If you watch any late night television you may have seen a series of commercials jointly produced by the St. Vincent de Paul Society and Comcast. They started airing in mid-November and will continue through the next year - you can also see them on the St. Vincent de Paul Society website. The commercials are PSAs designed to bring focus on the homeless situation in San Francisco and what's being done to alleviate it. Our favorite one asks you for something that even we haven't asked you for here yet: Respect.

No question that trying to go about your own business in San Francisco can be hard, especially this time of year with the extra people on the sidewalks and the clipboard wielding types at every entrance but the message the commercial has is clear and worth listening to - even if you are going to say "No" to someone asking you for money on the street, they still deserve your respect. You don't have to give them anything, but looking someone in the eye is a simple, free courtesy that everyone deserves.

As moves from being a weekly feature to a more roaming schedule, we think this is a good place to continue on from and a basic premise that we, personally, want to work on more in 2006. If you have any ideas for organizations or volunteer events you want us to highlight in the coming year, please send them via email to sfistml [at] gmail [dot] com. We promise - even if we say no, we'll look you right in the eye and always respect you in the morning.

Cares