Ten Facts about Being Homeless in USA

a reply to: guitarplayer
If you have nothing positive to say than you should just go. Your actions are getting close to that of a troll or a 4yr old, you pick.

"I work hard for my money, screw everyone else. I got dealt a good hand, no major health issues, no mental health issues, no one beats me senseless. Why should I share?"

You remind me of a little kid who doesn't want to share their toys with their younger sibling. "I was born first, I shouldn't have to share"

a reply to: guitarplayer

I spent a year homeless and am nowhere hear a bleeding heart. See that is one of those phrases that people have created to insulate themselves from their natural instincts - instincts that drive us to be human.

As for kvetching about property taxes and then alluding that people without houses get an unfair tax break because they are homeless? I can't even wrap my mind around that one. My suggestion would be to go homeless for awhile and save yourself a buck. I think you'll find that the property taxes are far less uncomfortable than the alternative. Or rent and subsidize someone elses property taxes like a serf. It's the way the system is set up and Conservatives tend to love those things that make money for the ones who "built this".

To directly answer your question, I have twice taken homeless people into my home and cared for them. One was a relative with drug problems who had gotten himself ostracized by everyone else. The second was a friend who fell on hard times.

And before you reply to my first sentence with anything including suggestions that I did not pay into the system... Before hard times fell on me I had already paid enough into taxes - specifically Social Security - to cover my credits for full retirement. I was not in the top 1% but I was certainly in the upper middle class for most of my adult life.

a reply to: Hefficide

You are a perfect example of someone who did everything right and had it go so very wrong. You weren't someone who was lazy & decided to milk the system for cash.


Some people just don't get it and it's a real shame.

I applaud your effort to shine a light on this issue OP.

We are all a part of the human race and we all need help sometimes.

originally posted by: Sabiduria
You can look at the positive side all you want but that doesn't change the fact that there is a high number of homeless people, a good chunk are either children, vets or have some sort of mental health issue. This also doesn't change the fact that the U.S government is making it basically illegal to be homeless and doesn't change the fact that the UN is disgusted by the fact.

I wasn't try to bury the fact that the United States has a somewhat sizable population of homeless; though, and this isn't to marginalize the situation, it is only approximately .2% of the total population (~300,000,000 people with ~600,000 being homeless). That ratio is actually minuscule but isn't acceptable in my opinion.

I do agree though that the Government isn't helping by criminalizing not only homelessness to a degree, but also hampering private individuals (and groups/corporations) from attending to the situation as they see fit, i.e., feeding and housing without Government approval.

a reply to: Sabiduria
Good research. Those rent prices I assume are mean prices so there will be some lower. However one of the big issues is lack of affordable place to rent. More and more properties are becoming more expensive to rent as areas become upscale. One consequence is that even if you can find a place cheap enough to rent it is probably further away from you place of employment making comuting less affordable.

originally posted by: guitarplayer
a reply to: Hefficide

I pay into the pot every year to the tune of over 5 grand and if I am lucky I might get back 400-600 dollars a year if I am lucky. So don't accuse me of not paying. My local taxs goes to the upkeep of my town through property taxes people who don’t have property do not pay any property tax so how is that fair? they enjoy the benifits of my tax dollars. My one question is how many of you bleeding hearts have taken the homless into you homes and off public assitance?

Unless you live in s bubble you get back a lit more than that.
Do you never use roads? Eat safe food, drink clean water? Have laws enforced? Are none for your customers employed by the state?
Everyone benefits from government spending in thousands of indirect ways to a value far higher than they pay in.

a reply to: ScepticScot

Up in Canada, my town is still in recession from the 2008 disaster. The cheapest 1bdrm in my town is $600. I live in a building that houses drug users, drug dealers and a notorious pan handler. We hear gun shots a lot and the cops never come by. In the complex beside ours, it's got 5 buildings in all and it's full of drug users & dealers too. My crummy place has mold under the bathroom floor, in the spring it floods and there is water coming in the bedroom closet under the carpet. The rental lady who owns the building & the Strata people don't care, we've been trying to get it dealt with for a year and half.

This neighbourhood wasn't like this 5ys ago & further back. ((I've lived in roughly the same part of town for 19yrs))

It really sucks when things are so hard on people, not just in North America, but all over the world and yet nothing is really done about it. We know how to make things better yet no one wants to put in the hard work to get it done.

a reply to: ownbestenemy

Ok, let's ignore the fact that only .2% of the population is homeless. Let's focus then on the fact that over 48 million Americans live in poverty according to a new special report provided by the Census Bureau. Over 48 million Americans live in poverty

a reply to: Sabiduriaquite sad to hear that. Canada is one of those places along with Scandinavian countries that I like to think of as having a better standard of living that most. I know that is generalising a lot but it it makes me a little happier to believe that there are places less ill run than where I live. Probably best I go back to believing in Santa.
Hope things get better for you soon.

a reply to: ScepticScot
Stephen Harper does whatever the U.S wants so a lot has slipped downward. I want to move somewhere smaller like Finland where minimum wage is $20+, work week is 30hrs, education & healthcare are free. They help you find a job if you lose it. They take care of their people.

If the government actually took care of their people, there wouldn't be as many "burdens" on the system.