June 12, 2019
I\’m pretty sure that I\’ve written about this tragic topic before — but I believe I\’ve added a-couple-more-variables to the soup that I may not have considered before.
First off — I\’m thinking that I\’m probably a NIMBY — because I\’ve worked goddamned hard to achieve a certain quality of life — and I\’ve more-than-shared my property and my hard-earned money with two ex wives.
Getting biblical on me to become my Brother\’s (and Sister\’s) keeper doesn\’t quite inspire me like it once did: My parents \”kept\” me till I was 26-ish — but no one has since.
Some of my Brothers and Sisters have found themselves in the streets entirely due to the Life choices they made. Plenty of them are drug addicts and/or alcoholics who have worn out their welcomes with family and friends. Others may be mentally ill or mentally challenged by their addictions.
When I wrote about this subject some-years-back — I noted that an astounding 40% of America\’s homeless were Viet Nam vets and/or vets of recent campaigns (numbering somewhere in the neighborhood of 200,000-250,000). It looks like our military has stepped-to- the plate and got many of these servicemen (and women) off-of-the-streets — but I\’ve heard that there are 100,000 still \”out there.\”
Speaking of \”streets\” — am I to view a homeless person who has an RV in the same fashion as I should view a Street Sleeper. Of-the-close-to-60,000 homeless in L.A. County how many actually sleep on the streets?
And this question was just answered for me by today\’s beloved Times (6/11): well over 16,000 \”homeless\” live in their vehicles — many in cars — but plenty in RVs.
The rivers in England are becoming choked with houseboats — as prospective homebuyers can no longer afford homes — but can afford a 35,000 quid houseboat.
But here, Steve Lopez and others have reported that a living module runs close to $500,000; and deluxe porta potty comes in at $339,000?! Are you kidding me!! This is American capitalism at its best!!! You can buy a fucking new home for that amount of money!?
I certainly don\’t have the facts and figures before me — but modular homes should be had for at least $30,000 — and deluxe porta potties — for $10,000. Somebody\’s fixin\’ to retire on the backs of the taxpayer!
In our revolutionary war — many American prisoners were held on boats in the absence of prisons. There have to be a few de-commissioned military vessels that could sleep a few thousand? I\’m sure there are a number of cost-effective solutions to the homeless problem. I was bolstered by the many scientific inroads that have been made to halting and reversing global warming recently showcased on the HBO documentary, Ice on Fire.
Alas, Marx said (or was it Simmel?) that every system carries within it the seeds of its own destruction. The terrible treatment of veterans (even First Responders to 9/11) shows the heartlessness engendered by the extreme form of capitalism practiced by US.
The chickens are obviously coming home to roost (\’the chickens have come home to roost\’ means that you cannot escape the consequences and repercussions of evil deeds that you have done to other people. This idiom is similar to “what goes around, comes around” and “turnabout is fair play.\”
I\’m just hoping the Homeless would rather not climb the hill I live on. Thank goodness chickens can\’t fly…
P.S.
Today\’s Times (6/12) reported that the State has $690,000,000 to spend on the Homeless — but legislators don\’t know what to do! We need social engineers as adept as our climatologists!