Solutions for the Homeless Problem

[Monk Of Reason]

There are a few ideas out there being floated on how to properly deal with the incredible homeless population and how to help them.

Without proposing any ideas of my own I would like to hear a defensible position on how to better help the homeless population both short term and long term. What would be a good strategy for getting them off of the street today and into a home tomorrow (the "tomorrow" is less literal).

 

[allfoak]

The homeless population is increasing in the city i live in faster than it can be managed.
The city of Detroit is about to evict nearly 150,000 people.
92 million people in the U.S.A. have just stopped looking for work.
And on, and on....

I was talking about this becoming an epidemic 30yrs ago.
It is very difficult to stop something when it is out of control.
The kind of things that have to be done are very unpopular and will never happen without the political will to do so.

The homeless are kept hidden as well as possible.
Someone froze to death in the woods last winter.
But it never got talked about much, just a little blurb in the local paper.

 

[Monk Of Reason]

The homeless population is increasing in the city i live in faster than it can be managed.
The city of Detroit is about to evict nearly 150,000 people.
92 million people in the U.S.A. have just stopped looking for work.
And on, and on....

I was talking about this becoming an epidemic 30yrs ago.
It is very difficult to stop something when it is out of control.
The kind of things that have to be done are very unpopular and will never happen without the political will to do so.

The homeless are kept hidden as well as possible.
Someone froze to death in the woods last winter.
But it never got talked about much, just a little blurb in the local paper.

If you were named King for a day in your hometown what would you do to help the problem?

 

[Ingledsva]

There are a few ideas out there being floated on how to properly deal with the incredible homeless population and how to help them.

Without proposing any ideas of my own I would like to hear a defensible position on how to better help the homeless population both short term and long term. What would be a good strategy for getting them off of the street today and into a home tomorrow (the "tomorrow" is less literal).

I think - especially here in the USA - that we need to get away from our brainwashing about Socialism. - And take a good look at what is good, and bad, about the new Nordic Socialist Democracies, and come up with a highbred that puts an end to the disparity between the rich, and the poor and, the shrinking middle class, before we collapse like so many mighty nations before us!


*

 

[JayJayDee]

The homeless population is increasing in the city i live in faster than it can be managed.
The city of Detroit is about to evict nearly 150,000 people.

Amazing that the banks are evicting people and that so many are living on the streets or in tent cities or in their cars in nighttime parking lots when there are empty houses being vandalised and made unfit to sell even if there were buyers.

I can't see why the banks can't allow people to stay in their homes on a rent back basis, giving them somewhere to live, and giving the banks a small income compared to no income and ruined real estate. It makes no sense.
Surely a small rent back would be worth it even if it was paid as welfare? Obviously the banks don't need the money?

92 million people in the U.S.A. have just stopped looking for work.
And on, and on....

Who feeds them?
We have forgotten how to be self sufficient. We don't know how to grow our own food or to be resourceful in a world that is "fast" everything and throw away what you can't use in the next five minutes.

I was talking about this becoming an epidemic 30yrs ago.
It is very difficult to stop something when it is out of control.
The kind of things that have to be done are very unpopular and will never happen without the political will to do so.

The political will is to cover your own backside and look after número uno. Do the powers that be give you any indication other than what they "say", that they really care enough to "do" anything?

Amazing that they will spend as much as it takes to "take" lives, but not to "save" them.

If the money spent on sport was channelled into making housing available for the homeless, or even paying rent for them...who would be homeless?

The homeless are kept hidden as well as possible.

you can lie about stuff that is invisible. Other countries are informed about what is happening in the US, but the average American lives in Disneyland thanks to their media whitewash.
Do you people really believe your politicians?

Someone froze to death in the woods last winter.
But it never got talked about much, just a little blurb in the local paper.

It's not that they can't help, it's probably more truthful to say that they don't want to. No votes in that. If all the homeless people voted, then maybe there'd be some action? LOL

 

[allfoak]

f you were named King for a day in your hometown what would you do to help the problem?

I would put everyone to work rebuilding a run down city.
Whatever investment that would be necessary to make that happen would be worth every penny.
The problem would fix itself in a very short time.
There would no longer be any homeless or even poor people if i were allowed to do something.
There are no lack of resources, just an unwillingness to use them.

 

[ShivaFan]

Some of these conversations strike me as so odd and "small worldish" - unless the actual title should be what to do about homeless IN AMERICA and not just homeless in general. I have family all over the world, but one of my second homes is Calcutta (Kolkata) India. It sort of makes me, well not exactly laugh but sort of ... the homeless in America don't know how lucky they are when I know the real homeless in Calcutta. I will tell you one thing, in Calcutta where the CPI(M) (communist party) has been in charge forever the REAL homeless never had it worse. It makes me laugh when I hear the dinosaur old school yarn "socialism" - what socialism? You mean like what was in Cambodia under Pol Pot? And then, some example of some homogeneous country with a small population (oh, like some "Nordic" nation) comes up, actually there is zero connection to the situation as found in Mexico, or hugely unhomogeneous nation such as US with a population MUCH larger than the lies from the government, or nations such as India with more than a billion people, or nations with large frontiers wild and populated with tribal peoples and huge metropolitan cities both in the mix such as Brazil ... on and on. Where I live in the Bay Area of California the number one problem is CRIME - gangs including Mexican gangs of illegals, stealing going on and murders, home invasions, you know crime alone contributes hugely to homeless issues and resources are strained by such matters. What about the safety of my children?

There are evil people among the "homeless" just as there are evil people in corporations or evil monsters in government-socialist regimes. I see some of the evil homeless types often, using little dogs they grab as props they abuse and discard but keep them as little slaves until they die cruel deaths so to "bait" fools to give them money to buy drugs and alcohol, so here is your solution to homelessness:

Remove evil people from doing evil to others.

Good luck with that. By the way, some of those great "Nordics" are mass murderers on the dime given the chance.

The greatest mass murderers are "socialists".

Socialism sucks. There are no "answers". There are only approximates. You help the homeless if that is what you want to do. Who is stopping you? I will bet I have helped them more than most. You do it, yourself. Don't talk this socialism crap, socialism sucks. Some frankly use the word as an excuse to sit on their fat hinny and use it as a way to say "someone else do that" (viz not me! I just want to smoke pot). Excuse lazy deadbeats wanting to be praised by someone. Friggin go do something if you want to help. Gawd....

And now ... what is your favorite tea?

 

[allfoak]

Another homeless person died in my city today.
Population: 13,051

 

[JerryL]

Prior to the 1980's, the United States had programs in place for the poor with mental illness. To simplify what was a complex set of programs: the government paid for treatment and medication and provided subsidized housing.

The vast bulk of those in these programs worked (though often at low-wage jobs, like your local grocery store) and lived in apartments they paid rent for.

Then President Reagan oversaw a dismantling of this program. People forced to choose between buying their meds and eating chose food, were soon experiencing issues with mental disorder, lost their jobs and ended up on the streets. If you can find people who were homeless before this, they can tell you how much things changed.

There has been some progress in undoing this in the decades since but not enough.

What would I do? I'd start be addressing what is the underlying cause for many; combinations of illness, lack of access to affordable housing, and lack of ability to, due in no small part to being homeless, to find work.

I do also think a national program of housing and food would be mostly successful. Perhaps it's time we start considering a minimum income.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

Some of these conversations strike me as so odd and "small worldish" - unless the actual title should be what to do about homeless IN AMERICA and not just homeless in general. I have family all over the world, but one of my second homes is Calcutta (Kolkata) India. It sort of makes me, well not exactly laugh but sort of ... the homeless in America don't know how lucky they are when I know the real homeless in Calcutta. I will tell you one thing, in Calcutta where the CPI(M) (communist party) has been in charge forever the REAL homeless never had it worse. It makes me laugh when I hear the dinosaur old school yarn "socialism" - what socialism? You mean like what was in Cambodia under Pol Pot? And then, some example of some homogeneous country with a small population (oh, like some "Nordic" nation) comes up, actually there is zero connection to the situation as found in Mexico, or hugely unhomogeneous nation such as US with a population MUCH larger than the lies from the government, or nations such as India with more than a billion people, or nations with large frontiers wild and populated with tribal peoples and huge metropolitan cities both in the mix such as Brazil ... on and on. Where I live in the Bay Area of California the number one problem is CRIME - gangs including Mexican gangs of illegals, stealing going on and murders, home invasions, you know crime alone contributes hugely to homeless issues and resources are strained by such matters. What about the safety of my children?

Socialism sucks. There are no "answers". There are only approximates. You help the homeless if that is what you want to do. Who is stopping you? I will bet I have helped them more than most. You do it, yourself. Don't talk this socialism crap, socialism sucks. Some frankly use the word as an excuse to sit on their fat hinny and use it as a way to say "someone else do that" (viz not me! I just want to smoke pot). Excuse lazy deadbeats wanting to be praised by someone. Friggin go do something if you want to help. Gawd....

And now ... what is your favorite tea?

How about you educate yourself about what socialism and communism are, realize that what you are mentioning are not either one, and then come back. Also, why hate on the poor? Sure, some use it as an excuse, but people use everything as an excuse. But your "pot smoking fat hinny" person is absurd. People like that a tiny minority, yet they dominate discussions of the poor when it comes to conservative economics.
It's also very arrogant to assume you have helped people more so than others.

 

[allfoak]

90-Year-Old Man Arrested Again for Feeding the Homeless
The action violates a recently passed law in Fort Lauderdale that bans public handouts to the needy.
90-Year-Old Man Arrested Again for Feeding the Homeless | Sarasota, FL Patch

 

[Estro Felino]

The total absence of the state in a country leads to disastrous social consequences, such as this phenomenon. The state exists to assure the respect of fundamental human rights: and the right to have a roof above your head is one of those. But the marketplaces are so powerful that they corrupt the state administration: If the state controls the real estate marketplace, nobody can speculate any more. and speculators can't stand that-
But the state has the obligation to use the public money to build blocks and condos for the homeless. The state remains the owner, so there is no donation.
Even the institution of the FHA is not sufficient

 

[ShivaFan]

Quote "Shadow Wolf:How about you educate yourself about what socialism and communism are, realize that what you are mentioning are not either one, and then come back. Also, why hate on the poor?"



Socialists HATE the poor as soon as everyone realizes their administration is a failed disaster, so then they blame the poor for the failed policies of obese socialist government that is anti-individualist and as their failures mount but were given enough government control they then start putting the poor in concentration camps, relocating them into slave agra-labor, see them as a threat and grab their children from the poor to use as child armies to kill the poor or enable famine and death. Then we end up with a socialist in Germany such as Hitler, a socialist such as Sadam or Pol Pot.

Look at how the socialists hate the poor in West Virginia, blaming them for failed policies they had a part of in that State and then calling them turnips and stupid when the poor reject them, and if given the power there is little doubt they would start to kill them even. Socialists in the end are mass murderers not yet out of the closet. Mark my words, not only will they relocate, cause death by famine, and murder the poor, but if they get full power of government and "education" they will (1) outlaw education as elitistism as the excuse but actually it is to have only slave worker bees in the rice fields, (2) start putting all homosexuals in camps or to "disappear" as non-conformist threats to their "labor standards".

It is really funny how this urban myth about Reagan and the homeless mentals keeps being parleyed by the socialists. In fact letting (putting) the mentally ill out of hospitals and into "society" (the street) was pushed by socialists and far left psychologists and the ACLU and mental hospitals were projected as violating the civil rights of the mental, so the socialists and Democrats threw them out into the street. This started in California in the 1950s by Democrat Gov Edmund Brown (Jerry Brown's dad, Jerry the current Gov who himself has some mental issues and talk about nepotism and power structures!). This continued on right into the 70s, pushed by the Left and I observed it happening. A couple of loons I came to know weren't bad people at all, not that I am against trying to provide a more open and free life for them, but folks could see the real agenda by the Left wasn't to help them but to try and cause trouble in society and the same reason they attack local police - in the end they will establish centralized political police and round up the loons for extermination.

Speaking of Reagan.... Actually, a lot of "conservatives" and right-wingers are sort of tired of this dragging out Reagan and all this praise stuff regarding him. For example Mr. Doctor Savage (right-wing Nationalist and radio media personality) hits on this a lot, "sick of it" (Reagan). In fact for many Americans, Reagan today is seen as just too far to the Left for their tastes - for example it was Reagan who gave 6 million illegal aliens from Mexico amnesty under his administration. What is interesting is while, at a time Obama is threatening an illegal "executive action" amnesty that is outside his constitutional role for now 20 million illegal aliens from South of the Border, law making by pen but which belongs to Congress, I have now seen three right-winger guests on FOX ragging against Reagan and his amnesty of decades ago while at the same time have seen three leftist Democrat guests on FOX (and even the current, but soon to be booted DNC chief after Tuesdays shellacking on the radio) also praising Reagan.

Another engaging thing is, while leftists praise Reagan, it is interesting hearing conservatives and rightists praise JFK, John Kennedy once used by leftists in an attempt to adopt him as "one of their own" even though JFK was a right-winger. So now the Right has adopted JFK as "one of their own" while the Left is adopting Reagan and in about 5 years the dialog and history from the Left will be Reagan is "one of their own".

This is why we need America. Thank God.

Lingo such as "homeless" is an interesting thing in America. In most of the world, being poor isn't defined by whether you have a home or not. They are way more poor than just being "homeless" or for that matter "car-less" or "boatless" or "401k-less". I am a citizen of the world, and this "homeless" vocabulary rubs me the wrong way. Like I say, I notice the "comradchiks" of socialism (verse the actual "in-charge socialist") are a bunch of people sitting on their hinny who do nothing to actually help the poor but just talk socialism crap while actually want "the other guy" to do the real work helping the poor. I will put my record of helping the poor against anyone of them any day. Luckily, I am on track for doubling my wealth over the next 5 years and will be able to do good things on the international level even. But getting back to "words in America", another interesting thing is the use of words in the American dialog is the word "shellacking" - I know it is of old time use but it really wasn't part of our lingo today - in fact I am not even sure how to spell it. But after this Tuesday's "shellacking" of the Democrats, it has become the most popular "new" word in America! Just do an internet search on it. Exciting new lingo from America.

You know, anyone, if they work hard enough, can form a political party. Hey! Maybe I should form a new party! Perhaps a Hindu Party of America! I will be retiring soon and have extra time. I would like to recruit a lot of sweet girls.

 

[JerryL]

That's just rambling nonsense.

 

[Monk Of Reason]

Just gonna ignore some of the irrelevant candor and try to get back to the op.

The problem with homelessness rather just poverty is that it is very difficult to get out of it. Much like in India where we had the "untouchables" the homeless population has taken on a similar role here in the US.

They are considered problems rather than people. People are taught not to see them as equals. I don't know how that started but its the root of the problem.

Total socialism seems like using an AK-47 to kill a spider.

I am trying to think of a realistic solution that would be specific for this situation. Mandated local run government homeless shelters that can act as mailing addresses and commodities that help them get a job. Applications and associates that work for the job core of the area and can set them up on either government jobs (even if its just digging ditches) to private companies looking for employees.

A good way to fund this operation is to do either a half-cent raise in taxes from sales tax (my area did this for schools and I don't feel the difference but it raises millions in revenue) or another is required donations as an alternative to paying parking and auto related tickets. (also up and running in my area)

Lastly is proper funding for rehabilitation centers to help those addicted to drugs.

 

[allfoak]

 

[Shadow Wolf]

Socialists HATE the poor as soon as everyone realizes their administration is a failed disaster, so then they blame the poor for the failed policies of obese socialist government that is anti-individualist and as their failures mount but were given enough government control they then start putting the poor in concentration camps, relocating them into slave agra-labor, see them as a threat and grab their children from the poor to use as child armies to kill the poor or enable famine and death. Then we end up with a socialist in Germany such as Hitler, a socialist such as Sadam or Pol Pot.

Learn what socialism is, then we can have a meaningful discussion. They way you talk about it, the terms you use to describe it, you don't know anything about it, except from whatever you got from a far-right propaganda machine that doesn't know what socialism is. The way you talk about the poor and socialist suggests you don't know people from either group.
And FYI, Hitler was a dictator, not a socialist.

Total socialism seems like using an AK-47 to kill a spider.

Hey, now, it's perfectly fine to use an AK to kill certain spiders. Or a bazooka. Sometimes a bazooka works just fine.

 

[averageJOE]

I would put everyone to work rebuilding a run down city.
Whatever investment that would be necessary to make that happen would be worth every penny.
The problem would fix itself in a very short time.
There would no longer be any homeless or even poor people if i were allowed to do something.
There are no lack of resources, just an unwillingness to use them.

So to fix homelessness you would invoke slavery?

 

[Twilight Hue]

90-Year-Old Man Arrested Again for Feeding the Homeless
The action violates a recently passed law in Fort Lauderdale that bans public handouts to the needy.
90-Year-Old Man Arrested Again for Feeding the Homeless | Sarasota, FL Patch

Sad thing about that story is he's a chef. It's not like he would give the homeless bad food as the concern. That's one aspect of our society that I think is sick in the head. People try to do a good deed and get penalized over it.

 

[allfoak]

So to fix homelessness you would invoke slavery?

you see working for your food and shelter as slavery?
people would be paid for their labor of course.