Mr.S wrote: » wtf? -- You notice 'knackers' and drug addicts because Dublin CC is compact & small. Our drug treatment clinics, inner-city council housing & homeless support centres are all located in the city centre near popular areas. Other cities ship all of these outside their main areas, or have larger city centres, area's where generally only addicts go etc. In Dublin, it's just all in the same area, with tourists, offices etc in the same vicinity.I wouldn't say there are more addicts etc in Dublin compared to other major cities, we just notice it more where as other cities hide them away.
dd972 wrote: » A very, entrenched class system wherein the sort of law abiding average Joe who's socially and economically between these people and the middle classes represents a much thinner layer of society compared to other countries. Lack of political will and intent to improve the areas these people live, if you're unlucky enough to be born in them you're pretty much regarded as human trash by the state and the middle classes. Drugs and Alcohol pandemic.A self-perpetuating, dead-end infantile culture that based around being either a Jack-the-lad, a thug,(or maybe both) and having to have 3 kids by the age of 22. Complete lack of boundaries, which actually works out positively for them in many respects, growing up believing you can do what the f**k you like creates this uninhibited aspect about them, I don't really see the anxiety about them that afflicts people who have to hold down jobs, pay mortgages, etc. If you think about Dublin in relation to the rest of the country in terms of demographics, they probably stand out all the more, I've read that many of them are descended from a Famine influx into the slums of the city in the mid 1800's even that in it's own way renders them different. I've even met English born people with Irish parents who are more quintessentially 'Irish' than lower-class Dubliners in terms of connection with the parishes they originate from, the GAA, Church, etc.
volono wrote: » Hi op, like other posters have mentioned and i could be wrong on the exact figures but its my understanding that there's 7 methadone clinics from amiens street on wards in the city center , some homeless accommodation and the homeless persons unit is directly across from pearse street garda station. The point being is that these people have to travel into that area of the city every day to collect said methadone as you'll find the vast vast majority are not on '' take home '' supply ie 5 days worth of methadone at a time. Why are they centered there?? Have any of you looked into suboxone use as an alternative to methadone by the way?? Have any of you asked why these people are heroin users in the first place?? and by that i mean people from disadvantaged backgrounds and otherwise (which includes people ''that live there'' as one poster mentioned?? ) Have you seen the European commissioned study from back in the 80's that stated that the north inner city was one of the most impoverished, under resourced areas in the WHOLE OF EUROPE at the time , no wonder Tony Gregory is still idolized in those areas and this is with the I.F.S.C. and some of the most profitable companies in the WORLD operating on the doorstep. I feel people are very quick to judge others and it's not only ''junkies '' etc but in all walks of life , the question should be WHY??, how can we have an ever increasing homeless crisis , hospital crisis in fact a crisis in every social provision i can think of ?? People don't want to think like that though?? do they , we see junkies and homeless and beggars and what do we think?? F them , but imo it's the failure of successive failed policies on behalf of the elected governments to implement a plan to eradicate them. Do people truly believe that the vast majority of elected officials have our best interests at heart ?? , like seriously!! I am on the side of nurture in the nature versus nurture debate and although millionaires have come out of impoverished backgrounds i believe you are a product of your environment which makes it so so much harder. A quick look at the school tables every year will tell you that, and please have a look!! whats so sad is that it has become generational now , your socialised into it. I could go on and on and on and i'm sure someone will respond by saying that wait , we live in an open society were any child can go onto 3rd level etc etc but what are they getting socialised into?? Whats that saying?? ''show me a child at 7 and i'll show you the person they'll be'' IMO we all have to start looking beyond the small stuff and find a way to elect officials that will genuinely implement policies to fix whats really wrong with our society so that the days of this are over. Just back to the op and another poster touched upon it . America now has more deaths per annum from legalized opiods than they do heroin , Purdue pharmaceuticals have been found out to have fudged there clinical trials re Oxycontin have you looked into that?? Have you asked yourself why there's over 40 MILLION PEOPLE on food stamps in America , I only hope you do wake up!!!!
Jawgap wrote: .....a few years ago the HSE made the decision to centralised the methadone / rehab clinics and 'bring them in' from the suburbs......as a result, the junkies came in to town, then the dealers, then the junkies who weren't on methadone etc.....
Jawgap wrote: Actually, I believe the correct terms is skangers or at a push scobies......
eduzzino5 wrote: » Please don't get me wrong - I don't want to offend or to insult anyone. I don't even know the right word to use (knackers/chavs/scumbags/junkies). I moved from Boston to Dublin last year and it seems to me there are so many knackers in the city. Just wanted to understand if there is a reason (bad welfare? high level of drugs? low police enforcement?) of why there are so many knackers in Dublin (especially in the city center)
goz83 wrote: » So you're from Ireland (possibly Dublin) and recently returned after being in Boston for "a while" and you don't want to offend anyone and also don't know the "right word" to use use? OKAY :rolleyes: So having returned from NYC where I recently was for a while (4 days) I noticed far more people with problems when walking around Manhattan. They slept on the benches in Central Park, The Subway Stations and I even saw a few on 7th Avenue & Broadway in sleeping bags alongside the walls of the busy shops and restauarants. They walked the streets talking to themselves, or shouting at other people. The more stable (using that word with a picnch of salt) were selling gazettes. I was queuing at the Museum of Natural History one morning and one these less fortunate people was trying to sell what looked like a 2 page paper for $2. He said "Aight Folks....if ya don have enough, y'all kin make a donation....a dollar, a freakin apple". Then he threatened to sing if nobody gave him money. Oh God...he was not bluffing :eek: He did warn us that he was bad and he was right. His signing was like someone shouting really loudly a Britney Spears song. Then he was Snoop and then he was P Diddy. Torture. He moved on to assault others with his tunes further down the line. I think maybe you notice our undesirables more because they usually dress better. You don't see them wearing Penneys best....oh no...it's Nike all the way. What was the purpose of your OP?
wakka12 wrote: » Simply massive tracts of social housing within the city centre core. i dont know why, I havnt seen it anywhere else Ive ever visited. Or maybe other countries social housing is less instantly obvious as social housing. But yeh, huge amounts of the old georgian city were demolished to put up block after block of horrid looking social housing. I dont know why theyre still there, they should really be made into normal looking apartment complexes with mixes of paid homes and social houses with retail units at ground floor Some of the most important,central land with extremely high economic potential shouldnt be given over to social housing. St patricks church, one of the countrys biggest tourist attractions st patricks church, is literally surrounded by social housing. Im not advocating moving these people out to suburbs and making slums. But they dont need to live in such central areas. Places like rathmines or harolds cross are perfect distance as they are within walking distance to cbd as well. But yeh it needs to change.
eduzzino5 wrote: » Couldn't agree more. Ive a friend living close to the Tim Kelly Flats in Charlemont st (so called "Charlo"). He's never had any issue whatsoever but everything I pass by they look very dodgy. But honestly, there are people that don't make lots of money if they had issue and they deserve a social house - like they need to have one but they are good people. I was more referring to all the people asking for change and looking to get into a fight hanging around next to the spire or Parnell st.
Stoner wrote: » In some cities in the states they pick up the drug users and drive them away from the centre, there are zones and tourist spots they need stay out of. San Francisco about 10 years ago was terrible, but they've addressed that issue to a large degree. However it's a tactic of literally kicking the can down the road. Americans seem at peace with having areas where living conditions are terrible, they drop the addicts off in these spots, nobody of note lives there. Locals simply don't go there, middle-class Americans are terrified of them, tourists seldom see them. Get a bus from NY to Boston and you'll see what I mean.
wakka12 wrote: » I dont have a problem with social housing..I agree they deserve a house..it just doesnt need to be clustered together on some of busiest and most expensive land in the capital city, and the blocks dont need to be unfiformly social hosuing, they dont need to be so scary and intimdating looking, why dont they make the buildings look nice with balconies and big windows and shops at ground floor etc
iodd7 wrote: » OP - your terminology is offensive - 'knacker' is a pejorative term for traveller (like calling a black person the n word) so you should edit your post - your recurring use of the word in your replies is strange.
eduzzino5 wrote: » Just wanted to understand if there is a reason (bad welfare? high level of drugs? low police enforcement?) of why there are so many knackers in Dublin (especially in the city center)
suicide_circus wrote: The gardai do nothing about the problem (you see them stop and search a junkie once in a blue moon) but why would they since there is no effort by the government or judiciary to keep the streets clean.
Swanner wrote: Why ? Well there's no single answer but I would say a complete inability to govern ourselves effectively has a lot to do with it. Our politicians are too greedy, corrupt and busy feathering their own nests to tackle issues that effect the less fortunate in our society.
cgcsb wrote: » This will change though, gentrification of Dublin's inner districts will push out undesireables
Dublin Spur wrote: » There are 2 issues for me: 1) The filth and 2) the danger/criminality On the filth, the north inner city is filthy dirty. I work just off Talbot Street and the amount of sh1te (animal and human) I step over every day on the way to the office is sickening. The council do their best but the sheer volume of dirt, litter and rubbish is way too high for them to make a dent in it. I don't know if the guilty parties are local or come into the north inner city to dump the crap, I would say its probably a bit of both. Regarding the scummy individuals that lurk around every corner I think it's a policing issue - in the 90's Manhattan was transformed from a dangerous sleazy kip so there's no reason the same can't be done with Dublin, there just needs the right amount of determination, focus and of course money. Zero tolerance on anti-social behavior would be a good start along with tough sentencing for repeat offenders, working for the dole would be another positive step. Look, I know there are no easy fixes here but surely we all agree that we can't leave things the way they are, the north inner city is badly broken but nobody seems to be doing anything to fix it. It's an embarrassment, O'Connell St and the surrounding area should be a world class location and something we should all be proud of as Dubliners.The North/South inner city divide is also very wrong, why for example in Merrion Square in better shape than Montjoy square, both are pretty identical Georgian Dublin developments yet one is now pretty much a tenement whilst the other is gleaming. Who allowed these double standards to take hold and why as nobody ever done anything about it?
Swanner wrote: » Offensive to you maybe.. We don't all choose to get offended by words so speak for yourself thanks.. I agree OP. Dublin has become a kip. The city centre seems to have become a mecca for undesireables and it's generally a very unpleasant place to be imo. I would contrast that with many other European cities which are a pleasure to walk around. Why ? Well there's no single answer but I would say a complete inability to govern ourselves effectively has a lot to do with it. Our politicians are too greedy, corrupt and busy feathering their own nests to tackle issues that effect the less fortunate in our society.
AlanG wrote: » main differences I have seen between US Cities and Dublin. - treatment centers are in the CBD in Dublin, in the US most CBD areas are just businesses. - there is far more of a mix between upper and lower income class areas in Dublin - in most parts of the states there are social housing projects and then there are private areas and there is very little mix between the two. - police and judges in the states can be fired so they look after the areas that vote and pay more taxes to ensure they stay in power - this is to the detriment of poor areas but makes other areas well policed and relatively safe. - in Dublin there are a lot of free bus passes for people with addictions so they get around more. - in the states people are generally expected to take on a higher level of individual responsibility, in Ireland someone else, or the system is often blamed so it is more acceptable to be reliant on handouts and the state. IMO this makes the problem more visible in Dublin but it is actually much worse in most US cities, they are just fr more segregated.
Dublin Spur wrote: » The North/South inner city divide is also very wrong, why for example in Merrion Square in better shape than Montjoy square, both are pretty identical Georgian Dublin developments yet one is now pretty much a tenement whilst the other is gleaming. Who allowed these double standards to take hold and why as nobody ever done anything about it?
alastair wrote: » https://www.irishtimes.com/news/environment/8-million-plan-for-restoration-of-mountjoy-square-park-1.1888517http://www.dublincity.ie/sites/default/files/content/RecreationandCulture/DublinCityParks/NewsEvents/Documents/MountjoySquareConservationPlanHistoricLandscapeStudy.pdf Mountjoy Square is well into its major restoration and redevelopment. It’ll end up in much better shape than Merrion Square, once it’s complete tbh. It’s also utilised to a much greater extent than Merrion Square, for it’s size - and is a very pleasant place to spend an afternoon. The use of the housing stock around the park is different to Merrion Square for sure, given that there’s little residential use of Merrion Square, but it’s not quite all ‘tenements’. There’s at least three modern apartment developments, a bunch of smart owner-occupier Georgian stock, a smattering of businesses, the former DIT campus, and yes, a bunch of dense flatland conversions of the Georgian stock. The typical trend for anything Georgian sold on the square in recent times is either for owner-occupation, or short-term holiday lets. Merrion Square, lunchtime sandwiches for office workers aside, tends to be a bit dead outside the various events hosted there. So no, there’s not really much merit to the ‘double standards / nothing being done’ claim, when you look at it carefully.
