NationStates Jolt Archive

how would you solve the homelessness problem in your country?

Two words: Full Socialization

Tell them to buy a back pack and gear for surviving from complete self containment with the money they make from pan handling. :)

I would pay to educate them or train them to do some kind of job if they are not disabled. If they choose not to work, then the tax payers probably will choose not to pay for their lazy ass in any way. Just imho.

Low-cost housing units replacing shelters.

It would be a like a shelter, but, everyone gets a small room, with a bed, heater and a cooking unit (one of those hot trays).

It would allow these people to have an address, and a public phone system for every number of units run like a shelter, but with more of a real housing complex, including a public communal and shower.

If people have a home, they can improve their lives and because they have an address they can get a job, any job and build themselves back up from nothing.

However, if they want this, they'd have to get medical help and/or reeducation to allow them to find work. If they can't find work, they should volunteer until they can get a paying job.

It would require tax payer dollars, but we are already paying for shelters and other programs, so this would be just a reallocation of tax payer dollars.

I would abolish capitalism. Nuff said.

I'd take them off the streets and put them in public service projects to work. Road workers, toll booth workers, and they would have places to stay, we could pay them less than average pay and work out lovely.

-R. S. of UC

I would do it the logical way Open jobs for homeless people in the government disables who aren't fit for jobs actually need the pay so the system is fixed

Shoot them. Nobody would miss them, or they wouldn't be desperate enough to live on the streets anyway.

damn! beat me to it!

Use the money wasted on welfare and other useless programs to build bigger and better homeless shelters open 24/7 so they can better get a job.

And legalize marijuana. Get's rid of some crime and makes it cheaper so they don't spend all their money on it instead of food and shelter.

Shoot them. Nobody would miss them, or they wouldn't be desperate enough to live on the streets anyway.
As someone who has been homeless twice (you had to know there was at least one person on here whose been through it) I can be glad to know that your....


ah, I'm not going to do it. I'm just going to hope that the universe has a sense of justice and punks your priviliged ass out on the streets. Good luck.

End drug prohibition.

At the risk of sounding factists i would draft them then keep them on base housing or untill they could buy their own house with there own pay. Or if there to old to fight socialization works to

Um, well, like in my NS country, if that's what you meant, Xtreme social welfare and taxes on the rich on the border of socialism.

If money and resources were not an option.

I believe each and everyone of them would need counselling to bring back there self-estiem and love so they would not feel like the nothing that they most likely feel right now being homeless. Most people just ignore them or treat them like sub human so what would make them think they could find a job and "fit in" like the rest of us.

After they start to feel better about them selves and had a place to go they could call their own. Like Kryozerkia stated above, "Low-cost housing units replacing shelters". Also, like The Right Arm of U C mentioned above, "put them in public service projects to work". Maybe even a co-op placement with different companies like that fast food chains and such. Let them earn there living while paying into a savings account that is garnished off they paycheck. After a year it would be up to them to find there own sutable living aragement, with the help of there counsellor and the company he/she worked for would have the choice to hire this person on full time at the full rate of pay.

Something like that anyway....
Thanks

:mp5: Nuke Em :mp5:

:mp5: Nuke Em :mp5:
I should hope you're being sarcastic.

have you guys ever actually talked to homeless people?

We have one guy in my town, "crazy john," who used to be a composer or something, but one day just blew a fuse. Now he walks around playing his guitar and sleeping on people's lawns.

Anyway - he is nuts and no level of socialism/housing is going to help him get a job.

It's true that many homeless people are mentally deficient, but that doesn't mean we should keep them on the streets. It's called an asylum - or maybe it's not called that these days, but that's the point.

It's true that many homeless people are mentally deficient, but that doesn't mean we should keep them on the streets. It's called an asylum - or maybe it's not called that these days, but that's the point.

That all depends...and that was my other point, which I forgot to mention. Crazy John seems pretty damn happy whenever I see him. So I don't know how putting him away would help matters. He has a right to exist in public as long as he isn't hurting anyone.

There are several major causes of homelessness. I would say that the main ones are mental illness and drug abuse. Both these can be treated through public health initiatives. There are however some people who simply prefer the lifestyle so any attempts to 'solve' the problem must take into account the fact that some people dont want to be solved.

That all depends...and that was my other point, which I forgot to mention. Crazy John seems pretty damn happy whenever I see him. So I don't know how putting him away would help matters. He has a right to exist in public as long as he isn't hurting anyone.

Yep.
There will always be homeless people because there will always be people who doesn't want a home or who have such a huge drugproblems that nothing will help them. One can try to help them but not everyone can be saved (you have to try though).
I've been homeless for a sort period but luckily I managed to keep my job and found a warm(ish) place to stay over night.

People are homeless because there aren't enough homes. There aren't enough homes becuase it's difficult to build them with modern regulations about planning permission (zoning, for you Americans) and having to prove you've met all sorts of gubbmint regs, which account for well oveer 1/4 of the building costs. Further, it's impossible to build cheap houses due to the above which means the poor will go homeless.

Of course, the gubbmint has decided IT will build homes for the poor but, at least in America (I don't know about here in the UK) it has actually KNOCKED DOWN more houses than it has built! Of course this seems like we need MORE socialised houses when in fact this is exactly the problem, hence all the clamouring for govt to do something about it. As always, govt is the problem, not the solution.

for those that can be salvaged. the sane ones in other words, they would be put to work in a massive habitats for humanities project focusing on creating homes for the clean homeless. As well as mandatory military service for those who are physically and mentally safe. the crazies would be eliminated as a precausion.

Really depends on the homeless in question. I've known a guy who was homeless for a year by choice, didn't want any financial support from the government or any other institution. In his case I'd let him be. Imposing my own will on him by forcing him to accept financial aid or any other kind of aid for that matter, would by equivalent to joining the legions of petty tyrants that can rightfully be compared to Mao, Stalin and Hussein, all men who excelled when it came to forcing their will on others.

In case of the homeless desiring some help I'd be more then willing to provide the help that is needed to help the homeless back on his/her own two feet.:)

People are homeless because there aren't enough homes.

Yeah right. LOL

People are homeless because they don't have the $$ to pay the bills.

for those that can be salvaged. the sane ones in other words, they would be put to work in a massive habitats for humanities project focusing on creating homes for the clean homeless. As well as mandatory military service for those who are physically and mentally safe. the crazies would be eliminated as a precausion.

A mandatory military service? Why why why? To do what? If military is mandatory to someone it certainly should be mandatory to EVERYONE. Otherwise this sounds very very worrying.

A mandatory military service? Why why why? To do what? If military is mandatory to someone it certainly should be mandatory to EVERYONE. Otherwise this sounds very very worrying.

Many responses in this thread sound very, very worrying!! :(

It's true that many homeless people are mentally deficient, but that doesn't mean we should keep them on the streets. It's called an asylum - or maybe it's not called that these days, but that's the point.
Yup. Homelessness in Ontario took a jump when the government decided to treat more on an outpatient basis (undoubtedly to save money). That doesn't work for some people.

I suspect there always be people living on the streets, but there are things that can be done (at least in Ontario) to reduce the problem.

how would you solve the homelessness problem in your country?
Outlaw Hurricanes

There are several major causes of homelessness. I would say that the main ones are mental illness and drug abuse. Both these can be treated through public health initiatives. There are however some people who simply prefer the lifestyle so any attempts to 'solve' the problem must take into account the fact that some people dont want to be solved.
Institute immediate capital punishment for all drug offences, big or small. That would eliminate junkies from the formula.

Public Drunkenness should result in 60 days hard labor in a labor camp. Gives them a place to live, work, and once again removed them from the formula.

Mental health patients would be sequestered in treatment facilities funded by the government. Free housing and treatment for them.

The unemployed and underemployed would enjoy subsidized public housing - multiple families would share units in the absolutely free category.

Birth control, of their choice but including sterilization, would be free and mandatory for all in public housing.

Yeah right. LOL

People are homeless because they don't have the $$ to pay the bills.
But WHY don't they have the $$? Why are there not enough jobs, low wages and expensive housing? The gubbmint goons messing up the economy and bumping up house prices by knocking cheap ones down and putting up pointless regulations is why.