The End Of The Street Lawyer

        The author John Grisham wrote this book to send a  message out to the public about the homeless epidemic. He wrote how corrupt the government firms are and the community is not aware of how much they use their power and greed to destroy peoples life's. In this book the firm was the root of the effect of the homeless. The author John Grisham made Michael significantly change during a month because he wanted to show how anybody can change their ways and help out the needy and make a huge difference in the community.  In the story Michael talks about the homeless shelters and the soup kitchens on how the government  is helping to fund them. The difference compared to the Cleveland article that I read by the plain dealer was the people who worked on the news paper sold newspapers to the homeless for ten cents and told them to sell it for one dollar. What they did in Cleveland was more direct and compassionate compared to the lack of respect and acknowledgement in the "The Street Lawyer." All they did was arrest the homeless. In "The Street Lawyer" Washington DC had a section that talked about life on the streets and the addiction of the homeless same with the Cleveland plain dealer.  In a Cleveland article it talks about a coalition a group of private and public organizations that builds cheap apartments for the homeless just like in the Street Lawyer. A man owned an apartment building and charged one hundred a month for the homeless to stay and the 14th Street Legal clinic had a shelter very similar to the apartments but it was free to stay and eat.
        I think that Michael was very successful with Ruby, she was drug free for four days and she is know going to a group to fight her drug addiction. Michael encouraged her and showed her that there is more in life than just drugs and the way she lived, he gave her hope. Michael's future will be very steady after the 9 month suspension he will work with the expanded office of 400 lawyers. He will eventually marry Megan and he will keep on helping and encouraging Ruby to stay clean from drugs.  She might slip back but she will stay with the program and eventually get back with her son.He will keep on helping out the homeless. The 14th Street clinic will expand the building and they will buy or build new homeless shelters and soup kitchens. Michael makes life changes because of his life morals has changed, money becomes less important to him. Sometimes in life money can be great but it may distract people of the real enjoyment in life. Physical possessions are not as important in life as the experiences you go through.

The Street Lawyer Blogg 3

        After a few days in the 14th Street Legal Clinic verses drake and Sweeny Michael's stress has been a much lower level than being at  Drake and Sweeny. He has a bigger heart for the homeless and his priorities has changed such has his spending habits. Definitely money is not one of his main priorities anymore mainly helping and aiding in the homeless is his main focus. Ruby a homeless women a friend of  Michaels is curious, friendly and lonely. Ruby's situation is that she is addict it to crack, she spends all of her money on the drug so she then lost her apartment and her son. Michael shows compassion and love by buying her fresh donuts, coffee and by sending her to a warm  hotel with a pound of candy. He told her that she should get clean then she will see her son because he cares for her like a father. Michael questions her asking her where does she eat and sleep. When she said that she sleeps in a car he feels sympathetic. The fact that she sleeps in her car makes him go back to when the Burton family died in the car he wandered why she survived that night so she said she had plenty of blankets to bundle up. These events made Michael feel concerned and sensitive to her condition
         Drake and Sweeny  keep on harassing Michael by sending people and poking into his business.
First Drake and Sweeny sends Barry Nuzzo to plan a meeting at a bar with Michael. He then  investigates him and asks him if he would take a lying detector. Michael ends up not taking the lying detector he just lies to him denies that he has the file even though he does have it. Then a few days after that the police comes barging into Michael's wife Claire's house  to look for the file but they didn't find it. Michael then realized he has the police after him with a warrant out for his arrest. Michael said that he is paranoid and stressed thinking that the police can barge through his door at midnight to take him to jail. The people around him dealing with the harassment is doing nothing about it. Michael is then arrested thrown into jail and gets bailed by Mordecai after a few hours.  Hector Palmer is familiar with him because they both worked at the office firm at Drake and Sweeny he is the one who gave him the key to the file cabinet and told him to receive the file. Drake and Sweeny sent him to Chicago because they wanted him as far as possible away from Michael in case he would leak more information against Drake and Sweeny. The Street Lawyer shows  money, race, and power in the city of Washington D. C. Michael says the rich and suburban whites get drunk at the bar. The poor are described as mostly blacks which probably means the city takes sides when it comes to race and taking care of the homeless. The power would be the lawyers at the firm and the police.

Street Lawyer Blogg 2

          In chapter 16 Michael states that both he and Claire have lost. This means they both lost their chance to save their relationship. They never had time in each of their days to even have any emotional feelings towards each other. So they never had compassion, this pattern drove them to the point of not even loving each other. They had an awkward relationship; they sipped wine in silence and they  only see each other twice through out the day. Once at their annul fast Chinese takeout and at the end of day sipping wine. This made it easy for Michael to notify her of the divorce he wants. When Michael breaks the news that he wants to switch his job to a Street lawyer which pays only minimum wage she gets furious but says nothing because the relationship is already broken. A reason Claire also wants a divorce is because she probably cares too much about money. This scene in the book shows that she is eager and has fortitude in divorcing him. One night  Michael walks through the door of his apartment after work. Claire is standing in front of the door informs him that she has already hired a lawyer for the divorce but she said "If you weren't  leaving me I wouldn't have to waste my money on this lawyer." Since they had a rough relationship they both lost a very important part of their support system and companionship.
             Michael Brock has changed immensely. This change began when Hardy held him hostage and started to go over how much money the lawyers in office firm put towards the homeless. This event made him curious so he decided to work with his friend Mordecai with the homeless soup kitchen. So he worked their and he meet a homeless family and got attached to the kids. The family later died from carbon monoxide poison in their car. He saw the dead bodies of a homeless family that died. Which has softened his heart and changed his ways. A man encouraged Michael to receive a file that enlists evictions. So he steals the file for  revenge for the homeless. These actions are not justified because he committed a crime, he should've found a legal way to help the homeless.  Hector Palma one of his friends from the firm helps Michael out because he was in the eviction from River Oaks. Some characters in the story think that Michael is going through a midlife crises. I think that he is going through something but not a midlife crises. He recently went through a hard time when he was held hostage he was probably analyzing his life and certainly death. Ultimately I think he just has a change of heart for the homeless instead of caring too much about money.
           

The Street Lawyer by: John Grisham

          In the "Street Lawyer" Michael the main character a lawyer. Had a hold up by a street bum. On his waist was a strip of dynamite and he had a shot gun in his right hand. The bum told the hostages to call him Mister. So Michael thought that Mister would not shoot anyone because when he ask Michael to the papers. He did not ask for any money. He was reading off a few peoples income. Asking the hostages how much money they gave to the poor and the soup houses for the poor. He just threatened Michael by shooting the sealing near his head. Which shows that he was only trying to frighten the hostages not shoot or kill anyone. Misters life is rough, cold and full of long dragged on grit. In Michael's life it is immensely different it involves luxury cars, pricy meals, and long big-ticket vacations. This is suppose to create a tenderness feeling towards the poor. Some rich people do not think of the needy enough and we need to give to receive happiness, but most do not.
    
       Michael sees that holding lawyers hostages because a homeless man needs money. The street bums name was Devon Hardy he was shot by the FBI in the office room. Later on Michael fond out that he was a Vietnam veteran. This changes how the reader thinks about the bum. This makes us feel sorrowful because he fought for our country and now he gets no support. Michael thinks that a hold up of lawyer hostages is more likely to occur than schools because layers are extremely greedy and the rich in general don't think of the poor at all. Michael brock is a lawyer at Drake & Sweeny. Mordecai Green, Michael's  friend which is a  lawyer for the homeless fifth Street legal clinic. Mordecai Green is a large 6 foot by 6 inch African American who loves helping the homeless.