Homeless America by Chris Hedges

[Cisco Kid]

At dinner after golf, a lady living comfortably on her husbands military retirement, she stated that all of the homeless people wanted to be homeless. I told her that I'd bet the 2500 or so homeless kids in our county would disagree with that. She seemed insulted. Too bad.

[Peruvian]

They are all mentally ill and or have drug alcohol issues all of them end of story

Third line of your post and yet you continue on to blame these folks. Are you an evangelical, by chance?

[Cisco Kid]

He's a boot strapper.

At diner after golf a lady living comfortably on her husbands military retirement opined that all of the homeless wanted to live that way. When I suggested that the 2500 homeless kids in our county might disagree she seemed insulted by the truth.

[californiagrown]

Third line of your post and yet you continue on to blame these folks. Are you an evangelical, by chance?

The ones with severe addiction and mental health issues are usually the most visible, and are also the most frustrating to deal with if you live/work around them(they are the ones first responders deal with as well). The working poor, or physically disabled stay generally out of site and try to not draw attention so they dont seem like a problem. thing is, the second group wants nothing to do with the first group (and rightly so) and so solutions that force them together (ie shelters, housing without conditions, etc) do not work.

I have no idea what would work for the first group short of involuntary commitment to long term addition and mental health facilities. Not short term, long term with a high likelihood of permanent commitment.

[skaredshtles]

<snip>
I have no idea what would work for the first group short of involuntary commitment to long term addition and mental health facilities. Not short term, long term with a high likelihood of permanent commitment.

This.

[CarlMega]

This.

When you look at the current state of things, the problem seem unfathomable.

My hunch is that there is a point where one's neglect, abuse and despondency has progressed with the chance of rescue is basically nil. That's where I think the US has failed - the country has courted and enabled the conditions that resulted in a critical mass of people being past the event horizon. It's overwhelming.

Programs, opportunities and breaking systems that perpetuate downward spirals have to take root even if they can't help everyone. The sooner you aid someone in crisis, the better their chances to course correct. Early intervention and having a society where we don't allow a single event/point of failure to mean doom. Far too many people lack opportunity and have one foot on a banana peal; eventually they'll slip and then you're in a nose dive.

[Viva]

The ones with severe addiction and mental health issues are usually the most visible...

Yeah, they go into politics.

[skaredshtles]

Yeah, they go into politics.

Wait. Drug-addicted, mentally ill *homeless* people are going into politics?

Who knew?

[allmountainsnowskating]

It is disgusting that here in the US, one of the richest societies in history, we have people camping on the streets in many of our cities. It's embarrassing that in many poorer countries there's much less visible homelessness than you see here.

On the other hand, it seems to me that there's a mix of people in our homeless population - those who are just down on their luck, those who need mental health support, and lifestyle homeless / bike thieves / criddlers (this group may be more visible in Portland than in other towns) - and policies to help the homeless don't seem to distinguish between them.

I think the "moral" argument about not wanting to pay for "lazy people" to be housed and fed could be largely addressed by homeless services that differentiate between those populations: Cadillac support for the first two groups and gulags for the last group. Having some jerkoff who drifted up from California in June and has been stealing bikes and smoking weed in the park all summer housed at public expense when winter comes along is a pretty unappealing visual. Now...if housing the jerkoffs saves money in the end, maybe it's something that we should think about, but given what we see around town, I don't think we would get away with $1,000 a month/person to house this group - there would be a lot of maintenance and likely an ongoing drain on law enforcement.

There is a distinct categorical difference: perpetrators and victims.

Too many homeless perpetrators pretending to be homeless victims and financially motivated nonprofits with strong lobbies insisting there isn't a difference.

The eyes of the law are all crosseyed now, so our abymal prosecution rates allow homeless perpetrators to run loose in the streets with impunity and menance our communities.

Homeless victims aren't the problem. Not only are they the victims of inequality and mental illness, but they're probably the biggest victims of the homeless perpetrators - who deal drugs to them and rob them and assault them and make the crisis so much worse.

Homeless victims deserve to get off the streets through outstanding wrap around services that already exist. They also deserve some damn justice for the crimes that homeless perpetrators are committing against them.

Homeless perpetrators deserve to get off the streets through involuntary commitment to a criminal psych ward or prison.

Homeless people are still just people, who should be held to the same standard of the law. They are not all perpetrators or all victims.

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[fastfred]

Third line of your post and yet you continue on to blame these folks. Are you an evangelical, by chance?

How many of your relatives have been homeless

I know bullshit when I see it the homeless aren't down on their luck it's a choice

[Toadman]

[KQ]

The ones with severe addiction and mental health issues are usually the most visible, and are also the most frustrating to deal with if you live/work around them(they are the ones first responders deal with as well). The working poor, or physically disabled stay generally out of site and try to not draw attention so they dont seem like a problem. thing is, the second group wants nothing to do with the first group (and rightly so) and so solutions that force them together (ie shelters, housing without conditions, etc) do not work.

I have no idea what would work for the first group short of involuntary commitment to long term addition and mental health facilities. Not short term, long term with a high likelihood of permanent commitment.

There's a guy in Seattle with some great ideas but they are costly. There is also Plymouth Housing Group who I support that does amazing work with the homeless.

Have you ever seen this guy? He's amazing - drives around with a car full of stuff and helps people he sees on the street:

[MagnificentUnicorn]

The problem isn’t homeless people, it’s a society that doesn’t give a shit about each other


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[BCMtnHound]

How many of your relatives have been homeless

I know bullshit when I see it the homeless aren't down on their luck it's a choice

Yes, I have relatives that are, and have been, homeless. Mental health, and bad luck/physical ailments. Each story is unique and none simple. And doesn’t even start to describe the challenges we have created with First Nations in this country.

I generally like your posts Fred, but you can choke on your ‘bullshit’ in this case.

There's a guy in Seattle with some great ideas but they are costly. There is also Plymouth Housing Group who I support that does amazing work with the homeless.

Have you ever seen this guy? He's amazing - drives around with a car full of stuff and helps people he sees on the street:

This is fantastic but unfortunately a bandaid. The problem is getting too large, with the demon snapping up ever more folks at the bottom end the wealth spectrum. Despite more wealth in society than has ever existing in the past. The dike will burst sooner or later. Like the climate debacle, there are options we can take to reverse course, but I fear history will repeat itself. Tragic.

[Peruvian]

How many of your relatives have been homeless

I know bullshit when I see it the homeless aren't down on their luck it's a choice

I'm not sure what one has to do with the other, but I'm guessing you have a relative that is an addict and subsequently lived on the streets to feed their dependency and you are basing your opinion on that situation.

I too generally like your posts, fred but in this case you are suggesting that those with mental health issues or are slaves to drugs (there are many, many ways this occurs) actually have the ability to make a choice and I think you are incorrect in that assessment.

[buttahflake]

I don’t like any of Fred’s posts, guy has always come off as a world class nozzle
Take a lap, nozzle

[AK47bp]

Cousin Eddie, that you?


sorry... couldn't resist. I know this is no joke

Oh, that uh, that there's an RV. Yeah, yeah, I borrowed it off a buddy of mine. He took my house, I took the RV. It's a good looking vehicle, ain't it?

[jackstraw]

Sure sure Fred. Being homeless is a choice. My cousins 25yr old son chose to be homeless because he suffered from schizophrenia. I went to his funeral last month.

[fastfred]

It's a choice stop feeling sad for these people
I stand by all my comments

These people refuse to do anything to help themselves services are available to everyone

Give all your cares at church on Sunday

[AK47bp]

This is an opinion formed from living in the butthole of entitlement

[Peruvian]

It's a choice stop feeling sad for these people
I stand by all my comments

These people refuse to do anything to help themselves services are available to everyone

Give all your cares at church on Sunday

In that case, I'll retract my comment and clarify hat you are an entitled, indifferent, asswipe.

[m2711c]

I don’t like any of Fred’s posts, guy has always come off as a world class nozzle
Take a lap, nozzle

if a nozzle catch a nozzle, coming through the rye….

[cat in january]

Damn Fred that’s a pretty narrow perspective imho.

[jackstraw]

Fred has a mental illness. I hope he receives some help.

[mcphee]

That’s it Fred. You’re out of the running to build my loft shed in Ranch of the Rockies.