Social The homeless issue in The US.

[avenue94]

You could at least try and make a substantial investment into mental health which is the primary reason for homelessness.

Is isn't correlated, let alone causative, in the US. More mental care would help but it doesn't tackle the core problem.

In real world terms, if mental illness was the root cause of homelessness, then every state would have similar rates of ir because there's no reason to think some states are more mentally ill than others. Or more locally, we'd see similar results of homelessness between urban and rural and suburban if your claim was accurate.

 

[avenue94]

You’re both correct. More housing is essential.

Maybe more controversial but I think another part of the solution is mental institutions. A lot of the homeless people I have encountered are either drug-addled, or are not sane. Both of those components need to be addressed as well.

Worth noting that population is not the main homelessness population these days.

 

[avenue94]

I think another tax increase was just passed in LA for some homeless nonsense. Meanwhile last year something like 2 billion dollars dedicated to the homeless crisis just went missing lol. Bring back asylums or send them all to Barstow imo.

You got a source on it missing? Most of the time, the issue is LA is money is allocated and then NIMBYs block shelters and housing and tie them up in red tape for years.

 

[Corona]

You got a source on it missing? Most of the time, the issue is LA is money is allocated and then NIMBYs block shelters and housing and tie them up in red tape for years.

Los Angeles cannot track money spent on homeless programs, independent audit finds

An independent audit commissioned by a federal judge raised serious concerns about how Los Angeles city and county are handling the billions of taxpayer dollars spent on the homelessness crisis.

www.cbsnews.com

His feelings have been heightened following the independent audit released on Thursday. It claims that Los Angeles city and county leaders cannot account for the billions of taxpayer dollars spent on the homeless crisis last year. The LA Alliance for Human Rights pressed for a series of audits in recent years.

"It's heartbreaking," said Elizabeth Mitchell, an attorney for LA Alliance for Human Rights. "It's atrocious. It's immoral. It's unjustified. But, what it is not, is surprising."

Many of the problems identified were at the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, known as LAHSA.

The auditors said the agency's paper trail was so poor that tracking the $2.5 billion spent last year was nearly impossible

 

[avenue94]

Los Angeles cannot track money spent on homeless programs, independent audit finds

An independent audit commissioned by a federal judge raised serious concerns about how Los Angeles city and county are handling the billions of taxpayer dollars spent on the homelessness crisis.

www.cbsnews.com

Ah standard bad accounting. Guess we'll see where the money turned out one day, most probably went where it was supposed to but with bad recordkeeping. The homeless count has had issues for a long time. Unfortunately, no real easy fixes on that..

 

[deviake]

He'll make nigh everything worse but these problems existed before Trump. Trump, himself, is a symptom of the ongoing issues in our country

 

[Corona]

Ah standard bad accounting. Guess we'll see where the money turned out one day, most probably went where it was supposed to but with bad recordkeeping. The homeless count has had issues for a long time. Unfortunately, no real easy fixes on that..

I agree that there isn’t an easy solution to the homeless problem but this is gross incompetence from the city. Last year another audit basically said the same thing iirc. Simply put there’s some blatant corruption going on that needs to be addressed. Shit like this is unacceptable.

LA's top homelessness official signed $2.1 million contract with husband's employer

Government documents show Va Lecia Adams Kellum, who leads an agency that manages over $700 million in homeless services contracts each year, inked deals with the nonprofit where her husband is a senior staffer.

laist.com

Government documents show Va Lecia Adams Kellum, who leads an agency that manages over $700 million in homeless services contracts each year, inked deals with the nonprofit where her husband is a senior staffer.

State conflict of interest laws ban public officials from any involvement in contracts in which they have a financial interest, including agreements that financially benefit their spouse or groups that pay their spouse.

Los Angeles’ top homeless services executive told LAist in December that she stuck to those rules, saying she had been walled off and “completely recused” from business relating to her husband’s employer.

Through a public records request, LAist later discovered records that contradict her assertion.

The documents show that Va Lecia Adams Kellum, chief executive of the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA), signed a $2.1 million contract and two other contract amendments with Upward Bound House, the Santa Monica-based nonprofit where her husband Edward Kellum works in senior leadership. The contract names Adams Kellum as the LAHSA official authorized to administer it.

 

[gspieler]

Spoken like someone who has never dealt with someone who is homeless

Yes, I’m aware that drug addiction and mental are rampant along that cohort. If I fell on hard times, had no one to bail me out, and had to live on sidewalk, I’d might become a mentally-ill dope fiend, too.

My point is; it’s an abstract issue. Boiling it down to a “homeless people were going to be homeless no matter what” type of argument is erroneous, IMO.

 

[Osculater]

Seems like the plan so far is to make the homeless less lonely.

End of the thread....

 

[Deleted member 577981]

You’re both correct. More housing is essential.

Maybe more controversial but I think another part of the solution is mental institutions. A lot of the homeless people I have encountered are either drug-addled, or are not sane. Both of those components need to be addressed as well.

Why is that controversial? It's the cruel cold-hearted evil policies of Reagan that cause much of the homelessness crisis because that's when they cut all the funding for mental ill people including mental hospitals...

I remember my mother telling me at that time as I was just a young boy that the streets would end up being filled with homeless people because of Reagan.

 

[Deleted member 577981]

Spoken like someone who has never dealt with someone who is homeless

I have spent tons of time with homeless people over the years befriended many of them what that guy said is absolutely true....

 

[evergreenrider]

All these states are defying Trump with federal policies with immigration and trans kids ,, you think they will listen with homeless ?

It's definitely identity politics that's forced millions to the street. Identity politics definitely aren't being used as a distraction to the systemic raping and pillaging of the middle and lower class.

 

[deviake]

Yes, I’m aware that drug addiction and mental are rampant along that cohort. If I fell on hard times, had no one to bail me out, and had to live on sidewalk, I’d might become a mentally-ill dope fiend, too.

My point is; it’s an abstract issue. Boiling it down to a “homeless people were going to be homeless no matter what” type of argument is erroneous, IMO.

Yep. It's a multifaceted issue with a lot of moving parts. Certain people don't like acknowledging that reality because it's easier and more satisfying to draw a conclusion and stop thinking about it

 

[Osculater]

I believe the Government should round up all the homeless and send them to homeless reservations

 

[Bballfan123]

It's a situation I never understood. I traveled a bunch of different places and I was surprised at the variety of homelessness situations in different countries, including very poor countries.

In some places people are poor, but nobody is starving and everybody has a roof over their heads.
In some places I've seen literal infants in boxes on the street side.
I've seen tent towns like you see in LA.
I've seen cities where there are homeless people but very few and far between.

All these countries with various economic statuses, demographics, drug problems, etc. I couldn't figure out what the main factor is. Some countries have homelessness even though there is no drug epidemic. Some countries don't have homelessness even though they have a low GDP.

Comm-unity

 

[The Big Yin]

Yes, I’m aware that drug addiction and mental are rampant along that cohort. If I fell on hard times, had no one to bail me out, and had to live on sidewalk, I’d might become a mentally-ill dope fiend, too.

Would you? Or are you the sort of person who might take the help that is actually out there and try and rebuild things.

A vast majority of the homeless I worked with actually had friends and family that they had long since alienated with their behavior and unwillingness to leave their enablers behind.

They only successful mass drug addiction/homelessness programme I am aware of was that of Vincenzo Muccioli who ran communes in Italy. They effectively ran non military boot camps. They faced massive criticisms following allegations of abuse, but their rehabilitation rates were astonishing

 

[AmonTobin]

Poverty and homelessness are byproducts of late stage capitalism. Profit before people is not a sustainable model.

 

[The Big Yin]

I have spent tons of time with homeless people over the years befriended many of them what that guy said is absolutely true....

Is that so? So what did you personally do to try and get them housed and clean? And if so how many did you successfully help

 

[ShadowRun]

It's definitely identity politics that's forced millions to the street. Identity politics definitely aren't being used as a distraction to the systemic raping and pillaging of the middle and lower class.

What are you even talking about ? That reply meant for my post ?

 

[gspieler]

Would you? Or are you the sort of person who might take the help that is actually out there and try and rebuild things.

A vast majority of the homeless I worked with actually had friends and family that they had long since alienated with their behavior and unwillingness to leave their enablers behind.

They only successful mass drug addiction/homelessness programme I am aware of was that of Vincenzo Muccioli who ran communes in Italy. They effectively ran non military boot camps. They faced massive criticisms following allegations of abuse, but their rehabilitation rates were astonishing

Its not near!y as easy as you make it out to be, IMO. Plenty of people would've ended up on the streets regardless; I'll grant you. And even you gave them a house, a job, etc, they would still find a way back.

But for those trying to work their way by ask into society, without a strong support network, it is likely very challenging...

Go to a shelter? Great, and have your shit stolen anytime you have to go piss. Got a 2nd shift job? Too bad; you have to be back to the shelter by such down. That's if there's even a bed available. Etc.

Get a job? That's great. Can I have a regular place to shower? A regular place to lay my head near my workplace? Transportation to the job? An address to put on job apps? A phone that doesn't keep getting sto!en? Etc..

You have a job? Great , just go rent an apartment. Well, unfortunately the only jobs I could get can't even afford to sublet a room in this city. Ok, so just move to somewhere where debris cheaper. Great suggestion...can you front me enough to move and live off until I can find gainful employment somewhere else? No, that's what bootstraps are for. Etc.

As far as I can tell, being homeless is mostly trying to meet your daily needs for survival. Though many seem to look at it, as if homeless had access to the the same resources they personally had.