What will it take to end homelessness once and for all? (party, CEO)

[redfish1]

More state hospitals for the mentally ill would clean up a lot of it.

[Chuckity]

Originally Posted by redfish1

More state hospitals for the mentally ill would clean up a lot of it.

First, there's only 100K people in the country on any given day that are chronically homeless. And only a percentage of those are mentally ill.

Involuntary psychiatric hospitalization can only take place under very specific circumstances - generally when people are a danger to others or themselves. Which, I would guess would even be a smaller percentage of that 100K.

So I don't think state hospitals are the answer.

[Harry Potter 1]

Their are 310 million people in America and their are 40 million poor people in America. My Advace Sing of from the UN. The UN is every countries problems only let people in America who can afford to do. No Refugeess becouse that leaves to lots of homelesness problems who people come into America and can'f affored to live their.
And Build more houses and if you follow my advace then the homelessness problems will be gone in 2025.

[Chuckity]

Originally Posted by Harry Potter 1

Their are 310 million people in America and their are 40 million poor people in America. My Advace Sing of from the UN. The UN is every countries problems only let people in America who can afford to do. No Refugeess becouse that leaves to lots of homelesness problems who people come into America and can'f affored to live their.
And Build more houses and if you follow my advace then the homelessness problems will be gone in 2025.

The American poor would be considered wealthy by most other country's standards.

[rbohm]

Originally Posted by tinman01

Artwomyn makes a valid point.
How does one start a business if they have no start up capital or collatoral for a loan?
To be fair it would be next to impossible.
It has been done in the past but not often and for sure it wasn't easy.

Originally Posted by Braunwyn

I've owned several small businesses in my time. By small, I mean super small. I started from below the ground up. My gigs were comprised of those kiosks you see in the mall, pushcarts on the main strip in tourist towns, etc. I never took out a loan for any of my ventures. How did I do it? Well, I lived in tight living spaces with multiple roommates for most of my life and I usually stuck to tourist towns. Rent and utilities were around $3-500/mo. No computer, no phone, no Internet, no TV, etc. Minimal expenses. I bought a mini van at one point and lived in it on and off for years. I would save up first and last for the site I wanted to rent for my business. That's key.

I attended trade shows and kept aware of current and future trends since I was in retail crap. I made a lot of the things I sold (femo candles and pipes, jewelry, etc). I worked concerts and shows (the Dead, la la la palooza, etc) that did not have over head. I took the money made and reinvested in my business. I learned how to braid, hair wrap, do street art, anything that was easy cash in the evenings and weekends while off from work. I, again, took those monies and invested in my business. After a year or two it grew. I went from sunset pier in key west and the front of stores at night to my own push cart, to the mall, to large events (ren festivals, Salem, etc).

Granted, none of that was like owning a restaurant (no thanks) where loans of hundreds of thousands of dollars are needed, but these seasonal businesses didn't bore me, provided a nice income, and I was my own boss. I ran into hard times due to a fire and lost everything, but I was able to pick up the pieces in a year or so. I also have a close friend that has owned her own desk top publishing business for more than 15 years. She makes flyers, pamphlets for hospitals, that kind of thing. She's had the same clients for years and started out with a computer and an $800 printer, which is, of course, no longer needed.

tinman01, in addition to what braunwyn posted, i have also posted that there are bank loans. if you cant get a bank loan, check out a venture capital company. they invest in new businesses all the time. you just need to approach them with a good solid business plan. or save up a couple grand in cash, perhaps sell that expensive car you might have and buy a cheap one, and take that money and buy a hot dog cart, and work the lunch crowd near government buildings. if you have a life insurance policy, borrow against it. if you dont have much money right now, be creative. chances are that you have a talent for making or repairing things. if you do then take the broken stuff, and fix it up and sell it to those that have little money.

for instance, hit the auto salvage yards, and buy a few starters and alternators for cars that your friends have, and rebuild them. it isnt hard to do, and it isnt expensive to do, so you can make a few bucks doing a fairly easy job. and you get to save your friends some money as well. you can even make money from a hobby of yours. for instance, do you like building models? build an r/c plane, car, boat, and sell the assembled product. there are many ways to make money, you just have to be creative.

Originally Posted by hawkeye2009

Great post.

Everyone seems to be a "victim" these days. Whatever happened to personal responsibility?

that is an excellent question.

[lorrysda]

Originally Posted by artwomyn

Liberals want to help the poor, if they need it. And, the middle class has been disappearing for some time. It wans't liberals, who got us into this economic mess.

Actually, yes it was "liberals who got us into this economic mess."

[andrea3821]

National Alliance to End Homelessness: About Homelessness: Snapshot of Homelessness

.22% of people are homeless in the US on any given night. Only 18% of the homeless population is considered chronically homeless, which means it's a temporary problem that is solved. It's not like once you're homeless, you're destined to be destitute for the rest of your life. My husband was actually homeless for a little while back in his 20s. It was 100% b/c of his life decisions, not b/c he was a "victim of his circumstances." I've talked about my husband a lot on here but he came from nothing in his childhood, worked hard for awhile, screwed up for awhile and then got back on track. He is now owner of a restaurant franchise. DO NOT sit there and tell me it can't be done.

Here are some old stats about the homeless:
Homelessness

• single homeless individuals in 1996 reported an average income of $348 during the last 30 days, about 51 percent of the 1996 federal poverty level of $680/month for one person.
• 28 percent said they sometimes or often do not get enough to eat, compared with 12 percent of poor American adults.
• 44 percent did paid work during the past month.
• 21 percent received income from family members or friends.
• 66 percent of the homeless have problems with alcohol, drug abuse, or mental illness.
• 22 percent have been physically assaulted.
• 7 percent have been sexually assaulted.
• 38 percent say someone stole money or things directly from them.
• 30 percent have been homeless for more than two years.

So, from this we can gather that most of them are getting enough to eat. Most of them make what someone working 15 hours/week at a minimum wage job would make (this is 1996 dollars, and I figured that using today's minimum wage of $7.25 so back in '96, that $348 would have gone a long way). Less than half are working in some way. 1/5 of them get money from friends or family. MOST have problems with drugs, alcohol or are mentally ill, all of which are treatable to at least some extent. 1/3 have been homeless for more than two years, and I imagine it's harder to get out of it once you get used to that lifestyle. When you fall in that hole you have to stop digging and start figuring out a way out, not just feel sorry for yourself, get your cardboard sign out and go find a corner to sit at.

Thus, we can assume that in many cases, the homeless are probably content with their lives, at least in part. They do make money, which they apparently blow on addictive substances instead of purchasing food. The percentage of people not getting enough to eat is twice that of the "poor people" in America, but you would think that statistic would be much higher. It's not. They are happy to use drugs as long as they get enough to eat and in some cases, they'd rather take the drugs than the food. You're not understanding the situation when you say that most people are homeless due to no fault of their own.

Wanna know about the costs of homelessness? Here ya go:
National Alliance to End Homelessness: About Homelessness: Cost of Homelessness

Some of this is picked up by the taxpayer, some costs are eaten by the companies in question (like hospitals) and some costs are picked up by non-profit organizations.

[TKramar]

Originally Posted by Chuckity

I'm quite speechless.

This is one of the most bizarre & inane statements I've ever read. Ever.

I actually consider it theft.

[andrea3821]

Originally Posted by TKramar

It is unethical to take a bonus when your company is failing. Heck it's unethical to take pay for work that you're not performing, as in a vacation or sick time.



Good customer service would have mandated that you INSISTED on it--plus an interest in not potentially harming other vehicles/drivers/passengers on the road he was traveling, which could easily lead to a lawsuit against your company, since it was YOUR product.

If he had tied it down and there was some kind of failure, he would have been on the hook instead of the customer.

I agree it's unethical to take a bonus when your company is not profiting. However, most bonus systems are based on performance, i.e., a percentage of profits. I doubt anybody takes a bonus when there is no profit to be had.

[andrea3821]

Originally Posted by TKramar

Poor people aren't usually the ones embezzling money from their employers...or from their stockholders, in some cases.

Stealing is stealing is stealing. Why are you demonizing the rich here? The rich are not the topic of discussion right now, that's a whole 'nother thread.