Housing Authority says 'No' to gifts from Strip Joint

dr. what · Post by **dr. what** » 2004-12-12 02:41am

link

Last year, Teasers adult night club in Statesville may have saved Christmas for hundreds of needy children in public housing.

Things are different this year. Jeff Bustle, owner of the club, says he’s been told by the Statesville Housing Authority that gifts collected at his business aren’t welcome.

“It’s really sad,” said Bustle, who has participated in toy drives for the past 14 years.

David Meachem, executive director of the housing authority, said he decided to reject the toys because of the criticism he received last year for accepting the donation.

After a photograph ran in the R&L last December showing two dancers from the club next to a Statesville police officer, inside a limousine loaded with presents for children, residents complained to Meachem.

“We took a public whipping,” he explained. “The community was outraged about the publicity.”

Bustle thinks that’s an absurd excuse.

“Is that not 1940s mentality?” Bustle asked. “I feel like the people who make these decisions are people who have never been without (presents) on Christmas.”

Meachem said it’s nothing personal - it’s business.

“I’m not the moral police,” he said. “I provide housing for the needy.”

Last year, Teasers donated more than 500 gifts to the Housing Authority.

Meachem said the nightclub helped keep Christmas alive for several children.

“We would not have had enough toys if they hadn’t stepped up,” Meachem said.

Bustle said he expects to collect more than 600 presents this year.

Currently there are more than 150 toys neatly stacked up beside the dance stage at the club. Another 200 are expected later this week.

Most of the gifts, Bustle said, have been collected from customers. Staff members have also donated.

Belinda Nichols, a 20-year-old dancer, plans to add a few gifts to the pile.

“What’s the difference?” if the gifts come from local people who frequent a strip club, she asked.

Mark DiVanna, assistant manager of the club, said he’s disappointed the toys may not make it to needy children.

“Little kids shouldn’t not have Christmas because the toys came from a strip club,” DiVanna said. “I think the ones who said ‘No’ to us should be the ones who tell the kids they’re not getting toys.”

Rudy Davis, customer development coordinator at the housing authority, said needy kids will have presents to unwrap this year, even if they don’t come from Teasers.

He said several local churches have began collecting donations for the housing authority.

“I’m sure another organization could use the toys (from Teasers),” he said.

The Rev. Jeff Porter, pastor of First Baptist Church on Davie Avenue, said he understands the housing authority’s position on accepting gifts from an adult night club, but he said the holidays are when differences should be set aside.

“Christmas gives us the chance to cross barriers for the less unfortunate,” he said. “The Bible is full of times when folks of all backgrounds took one step closer to God by acting like Jesus.”

Bustle said he’ll do what he can to get the toys into homes of families.

“I want people to know that we’re still taking toys for needy children,” Bustle said. “The toys will go to local kids.”
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Chris OFarrell · Post by **Chris OFarrell** » 2004-12-12 02:43am

Oh great. Needy kids get free presents and the public (read rich middle and upper class fwits who have PLENTY for Christmas) decide they REALLY don't want it. Suuure.

darthdavid · Post by **darthdavid** » 2004-12-12 02:45am

I say that all fucktards who told the housing authority that they couldn't accecpt gifts from a strip club should have their christmas presents taken, sold and then have the money used to buy any kids who wouldn't otherwise recieve them gifts.

dr. what · Post by **dr. what** » 2004-12-12 03:00am

If you were a kid, would you turn up the opportunity to accept toys from Teasers? Fuck no!

In fact, I'd ask for the opportunity to thank them in person... it's the christian thing to do, after all

Post by **Darth Wong** » 2004-12-12 03:07am

You have to realize that most Christian "moral values" behaviour is not really about "protecting" anyone; it's about their desire to send a continual stream of messages of condemnation towards people whose existence offends them.

Take gay marriage for example; do you think the real reason for their hatred of gay marriage is actual fear that it will somehow damage straight marriage? Of course not; even fundies know it won't directly affect the nature of straight marriage at all for gays to get married. Their real motive is that they don't want homosexuality to be "normalized"; the exclusion of gays from marriage is a very important message of social condemnation that they want sent.

Similarly, they want to send an important message of social condemnation to strip club owners, telling them that they absolutely refuse to take their donations because they've been tainted by their vile and disgusting contact. In their minds, the sending of these messages of condemnation is more important than the question of whether people are helped or hurt by their actions, which is why they adopt positions that they know to be objectively unconstructive.

HemlockGrey · Post by **HemlockGrey** » 2004-12-12 03:11am

That one minister sounded like a decent guy, though. I suppose the strip club could donate the presents to the churches, who could then donate them to the housing authority.

Keevan_Colton · Post by **Keevan_Colton** » 2004-12-12 08:03am

HemlockGrey wrote:That one minister sounded like a decent guy, though. I suppose the strip club could donate the presents to the churches, who could then donate them to the housing authority.

That in itself shows perfectly how beyond stupid this all is.

Wicked Pilot · Post by **Wicked Pilot** » 2004-12-12 01:38pm

I'm sure the Marine Corps Toys for Tots would be glad to take the presents.

Illuminatus Primus · Post by **Illuminatus Primus** » 2004-12-12 01:41pm

Fuck Christ. I cannot believe anyone would be so ethically corrupt.

Knife · Post by **Knife** » 2004-12-12 01:59pm

Wicked Pilot wrote:I'm sure the Marine Corps Toys for Tots would be glad to take the presents.

I'm sure you can have a dozen or so volunteer to go over there and pick up the toys at the club.

OT; *gak* what a bunch of assholes. Those kids don't care what bussiness donated the toys. There is no 'stripper cooties' on the toys. Fucking asshole, fundie, grinches.

Slartibartfast · Post by **Slartibartfast** » 2004-12-12 02:29pm

If it were me, I'd put all of the toys on display, and a big fucking signs reading "Hey kids, these toys are for you. But Statesville says you can't have them. Tough luck!"

Post by **Darth Wong** » 2004-12-12 02:44pm

Isn't the Housing Authority a government agency? Why are they letting churches tell them what to do?

Oh wait, I forgot. This is Bush's America.

Justforfun000 · Post by **Justforfun000** » 2004-12-12 04:49pm

My only question is....What kind of "toys" are these exactly...

Maybe there's another reason they were rejected.

Lol

Justforfun000 · Post by **Justforfun000** » 2004-12-12 04:50pm

You have to realize that most Christian "moral values" behaviour is not really about "protecting" anyone; it's about their desire to send a continual stream of messages of condemnation towards people whose existence offends them.

even though I recognized this, it didn't coalesce into such a perfect paragraph to express it.
That's one of the best quotes I've heard in a long time.

How do you sig these things...

sketerpot · Post by **sketerpot** » 2004-12-12 06:22pm

Justforfun000 wrote:How do you sig these things...

You put them in your sig, as you have done, and then, if you're trying to be an extra good little boy so you get lots of presents from Santa, you attribute the quote to the person who said it.

Justforfun000 · Post by **Justforfun000** » 2004-12-12 06:25pm

You put them in your sig, as you have done, and then, if you're trying to be an extra good little boy so you get lots of presents from Santa, you attribute the quote to the person who said it. Wink

Ooops. Good point.

Stormbringer · Post by **Stormbringer** » 2004-12-12 06:28pm

Darth Wong wrote:Isn't the Housing Authority a government agency? Why are they letting churches tell them what to do?

Oh wait, I forgot. This is Bush's America.

Yes, but as we've seen with the FCC, enough Chriti-nazi complaints will get the government to play moral police.