwagon to jump on. You have to admit, it is surprising that a Democrat would behave in a way that is usually associated with the loony side of the Republican Party. At first, I thought your title was a riff on Fox News misidentifying (R) as (D). ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/34 "2013-11-20T20:06:48Z")
Oh I totally cop to opening the article as a left-wing biggot, just _knowing_ this was a Republican. Any statement to the contrary would just be appologetic lying. And I’m just not clever enough for satire. Regrettably. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/35 "2013-11-20T20:35:10Z")
Think of how many shopping carts they could buy for the homeless if they weren’t wasting so much money on airfare for the homeless! ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/36 "2013-11-20T20:42:25Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > Think of how many shopping carts they could buy for the homeless if they weren’t wasting so much money on airfare for the homeless! Do they give them money for checking the shopping cart? Cause it won’t go in the overhead bin. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/37 "2013-11-20T22:06:16Z")
> [@runner pat](#): > > Do they give them money for checking the shopping cart? Cause it won’t go in the overhead bin. 😃 Hit it with a sledgehammer enough, it’ll fit. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/38 "2013-11-20T23:06:56Z")
'Cross the ghetto streets of Honolulu Where the homeless seldom shower, You’ll behold in breathless wonder The God of Assholes, Mighty Brower! ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2013, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/39 "2013-11-20T23:59:51Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > 'Cross the ghetto streets of Honolulu > Where the homeless seldom shower, > You’ll behold in breathless wonder > The God of Assholes, Mighty Brower! Sounds like Kipling. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341/40 "2013-11-21T00:29:43Z")
“Do you like Kipling?” “I wouldn’t know, you naughty boy, I’ve never kippled.” - corny old British joke from back when nobody could say \*\*\*\*. Uh oh. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aloha-tom-brower-d/674341.md?page=3)