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130,000 here in CA as of Jan 2018. Probably far more by now. The generally good weather combined with the nanny state 'hands-off' policies allow them to live in lawless little communities with their drugs and booze. When offered a chance to move back into society, most are not interested...
how many live on the street by choice?
Or doesn't that help make the point that those with homes need to be taxed to provide homes for those who dont?
The laws emptied out the mental institutions...so there is that. Quite a few live on the street by "some choice" - I'd say 1/2. Whether for the "freedom" or for the heroin......BTW, the junkies around here are white and young. They think they are hippies or something. In general they pose little or no threat as H is cheap these days and they can get enough panhandling.
I don't think I pay much in taxes for them.....there are a number of orgs around here who raise money the old fashioned way. Events...etc.
I do think at a point some are bad for business....although the total effect is small. The topic has been wrestled with but the law is the law. You can't empty out the institutions and then start arresting the same people for loitering.
how many live on the street by choice?
Or doesn't that help make the point that those with homes need to be taxed to provide homes for those who dont?
Guy here in town has a P.O. box gets a monthly check but sometimes he rather live outdoors he isn't really homeless or a bum but suffers from mental episodes.My sister said he was a genius had a great job just went off the deep end.
130,000 here in CA as of Jan 2018. Probably far more by now. The generally good weather combined with the nanny state 'hands-off' policies allow them to live in lawless little communities with their drugs and booze. When offered a chance to move back into society, most are not interested...
Weather is a big draw. Most of the hands off stuff has been enshrined in law nationwide. In Sarasota, which is Trump Central (and had the title "Meanest City" when merchants tried to get panhandlers off the streets) LE has to follow the same basic laws as in CA.
One would not think so....but it's true. After decades of just fighting about it the city and county and all the orgs have finally done something. There was a LOT of NIMBY in terms of where shelters could be located.
The Great Recession also caused a big jump.....some of that has settled down now and I think we have cut the number "on the street" by almost 50%, which isn't bad.
SRQ (Sarasota) has a lot of middle aged homeless....and older. Unfortunately their life span is short. I think most die in their 50's due to complications of disease.
No homeless in my town, which has a permanent resident count of less than 400. BUT, after being ordered to evacuate for Hurricane Dorian, I saw MANY homeless in other areas of my state.
The state has no authority to grab people off the street and institutionalize them, nor does it have any authority tax others to pay for such institutions. Property rights could solve a bunch of the homeless scenarios by way of inexpensive housing that wouldnt be subject to onerous zones,codes and permitting processes and through privatization, business and homeowners could take control of the streets and sidewalks that feed their stores and homes.
I recently read where some business owners in CA took control of the situation by lining the sidewalk in front of their stores with landscaping boulders that still allowed for foot traffic, but eliminated loitering.
I should give a shoutout to the many Christian folks in Sarasota who establish the orgs and even personally help the homeless. It's heartening to see. Many are doing it alone (not church sponsored) such as one woman who established a storefront near the homeless with one aim - free grilled cheese sandwiches!
I work for Meals on Wheels down there which is Christian based but secular in practice....Christian in the sense that they use the actual words of Big J to drive them. We provide meals to folks who live in places which cannot be described as "homes" or "living quarters".
I think some people would not believe me if I told the stories about my deliveries. So many people living under the radar...and yet most have a smile on their faces and a big thank you. I make sure to thank all of them too and we monitor them (report back to HQ if something seems off).
Location: “Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who
129 posts, read 66,516 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Frank DeForrest
Property rights could solve a bunch of the homeless scenarios by way of inexpensive housing that wouldn't be subject to onerous zones, codes and permitting processes and through privatization, business and homeowners could take control of the streets and sidewalks that feed their stores and homes.
Dang Frank I think you just solved homelessness!
Thank you
Now, make it so #1.
I did hear that the greatest threat to lower class home ownership came from the middle class by way of restrictive zoning laws.
I can legally buy vacant land for as little as $100 dollars an acre but if I want to build on that acre, the minimum structure costs almost $30k because of regulations, etc.
I guess it is OK to sleep in a cardboard box, on a public sidewalk, pee and poo in the street and eat out of a garbage can just as long as you don't try to do that on your own private property.
Because that might effect the future value of the land.
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