Homeless People

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   Rosemary Mooreposted 14 years ago

   Do you truly understand the lifestyle of a homeless people?

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      darksideposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I'd think it's a life without much 'style'.

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         K Partinposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         A life few choose to live, but many are forced into.

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      Arthur Fontesposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I just wrote a short character study of homeless people.

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      Madame Xposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Yes. What do you want to know? I wrote a hub about it, if you want more info. So did K Partin. You might want to look at those

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      Hokeyposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Understand? Lived it.................

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      mythbusterposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Yes, I think I do. I've been homeless recently in one of Canada's wealthiest cities...
      
      I've recovered but am still very low-income but I turned to studying poverty, do public speaking on low-income issues and poverty and volunteer a lot with disadvantaged people.
      
      Poverty/homelessness=complex issues, not just a matter of jobs or laziness versus working.

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      mythbusterposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Actually, I was technically homeless less than a year ago - still recovering

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   h.a.borcichposted 14 years ago

   Last night on the local news there was a segment on the difficulty counting the homeless in Madison, WI. They estimated there were atleast 600 and how important it is that they be counted to grab federal monies to help them. With our winter climate I cannot imagine how they survive. That so many of them are veterans is apalling, We must change this somehow. Holly

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      K Partinposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Some people are trying to be part of the solution Holly.
      
      http://hubpages.com/hub/HomelessHelp

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         h.a.borcichposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Great hub, and yes, many are trying to do something. Sure would be great to make homelessness obsolete. Holly

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   Beth100posted 14 years ago

   It only takes the loss of 3 paychecks to end up homeless.  It isn't a choice many choose.  Rather, it is situations that cause this.  KP has written a great hub on someone who is trying to help the homeless with a new idea.  I hope it takes off as it's true charity he is giving -- it's from the heart, not from the pocket book.

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   K Partinposted 14 years ago

   Morning Beth how are you? Well said by the way. Thanks

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      Beth100posted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Morning K.  I'm good this morning. It's the weekend!!  Yippee!  How are you?  And you're welcome.  It is one of the best articles written.

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         K Partinposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Doing good, raining here but like you said the week-end! yay!

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            Beth100posted 14 years agoin reply to this

            I just noticed -- you've hit over 300 fans!!  Congratulations! 
            
            Enjoy your rainy weekend (it's not snowing, but it's threatening freezing rain....)! 

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               K Partinposted 14 years agoin reply to this

               Thanks Beth take care.

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                  Beth100posted 14 years agoin reply to this

                  I will.  I'd love to chat a bit longer, but I have to fix up breakfast for the hungry masses here.
                  
                  You take care too, and I hope to chat with you another day.
                  
                  It's great to see you K.  And, ((hugs))

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   Ohmaposted 14 years ago

   This is another great Hub on the subject and I learned so much from reading it. http://hubpages.com/hub/Meet-Marta-and- … -interview

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   Rafiniposted 14 years ago

   Unfortunately, yes.  And I never want to return to it!

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   Kenrick Chatmanposted 14 years ago

   I saw a story about a "homeless" man yesterday who is living off of his hotel points since he was laid off and lost his home.

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   flread45posted 14 years ago

   Very easy;
   cold
   hungry
   no friends
   no family
   tattered clothes
   no body cares
   I have never been homeless but my relatives have and I have gave to many homeless shelters.
   Do not throw clothes and household goods away.
   Give them to the homeless shelter or your church.
   They are much appreciated.
   Also do not forget the animals who are homeless!!!

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9. 66

   NateSeanposted 14 years ago

   Been there, done that, found the T-shirt in a "Free clothes" bin at the shelter where I stayed.
   
   I've been treated like crap from the staff at shelters, treated like a moron by people I tried to get help from, and inspite of it all I got myself out of it.
   
   I'm not saying that it's easy for other people to just improve their situations. I think it's especially hard for people with mental illnesses and other health problems who don't have family or friends to keep an eye out for them.
   
   I consider myself fortunate enough to have had family who stuck by me when things got worse and friends who came through for me when I needed them.

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      getitriteposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Been there too.  I was also treated like a moron, eventhough I was maintaining a 3.8 average in college at the time I became homeless.  I had no mental illnesses or substance abuse issues.  I had served 6 years in the military, and was a productive member of society until an illness ruined my finances.  The main barrier to getting off the street was the judgmental attitudes of those I would go to for help. 
      
      Because of the judgment of these people, I ended up spending six months on the streets, when I could have been off the streets in 3 weeks!

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    Pani Midnyte Odinposted 14 years ago

    I lived it.

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    ddsurfscaposted 14 years ago

    I have been homeless, and my middle son said it the best of anyone I think. 
       He had an opinion at first, that--"they are just lazy bastards who find it easier to leach off of others people".
        To "They work harder by far to just maintain food and shelter for the day." after living with a bunch of them for a week.  He was only fourteen at the time.

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12. 68

    MikeNVposted 14 years ago

    Ahh to be free living on the streets with nothing.
    
    That's the lifestyle.
    
    Many of these people are mentally ill... others the victims of circumstance.
    
    I wouldn't exactly refer to it as a lifestyle.

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       NateSeanposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       Point.

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       Jane Taxpayerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       It kind of is a lifestyle. Not at first, but if you're homeless long enough you begin to do certain things to keep your mental health intact. Eventually it becomes so dehumanizing that it seems as though you have no soul. I used to be homeless, and Doctors are still trying to repair the damage I went through mentally in those three years.

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          mythbusterposted 13 years agoin reply to this

          *hugs*

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13. 68

    ilmdamailyposted 14 years ago

    Wow. Really surprising how many people here have experienced homelessness.
    
    Thought i'd be in the minority.
    
    For some people it is a lifestyle choice - for others less so. My own circumstance was a combination of both. The writing was on the wall, I knew i'd lose my place - so I embraced it.
    
    With a little planning and creative thinking it is very feasible to hold down a job and be a perfectly normal member of society - without having a home. But it takes a particular type of person to manage it. 
    
    But, those who don't want it, shouldn't be forced to endure it. And those who do want it, shouldn't be prevented from living it.
    
    It does stay with you, and these days I live like a migratory bird - renting from friends or family, changing countries as the ability to or need arises. Life off the grid is good these days.

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       ledefensetechposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       I'd be interesting in hearing more about that.  Most homeless tend to be either mentally ill or drug addicts.  The closest I came to homelessness was a friend of mine in middle school.  It didn't seem strange at the time that sometimes he and his dad slept in a tent in the park, it was only years later that it struck me as kind of odd.

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          Lisa HWposted 13 years agoin reply to this

          A lot of people haven't come "close to homeless" - which is why so few truly understand it.

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    goldenpathposted 14 years ago

    Everyone deserves a place that they consider a dignified home.  Not necessarily what someone else perceives as home, but what the individual sees as home.  Given that we all fall victim to hard times, depression, mental dysfunction and other situations that can add to this segment of society.  As such we all have the duty and responsibility to succor them in their time of need.

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       ledefensetechposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       I disagree.  You're entitled to what you work for.  That's why having good friends and family around you are so important.  It's friends and family that will help you when you fall victim to hard times.
       
       That's why drug addicts so many times number among them homeless.  They burn so many bridges in their quest for more and more drugs that they don't have any support after a time from friends and/or family.
       
       Mentally ill people are a bit different, but you'd be surprised at the number of people who can manage and, in some cases, overcome their illness. 
       
       What we do have a responsibility to do is create a society in which people who wish homes are able to meet that need.  That's a different topic entirely though.

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          goldenpathposted 14 years agoin reply to this

          No, same topic.  We are all to educate those less fortunate and those fallen victim.  We don't put a time table on it and we don't put a limit to the charitable effort.  Those taking advantage of the assistance is different, I whole-heartedly agree.

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             ledefensetechposted 14 years agoin reply to this

             No, I think it's different.  On the one hand we're talking charity.  That's individual.  Each person should decide how much and to whom they are charitable to.  You can't, after all, be charitable with other people's money. 
             
             I should be a little more clear and say that if we wish to live in a harmonious society, we need to ensure that people have the ability to meed their needs and wants. 
             
             In the end they both aim for the same end, a harmonious society, but the former is a personal decision while the other a duty that we accrue simply by being human.

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                rhamsonposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                Mahatma Gandhi said "You can judge a society by how they treat their weakest members."
                
                The excuses for how people got this way are of no importance when someone is in need.
                
                Our society must make it right and possible for old people not to fear the young or be deserted by them, for the test of a civilization is the way that it cares for its helpless members.~Pearl S. Buck.
                
                I don't take any comfort in knowing that people make their own choices and should just be allowed to wallow in poverty because of their bad choices.
                
                Last Speech of Hubert H. Humphrey "Any society, any nation, is judged on the basis of how it treats its weakest members -- the last, the least, the littlest."
                
                I am proud of the fact that we can overcome our differences with other governments when it comes to humanitarian relief but am saddened by our indifference to many of the homeless and starving members of our own country.

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                   ledefensetechposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                   Sorry but I don't agree.  It matters very much how someone got to this pass.  If they decided to abuse drugs and alienate their friends and family, that is their fault.  If someone is mentally ill and suffering from, say, schizophrenia, then that is a different matter entirely.  One is a choice the other an illness. 
                   
                   If you support people when they make bad decisions and keep them from feeling the consequences of those poor decisions, all you do is ensure that they will continue to make poor decisions, except now they will expect someone else to bail them out when they get into trouble.  The story of the prodigal son comes to mind.
                   
                   To illustrate I'll tell you about two of "my" kids I ran into recently after several years.  One had a child, was working full time to support this child and took to heart the lesson that her actions determined how well or how poorly she did.  I ran into anther of my kids a few days later who had just gotten out of prison.  When I asked him why he didn't listen to us when we tried to tell him where his behavior was going to lead him, he said he thought we were just trying to scare him.  This being his third time out of prison, he obviously didn't profit at all from his stay with us, and will continue to be in and out of jail until he starts owning his decisions and making changes.
                   
                   The difference is that my first kid deserves help while the second kid has yet to earn that help.

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                      rhamsonposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                      I agree with most of what you you are saying. 
                      
                      I too have children who have made some poor decisions and are reaping the lessons they choose.  I have one son who got into trouble with the juvenile justice system and went to family court a few times.  The last time after the judge had handed down virtually the same punishment as before asked if I had anything to say.  I told him that I felt the sentence was too light and that unless the punishments did not become more severe he would surely not respect the decision.  The judge doubled the punishment and my son never saw the inside of the courtroom again.
                      
                      Where I differ from your thoughts is that you claim drug addiction is a choice.  That would be like saying that feeling and living like a rat is something that appeals to someone and the loss of everything precious to them is an active choice.  I don't agree with that stance but do however agree that people who choose to use the system to avoid working for themselves should be weened off the public teat.  I think there is a difference and that help should be given as individual cases dictate.

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                         ledefensetechposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                         Kudos on getting the judge to change your son's punishment.  I'm sure it was hard to do but necessary, no?  And as you say, he's not seen the inside of a courtroom since.  We need more parents like you.
                         
                         As for drug addiction let me clarify by saying experimenting with drugs is a choice.  What, often times, you can't choose is if you will become addicted or not.  Now most, if not all schools, have anti-drug programs and they warn about the effects of drug use.  So it's not like people try this stuff without knowing what it can do to you.
                         
                         Alcoholism, for example runs in my family.  Since I know this and am diabetic, I stay away from alcohol.  Now am I guaranteed to become an alcoholic?  No, I'm not.  But the chance exists and I'm not willing to tempt fate, so I don't do it.  Same thing with drugs.  I probably would be like most people who experiment.  Not much happens and they don't become addicted.  But the consequences of my being wrong are so severe, that I'm not willing to get in that game.  Simply put, it's not worth the risk.  Plus if I got addicted, I'm sure I'd be cast out from my family.
                         
                         Besides there is no reason for me to use drugs as an escape.  I recommend Zen Buddhism for dealing with life's little problems, there are lots of fringe benefits to its practice.  Incidentally, those of my kids who started using Zen practice as part of their coping skills greatly increased their chances after leaving our facility, some of them were drug addicts and were able to successfully stay off the stuff after getting discharged.

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                            rhamsonposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                            I don't know if there should be more parents like me.  I feel the hospital forgot to give me the manual when I left with the kid. I had to wing it as best as I could.
                            
                            As far as drug addiction I understand it very well.  I have been in recovery for 25 years without relapse.  Prior to that I used for over 15 years.  The seduction of drugs is not something you can recognize and abstain from because you know it is bad for you.  As most young people feel invincible they pay little attention to warnings and signs. Addiction takes those who are so inclined.  No intelligence about it.  You are what you are.
                            
                            Where I feel you would agree is that the penalties for using should be very severe and quickly learned by those who choose to use.  Lifes lessons are paramount in changing behavior and the best lessons are those self taught. As with your tough love you practiced with your son many parents should let their children learn their lessons instead of trying to lessen the punishment.  The quicker one learns, the quicker one moves on.
                            
                            I too am intrigued by Buddism and have just recently started learning about it.  I am not religious but am a student of all religions and I find some of the things in this religion refreshing. 
                            
                            As far as Zen helping addicts?  I think it is a very interesting idea.  Whereas most recovery programs speak of a spiritual element to health there is a lot of hesitation when traditional structured religion is introduced as it is a distraction from the addicts deeper problems.  But what I have seen of Buddism there is more focus on self and that could be beneficial for the addict as well.

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                               ledefensetechposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                               I'd characterize Zen more along the lines of a philosophy or way of looking at the world.  One of the main tenets is to divorce yourself from desire of outcome, which is why I think it's so helpful for people getting themselves off drugs. 
                               
                               Although I've never experienced it, I understand one of the great relapse pitfalls is the discouragement.  Whether discouraged by the continual craving, the want, the need to backslide; many people can't take it and go back to drugs.  By not focusing on the desire to quit, but living fully in the present, I think that can help attenuate the cravings.
                               
                               I am a bit curious as to whether or not you were addicted to drugs solely or did you do things like smoke and gamble too.  I've noticed that many addicts are addicted to not only drugs, but alcohol, smoking, gambling, etc.  That leads me to believe there is a genetic component to addiction, which is why I'm so leery of experimenting especially considering some of my family members.
                               
                               Nobody gets a manual with a kid.  All you can do is try to do common sense things and it seems like you did than when you made the right call.

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                                  rhamsonposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                                  I agree with your characterization Zen for as much as I know about.  It has been explained that way to me before.  I like the acceptance tennet to it.  It allows life to be lived rather than controlled.
                                  
                                  I don't know if discouragement is as great a pitfall as much as learning new coping skills.  If you never learned how to react to not getting that job or your girlfriend dumping you there is an abysmal feeling that swallows you up.  The craving could be more of a physical need rather than and active mental decision but it is different for many.
                                  
                                  No smoking or gambling habits.  As a matter of fact I have been to Vegas a few times and dutifully dumped off a predetermined amount of cash to mostly the slots.
                                  
                                  I do know I have an addictive personality but if I am in touch with my feelings I soon understand it and move on.
                                  
                                  As far as your addictive tendencies based on family genetics I could not know.  My suggestion would be not to waste the time or money on it as it leaves you with little in return. 
                                  
                                  There was a few relatives in my family who had drinking problems but the programs told me what to do and sobriety is my lifeline to my sanity.

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                               The-Delfposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                               Hello...i loved a man for ten years of my life who was a heroin user and had a habit for 25 years.
                               I saved this mans life 3 times when he overdosed, over the ten years i knew him and his "deeper problems" came from child abuse when he was young and i did try everything to help him "get over" the habit or problem but his underlying problem was worse and harder for him to live with everyday.
                               I loved him as my sweetheart and my baby-boy you know folks!!
                               I begged him to marry me and live with me in the countryside where we could grow old together.
                               He was a vocalist/singer/songwriter and poet and so we shared many a love song but he moved away from me because i did not want to be a drugo, as such and then one day i called his phone and his mother answered and her reply when i asked to speak to him went like this...
                               "He is dead!!...I have his ashes in my hands right now!!!"
                               ...And then i was not allowed to gather his things nor have the love-letters he wrote to me nor did i have any right at all to keep any contact with his family...and the man lived in my house with my kids!?
                               He overdosed on the smallest amount, $50 dollars is all it took to take his breath away...I can never ever call him on the phone again!!
                               I had no right to erect a memorial headstone in the cemetery because i was not sleeping in the same bed as him when he died and i thought to myself...Wow!!!, it would of been better if he had of died one of those times i saved him because i would of had the right to respect his human life in death, but that is not the way the world looks at it...is it?
                               He was spiritual...but it never saved his life!

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          Lisa HWposted 13 years agoin reply to this

          A lot of drug addicts who have good friends and family don't,  in fact, burn those bridges.  Good friends and families often do find a way to best support their drug-addict loved one.  Often, the people who burn the bridges are friends and family who wear out and don't feel committed enough to keep finding ways to support the drug addict (in the most appropriate, reasonable, way they can).
          
          You might be surprised, too, how easily it is for even the most well intentioned and loving friends and family members to fail someone just at the time when he needs their help most.

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             ledefensetechposted 13 years agoin reply to this

             I understand I'm generalizing things, but when you're talking about a problem as a whole, there just isn't any other way to get your arms around it intellectually speaking.  Like I've mentioned before I'm talking about percentages.  It is much more likely that a drug addict will burn their bridges with friends and family than someone who is not.  Are there people who make heroic efforts to save a loved one from drugs?  Sure.  Are there those that immediately write off those who are addicted to drugs?  Sure.  Most people tend to fall in the middle, so it's hard to say with any certainty what a particular person will do.  What you can say is that overall the trend is for those people to burn bridges.  That's all I'm saying.

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                Lisa HWposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                I don't disregard the reality the some homeless people are drug addicts, and were drug addicts, when they became homeless; and burned bridges.    As far as percentages go, though, there are a lot of homeless people we don't see on the park benches and in doorways in the cities.  So the blanket term "the homeless", covers a big percentage of "homeless" people who aren't drug addicts who became drug addicts before becoming homeless.    (Just a thought on some of those drug addicts, though, a lot of them started out making the same stupid choices a lot of other teens make -  only to find themselves addicted for one reason or another.  So a lot of those drug addicts are "some mother's child". I know a guy close to 40, out in the streets in a nearby city, and I've watched him go downhill since he was kid of about 14.  Remembering how he got "off track" so young, it's kind of hard to see him as "not worth bothering" today, now that he's 40.)
                
                Getting back to presumed percentages, though, I'd be surprised if the largest percentage of overall homeless (the families in cars, for example) is made up of drug addicts or anyone else who could be seen as "to blame for his own problems". 
                
                Of the sleeping-in-the library/on-park-benches variety of homeless, I would bet at least some percentage of them became alcoholics (or maybe even drug addicts, particularly if they young) after becoming homeless and a result of having to do something "just to be able to stay sane" for another few hours.  Of this group of homeless people, I know there are some who are mentally ill.  I would be surprised if there aren't some who became mentally ill as a result of being homeless for too long.  Then, too, there are the people who were kicked to the curb by divorce-court judges; or else who may have worn out a welcome at a relative's house after being unable to find work (that paid enough to get a place to live) for too long.
                
                Then, too, there are the runaways; and a lot of those kids aren't "spoiled brats".  They're kids who are abused at home, and if not abused, they often have parents who aren't reasonable or who don't respect them.
                
                So, my point is, you can't generalize by singling out one group that makes up any percentage, because if you don't you'll never get your "arms around it intellectually" - because while you're trying to wrap your arms/head around a small part of a very large problem, a whole lot other factors are going on beyond the grasp of your "arms", behind your back, and over your head. 

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             The-Delfposted 13 years agoin reply to this

             What if someone dies???
             What if the kids mum died and the dad started drinking?
             Grief, death and mourning are grave issues and it is so easy to say that we could cope okay if it was our mum or wife or husband or kid or sister or brother or dad but death puts people into shock and mental illness is not always so clear cut as being diagnosed and medicated?
             Forget about it and get a job?
             Forget about it and go to school?
             Forget about it and go to jail?
             Forget about it and go to the pub?

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       mythbusterposted 13 years agoin reply to this

       I like what you've said here, goldenpath - that is, if I'm not taking it out of context...
       
       The part where you say that people deserve what feels like home to them or something like that...
       
       I know mostly all low-income individuals and almost zero percentage of these people live in places that feel like "home."
       
       Constant worries about rental increases and evictions (laws aren't great here under landlord-tenant agreements, etc, and no rental caps here) even though most of those I know are "clean" and volunteer in the community on a regular basis. Many are on income supports and not able to work due to injury, mental illness issues, etc but they are not lazy and are actually very productive - nobody will pay them for the work they do, so they volunteer ANYWAY and stay busy and productive, helpful to the community.
       
       The point is...what they have to live in generally does NOT feel like "home." Many are in places that "workers" of some sort put them in - they are expected to be totally grateful for a roof over their head but honestly some of my friends live in cheap dumps with aggressive slumlord landlords and there is a lot of segregation going on...gentrification in the city where I live...
       
       A lot of places with lower rental cost are, frankly, in unsafe areas...poor people require the assurance of a certain amount of bodily safety, too but a lot of people just don't "get it" about low-income and homeless issues.
       
       It's sort of like when people say "everyone deserves a home," what they mean, if their actions prove what they mean in the long run, is: "everyone deserves a home - except that low income people need to go over there."
       
       Not all people are like that - but too many, it seems. "let's help the homeless except if they try to come too close to us."

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    Lisa HWposted 13 years ago

    A lot of the above posts are great examples of how people often do not understand who may find himself homeless. 
    
    A person can be educated, hard-working, have built up plenty of "back-up plans" and stability, and generally do everything right - and find himself homeless by something as simple as getting a divorce or being laid off from work too long.
    
    There's no help for people who are not in need of "educating", and the idea that family and friends can/will help misses a lot of the "details" about how things can work with family- and friend- dynamics.
    
    I wish a few people would read just a few of the Hubs I've been writing on how courts and The System can destroy families and lives.  One reason I've begun writing this series is because so few people truly realize how it can happen (although I'm nowhere near finished pointing out some of the "microscopic" details).
    
    If there's one thing that makes programs/policies aimed at helping people but that contributes to there not being help for some of the most deserving, or else to driving away a lot of people who need help; it's the misguided belief that anyone who finds himself homeless "needs to be educated"!!  That one drives me crazy.   :.

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       ledefensetechposted 13 years agoin reply to this

       We're also talking about percentages.  Will a person who has saved, planned ahead and done everything your supposed to do wind up homeless.  Possibly, but the chances of that happening are slim....if they planned ahead.  Sometimes despite all your planning, you're just swamped by something, but I believe those tend to be the exceptions rather than the rule when it comes to homelessness.  In that case, those people deserve help.
       
       Also I'm not sure you take charity into consideration.  Americans are, as a rule, charitable people.  Even in the midst of our troubles we still find ways to help people in need in places like Haiti and Chile.  What makes you think we're any less charitable with our own?
       
       That's not to say that charity should be extended to everyone.  I have a good pastor friend who told me once that there are two kinds of people who approach him and other leaders of the various churches in our town.  The first is truly needy and has fallen on hard times.  Being Christian it is his duty to help that person.  The other type is the kind of person who goes from charity to charity and just takes.  Interestingly enough the religious leaders of our town, and those of other towns I'd imagine, keep lists of those people and share them amongst each other.  Which is only proper, they are after all, stewards of their parishioner's donations.
       
       You'll get no argument from me how the courts and state can destroy lives, I've seen it first hand.  Which is why it drives me batty to see so many people think that more laws, regulations, government is the answer.  Thanks for pointing out the hubs, I'll be sure to visit them.  I'm curious to see if your experiences dovetail with my own.

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          Lisa HWposted 13 years agoin reply to this

          Percentages, yes - but I suspect the percentages may not be what one would assume they are.
          
          The person who gets laid off can go for so long before he runs out savings (or has to spend it in court, for something a judge orders, for example).  Similarly, a judge can order things put on hold, or give x amount to another spouse, etc. 
          
          The person who gets divorced may have a spouse go around and close accounts when s/he gets the drift a divorce is in the offing.
          
          With just the two simple situations above, in the beginning the person may seem/be reasonably OK.  Depending on what losses he's been through, and how long it goes on (as well as whether he finds somewhere at all reasonable to stay), after x amount of time that person may start to become seriously depressed, may feel as if he needs to drink in order to "keep going" (because the only option might be feeling things so unbearable he'll want to kill himself, which he doesn't want to do).  The person's health get compromised with stress and lack of medical care.  In time, he can be so beaten down he can't deal with anything even as "big a deal" as going out to a restaurant for a meal with a friend.
          
          So, if things go a certain way and go on long enough (particularly, perhaps, if the person is someone who DOES care about his family, DOES care about being able to support them and live a normal life), it's all going to get to the person and can, eventually, result in that "shell of a person" who tried and tried, go so exhausted trying, and eventually either gave up or stopped having the energy to keep trying.

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16. 54

    The-Delfposted 13 years ago

    What about the kids???
    ...The kids cannot make money nor choices???
    Kids are homeless and they do sleep in the park!!!
    Kids, and i do mean under 16 years old, are, every single day and night...living on the street...asleep at the bus stop...and begging strangers for food and money...is it really THEIR fault??
    Maybe they have parents who drink?
    Maybe the mum and dad fight and so the kid ran away?
    How would you deal with the mental stress if you were a kid who was trying to sleep on a park bench and the sprinklers came on at midnight...sadly, the sprinkler is aimed at the park bench and hits you like a shot out of a fire hose...now you are soaking wet and in shock and under age...happy??
    Why would the sprinkler be aimed at the park bench that the homeless child is asleep on in a public place???
    Answer- Because we do not want nor need the homeless people hanging around the streets, so the "Good citizens" of the city or town make the choice to "Move them on" or "Keep them out of sight" and/or "clean up the streets and parks of these types?"
    How many groups and charities do we need to dish out food and shelter and clothes??? = most charities are in fact businesses now who charge the same amount for an old second hand t-shirt, as you can buy it brand new in the shops and most do not give directly when a person, be they adult or child, walks in off the street and asks for help...They make it hard!!??
    My heart would be broken and my respect for my fellow human being would be shot to bits if i was that kid...and what if that kid was a big brother with a little sister and he just told her that he was gunna look after her and keep her safe until they could find their mum again or the only remaining family member they have...who just happens to be another drinker or they live thousands of miles away and the kids have no money to make a phone call??
    Why would they trust adults to help them?
    Are you kidding???...the police will make them wards of the state and lock them in detention centers where they never see each other again...just like jail, or foster homes that could be worse than jail and most homeless kids have already been chased by people who wanted to do nasty things to them.
    Truth is that as you sleep sound in ya big fluffy bed...a kid is freaking out about being "dead!" and running and it is not a game of "Hide and go seek", it is a nightmare of "Where can we sleep?"...what if the family just don't care? and don't share?
    Some adults blame kids for the mistakes of the parents and say to them "No!, Sorry!, but your mum already stole money for her gambling habit and ya old man is in jail and we all think you are going to turn out just like them pair of lowdown users!!"
    And what can they do but to move along and try their luck again the next day..."maybe someone will care today, sis!", says a 12 year old boy to his ten year old sister as he puts on a brave face and a smile to cheer her up...but he knows he has got one hell of a "fat chance in hell" of that being the truth!!!
    ...I donate to a street kids food van in the park, i donate $20 bux per month to disaster relief and i have been trying to give a book, donate it direct into the hands of the kids so they can sell it to a passing person instead of doing crimes or "whatever" they need to do to get $10 dollars...but...and the but is a big-but...
    How hard is it to give when you really wanna give? And then they have to want to take the gift you try to give and most people do not even understand what i am trying to do, and so, all of these things equal the facts of a cold and bitterly hard life for the kids and five years later, i can almost afford to give them my gift..."My Magic Button" book.
    The idea is great, the story is original and fun for kids and adults alike and the price is only ten dollars for a member of the public to purchase...but???
    The charities have a monopoly on the homeless and the way they help them..."Rules" and "red-tape" and basically, they make it so hard to give and share and get the problem sorted...that most people give up and walk away with a broken heart also...because you cannot help or you will be looking like a criminal or they will wonder why you care or what is your "Hidden agenda?"

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17. 68

    ledefensetechposted 13 years ago

    Must be nice to have all the answers.  What about those kids who run away because they're spoiled brats?  I've seen plenty of them too.  If you, I don't know, bothered to read the posts you might have seen where I, at least, make a distinction between people who deserve help and those who do not.
    
    In fact I challenge you to find a place where I say that kids who run away because of sh**** home lives deserve to live on the streets.  You compassion and passion do you credit but unless you're really willing and able to really understand the problem, all the compassion and passion in the world is less than useless.

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18. 58

    big john coffeeposted 13 years ago

    As you surmise , there are varying degrees of homelessness , the worst of which are 1st degree , or living in the streets. All the other degrees are relatively unimportant , as the 1st degree homeless are the ones who are dying in our nations streets, the 1st degree homeless are the homeless upon which many are standing on the backs of to gain personal and political favor. It is "all that' to be involved with housing the homeless as long as you dont have to get your hands dirty doing it.. Thus our current dilemma , in an effort to gain the public eye and political favor and anything else  , up to and including atta boys(and girls), the real homeless situation is relatively unchanged. I guess I have a jaded opinion though as I am homeless as well, by choice. I am down in the trenches where the real homeless live , day by day. The cant get medicaid homeless, the bad teeth cant get a job homeless, the I smell so bad I dont give a shit anymore homeless. I am among the brotherhood of hopelessness , but there are those who really do help the homeless , those who like myself , do it anonymously.
    
    Just remember , anonymity is the key.
    john anonymous

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19. 48

    arjen20posted 13 years ago

    I am new in the Torrance city and need a good home. I searched lot in internet about this website http://equityinspection.com/, Is this website is really good in provinding good inspection?

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