Panhandling Decreases Downtown, Moves to Other Parts of Yakima

YAKIMA - KIMA is following up on the panhandling issue in Yakima. Last year, new laws were passed banning aggressive begging and setting fines for violators. You told us the problem has gotten much better downtown, where we previously reported it was the worst. But police said panhandling hasn't gone away here in Yakima, it's just moved. "They were pretty aggressive,” said Matt Klaus with the Committee for Downtown Yakima. “There were a few that were really well known here."

"They would follow you to your car and wait at your window,” said downtown worker, Barnaby Lang. “There were a lot of scared people."

Employees and shoppers in downtown Yakima said just a year ago, they were frequently approached by panhandlers. That’s not the case anymore. They told Action News they haven't seen someone begging for money in months.

"It's nice to be out here,” Lang said. “It feels safer coming to and from work."

But the same can’t necessarily be said in other parts of town. YPD said the problem hasn't gone away, it’s just moved to places like 40th and Fruitvale and First and Nob Hill. 

"It doesn't matter what day of the year it is, rain or snow, sometimes there's even three (panhandling,)” said Maria Madrigal. 

Police said the issue will likely never go away completely, but tighter regulations have helped curb the pushy behavior. KIMA was told simply asking for money is legal, but people are being ticketed for stepping into the road.

"It starts becoming a crime when they intimidate people into giving them something,” said Sgt. Lloyd George. 

And that something they may or may not get from the public likely won't come close to covering the $56 ticket for panhandling.

Police said a good chuck of panhandlers are not from Yakima, and just passing through the area. 

Cee Lo Green helps firefighting campaign

Cee Lo Green is doing his bit to help US volunteer firefighters. The singer-songwriter is recording Thank You, another rewrite of his hit song that's known in its PG-rated version as Forget You, to publicise a battery donation campaign. "I believe I can contribute a great deal more than mere entertainment," he said. Cee Lo is helping to promote Duracell's battery donation drive for volunteer fire departments in the States.

The firefighters use the batteries for flashlights and other equipment. In the US, the firm is donating one battery for every specially marked pack of batteries customers buy.

Cee Lo's mother was pulled by volunteer firefighters from a serious car wreck, and had served as a firefighter herself.

"I always wanted to be a fireman, like a lot of kids," he said.

"There are quite a few heroes out there," he added.

Cee-Lo, who is touring Europe, has been involved in a number of other charitable efforts, including plans to donate proceeds from his song It's OK to Japan's earthquake relief.

Spring HS seeks donations for Project Prom garage sale

The Spring High School Project Prom committee is accepting donations to put up for sale at its community garage sale from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. on April 9 in the school parking lot.

Donations of slightly used clothing, furniture and household items are now being accepted to be sold at the sale. Those who have items are asked to contact Stormy Noble at 832-257-3240 or stormyp73@hotmail.com, or Debbie Plyler at 281-615-4859 or debplyler@comcast.net. Items the committee have already received to sell include desks, restaurant tables and chairs, patio sets, baby-related items and clothing.

All proceeds from the garage sale will go toward funding Spring High School Project Prom, which provides a drug- and alcohol-free event where students can take part in activities as well as spend the night after prom. Students are welcome to attend regardless of whether they go to the prom.

Project Prom is organized and solely funded by seniors' parents. The total cost for a successful event is estimated at $40,000 to $50,000.

To make a monetary donation to Spring High School Project Prom, contact Melinda Magdaleno at 832-489-1525 or luvhaart@aol.com. Donations may also be sent to the attention of Earlesia Nowlin at Spring High School, 19428 IH 45, Spring, Texas 77373. All checks should be made payable to Spring High School Project Prom. A tax deductible receipt will be issued for each donation.

Good Karma: Colbert to Cover 'Friday'

TV show hosts Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Fallon have teamed up to help raise money for DonorsChoose.org, an online charity that raises money for schools in need. 

Fallon had promised that if fans could help reach the goal of raising $26,000 by Friday, April 1, Colbert would perform the viral hit "Friday" by Rebecca Black. Happily, that goal was reached days ahead of schedule. Colbert's backing band for the song will be Fallon's house band, hip-hop group The Roots. 

DonorsChoose.org is an online charity that promotes fundraising projects for schools across the nation. Visitors can browse through projects on the site, and decide which project they want to donate to, receiving a breakdown of how every dollar was spent after the funding goal is reached. 

For more information on donating, visit DonorsChoose.org.

Compelling And Successful Cyber Begging Campaigns

Cyber begging and internet panhandling has many names and definitions, however the idea is the same; to ask for money on the internet. Just like everything else, the idea was taken from off the streets and into the long series of tubes known as the internet.

The exact first known instance of begging is unknown, however there are many articles that point to 1997 and 1998 where the early examples of cyber begging emerged. One particular case is that of Karyn Bosnak, who launched savekaryn.com, a website that blatantly explained that Karyn had accrued over $20,000 in debt and took her story to the internet. Over the course of several years, Karyn added new features to her website and updated the amount she collected and ways she was saving to meet her goal. After she finally conquered her debt, she turned her site to be more about the dangers of credit card abuse and about her experience cyber begging, but no longer accepted donations. She later earned a book deal and is now an advocate for saving and living a debt-free life.

Karyn's example of internet panhandling is one of millions these days. But why did her story work and so many others suffering with their donation pages.

It's the story.

Humans are attracted to compelling stories, as it is a natural evolution of our species. Sitting around hearing and listen to stories is as natural to us as yawning.

Karyn's story began with her problem. She knew she had an addiction to Starbucks and designer clothing and had accumulated tens of thousands of dollars in debt. She started a cyber begging website with the little money she had left. She truthfully explained her story and created an entertaining website. Her story was picked up my the media, and little-by-little she climbed her way to her goal. Upon completing her goal she reorganized her website to teach what she had learned.

Now that's a compelling story! There have been many other similar stories like this, and truthfully explaining your compelling story and following through with updates appears to be the most direct way to have a successful cyber begging campaign. Once again here is the essential list you need:

• Truthfully explain your situation

• Set a goal

• Update your progress

• Announce your success and pay-it-forward

If you plan on choosing the cyber begging route to reduce some of your financial pain, take the time to be honest, truthful, and explain your story and situation in a compelling way. Even if you know that you are the cause for your financial misery, many anonymous donors have sometimes been in your situation and are willing to help out. It never hurts to try.

AP-GfK Poll: Americans souring more on economy

By LIZ SIDOTI, AP National Political Writer Liz Sidoti, Ap National Political Writer – Wed Mar 30, 5:13 pm ET WASHINGTON – For all the talk of recovery, Americans are growing increasingly pessimistic about the economy as soaring gas costs strain already-tight budgets. But so far, people aren't taking it out on President Barack Obama, a new Associated Press-GfK poll shows. Even so, the survey highlights a central challenge Obama will face in his campaign for re-election. The president will have to convince a lot of voters who are still feeling financial hardship that things are getting better.

Obama's approval ratings have held steady at around 50 percent over the past month. But the disconnect between negative perceptions of the economy and signs that a rebound are under way could provide an opening for Republicans at the outset of the 2012 campaign.

In the survey, just a sliver of Americans — 15 percent — said they believed the economy had improved over the past month, compared with 30 percent who had thought that in January. Only a third were optimistic of better times ahead for the country, down from about half earlier this year. And 28 percent thought the economy would get worse, the largest slice of people who have expressed that sentiment since the question was first asked in December 2009. 

"It's in a poor state," said Billy Shirley, 74, a Democrat from Commerce, Ga. "Everything's going to the bad. Everyone's spending more on gas, food, everything. The prices on everything are going up, and that's hurting the nation." 

Recent economic indicators paint a more positive picture: The unemployment rate, though still high at 8.9 percent, has been declining, and consumer spending and personal income were both up last month. The gross domestic product was growing at an annual rate of 3.1 percent as last year ended. 

Americans are acutely focused on their financial well-being, even as turmoil in the Middle East commands international attention. And the foreign unrest is directly affecting them by boosting oil prices. 

More Americans — 77 percent, up from 54 percent last fall — now say gas prices are highly important to them. Obama's job-performance ratings haven't suffered as people's attitudes about the economy have shifted over the past month. Half still approve of how he's doing his job, and half say he deserves to be re-elected. His rating on handling the economy was unchanged: 47 percent approved. 

In fact, twice as many people said Obama "understands the important issues the country will need to focus on during the next two years" as said that about Republicans in Congress. That's not to say that Obama is escaping responsibility for the economic situation. Annale Iltis, 26, of Sarasota, Fla., faults big business, the federal government and, to a lesser extent, the president. 

"I do a bit," she said, "but at the same time he has good ideas. He just doesn't have the backers in the House and the Senate to get them done." The self-described independent voter, who supported Obama in 2008 and says she would do so next year, is concerned that deep budget cuts that Congress is considering will hurt the fragile economic recovery. 

"It seems stable now but I fear it's going to go downhill quickly," she said. Henry Kugeler, 49, of Chicago, likened the situation to the fable about the crawling tortoise that wins the race against the speedy hare, saying: "Right now, the country is the tortoise. I don't think the economy is getting worse. The recovery that's happening is real, but it's incredibly slow." The Democrat doesn't blame Obama or other politicians, saying: "They haven't helped but I don't know that they've hurt." 

Obama inherited an economy in recession. Republicans angling for the chance to challenge him next fall have been blaming him for the slow recovery and arguing they could do better. Presidential advisers are hopeful that the positive economic trends continue, giving Obama an opportunity to make the case for keeping him in office rather than risk an economic backslide. 

As the slow-to-start GOP nomination fight starts in earnest this spring, the poll shows that candidates clearly have work to do. More than or nearly half of Republicans surveyed say they don't know enough about the following potential contenders to even express an opinion about them: Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum and Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann. Roughly two-thirds of Republicans expressed favorable views of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, while former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney got slightly lower marks. Even though many of the candidates aren't well-known, about half of Republicans say they are satisfied with their choices. 

The poll comes just as Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill wrestle over the federal budget, and there could be a partial government shutdown without further action by Congress. The Republican-controlled House has approved some $60 billion in spending cuts. The Democratic Senate is looking at $33 billion. 

Without agreement, some Republicans say they won't approve funding to keep the government operating. The issue of federal spending isn't just something lawmakers talk about. It's clearly weighing on the public. Roughly half in the survey said they expected enormous federal budget deficits to cause a major economic crisis for the country for the next decade, and most said they worry that mounting federal debt will hamper the financial future of their children and grandchildren. 

In the shorter term, people in the poll view everyone negatively when it comes to handling the deficit, but lawmakers get worse marks than the president. Only about a third of those surveyed approve of how Republicans and Democrats are dealing with the issue, while 41 percent approve of Obama on the matter. 

People also are evenly divided on which party would best handle the deficit. The Associated Press-GfK Poll was conducted March 24-28 by GfK Roper Public Affairs and Corporate Communications. It involved landline and cell phone interviews with 1,001 adults nationwide and had a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 4.2 percentage points. 

Associated Press Polling Director Trevor Tompson, Deputy Polling Director Jennifer Agiesta and News Survey Specialist Dennis Junius contributed to this report. 

Online: http://ap-gfkpoll.com

Website reviews: Begslist.org

by Katerina Nikolas

Amidst the slew of online begging sites Begslist.org costs nothing for cyber beggars to sign up and post their pleas for donations. They hope to be found by one of the kind souls who scour the internet looking to give their cash away. Whilst other sites often charge a hefty sign up fee Begslist.org is still free, as its creator knows what hard times are.

Instead of the beggars paying to post, Begslist runs paid advertisements from businesses which include online gambling sites, pay day loan lenders and credit repair services. This could be convenient for one of the sites cyber beggars who pleads for money to fund his gambling trip, as he could save on the travel expenses and hit the online gambling instead.

Whilst the site is free it does promise to feature those that donate $9.95 when they post, that their begging post will be featured in the ‘Begslist Spotlight’. The site also gives advice to its online beggars on how to avoid being scammed by donors, though it doesn’t highlight the dangers of donors being scammed by beggars.

Common scams to look out for the typical email type which purport to come from Presidents and Doctors, and those who need your address to send you a check which will require a return check for the over donated amount once cashed. Beggars are also warned of the countries which most likely send scam mails, including Nigeria and the UK.

The site does not publish photographs or personal details of the beggars, though some do post their PayPal email address. Many choose to post their names though along with email addresses and place of work. Requests for cash are divided into various sections such as money for debts, students, medical bills, food, rent, toys and entertainment. The latter category includes requests for beer money, new computers and gaming consoles.

One cyber beggar who intends to run for public office soon seems to have misunderstood the nature of cyber begging and touchingly declares himself to be a “35 year okld mail” in need of a wife. Another poster has urgent need of $10000 “for breast augmentation. In return I will take naked pictures of myself, with my new breasts.” What voyeur could turn down an offer like that?

Cyber beggars have a varied international background with representatives of India, Canada, Bulgaria and the Philippines all featured. What they all have in common is a Pay Pal account and a sob story.

There is nothing to say that those who beg online will receive a cent from it but they are encouraged to click on the adverts to express their gratitude for the free service which Begslist provides. Donors on the other hand are more likely to avoid being scammed by giving directly to the poor, the needy, or a charity.