homeless people issues/questions

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Here in Australia, it's only a few decades ago that governments spent public money (taxes) for the benefit of the people.

Then 'experts' arrived from the US and literally told Australian politicians how it would be.

This resulted in the closure of what were termed psychiatric hospitals. Thousands of 'psychiatric patients' were turned out onto the street. Oh, there were assurances by slime-oozing politicians that these vulnerable members of society would be 'taken care of', but the reality was, thousands of people who were unable to fend for themselves were required to do just that. They were allocated X amount of dollars per fortnight with which to provide themselves shelter, food, clothing, medical care.

The reason they'd been in care in the first place was because they could not, for whatever reason, cope with living independently. Whilst institutionalised, they'd been spared responsibility for themselves. They'd been provided the basic necessities of life. Others had acted as 'parents' to them. Then they were turned out into the streets. They were swiftly victimised. Their fortnightly payments were taken from them. They were forced into slave labour: begging on street corners or washing windscreens at busy traffic stops. Each night they are forced to hand over their earnings to scum standover-men. They live like stray animals.

Yet Sydney politicians -- who have never done an honest day's work in their foul lives -- preen and smirk each New Year's Eve on the strength of the fact they've just sent another several million dollars up in smoke via the idiotic, graft in action 'fireworks display'.

Many millions of dollars each day are passed from one slimy politician's hand to the next. It's public money, but it ends up as the personal fortune of political scum and their cronies. Their hideous scum offspring are sent to the most prestigious schools and they and ugly, cosmetically-altered politicians' wives swan around in luxury vehicles. Meanwhile, the hopeless and the helpless are forced to exist in subhuman conditions.

Homeless people are of all ages and from all levels of society. Some are of particularly sensitive, vulnerable nature. Others suffer from medical conditions. Some are kids who've travelled from rural ghost towns in search of a job and a life. Others have simply lost their footing -- lost their jobs through illness (their own or a family member's) or redundancy or some other misfortune, which has led to their having no money to pay rent or mortgage. Once down, it's hard to climb back to even the lowest rung. It could happen to anyone and happens particularly to those lacking a network of friends or family.

Australia used to have an extremely high standard of living and it took care of its vulnerable members. Then its government was poisoned, infested and corrupted by a specific faction which is infamous for the priority it places on money. That faction is now firmly entrenched within Australian politics. It established this foothold when control of the media was achieved.

Now, Australia is like the rest of the Western world: it's puppet-masters are fanatically importing those from conflicting cultures and favouring them above the established population. The weak are being driven into the gutters. Lowest amongst these are the homeless. The puppet-government is systematically destroying Australian society and culture.

The Australian charade of government has abandoned all responsibility for society's weakest members and leaves charity groups, churches and volunteers to carry the ever increasing burden. Politicians keep busy granting unimaginably lucrative contracts and approvals to scum for dubious government and private development works and in drafting legislation that piece by piece erodes everyone's quality of life and hope for the future.

Most of these politicians have the brain, morality and compassion of mouldy pumpkin rind. They're foul vermin. They're so basically stupid that they manage to be smug and judgemental about the people who pay them and whom they're supposed to serve. Their dainty imported shoes (covering their misshapen peasant feet) never touch the streets where their victims lie in abject misery and poverty.

Strip those politicians of their plastic veneer and you find primitive thugs. They have no intention of finding answers to the growing number of homeless. No, the beast-like thug politicians plan to create MORE homeless and hopeless. And who's immune? Do you have a safety-net?

They're not motivated by greed alone. No. They're just as powerfully motivated by insane hatred for humankind. Yet people, desperate for a powerful parent-figure to take care of them, stupidly place their trust in these fiends at the same time as they are cutting your safety net to shreds.

The faces of the homeless are a mirror held before the rest of us. Their face could be our own, if the structure of our precariously maintained lives lost its balance.

The only way to restore balance in our societies is to hold our politicians accountable, at grass roots level and then proceeding all the way to the top. Our free ride is over. We can no longer watch tv, secure in the thought that our politicians are taking care of our interests. We took our eyes off the ball too long. It's time to rein in the scum and replace them with politicians who're made to understand from the outset that THEY work for us.

The current crop of goons can't even run their own lives or raise their own children adequately, so why should they be allowed any longer to interfere in and ruin ours?

Healthy societies take care of their vulnerable members.

The fact we have homeless people is the barometer of how low we've allowed our societies to be dragged and of how sick our societies actually are.

Our ancestors lived by the motto: ' Charity begins at home'.

Before we play heroes by donating to others or allowing others to invade our towns or take our jobs or dictate our policies, we should be taking care of our own.

We can AFFORD to take care of our own. It's our duty to make that our primary goal.

When our OWN nation is well and cared for, down to the most vulnerable members in our society, THEN we become a strong nation that's able to help others.

Originally posted by sdcigarpig
From my own experiences, I can say if you have never been in a homeless shelter, I can tell you that it is a scary place to be.

I agree %100 but also would say this is part of the problem. It's not true for all but certainly quite a few that rather than looking at a long term solution to the problem they just try to keep people from starving or freezing to death. While this is better than doing nothing at all it does not really do anything to give a much needed change in living conditions. In general most homeless do not have any privacy and I think that that contributes to alot of the problem. It's not making anyone feel better about or better themselves , just simply keeping them alive.

ive been in a homeless shelter too, but it was to deliver food but i was scared but it wasnt really scary in there since the homeless people i ran into there were nice they helped bring the food in, but it probally helped that it was miday

sorry double post

[edit on 2/11/2007 by denynothing]

I didn't know they had right wing republican conservatives in Australia?

Originally posted by grover
I didn't know they had right wing republican conservatives in Australia?

Of course there is...

There are people with good moral conscious and judgment all over the world...

We need to be to combat the evil side...

Semper

And where do the conservative right wing republicans come in Semper?

so does anybody else have any ideas about helping the homless get back on their feet

unfortunatly for many homeless people the issue is not that they can get on their feet again and be productive members of society. Its that they often have mental issues that need treatment before they can even hold a job. The problem is that in our society we have failed these people and for the most part don't even care.

We could instead of spending all this money each and every day on a war that no one wants to be in and spend it on taking care of those that cannot help themselves.

yea we shouldve tryed to change our country before we try to change another ( hint hint Iraq)

We as a society have got to stop treating people as disposable... for many, myself included, are only one or two paychecks away from eviction at anytime and if you don't have the resources to either pull yourself back up, or to handle it mentally, it can take a serious toll on the soul.

My snide comments about right wing republicans has a point. I have seen repeatedly conservative politicians more than willing to trim away at funding to help the disabled, down trodden and handicapped to give tax cuts to the already fortunate or to finance war. We spend trillions on death and grudge life.

When we look at the percentage of the federal budget earmarked for social services vs defense... Social spending is nothing in comparison, and the first to be put on the chopping block. That does not bode well for our society... we are only as good and as decent as we treat our least fortunate.

I have read comments here and other places as well as in actual media of the well off grudging the needy their need, bewailing the fact that we spend tax dollars on such things as AIDS when there are other diseases that are more worthy of treatment... a bumper sticker sold at Republican conventions in the early 80's read..."AIDS: its killing all the right people"... that is obscene. It is the type of sanctimonious self-righteousness on the right that people like me find so offensive and confirm to me that i would never vote for anyone who would implicitly agree with such sentiments by refusing to condemn them. Yet there are those who defend such comments by saying that it was meant humorously... BULLHOOEY there is nothing humorous or funny about it. It is mean spirited and hateful, and the fact that people not only buy statements like that but endorse it by putting them on their cars speaks volumes about the nature of modern American conservatism.

With jobs being out sourced to foreign countries left and right. With the old industries that made this nation dying. With lay offs on the rise forcing fewer and fewer to do more and more in order to pay for those golden parachutes for management; the middle class in this country is being squeezed out of existence. There are only so many jobs at Wal-mart and McDonald's to go around. We are, according to my friends in social work, seeing a dramatic increase in mental illness, domestic violence and the use of drugs to block out despair just as the funds to fight these things keep get smaller and smaller.

As we grudge the needy (for whatever the cause) our help...our national soul gets smaller and more niggardly.

We should be ashamed of ourselves.

[edit on 11-2-2007 by grover]

[edit on 11-2-2007 by grover]

Originally posted by grover

With jobs being out sourced to foreign countries left and right, with the old industries that made this nation dying and lay offs on the rise forcing fewer and fewer to do more and more to pay for those golden parachutes for management the middle class in this country is being squeezed out of existence with only so many jobs at Wal-mart and McDonald's to go around, we are according to my friends in social work seeing a dramatic increase in mental illness, domestic violence and the use of drugs to block out despair just as the funds to fight htese things get smaller and smaller.

As we grudge the needy (for whatever the cause) our help...our national soul gets smaller and more niggardly.

We should be ashamed of ourselves.

[edit on 11-2-2007 by grover]

i agree with that i mean ford laysoff people constanly now thos people could nowbe homeless if they cant get a job soon enough maybe if we dont outsource so many jobs to make more money we could keep some people off the streets, i dont want this to turn into a debate about illegal immigrants but it seems they take jobs of capable yet homeless people, but some homeless just dont want to get a job or actually want to earn any thing ie panhandlers, although some could have no real other choice.

I have seen those who wouldn't work if you gave them a job, and those who will do anything for pennies. In my area though there are quite a few day labor resources and they never have enough people, homeless or illegal.

yea my city has those too like buisnesses that will help you get a job from somewhere and they always seem to not be ful, and at the homeless shelters there always papers about random jobs about town

I am glad I live in a country where people are free to be homeless, free to walk the streets and free to be without a job.

Hungry? Just walk to the nearest shelter, every major city has one.

Must be nice living off the kindness of strangers, and big government.

The solution to homelessness is to stop helping these people live like this.

Instead of shelters, make them work opportunity stations. Need something to eat, a place to stay? Then I'm sure you wouldn't mind mowing the grass, doing the dishes, or cleaning up the side of the interstate etc.

rr were supporting shizzles idea or bashing it cuz i wasnt sure, but havin the homeless perople work wouldbe the best way to get them off the street

RR must really like the taste of his foot because every time he opens his mouth he sticks his foot in it and chews vigorously. I just hope he lives comfortably all his life and never has to face that reality because I have and it sucks...Sometimes crap happens no matter how well you think you have things sown up.

God bless those who actually care about their fellow human beings because they will even help people like rr.

I have worked in soup kitchens and I have eaten in soup kitchens and there are a lot out there who can no longer help themselves.... doesn't matter why. Decent people don't let others suffer just because they can no longer be productive.

[edit on 11-2-2007 by grover]

grover have u been homeless because that is very interesting care to elborate, and do unow have a home if so care to elborate on how u suceeded on not bein homeless anymore

Well yes I have been homeless a couple times in my life but it really wasn't the same. The most recent was in 1991 and typical...I chose to give up where I was living in Portland Maine, where I have lived for 20 years because the recession at that time hit New England really hard and as a result I went without work for a year and a half. With winter approaching I knew that I couldn't take it anymore so I sold my belongings (they are only things) and hopped on my mountain bike and bicycled from there to Charlottesville Va. On the way I stayed at shelters and ate at soup kitchens. When I got to Charlottesville I stayed for 2 weeks at the Salvation Army, got a job and an apartment, and then a few months later left to return to my hometown of Roanoke Va (where I am now) to take care of my mother while she recovered from a hip replacement. I also went for a time in both 78 and 79 without a set home while I vagabonded around the country, hitchhiking from Maine to the southwest where I attended the 79 Rainbow gathering on the Hopi reservation up the west coast to Canada and across back to New England, then in 78, I just took a year and wandered New England camping out when I could and working various jobs from the harvests to fishing Georges Banks.

Each of those times it was a matter of choice and each time the gods looked out for me... unfortunately not everyone is so blessed.

I have lived in the same apartment now for 8.5 years. I no longer bicycle because of a bad knee from the service and so get a small disability but I get around on a small scooter, grow my own food as much as possible and am a self declared old hippie and proud of it.

[edit on 11-2-2007 by grover]

[edit on 11-2-2007 by grover]

Originally posted by whatukno
We could instead of spending all this money each and every day on a war that no one wants to be in and spend it on taking care of those that cannot help themselves.

Agreed %100 but do we have to wait until then or can someone do something about it????