Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Brother, can you spare a call plan?

Kavanna reporting from San Francisco:

The Bay Area is "home" to many homeless. They are, no doubt, attracted by the mild climate, as well as the tolerant populace willing to soothe its collective conscience by tossing change into a beggar's empty latte cup. Lately, I've noticed that the street guy near the freeway entrance, the obese woman parked in front of the Safeway, and other such independent contractors chat on cell phones in between their "Spare some change - God bless you" pitches. So now those quarters and dimes divested from the working class support not just Thunderbird and meth habits, but also Verizon plans!

What are the street denizens chatting about? One can imagine: "Hey, Darrell, my market research shows that the soccer moms exiting Chez Bebe are a sure thing. They want to show their little Joshua's and Brianna's the 'value of giving.' You can have this corner after my shift ends."

On a related note, Mayor Gavin Newsom has described Wi-Fi as a basic human right. Not a luxury, but a necessity. Based upon that solid Constitutional foundation, and the City's desire to bridge the "digital divide," San Francisco wants to provide free wireless Internet access to all. Is free cell phone service for the poor and homeless next?

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