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Recently found a pretty interesting video about China and how they combat homelessness (sorry on reddit). You can buy a 1 room apartment for $15.000 and the monthly costs are minimal. Of course I don't truly know if there really isn't any homelessness in China, but we absolutely have the technology to solve this problem lol
It's probably mostly accurate, most other developed nations DO prioritize housing and caring for their homeless because it just makes sense that if you don't want decay in your population, you do SOMETHING to take care of them.
Now that said, I am far more concerned/curious how China is handling one of the leading causes of homelessness which is mental and physical health problems, and how much access the average person starting to slip through the cracks can get to proper healthcare.
I am not well versed on China's healthcare situation though, and it's been almost 17 years since I've been there last, when I was there people seemed kind of... miserable. Overworked, unable to afford more than the most basic amenities and living conditions. At least the working-class drivers and clerks. Honestly, China 17 years ago feels a lot like many places in the US right now.
Forced Homelessness is the policy of many Governments and the DOJ in the United States as a means of punishing those they are after without any due process. Your ability to work or even have ID can be taken from you if they choose to do it. Your money can be taken. Your bank accounts can be frozen.
City, State and Federal Governments have been creating these zones where large numbers of homeless and poor people are forced into with a kind of virtual redlining. Usually, these are downtown areas in major cities, and then the system creates the ability to target them with systemic drug usage, even to the point of the government supplying pipes and needles for people to use. They are given just enough food to stay alive while forced into this position. No employers are going to hire anyone and it isn't like it used to be where someone can just walk into a factory and make enough money in cash to live for a week.
In many ways it is a public execution system that just operates very slowly and you'll only occasionally notice the dead body--- which even are often not recorded as a death correctly, and it's nothing you will see in the obituary sections of your newspapers. Imagine a system that lets tons of your former neighbors die slowly on the street while everyone walks by inside their little tech bubbles of safety, confident in the belief that it could never be them.
At some point, it's really about your view of a human life versus your value of money. At some point along the way, it was decided that the amount of money someone has at that point in time determines their value as a person to even keep existing, or to have basic rights...
If Governments wanted to solve the problem, they could find a building to put people in, they could force drug rehab on some, others probably should be in jail. The ones willing and able to work should be given the opportunity, with a path out of the state imposed public execution systems, and back to a life where they are capable of taking care of themselves.
“When one individual inflicts bodily injury upon another such that death results, we call the deed manslaughter; when the assailant knew in advance that the injury would be fatal, we call his deed murder. But when society places hundreds of proletarians in such a position that they inevitably meet a too early and an unnatural death, one which is quite as much a death by violence as that by the sword or bullet; when it deprives thousands of the necessaries of life, places them under conditions in which they cannot live – forces them, through the strong arm of the law, to remain in such conditions until that death ensues which is the inevitable consequence – knows that these thousands of victims must perish, and yet permits these conditions to remain, its deed is murder just as surely as the deed of the single individual; disguised, malicious murder, murder against which none can defend himself, which does not seem what it is, because no man sees the murderer, because the death of the victim seems a natural one, since the offence is more one of omission than of commission. But murder it remains.”
Well said!
Never had a bad view of homeless people, even as a child, you gotta lack empathy to be in the position where you are adult and realise that they're not bad.
It's the people who pretend to be homeless and collect money that are the real scum and ruin it for the actual homeless
I've been homeless twice. Thankfully I had a car and I could live out of it temporarily while I found some family to save my ass while I got back on my feet.
If I hadn't had family keep me from rock bottom it's hard to say if I would have pulled out of those situations on my own.
Unfortunately for many people they have little to no empathy for homeless because they have been lied to or attacked by homeless and they then view all homeless that way.
I remember once in my teens I skateboarded over to a sandwich place to get lunch for myself and my brother. On the way there I passed a homeless guy with a sign asking for "anything". I decided to get him a sandwich while I was there. Just a basic turkey sandwich or something as plain as I could think of. When I tried to give him the sandwich he threw it back at me and told me I should have just given him the money so he could get drunk.
That experience really tainted my view of the homeless from that day onwards. Then later in life I would have two different girlfriends get grabbed by homeless people over the years.
I have a buddy that lived downtown and the homeless people there were always breaking their windows and stealing their stuff. One of them set fire to the side of their house out of boredom. When the police came they just escorted him to the street and then left. He didn't get tried for arson or anything. The cops don't care. They have no system in place to deal with those people.
Its easy for people to have empathy for a group that they have never interacted with. Anyone who lives near homeless or regularly interacts with homeless people will tell you that not all of them are good people who just got abandoned by society. Some of them are evil bad people who have refused help or just don't want it. Most of them need mental support.
It's a very complicated issue and I dont think it has any easy or cheap solutions.
Same here on a few bad experiences trying to help
Realistically, it doesn’t matter anymore since I almost never have cash. They seem to know that world has gone too, as I’m rarely solicited anymore
Yeah I haven't carried any cash for years and most of the time I offer to buy them food they decline. Once in awhile they take me up on the offer and are thankful but I am still always a little worried they are gonna throw it in my face after that experience I had as a kid.
It's a shit situation all around.
Homelessness is not only living on the street either. There are lots of housing insecurities. Some people may move back in with family but the location isn't safe or welcoming.
I've seen many young mothers face this exact situation, often even when that same family pressured her to carry the pregnancy to term.
My mom died when I was 20 and the old man sold the house and took off with anything of value while I was just out of electrical engineering and there was a big economic downturn in the early 90s .. I crashed on people's couches in crack house neighborhoods and sometimes slept under bridges or highway overpasses... Had no car - no job and lucked into a job at Sears selling PC's back when windows 3.11 was king. I earned enough to buy a bike and bike my way to work from wherever I was crashing and bought a damned pink barbie backpack from a tag sale for 2 bucks so I could bring my suit jacket and tie required in those days and I took a damned ribbing until I could get a better situation. People that have a fallback are lucky as hell and should consider themselves so.
Point taken... also ouch...
For real. And I don’t. I always feel humbled when I see a homeless person because I’m just a hop and a skip away from being in their predicament. All it would take is an unfortunate event or two.