Quote:
Originally Posted by Oldragbagger
On it’s face this sounds like a good and caring solution. But it’s not that simple when dealing with the homeless. I’m not taking about the person who suddenly finds themselves living in their car because of an economic downturn, or the person who has fled a bad home situation and finds themselves with nowhere to go. That’s a whole different subject and helping that person find temporary housing would be absolutely the right thing to help them turn their situation around. But the long term homeless are a whole different matter.
How do I know this? I have an alcoholic brother who has lived on the streets, by choice, for 15 years. I’ve had plenty of dealing over the years with him and his homeless friends. Everyone in the family has tried to help him, time and time again, but one by one we all had to give up at a point when it started to have toxic effects on our own lives and families .
My brother has been in and out of shelters so many times but never stays because they come with some expectations of acceptable behavior or even, god forbid, rules which he refuses to adhere to. Such as, most churches won’t tolerate you sitting on your bunk drinking yourself into oblivion, or being aggressive, or using constant foul language, or……fill in the blanks.
These folks usually have either substance abuse issues, mental problems, or both. Just finding them a place to sleep isn’t the answer, and honestly, as much as we’d like to believe differently, the vast majority of them have no desire to change their lifestyle. As hard as it is for those of us who live a normal life within society to understand, there is a freedom and a lack of expectations that comes with their life that they don’t want to relinquish in order to get “help.”
He has been in and out of rehab probably a dozen times over the years. Rarely makes it past a few days. And he has been banned from some shelters. He knows where to get a free meal if he needs it, and prefers to sleep in a tent wherever he can. He has been camping in someone’s back yard (with permission) for a couple of years now. If that should end he “knows” all the spots he can go where he is unlikely to be bothered by the law. What would be unfortunate would be for our local homeless population to start to realize that our neighborhoods are one of those places.
Are they all dangerous? I don’t know. I don’t personally believe my brother would intentionally hurt anyone. Although I do think that he might perceive a threat in a drunken state and respond in an unpredictable manner. Do I think he would steal from you if given an opportunity? You betcha. They even steal from each other. Their justification, survival.
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Wow! Your extensive first-hand experience mirrors my observations to a tee. I would like to add two things:
1. Wherever the homeless are "living," like someone's backyard or snowbird lanai, keep in mind they will not go far to go to the bathroom, preferably no more than 50 steps. Expect them to be ****ing and crapping in your sideyard. They also generate a phenomenal amount of garbage and trash - fast food wrappers, "salvaged finds" (stolen junk), etc. that they will never clean up. The flies, other insects, and vermin (mice and rats) will arrive shortly thereafter;
2. For those who believe the Sheriff will come and haul away trespassers or those that drink in public or steal shopping carts, etc. You are living in a dream land.
There is hardly enough jail space for people that commit violent crimes, much less crimes of life quality. They will get a ticket, if that, until they no show on enough of them that a warrant is issued. Then one day in court wipes all of them away, and the cycle repeats. You are kidding yourselves if you think the police will use ANY kind of force (even hands-on, guiding motions) to enforce these non-violent minor misdemeanors. Not from lack of willingness, but from lack of bureaucratic resolve. A simple push opens up a force investigation, and a supervisorial packet prepared - a lengthy and unpopular pastime. That packet often goes to the local District Attorney's office for review and possible criminal charges.
The end result will come all the way back to the Deputy or Officer with the question: Why was force utilized for such a minor crime? Unjustified. That will put them at risk of discipline at the lightest, all the way up to a civil lawsuit and being fired (putting income and family/housing/etc) at personal risk.