The Homeless: Is there a workable solution, as you see it?

treeguy64

treeguy64

Hari Om, y'all!
Location
Austin, TX.
In posting about a scammer, a few hours ago, I've been given pause to think of the bigger picture concerning panhandlers, scammers, street people: those who make up a good part of the ever-increasing homeless population around the world.

In Austin, our homeless situation is starting to rival San Francisco's: We have mini tent cities under major overpasses, we have hobo camps that ring our city. The filth is building up, and Austin can't keep up with it.

As a kid, I was told about certain cities in India where people are born, live, fornicate, defecate and die on the streets, never having a home of their own. I could compartmentalize that hell as being far away from me, far away from the safe, clean streets of my hometown, Chicago. (Yes, that's very different now, too.)

I never dreamt that I'd be living in a city where I've now seen all of the squalid, sorted conditions I imagined being in India, as a youngster. Only a few months ago, as I drove along our major expressway, I-35, I saw a bum squatting and defecating on the embankment, right in the downtown area! I can't un-see that, unfortunately.

What is the answer, as you see it? I used to think that all of the homeless should be run out of town. Where would they go? Austin wants to give them large shelters with free apartments. I suspect many, if not most, would still prefer the streets. Some have actually said the same, in interviews.

What should we do? This is not something that is going to go away, on its own. By the numbers, every city will soon have to deal with the homeless. Their numbers are growing, and they can't be ignored.

When I got to Austin, in '78, there was a guy who I always saw walking the streets. He was clean, but obviously "touched." I bought him a cup of coffee, one morning, and felt good: I had helped Austin's token homeless guy. Then, there was a guy with a "Hungry, will work for food," sign. I watched him work a very busy intersection, day after day. One day, I followed him, after his "shift." He ended up going into his apartment in a nearby complex. It was not a shabby complex, at that. He was a scammer. I was shocked.

Now, very little phases me: The homeless are everywhere. Even as they've become partly invisible, because I'm now so used to them, I know something is going to have to give. What will that be? THAT, is the question!
 

People are homeless for different reasons. Many years ago, there was a documentary on homeless people and it seems some people actually prefer to live on the streets. There is a lot involved in having a home, even just a bed-sit, paying bills, keeping everything clean and tidy, is just too much hassle for some folks. They tend to form communities and there is a camaraderie between them.

Many ex-servicemen find they can't cope with looking after a place of their own, and their families don't want them. Some sort of compromise is needed for people like them. I can't speak for America, but in Britain, we need our government to stop their obsession with everyone owning their own house. We need more hostels so that those who find themselves homeless have a place to sleep and a hot meal, even if they are forced to spend their time on the streets during the day. It also has to be said that many of these people are illegal immigrants, who shouldn't be here in the first place.
 
Due to not controlling my finances, I wound up homeless. I was living in my little Datsun truck in the parking lot of a church, with other folks living in their vehicles. The Pastor allowed it, but the community and law enforcement didn't like it. With a friends help, and applying for and getting UI from a previous job, I got back on my feet again. BUT, while I was homeless on that parking lot, I was interviewed by a local news stationed. I was asked, on camera, "was it drugs or something else that got you here?" I replied, "not handling my finances right". The interviewer looked stunned that I had said "finances".

While on the parking lot, and getting the UI, I was able to buy myself a pager and used that number for my resume and used the friends address. Got a descent job and was able to get myself into a weekly motel room in a descent area.

So, for me it was about "finances" and nothing else. No drug or alcohol use.

One thing is for sure about the homeless...…..many choose to stay homeless for different reasons, including not wanting the responsibility of bills. There are homeless that have been offered help, by friends and/or family, and have completely turned down the help. Then, there are those, like myself, that were able to get themselves out of the situation and go back to normal living.
 

"Many ex-servicemen find they can't cope with looking after a place of their own, and their families don't want them." I came home from the military with way to much baggage. A job here, a job there. People drove me nuts. Finally left it all and moved to the bush. Under bridges, under the trees in rural areas, made a few spending dollars recycling at 5 cents a can.

Finally came across a vet standdown and got back on my feet. The jobs were still short term but I was inside but most free time was spent outdoors hiking away from people. Finally got into a program and learned how to cope. I still had problems but I managed them better. I don't think there is an easy answer to that!
 
If you subsidize something, you get more of it. The homeless in Austin (I live 25 miles away) get food and shelter, and can panhandle enough to live. I think it's either a lifestyle choice, mental health issues, or a drug/alcohol problem. I was listening to the Todd and Don show on KLBJ one morning and a guy called in. He said he used to be homeless, and Austin made it easy for him to remain homeless. We were in Austin near Lakeline Mall and saw a guy panhandling on the corner -- he looked clean, and not at all shabby. Across the road in the mall many stores had Help Wanted signs up. Big ones. Yet there he was, begging. Needless to say, we did not stop. So no, there is no solution. And no, I'm not heartless, just pragmatic.
 
I don't have any real answers, I just thought that in some areas where there are a lot of homeless people, maybe the city can provide an empty lot for them, perhaps the size of a city block square, not necessarily with grass, just dirt or pavement in case they smoke and throw their butts on the ground.

Then provide several porta-potties for them to use while they're there. That to me is better than having them lie on the sidewalks or in parks where people go to relax and kids go to play. Once these areas are set up in the cities, then law enforcement can make the homeless stay there and not allow them to soil the entire city. They should be thankful for that, they don't have to go to a shelter if they don't want and they don't have to worry about someone coming along and chasing them out of a spot they have. Just an idea.
 
treeguy64 said:
I know something is going to have to give. What will that be? THAT, is the question!
Click to expand...

There are no easy answers
‘They’ wanna be left alone
They need to be left alone

I’ve been involved
On the inside, and out

Churches help….some
Missions, of course
But they’re not real answers

Hobo camps are horrific, but work, sorta

Got with some folks to organize ‘something’
Some acreage out a ways
Designated tiny ‘lots’ where folks can just be, pitch a tent, or plywood hovel
A centralized fire pit
Outdated food stuffs from grocery stores
Bus terminal locker type kiosks where folks can secure their stuff
A crude septic situation
A camp site type washing facility
A once a morning and evening shuttle (taxpayer funded???)

It really gets involved

And these individuals have individual needs, basic as they are

Came close to getting that situation together, but my own family took back my energy and time

Don’t know TG
Don’t think there’s any perfect answers, but there’s definitely some possibilities

may still get a soup kitchen going
 
Yes, there are many ways that one can become homeless.

I was homeless for 8 days back in 1989 when my ex wife blindsided me with divorce papers and the judge blindsided me again by ordering me to vacate the house. In about 80% of all divorces it's the woman who files first, They're smart that way. They seem to know instinctively that divorce is like nuclear war and whomever strikes first has a huge advantage.

Anyway, I didn't have enough for for the old first months rent plus security deposit so I was left to living out of my car until the next pay day. Notice I said living out of my car, not living in it. I was fortunate enough to have a decent job, plus keys to the office building I worked in and a small private office to boot. So for 8 days I slept on the floor of my office and washed up in one of the sinks in the men's room. Unfortunately we didn't have a shower in the building but still I consider myself to have been in fat city compared to the average homeless dude.

As I said I slept on the floor of my office and I would situate myself with my feet up against the door which opened inward so that if the night security guard checked at least he would wake me up rather than catch me asleep. But that never happened. He was probably sleeping somewhere too. But what did happen was one morning my boss came in early and tried to open the door against my feel. That was pretty embarrassing but when I explained my situation he was he was cool with it. :cool:
 
There's no one size fits all solution. The majority of homeless are homeless, because for what ever reason they can't afford a home. So give them one. i know people are going to get all bent out of shape about that answer. OMG, they aren't working and you are GIVING them a free place to live. Horrors!!!!! Yup. What's worse giving them a place, or letting huge areas of your city become crime ridden, and brutalized slums, filled with sick and dying street people. You are paying for them one way or another- the homeless on the street with the crippling loss tax revenues, or paying for a place. For the homeless with mental problems, DUH, treatment. Of course,
we're not going to do this.
The increase of homeless on the streets is an indication that the poor are getting poorer. An actual living wage as the minimum wage is a first step in the right direction.
 
Well, I guess i was 'technically' homeless for about two weeks, after telling my ex I wanted a divorce, leaving our apartment, and her cleaning out the bank account. I 'lived' at work, I slept in vehicles, I had a shower in our locker room, and the place was surrounded by decent restaurants, as such i had food.

I believe it was Abraham Lincoln that said something about.....most men are just about as happy as they choose to be. Not a quote, but close. So...Since I was not happy with my situation, and of course knew that I could not remain living at work...after I got a full paycheck, and sold an extra car i did not need, I posted a deposit on my own apartment, and moved in.

Point being, if they are not happy, and desperate to improve their situation ? They'll figure out how to make the necessary changes...........jmo
 
Thinking about fuzzybuddy's solution I tend to disagree. Only because human nature creeps in and those paying for the housing and well being begin to question why they bear the cost of that support system. Not unlike the illegals that flock to sanctuary cities, having your needs taken care of, homeless IMO would gravitate to those cities providing for their needs.

Probably what intrigues me most is the constant influx of immigrants both legal & illegal that come to America for opportunity. For whatever reason native born can become homeless, like others I don't think there is a fits all solution & for sure providing for their needs I don't think will reduce the quantity. I honestly believe if anything the amount would increase.
 
From what little I've seen of homeless people, they're usually sleeping in parks and downtown sidewalks and in tent cities and there are always empty alcohol containers laying about (and trash and other filth). So, I always wonder if they have money for expensive alcohol they could instead buy food with that money and even maybe a cheap hotel room 1-2 times a week.

They flock here to Tucson because the winters are mild and when the temps go below freezing for a few days they can go to shelters or churches and there is always a drive for donated blankets and coats and food etc for them. That also happens in extreme heat in the summer (past 110). They used to have an encampment near the (dry) river, where there were trees for shade, but people complained and the cops chased them out and destroyed what was left. Only problem with that is that they move to some other location and the whole thing is repeated. Moving them is not a solution. People don't want them near them, so where to go? And they need to be near shelters and panhandling areas since they don't have transportation, so they can't be dumped in the middle of nowhere.

Like others have said, the reason for homelessness in many and complicated. BUT, situations like Trade and rgp and Classic Rocker is the minority, I think most of the homeless are either mental cases or addiction cases. People like those three posters eventually find a solution or help and return to being self sufficient, those others cannot or don't want to improve their lot.

What is the solution? I don't know, it's very complicated. I think the mentals should be put in institutions, the addicts should be put in recovery to detox and helped by social workers to become self sufficient, there should be free temporary hostels/shelters for people like those posters to live in until they're back on their feet and so they can have an address/phone to apply for jobs, all of the above should be available to veterans for as long as they need the help (they deserve it for keeping us free and safe). All the homeless who have no mental or physical problems but want to be ''invisible'' so that they can commit crimes should be put in prison. That is my opinion, anyway, but I am no expert. The reality is that as long as the Earthly population keeps increasing, the homeless population will also increase. Kicking the can down the road will only make the situation worse, something HAS to be done about this social problem.
 
I respect and in some instances applaud, what has been said above, especially the experiences of those who survived it & came out the other side.
The experience in my city has been that the more the pan handling, pooping and camping are tolerated, the more it increases.

Certain public parks loaded with syringes & broken bottles to the point of being unusable by the general public & the city claiming it can't afford the cleanup; I've seen professional beggars actually chauffeured to & dropped off at their favorite intersection or shopping center entrance. Our local aclu thinks they are within their rights to stand there at a traffic light within arm's length of a drivers window. I resent having to lengthen my usual rounds to avoid them. Afraid they would grab my door handle or fall down in front of me & get run over.

I certainly don't know the answer either, but just giving them stuff without of some kind of responsible action on their part doesn't seem to be it.
 
We have some homeless here, but not such a large problem as some of the larger cities are having with it. What we have seen is that some of these homeless people do choose to remain on the street, and if you offer to take them to the rescue mission, they refuse to go.
I think that some of the ones with signs (like Treeguy mentioned) are not actually homeless, and they just panhandle on the streets each day as the way they make their living, and then they go home at night.

I have seen some that said they were homeless asking for money for food in the grocery store parking lot, but when you look, they are wearing almost new shoes under the beat-up looking jeans, and they are smoking cigarettes from packs (as opposed to hand-rolled ones).
That being said, I think that some of these people do NOT want to be homeless, but are trapped after something happened in their life, such as a job loss or divorce that cut off all finances.

You can’t apply for work looking homeless, or without an address, and no work record does not look good on the application, so after you have been out of work for a while, it becomes almost impossible to even get a regular job.

Some of the rescue missions have programs to help people get back on their feet, and help when they also have drug/alcohol related problems, but not every place has a mission that does that, and even those are sometimes overloaded because of the growth of homelessness.

Even when I was visiting in Hawaii with my daughter last month, there were regular tent cities all long the beach areas and parks in Honolulu, although I didn’t see any people panhandling on the streets there.
 
Actually i do know the answer, but it wont go anyplace. The reason why there are so many homeless is because no one takes care of each other and things will only get worse. What happens when we get old today? Its off to the nursing home or some other place you dont want to be. At least for a large majority because no one has the time or the interest in making the time.

There was a time you know when there was no such thing as homelessness. A time when there were no prisons. A time of no domestic or child abuse. Do you know when that was? It was the time before we came to this country. I have done much research on this. The american indians were here and numbered in the millions. They lived and died for each other. They took care of each other no matter what. The older you were the more value you had. Everyone heloed each other regardless of the problem.

This is just a very short explanation and answer to your question. All these things i just spoke about vanished in our arrival to this country and were replaced by what you witness today. We seem to have created a very money and selfish based society that has no interest in changing its ways.

Well as you can see, there is an answer, but it is one no one really cares to hear about.
Well thats it for now, ok. Talk to you later.
 
The film was interesting, a portion of my family, the rich ones, live in Seattle.

While waiting for a prescription at Walgreens we saw a woman, with a child in a stroller and a sign saying need food and diapers. You don’t have to be homeless to be food less. I walked over, pointed to the near by grocery store, and managed to convey that she should meet us there and we would buy her groceries and diapers. We do this every now and then.

We spendt over 200 dollars on her groceries. She waited for us to ok every single item she purchased but one. She didn’t have to do this, but she did. She bought simple things, the least expensive, the most for the least. She didn’t speak very much English. When she went to get her car, it wouldn’t start. We offered to take her home, but she called her brother.

We solved HER need for food for her family. Instead of worrying about the big picture, see the needy. Occasionally pick one person who you judge as needy and fill that need, instead of judging those not in true need, although I am guilty of this as well. I will pay for this judging when I am judged. Lol, catholic guilt.

IMO, this is how we end this problem. We each help one person at a time when we are able. We each need to do our part. Even if all you can share is the half sandwich you don’t want, share it. Even if you only share it with a co_worker. Remember how to share. Remember your humanity even if others have forgotten there’s.

The basic beliefs of most religions are feed the hungry, heal the sick, clothe the naked, and shelter the homeless. I will add only if they want the help. A drug additct needs a meal just as much as a runaway teen. Hunger is hunger. But wishing the homeless away, not seeing needy, making it a law enforcement problem does nothing.

I am as guilty as anyone here of frustration with the issue of homelessness. I am as tired as anyone here of the beggars. But, every now and then, I remember I should feed the hungry and I do. The reality is, we are the solution.
 
GaryDavid,

I was homeless for only one day when I was 17 through no fault of my own. I was fortunate enough that the General at the Salvation Army home for young woman in Los Angeles allowed me a room. Their starting age was 18.

So yes, any second, at anytime, I, or anyone, could be homeless. The awareness of this scares me to death.
 
Thats why we should live one moment at a time and not let our worries get in the way of seeing our blessings. Easier said I know, but nonetheless the truth.....
 
Garydavid said:
Actually i do know the answer, but it wont go anyplace. The reason why there are so many homeless is because no one takes care of each other and things will only get worse. What happens when we get old today? Its off to the nursing home or some other place you dont want to be. At least for a large majority because no one has the time or the interest in making the time.
There was a time you know when there was no such thing as homelessness. A time when there were no prisons. A time of no domestic or child abuse. Do you know when that was? It was the time before we came to this country. I have done much research on this. The american indians were here and numbered in the millions. They lived and died for each other. They took care of each other no matter what. The older you were the more value you had. Everyone heloed each other regardless of the problem. This is just a very short explaination and answer to your question. All these things i just spoke about vanished in our arrival to this country and were replaced by what you witness today. We seem to have created a very money and selfish based society that has no interest in changing its ways.
Well as you can see, there is an answer, but it is one no one really cares to hear about.
Well thats it for now, ok. Talk to you later.
Click to expand...


Not quite


The long walk and the bonk on the bean
THAT was how they 'took care' of the aged
 
I brought a four-course, Thanksgiving dinner to a homeless fellow who lived under an overpass, near my rent houses. Everything was containerized and ready to eat. I included plastic eating utensils, and napkins. He looked at the containers that we were passing him, through our car window, and said, "What am I supposed to do with this sh☆t? Get it out of here!" At that point, I knew why he was homeless, or, at least, I understood his shortcomings as a healthy human being.

We can all try and help the homeless through our compassion and kindness, but I will wager that many, if not most, are homeless because of enormous shortcomings in their makeup, as that applies to what makes us caring, intelligent, human beings, capable of being contributing members of society.

There are solutions to dealing with people like the man I referenced, above, but our humanity keeps us from moving in that direction, at present. The homeless problem will keep getting worse, absolutely no doubt about it, until no humane solution, at all, will ever be possible: Welcome to the future?

In some ways, I wish we'd taken John Smith's New Testament aphorism to heart, so long ago, in Jamestown:

"He who does not work, neither shall he eat."

Our whole welfare state has made so much of the horrible situation, as it now exists, possible, and, actually, inevitable: We are a smart species. As such, given a survival mode, and an aversion to work, there are those who game the system. They know where they can get free food, free shelter, free medical care. Why bother finding gainful employment, why sweat paying for a place to live, or health insurance?

Most of us won't be around to see the last gasps of a civilized world and/or the horrible steps taken, by the powers that be, to try and avoid the same. I suppose, with that dystopian course in mind, we should truly be grateful that we are seniors, at this point in time.

I must add here, for the sake of avoiding call-outs by those who might accuse me of heartlessness, that I do not favor any horrible "solutions" I make allusions to, in the above. I simply am frustrated by there being no clear answers to dealing with the current, rising tide of homelessness.
 

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