It is the hypocrites who claim the US is a Christian nation who support such inhuman laws. "Whatsoever You Do to the Least of My Brothers You Do unto Me." After "criminalizing" the indigent, how far behind can the final solution be?
I was homeless for several years. I felt worthless. No matter what I did, I couldn’t fix it all by myself, because of how people view you. I’m a home owner now. But I was extremely lucky. As a veteran I was able to get help. There are hardly any programs that help people who actually need it.
I thought about it in high school. The mortgage was crushing my mom and I was seriously thinking on how to setup base in a metro park. Ended up living at a neighbor's for a year until mom found something stable. That was at the height of reaganomics.
There still is one program I am aware of HUD VASH, It is for vet's like us that are homeless. As being a alcoholic homeless person yet they put me in a apartment. I payed based on my income at time tome being 0 dollars. For the first year my rent was $50 a month. After I cleaned up my act and get a job it went up to a third of my income. I would ask if you are a homeless vet please look into it.
NO vet should EVER be homeless. You served our country and this country should take care of you. Sadly, our country seems to have lost its humanity and sold its soul. I pray there are enough of us to help it get it back. Thank you for serving, and I am sorry you had to go thru hell when you returned. But it’s good to see you bounced back in spite of what was done. May life continue to be good for you.
Nobody understands the pure exhaustion. Every day your trying to survive for the next day. Always under threat of having your stuff taken, thrown in jail, or compromised. When people say take one step at a time to get a job, they don’t understand the real barriers in the way.
I was one step away from being homeless for almost 2 years. I have a chiari malformation and a connective tissue disorder. They didn't affect me much when I was younger but, once I was in my 50's they made their presence known. I had worked my entire adult life but, fought for 2 years for disability. 2 years isn't long compared to some people's wait. I had no money, I had to call and have them repo my car. I was constantly threatened with being kicked out of the home I shared with my roommate. I had done nothing wrong. I got sick, that was my crime. I was treated like I was a waste of human life by many. IT CAN HAPPEN TO YOU!! THE MAJORITY OF HOMELESS PEOPLE DON'T WANT TO LIVE LIKE THAT!
The first homeless person I saw was during the Reagan administration. That’s when I understood how inhumane and immoral our country was becoming as a result of the immorality of greed, bigotry, and a devaluing of human lives.
“Poverty exists not because we cannot feed the poor, but because we cannot satisfy the rich”. How very true. Unfortunately Greed is king in a lot of walks of life.
Don't worry Wall Street and the Mega rich and religious empires leaders are doing fine. Follow the money trail. Remember tRump cronies are still making 750. Dollars a person in the detainment centers! Just like the bank charging poorest for overdraft fees daily Mega rich overdrawn for weeks NOTHING! Follow the Money 💰💲
We've become a country of me...me...me and fuck everybody else. Whatever happened to helping somebody else when they needed it? Homelessness should NEVER be a crime.
As a person who used to be homeless, I’m so SICK of the war on poverty. People don’t end up homeless because they’re bums or druggies most of the time! They fall on hard times that become even harder because people often don’t have safety nets like family to fall back on. It’s not just about money. My experience is why I judge people a lot by how they treat the homeless. It really takes a lack of empathy and being a giant POS to look at someone without a family or anywhere to go and put them through more troubles by incriminating their existence.
I think it's a bit more complicated than that. People react the way they do to homelessness because accepting that homeless people aren't just druggies and screw ups who deserve to be out on the street means seriously reconsidering our entire system and, worse, accepting our complicity with that system. It's not just a lack of empathy, but a kind of emotional self defense.
@@SirPhysics I agree and would add that we see that tactic in a lot of places, such as immigration, racism, and mental health. When people don't want to see the problem, they'll figure out a way to blame the victim or criminalize the circumstances.
It actually cost less to invest in housing, health, and other social programs to address homeless/houseless individuals than it is to house them in county jail.
Years ago I learned about a program called Housing First. It finds homeless people places to live because key thing is a safe place to sleep, with a lock on the door so their stuff isn't stolen and a bathroom to stay clean, and an address and phone so they can connect to everything else they need, like social services, health services, and jobs.
@@lynxx7515 The research has already been done. Hard numbers are already available. The problem is that nobody makes a profit from doing the right things.
I just saw rents in the city that I live in jump on average $300 a month this past year...for the same unimproved apartments/ houses. Minimum wage is still $7.25 and the answer is to throw people in jail because they can’t afford a place to live!?! Ahh... America, the greatest country on earth... 😑😒🙄
I have no issue with programs helping the homeless, or the hungry, or the elderly, or the sick, or the poor in general. It's a selfish interest, because I am aware how easily I can fall from my comfortable life into their position.
Yeah 1bd1b here in San Diego California is $2,700 a month. If you have a FAMILY 😔 $15.00 hour job will not help much. Add utilities and food to that rent.
@@Rhekke an when that happens the hole is so deep most can never climb out of it. Once you have no mailing address, no phone, no identification, no vehicle, no family, climbing out of the hole can be impossible.
We ought to put all those congress people who are against raising the minimum wage in a shitty apartment on the wrong side of town, with a $7.25 an hr job and then take that job away and see how they like it.
I remember hearing recently that there was a social worker in LA that couldn't afford rent so they lived out of their car while trying to place homeless people. The quote that stuck with me is, "maybe one day one of my co workers will assigned to me."
@@peterthegreat996 After emancipation proclamation some of the plantations were still engaging in the practice.😔😕 How can we move foward? Really progress..How?
Thank you for being sane people. I cannot fathom the ignorance of people in this country. Better policies for healthcare and homelessness for example would be cheaper than what we're currently doing. Yet the corporations have everyone saying "But how would we pay for it?" Same way we pay for cruise missiles and aircraft carriers. I'm exhausted with this country and the masses of people who have no inclination to educate themselves about even the most basic things. We have the resources to make this country great. The only thing standing in the way of real progress are corporate monied interests whose propaganda has been devastatingly effective.
That criminal record is also going to make it harder for homeless people to get a job; ya know, that thing the GQP keeps yelling at homeless people to do.
Hubert Humphrey said it quite well: “The moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and the handicapped.” We should measure progress not by the ceiling of human accomplishment, but by the basement of human equity.
I think it's more of an indirect profit issue. Real estate is booming, tourism is coming back and booming. Having tent cities in the most 'attractive' areas looks bad and is seen as bad for business.
@@magpietexas9475 Yet designated areas of tiny homes would look nice and give the town some heart. Always money, isn't it. The people in the tiny homes schemes tend to look after their areas and each other. Shame that habit can't spread to their neighbors.
Karens, privileged white men and real estate developers incessantly harangue mayors, police and city councils to clean up their expensive neighborhoods because they want to believe the world is perfect for everyone now that they've secured a tiny slice of the good life.
I'm an outreach nurse that supports underserved homeless communities in California and Nevada. I see the extreme contrast in the public's perception of homelessness throughout both states, you were right, we need to change the mind of the people before laws will follow.
From my experience homeless communities are so diverse and intricate, with multiple distinct skill sets and social groups . There are some photographers and writers who will immerse themselves in a community and publish some works, but they are a sparse breed. For many, one bad or scary experience with someone, and people seem to revert to thinking everyone who is homeless is like this. Public perception is everything, it’s ingrained in our culture. I think a lot of people know anyone can become homeless, that’s why they are fearful, and angry, and push them out of sight.
I live in Austin, i was also homeless in Austin years ago. There are people that want to be that way, I've met them. I've also met an elderly vet in a wheelchair, mothers with children, etc... It may not be nice to look at but pushing them back into the woods will increase crime including sexual assaults. I know.
I don't know if it's a major cause, but I did read an article recently that spoke of the dismal situations in some shelters, where there is rampant drug-dealing, intimidation, and threat to the legit homeless who try to find respite there. Others have mentioned that some run by religious groups are unwelcoming to those who will not accept their evangelical message. There is so much work to do to find out what these people need and ways to help them get out of situations they can't handle alone. Reagan throwing the mentally ill out on the streets was a huge kick in the backside for society, too.
So if the homeless are removed where are they going to go? How much is it going to cost to have them jailed? Don’t complain about tax dollars again because whewwww that’s going to send taxes through the roof. Plus having officers take them to jail will negate them from their real job 🤷🏽♀️ it’s a lose lose situation honestly.
More than 50 yrs of crazy news out of Texas in my adult lifetime. I think that hot sun dehydrates brains. I've been in many states and Texas gives me the most belly laughs, and tears. The Texas government is disgusting. They damned near destroyed the entire state over petty crap about disconnecting from the national power grid. Why?
I'm so tired is this! I'm so tired! This society chews us up, spits us out and makes our existence a painful crime time and time again!!! And people are so heartless!! WHERE AM I SUPPOSED TO GO???!!!!!!!!
Go west, away from gentrification. Get a satellite map of the U.S. at night, and go where the dark areas are. The greatest threat to "the American Dream" is other Americans.
😢 sorry this is happening have been lobbying for years. The area Iive in rubber stamps the R candidates who won't even vote to help their own constituents.
Being from a small town, we have homeless people but not as noticeable as bigger cities. I've been homeless myself for awhile about 15, 20 years ago. Thankfully I got off the streets, got a job, worked every hour i could just to end sick and now on disability. Our town has been working on a shelter for homeless folks for quite awhile. While some choose to live like that, it's very disturbing to know that towns and cities would rather lock you up instead of helping you get back on your feet. My prayers for all people living without a roof over their head. Thanks Beau for all you do✌
That whole "choose to be homeless" line pisses me off so much. Because no one who says that can ever point to real examples of people choosing to be homeless. They've never actually seen or met someone who's chosen to be homeless, they just use that line to rationalize not caring the tiniest amount about an entire population of the most vulnerable human beings in our society. It's an evil line, pure and simple. Only evil people say that.
Exactly. It's usually a choice between homelessness or even worse, like physical and sexual abuse, or starving in the dark because rent takes all the money.
There was an elderly homeless lady in front of me in line at the store. She was saying how much she wanted cabin in woods. I wouldn't even need electricity if I had wood and a fireplace. I could use candles. She forgot to pay for part her stuff and was having the cashier ring it up The guy at the back the explodes and starts cursing at her. All I could think of was how cold it was outside, and wishing I could give her that cabin.
I married an engineer who would tell you every reason why a project couldn't be done. Nice easy-going guy, but life goes on and 30 years of the "it can't be done" attitude turned my family home into a dump. Beware the "it can't be done" folk.
That is a very powerful parable about the moral bankruptcy of the academic and scientific establishment when it comes to the climate crisis. They know all the numbers behind the problem but they don't want to admit that something could be done (or have been done) about it -- this attitude has killed so many already. Nihilism is not okay anymore. Thank you for telling it.
"In its majestic equality, the law forbids rich and poor alike to sleep under bridges, beg in the streets and steal loaves of bread". - Anatole France, 1844-1924
Sounds just like Republican doublespeak! I remember them actually arguing that they supported gay marriage. They said that marriage was open to all without descrimination. As long as you married somone of the opposite sex, they didn’t oppose gays getting married. Acording to the “argument”everyone has an equal right to marry somone of the opposite sex. I don’t know how they live with their hypocrisy, but they do it quite well.
@@BrianGay57 of course a gay male couple and a lesbian couple marry each other’s partners and then they just live with their own partner lmfao.🤣. Sorry that was probably in poor taste but I couldn’t resist.
How many rich get evicted from apartments because they can no longer afford the rising rents for the same unimproved property while still getting paid minimum wage that Republicans in Texas REFUSE to support an increase. This is the solution to criminalize the homeless instead of offering programs for job training and supporting a raise in wages? THE DISGUSTING REPUBLICAN WAY. You won't see any RICH begging for food to feed their kids.......instead they turn their noses up at anyone with less than they have.
@@suzanne9150 They are also the ones raising the rent and the price of food while not paying the farmers a penny more for their product or their workers enough to afford the rent. The rich own the banks credit cards and the pay day loan robber lending.
The people supporting measures like this just want homeless people to disappear. They don't care if they pay to lock them up, as long as they aren't seen.
This is what gentrification does to communities. Then all the liberal hipster trust fund kids are upset they have to see starving families lined up outside a shelter while they blow their parents money on booze and drugs on 6th street.
Politicians are in the business of justifying not fixing. You need city planners, engineers, emergency management, money and lots of volunteers to fix these problems. Feel free to add to the list.
I live in Canada. Volunteered in homeless shelter before. Homelessness is a very complex social issue. Financial status is just one single aspect of the problem. There are at least few dozens more reasons why people are homeless. Criminalizing homelessness will not solve the issue. It will only make it much worse.
@@sunshine3914 - affordable housing is an issue here in Canada too. A two bedroom rental in my building in Toronto is creeping up on $2700 now ($2200 USD), and there's still a waiting list, despite all the evictions. A 120-year-old rundown semi-detached dumpsterfire of a house is like $600-700k (when it should really just be condemned). A decent small town home is $700-800k. The $80k house I grew up in is like $1.2 million right now. We already have a $15 minimum wage, and nobody at that level can afford anything I mentioned (that's $2600/mo on average before taxes and food) unless they go in with like eight other people. Hell, even a house in Manitoba is like $500k. That's crazy! I love winter, but even I wouldn't want to live in Winterpeg :P
I drive some of the areas in Austin where homeless camps are. And there are wooded areas near some of these. There are also extensive areas of natural areas. If people are kicked off the areas along the roadways, they move into the woods. Just one of the problems with this is that emergency services can't get to them. Making people hide is NOT the answer.
"Just one of the problems with this is that emergency services can't get to them." Of course! And in the eyes of the petty burghers who back this kind of malignancy *that's its advantage*. If the poor can literally be driven into the woods, there to die out of sight with no public expenditure, how is that *not* precisely what right-wingers and businessmen dream of? They can never be truly honest about their goals, but dead poors dotting the outback is no problem for them at all. It's a kind of final solution, you might say. Meanwhile, look at those property values in Austin soar!
@@samuelglover7685 They skyrocketed a decade ago. Police & bar hoppers would step in front of anyone in streets & tell you, flat out, “Ignore them!”. Yeah, ignore the hungry while you’re stepping in for a $6 beer? It wasn’t the same zany, affordable place I had lived five years prior. Sadly, it will never be the same.
I’d rather be in the woods, at least it’s easier to protect yourself . Out here in Boston there are plenty of wooded nooks and cranny’s. Problem is they send in cops or groups to shake them out of the area. They lose their tent, any possessions, clothing, you name it. It’s exhausting, and a daily battle. But living in the woods is a different skill set than in the city, and the formed social groups are different.
I can't cope with this how does make sense to make our existence illegal we have nowhere to go.... The cruelty just never ceases to amaze me after all these years
The only outcome they care about is not having to see homelessness. Most of them couldn't care less what happens to the actual people so long as they stay invisible.
@@ChrisPage68 Unfortunately that goes against everything they believe. The only way they can tolerate homelessness is by convincing themselves that homeless people deserve to be that way, whether because of laziness or bad decisions or "sin" (drugs, alcohol, etc.). They demonize homeless people because humanizing them would force them to confront how fucked up the current system is, and their entire worldview is dependent on the idea that the system is fair.
The cruelty is the point. The more horrible the conditions at the very bottom the more those above will tolerate and work to please their masters. The reason we treat illegal immigrants so bad is largely to keep those imported by the wealthy as cheap labor compliant, this is why we don't heavily penalize those who knowingly employ them to skirt labor conditions.
“Generally speaking, pretty much always it is cheaper to be a good person.” -that needs to be a mantra in America, at least for the people that are so concerned about how expensive poor people are for them.
Two stories. One in the news yesterday. A city in Switzerland offered it's homeless the equivalent of $20USD and a Rail Pass to any other place in the EU, if they would leave and sign an agreement not to come back. In the late 1990s, the city of Dallas enacted anti panhandling laws. Police were supposed to arrest or cite offenders. After two years. The city had spent 21 million dollars on court filings and court related processes to deal with the paperwork, warrants etc. The city had collected $431.00 in fines. This has been a problem in Austin for decades. Austin is a runaway destination.
The rich get RICH & the cops get paid To milk the way As the 1% rules America SPREADING THE DISEASE Off the iconic OPERATION: MINDCRIME Queensryche It resonates as much today as it's inception, 1988.
Spend lots more money to not solve the problem. It's a social and engineering problem. But we're letting economists make those decisions. God I can't wait for a point when choice are done for moral reasons, not currency ones.
I saw a piece recently on our local news station about a group trying to build “tiny houses” for the homeless in our area. I was so excited to see this and hope to become a part of it. Why can’t people have more empathy for those that have so little? I imagine being homeless and it scares me to death.
@@sunshine3914 $15:00/hr was mentioned in 2015. It's 2021 And Politicians are talking maybe in 2031. $28:00 an hour is what's paid to a burger flilper in Mcdonald's Oslo. 🇮🇪🇪🇺
The tiny houses would get destroyed and vandalized to the point of becoming uninhabitable within weeks, if not days. It's very noble to want to help and make a difference, but in the end it's not appreciated by the very people you're trying to help.
@@renecurry6551 They made trial runs on something similar in my community and they failed. They had no chance of success. What, does it shock you to think that some mentally ill, drug addicted, drifter is going to trash the place? Time for a reality check.
"Imagine how they feel about living it..." Porta-potties, dumpsters, plastic refillable jugs all serviced weekly. Pod cabins or hotels. Shower trucks. The same temporary infrastructure that supports events & festivals can be put in service to houses people. My small city believes in "ignore them & they'll go away" & keeping them uncomfortable & invisible. With a sweep or 2 thrown in.
The homeless camps in Austin have trash service, porta poties, and hand washing stations. Most of them can't be bothered to use the trash cans provided for them compliments of the tax payers.
@@josephkordinak1591 Yep. Lots of the same here in western Oregon. But not all. At worst, the dumpsters will be there for the next sweep. Maybe less poo.to clean up. At best, less resentment & maybe a few folks do try.
I'm not sure why people would rather force the homeless to hide themselves from the public, instead of just making more shelters for them. I've even seen videos about how they make benches as uncomfortable as possible, to keep people from sleeping on them. They even wanted to fine a guy for making tiny homes for homeless, so even the good people are punished for helping.
I'm sure you'll find plenty of conservatives spouting nonsense about how homeless shelters somehow encourage homelessness, similar to the way they oppose needle exchanges and other public health measures which have been proven to help addicts. They're not interested in solving the problem; they just don't want to have to see it
@Joseph Norm Poor people are just another group they've decided is "The Other". Like immigrants, or minority races. Not "one of us", so may as well dehumanize them.
@@BrianGay57 One day they will stand in judgement before Christ and try to explain their lack of regard. Not for me to judge, but I suspect that it won't go well for them.
This issue again highlights that, despite what we'd like to believe about this nation, what we value above all else is money. That people are forced, most often though no fault of their own, to live on the streets should be a source of shame to us all.
Pushing homeless out of a city does nothing but put the pressure of the population on another city. When Rudy gentrified midtown, the homeless population here in Newark and Hackensack sky rocketed. I was working at a shelter at the time and getting these folks shelter and medical resources was NUTS. This is gonna happen there.
The situation, will be a whole lot worse, when the pandemic is over, and the courts can order evictions again. preventing evictions during the pandemic, while it is a good thing, it only delays the day when landlords will be applying to the courts
@@ChrisPage68 I mean, that's pretty much the conservative MO. Imagine opposing a living wage because other people being able to afford food and rent would devalue other sectors of labor. Conservatives love to ask the question "why should minimum wage workers make as much as a teacher?" without ever considering that maybe both minimum wage workers AND teachers are underpaid.
Some cities are starting to realize this. Oddly they aren’t cities run by Republicans. They have a totally different agenda. Continued cheap labor for the capitalist system without having to let those brown people come in and work for slave wages. Slave owners had to feed, cloth, and house their slaves. Minimum wage workers don’t make enough money to supply these same things for themselves. We would all do well to think about that more.
Same. Do I like the camping everywhere? As a woman, do I feel safe around the large camps? No, but I’m hopeful enough to believe there are plans in progress to help and that fining and jailing isn’t a solution. Sadly, Austin has taken entirely too long to get an alternative plan underway (honestly, Adler is an ineffective mayor). And once camps started popping up in “precious” northwest Austin, Arboretum, etc....you know they voted in favor of the proposition.
@@TheAggromouse They Don't believe in Social Housing but will Build Prisons to become Social Housing . And be taken care of at the pleasure of the State ( yep Logical)🇮🇪🇪🇺
@@derekmulready1523 if course it is that way. The homeless don't contribute to campaign funds, but you sure as hell know every aspect of the prison industrial complex throws money at any and every politician that will take it.
Did you expect anything different? Adler caused this. He tied the cops hands and opened the flood gates and turned Austin into a bums paradise without any plans to handle the situation. Freaking Abbot did more by dedicating state land for a homeless camp.
As a Texan, thanks for bringing up some of our state's problems, this is definitely a wrong way to address homelessness. Also, loved hearing your dog(s) at the end :)
@@dougn2350 you know I don’t live in TX and unfortunately I spent way too many years in the butthole of the USA in west TX, it stinks there and many are wealthy from the oil business, but Texans in general are some of the most friendly people I’ve ever met and they will look you straight in the eye and tell you what they think weather you think they are right or wrong they tend to pretty honest about what they think. Now I would not move back there for a million dollars a year job but I do occasionally visit the state because I still have family there thankfully farther northeast of where I lived. So no, Texas is a hell of a lot better than living in the upper Midwest where people won’t even look you in the eye and are scared of their own shadow.
Beau I was born and raised in Austin and I feel this vote was so many steps in the wrong direction again among many more thoughts about what's happening to my beautiful city and who's doing it. You have a better grasp of what's going on here and what it means to the country than anyone I've heard speaking on these concerns. I don't what made so such a good man with so much humanity in your heart but bless you brother. Beau of the Fifth Column 2024! :)
To all the so-called Christians supporting this, just remember: “Whatsoever you do to the least of my brothers, that you do unto me”. We can do better.
, they just opened Pandora's box. And a whole big serious box of expense. This is Southern hospitality, Southern Christianity. We love you as long as you look and act like the way we think is acceptable. Don't really care what Jesus said, he don't live here anymore.
Christianity is dead in the US. There are millions of evil religious zombies pretending to be Jesus followers, but they wouldn’t even let him across the border if he returned today!
I remember the homeless situation in the 80s. Reagan administration looked at these people choose to be that way.. Cut funding to housing. Nothing seems to change
I lived in Downtown Atlanta for YEARS. MOST of the “homeless” people I met, were struggling with Mental Health Issues. The other Small group I Noticed were People who had Problems with Addiction. In the WEALTHIEST COUNTRY on EARTH, WHY are we Not helping the People, who need it MOST. ESPECIALLY, IF We consider Ourselves to be a CHRISTIAN NATION?!
The ones who "choose" to be homeless usually have a mental issue. Their paranoia won't let them. They don't want help and they don't shelter. Maybe they could have access to mental health and medicine. Maybe then they would "come inside"
I wish I was surprised....I live in Austin and I knew this was going to happen. They did nothing to help people that are homeless they just allowed them to camp where they chose to and they left areas full of trash. I knew some people were not gonna tolerate that for long and I knew nothing was going to be done about it. So here we are sweeping the "mess" under the rug. It's a sad day in my city.
I find it amusing when the culture that claims to "worship Jesus" does the opposite. But seriously, it's about control or at least the illusion of it. These are the same folks that have faith, but need to feel in control by carrying a gun.
@@donaldspaulding6973 Thank you. That's exactly the way you bring that out and Him in, especially if you happen to be a 'Non-believer' that at least has SOME knowledge about the Word. Great comment!
@@donaldspaulding6973 The shacking up of the Republicans with Evangelical Christianity has perferted Evangelical Christianity as well as the fracturing the Republican party, hopefully destroying it. Evangelicals and Republicans have fucked each other and they have both lost their way as a result. Hopefully it will be the effective end of both of these scourges on our country.
I’ve been homeless. My partner decided she wanted a new life and locked me out of my home. I was fortunate in that as a shopfitter I spent a lot of my time in hotels anyway but there were times when I had no work and had to sleep in my van. Believe me it only takes a few days before you smell a few days after that you stink. I’ve had sympathy for the homeless ever since. Certainly for a few it is a choice but not for the majority. When you hit the bottom it’s hard to claw your way back up.
Well 2/3 of the votes went in favor of in an overwhelmingly blue city with a completely blue city counsel. It was this that might light a fire under local government to do something or for like the last two years give them free reign of the city.
thank you sir . Again you have shined a light on just how mean we can be to each other ,when being nice is easier and cheaper , time to change the people in charge !
"Americans can always be trusted to do the right thing, once all other possibilities have been exhausted.” --Attributed to Winston Churchill. I would add "several times." at the end of the statement, though.
At around the same time of the vote the Austin Police Association posted and removed a meme saying "Can you imagine the reduction in officer involved shootings if people would just comply and complain later?" I'm more afraid that we're going to start seeing murders than fines.
Hey, Beau! I heard that in California's skid row, 50 blocks of homeless, they (?) are going to hotel/house, all these thousands, in 6 months... what have you heard? Jeannie in Lakeport California
So when the failures of unregulated capitalism make themselves shown, you simply hide them under the rug. Or laugh when homeless people die during cold snaps in otherwise warm cities. Neal Boortz, the radio show host in Atlanta, used to do that quite a lot, probably he still does.
it's actually regulated capitalism - i.e. monopolism - that rears its ugly head here. This is because regulation is what creates beneficiaries and losers. Adam Smith on the matter, 250 years ago: _"The interest of the dealers [referring to stock owners, manufacturers, and merchants.. anyone really], however, in any particular branch of trade or manufacture, is always in some respects different from, and even opposite to, that of the public. To widen the market and to narrow the competition, is always the interest of the dealers. To widen the market may frequently be agreeable enough to the interest of the public; but to narrow the competition must always be against it, and can serve only to enable the dealers, by raising their profits above what they naturally would be, to levy, for their own benefit, an absurd tax upon the rest of their fellow-citizens."_ & _"The proposal of any new law or regulation of commerce which comes from this order, ought always to be listened to with great precaution, and ought never to be adopted till after having been long and carefully examined, not only with the most scrupulous, but with the most suspicious attention. It comes from an order of men, whose interest is never exactly the same with that of the public, who have generally an interest to deceive and even to oppress the public, and who accordingly have, upon many occasions, both deceived and oppressed it."_ PS: I don't say anything about social help being provided by capitalism.. that's a social thing. If we got enough economic equality the social side will come by itself, because people share if they have plenty (except for the greedy that are winning right now).
@@BrianGay57 I'm sorry.GQP I had to look that up. A fictious quassi conspiracy theorist Political Party taking over the REPUBLICAN POLITICAL PARTY. Can American politics get more insane.🇮🇪🇪🇺
@@derekmulready1523 I could tell you “ain’t” from around here as we say in Texas. 😜 Most Europeans seem to know much more about our “political system” than the average American does, but often they don’t “understand” some of the odd “nuances” of how it works in reality.
@@derekmulready1523 And yes, it can get more insane. The Republican party has gotten progressively more insane for my whole lifetime. I though Nixon was an abberation. Then came Reagan! I thought surely they can’t get worse. Every time I think they can’t get worse they “own me” by doing exactly that.
Far from it, loitering and vagrancy laws were deemed constitutional, as long as they have a narrow scope and avoid vague language. This bill would fit those standards. The Supreme Court is also an appellate court, they can rule on the constitutionality of laws but would ignore this case because of precedent. Also, there is a 6/3 conservative edge in the Supreme Court, what makes you think they would be in favor of hearing the case, much less ruling against precedent?
"some choose to be homeless, some isn't all" - I had this conversation with a friend online, did some back of the envelope calculations based on published estimates of transient vs permanent homelessness, backgrounds/reasons for homelessness, and demographics. "Some choosing" ended up being about 5k nationwide. Liberally.
@@themetricsystem7967 most people who make these arguments havent thought it through that far. it's usually easy to identify such rationalizations due to how facile they are - for example, see Beau's recent video about Rosa Parks vs. Mask Mandates.
@@CaptTerrific i saw it. lack of knowledge, understanding and empathy. but the american society is overall a society permeated by a immediate profit-over-all attitude
They ignore that those who "choose" to be homeless are doing so because of severe mental illness or because the only available homeless shelters are unsafe.
**I AM THAT PROBLEM** I lost my job at 61 1/2 yrs old- after working at a company for 11 yrs. They were kicking out older workers to cut costs on company medical plans. They literally counted backwards from the day I would turn 62 and could qualify for early Soc Sec benefits- (after unemployment and 6 week severence would end) I can only assume to appease their conscience that at 62 I probably wouldn't get hired at any REAL job with benefits, but at least I would have SS. ( and you LITERALLY lose half your benefits by taking them that early) They even made their parents sign up for Medicare- (which they considered welfare.) Luckily?...I had been researching traveling fulltime in an rv for a few years. My home of 22 yrs was 3 yrs from payoff, and highway/ shopping development near my house was encroaching and surveyors repeatedly measured the main road- indicating the houses next to me may be taken by eminent domain. So I took the leap and sold it all and got a newer/used classB+ motorhome and hit the road. Its been 2+ years and I now will qualify for Medicare this fall. (Haven't taken Soc Sec benefits yet) I am soooo fortunate to be healthy and able to live on my small pension from a divorce 25 years ago. Covid unfortunately has caused a huge glut of rv-ers booking campsites 12 mths out- shortages of rv techs and trustworthy rv dealers/service centers have made maintenance difficult and pricy. I do boondock a lot but more and more regulations don't allow overnight stays at store lots or restaurants. Local municipalities are all passing their own ordinances also. Conglomerates are buying up local campgrounds and state/national parks are booked. So I guess I won't be headed to TX anytime soon since I can't afford camping there...or many other places. I love when people say rv-ers trash camp areas to. I scope out an off road area and see huge couches, double door residential refrigerators and endless big old box tvs littering off road areas. Things that were never part of rvs. I am always armed with my Dollar Tree trash picker stick and garbage bags. My last stop I pulled 2 tvs, a huge trash bag filled with God knows what in it... and then filled 6 bags full of trash. I flagged down a local guy in a pickup and asked if he could take it to a dumpster for me. He said he would get it on his way back. Who knows if he did. All I know is.. those of us fortunate enough to truly live the lifestyle are caretakers of the land. True homeless people are not the problem either. They are a symptom. Corporate profits RULE THIS WORLD and will destroy it. They've made people disposable and dont see the true cost in the end.
You’ve hit the nail on the head. Conglomerates are busy buying up every mobile home park, every campground & every RV park... & even our toll roads. Always thought Texas should give free access to dump sites, if they gave one damn about appearances. BTW- John Oliver did an excellent show on the mobile home lords, a few years ago.
@@sunshine3914 I'll have to check it out. The movie Nomadland shows just how many people live on the road. Its been going on for 30+ years and it has increased tremendously the last 5 yrs. People like me who have a college education, no credit card debt, make $20/hr and still cant keep up a home like my 990 sq ft little house due to taxes and upkeep costs. I am currently living off $915/mth. I banked my house sale profits and use savings ONLY for rv maintenance... and I've never been more relaxed. Its far from easy and you have to love nature and a challenge! I am also EXTREMELY fortunate to have no health issues. Dont take a pill for anything...but have hadboth covid shots!! Last thing I want to be is a typhoid Mary!!
What your long-time employer did was despicable! It's good you had been making plans for alternative living and had the resources to do so. It must be daunting, trying to find a place to park your RV overnight, let alone find a longer-term location. I hope things improve for you.
Maybe other counties should send bus loads of homeless people there and let Austin pay for their lodging and food (means prison). I guess that would quickly put an end to such shameless effort
Unfortunately, transporting homeless people to Austin from other cities has been going on for years. The city has tried multiple ways of addressing homelessness, from ignoring the problem to buying older hotels to house them. However, Governor Abbott doesn’t like seeing them and has chosen to try to strong-arm the Austin leaders into taking drastic measures. I don’t know what the solution is, but it has become a huge issue in Austin over the last 10-15 years.
@@glendamaikell4224 from what I hear in Germany about homeless people is a big issue all over the USA. I will not argue with you whether homeless people are brought in from other counties , I don’t think that there are people cruel enough to do that even in the USA, but I will tell you that locking people up will not solve the problem. First of all you end up paying more for keeping them in prison. Then your taxes will get increased because certainly it will not be paid for by taxing businesses. And at the end, these people will be released some day and will be - homeless. And after that experience they may decide that they have nothing to loose and turn to get what they need to survive any way, including violence. Unless you help them which would be more effective doing so before you put them in prison. Unless, of course, you put a death penalty to being homeless. But that is also a pretty expensive and long road for taxpayers…
I live in Texas and am saddened by this. My question is... "What the hell do they expect these people to do now? Where are they to go? How are they to live? Not providing solutions is a total cop-out.
When i finally got help for my issues, folks said that 'continuing to do the same thing, expecting different outcomes' was insane, yet certain groups of pubic servants, sure seem to be unaware of that simple construct.
With all of the techies moving from California, you're going to have a lot more homeless people. We are having the same problem where I live. With all the gentrification you have more and more homeless people, let's not talk about the families living in hotels. They're not even being talked about.
Hotels, in their cars & in RV parks in their cars. Two years ago I traveled with a friend who has been on the road for over a decade. If was eye opening to see so many families using their cars as homes.
I don't know whether to laugh at the ridiculousness or cry at the callousness. I have a long list of questions for the people who thought of/voted for this.
Driving in my community yesterday, I noticed at least half a dozen of campsites set up in the empty areas. I live in the high desert in So Cal. So we have a high homeless and transient people. It’s eye-opening just like all the police shooting and violence against the elderly and mentally impacted! I am no longer blind but I feel helpless. My favorite quote and a message to America: You may choose to look the other way but you can never say again that you did not know. William Wilberforce
Thank you for talking about this topic. I live in Austin and have been saying these exact same things for months now. This doesn't solve the problem and just end up costing more in the long run. But people didn't care because they didn't want to have see these people anymore.
The same law was defined as unconstitutional in Colorado. Homelessness was something that a person may not be in control of like color, sex or religion. The supreme court in Colorado determined that homelessness itself CAN NOT be illegal. So with that in mind any lawyer worth an once of salt could get the law over turned.
Here in Dallas, the city and a non-profit (can't think of the name), just finished building a new shelter for people in need. It look''s like a 4 story hotel almost. It has a playground and a swimming pool out back. They also put in a new bus stop so I suppose people have access to employment. I drive by every day on the way home from work. I was pleasantly surprised to see what it was when it was finished. Anyways, a little good news for the bad.
Thank you for that. Tired of seeing the homeless, but when shelters are considered going up near your community, you don’t like that either. It always seems like a damned if you don’t, damned if you do situation. Plenty of empty shopping centers as we build new ones. Why can’t they be equipped with dorm rooms, and a a small medical clinic? They’re all on bus routes, easy access for going to jobs. A lot of these empty centers are used for Charter schools, why not classes offering GED, reading or language, job training? Cut out part of parking lot and make green zones, or vegetables. We have so much wasted space. Most of these centers have been dead for years, while we build new ones.
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Criminalising homelessness is about as abhorrent an act a civilised country can do.
Shame on us all
Vagrancy is one of the few crimes actually in the constitution. The more you know...
@@bitcoinconstitutionalist9252 Written *by* rich white men *for* rich white men.
@@bitcoinconstitutionalist9252 There are only three crimes specifically listed in the US Constitution. 1)Treason 2) Piracy and 3) Counterfeiting.
@@bitcoinconstitutionalist9252
Where in the constitution, please?
It is the hypocrites who claim the US is a Christian nation who support such inhuman laws.
"Whatsoever You Do to the Least of My Brothers You Do unto Me."
After "criminalizing" the indigent, how far behind can the final solution be?
I was homeless for several years. I felt worthless. No matter what I did, I couldn’t fix it all by myself, because of how people view you.
I’m a home owner now. But I was extremely lucky. As a veteran I was able to get help. There are hardly any programs that help people who actually need it.
I thought about it in high school. The mortgage was crushing my mom and I was seriously thinking on how to setup base in a metro park. Ended up living at a neighbor's for a year until mom found something stable. That was at the height of reaganomics.
There still is one program I am aware of HUD VASH, It is for vet's like us that are homeless. As being a alcoholic homeless person yet they put me in a apartment. I payed based on my income at time tome being 0 dollars. For the first year my rent was $50 a month. After I cleaned up my act and get a job it went up to a third of my income. I would ask if you are a homeless vet please look into it.
@@stevenwoodward5923 Thanks! had no idea that existed, will be looking into it.
NO vet should EVER be homeless. You served our country and this country should take care of you. Sadly, our country seems to have lost its humanity and sold its soul. I pray there are enough of us to help it get it back. Thank you for serving, and I am sorry you had to go thru hell when you returned. But it’s good to see you bounced back in spite of what was done. May life continue to be good for you.
Nobody understands the pure exhaustion. Every day your trying to survive for the next day. Always under threat of having your stuff taken, thrown in jail, or compromised. When people say take one step at a time to get a job, they don’t understand the real barriers in the way.
I thought this country was slowly getting past criminalizing the poor. As a Texan, this sickens me.
NAZI America sending out their GESTAPO to round people up! YOU ARE NEXT!!!
@blessedgirl m Austin is far from Republican. Good try though.
@@jason_montgomery It’s far from blue.
Not surprised it is in Texas. Very surprised it is Austin.
I’m a Texan, too. I get more and more sickened by this state everyday.
I was one step away from being homeless for almost 2 years. I have a chiari malformation and a connective tissue disorder. They didn't affect me much when I was younger but, once I was in my 50's they made their presence known. I had worked my entire adult life but, fought for 2 years for disability. 2 years isn't long compared to some people's wait. I had no money, I had to call and have them repo my car. I was constantly threatened with being kicked out of the home I shared with my roommate. I had done nothing wrong. I got sick, that was my crime. I was treated like I was a waste of human life by many. IT CAN HAPPEN TO YOU!! THE MAJORITY OF HOMELESS PEOPLE DON'T WANT TO LIVE LIKE THAT!
The first homeless person I saw was during the Reagan administration. That’s when I understood how inhumane and immoral our country was becoming as a result of the immorality of greed, bigotry, and a devaluing of human lives.
He was a real bastard for defunding mental health facilities nation wide.
I remember when Reagan was governor of California and closed all the state mental hospitals. That's when I saw my first homeless people.
“Poverty exists not because we cannot feed the poor, but because we cannot satisfy the rich”. How very true. Unfortunately Greed is king in a lot of walks of life.
@@redfogwhitefrost2583 Wish there were a way I could give you at least 2 thumbs-up on your comment.
Don't worry Wall Street and the Mega rich and religious empires leaders are doing fine.
Follow the money trail.
Remember tRump cronies are still making 750. Dollars a person in the detainment centers!
Just like the bank charging poorest for overdraft fees daily
Mega rich overdrawn for weeks NOTHING!
Follow the Money 💰💲
We've gone from being the country of "This is America we can do anything we set our minds to" to "This is too hard, can't be done, it costs too much."
Yada, yada, clean up the streets and open homeless camps with resources to help these people and children.
We've become a country of me...me...me and fuck everybody else. Whatever happened to helping somebody else when they needed it? Homelessness should NEVER be a crime.
@@suzanne9150 Exactly! It's the mindset of "I've got mine, so I don't give a rat's a** about you." Selfish. Just utterly selfish.
As a person who used to be homeless, I’m so SICK of the war on poverty. People don’t end up homeless because they’re bums or druggies most of the time! They fall on hard times that become even harder because people often don’t have safety nets like family to fall back on. It’s not just about money. My experience is why I judge people a lot by how they treat the homeless. It really takes a lack of empathy and being a giant POS to look at someone without a family or anywhere to go and put them through more troubles by incriminating their existence.
Or worse, are completely delusional to believe that poverty is the result of not "loving Jesus enough".
How many of us are just 3 months of joblessness away from being in that situation?
“Poverty exists not because we cannot feed the poor, but because we cannot satisfy the rich”.
I think it's a bit more complicated than that. People react the way they do to homelessness because accepting that homeless people aren't just druggies and screw ups who deserve to be out on the street means seriously reconsidering our entire system and, worse, accepting our complicity with that system. It's not just a lack of empathy, but a kind of emotional self defense.
@@SirPhysics I agree and would add that we see that tactic in a lot of places, such as immigration, racism, and mental health. When people don't want to see the problem, they'll figure out a way to blame the victim or criminalize the circumstances.
It actually cost less to invest in housing, health, and other social programs to address homeless/houseless individuals than it is to house them in county jail.
Years ago I learned about a program called Housing First. It finds homeless people places to live because key thing is a safe place to sleep, with a lock on the door so their stuff isn't stolen and a bathroom to stay clean, and an address and phone so they can connect to everything else they need, like social services, health services, and jobs.
Ah, but someone in the private prison system will make a tidy profit.
Sounds good, but need hard numbers to convince those other people.
@@lynxx7515 The research has already been done. Hard numbers are already available. The problem is that nobody makes a profit from doing the right things.
@@juresichj Thanks for the rational reply, Jennifer. Can you please recommend a site where we can see those numbers?
I just saw rents in the city that I live in jump on average $300 a month this past year...for the same unimproved apartments/ houses. Minimum wage is still $7.25 and the answer is to throw people in jail because they can’t afford a place to live!?! Ahh... America, the greatest country on earth... 😑😒🙄
I have no issue with programs helping the homeless, or the hungry, or the elderly, or the sick, or the poor in general. It's a selfish interest, because I am aware how easily I can fall from my comfortable life into their position.
NAZI America sending out their GESTAPO to round people up! YOU ARE NEXT!!!
Yeah 1bd1b here in San Diego California is $2,700 a month. If you have a FAMILY 😔 $15.00 hour job will not help much. Add utilities and food to that rent.
@@Rhekke an when that happens the hole is so deep most can never climb out of it. Once you have no mailing address, no phone, no identification, no vehicle, no family, climbing out of the hole can be impossible.
We ought to put all those congress people who are against raising the minimum wage in a shitty apartment on the wrong side of town, with a $7.25 an hr job and then take that job away and see how they like it.
I remember hearing recently that there was a social worker in LA that couldn't afford rent so they lived out of their car while trying to place homeless people. The quote that stuck with me is, "maybe one day one of my co workers will assigned to me."
WE are number ONE, at jailing OUR folks ‼️🙄
Texas was a creation of slavery , so not a surprise.
"World Champions" Judah Friedlander
You are. And Folks of colour I doubt there is an alien anywhere that comes close.
How long before they have the cops shooting them for "resisting arrest" because it's cheaper than feeding them in jail?
@@peterthegreat996 After emancipation proclamation some of the plantations were still engaging in the practice.😔😕 How can we move foward? Really progress..How?
In jail they'll be beaten up and traumatized and may leave a lot worse than they went in. They'll leave full of rage.
I was so pissed to see the result. I stood in the rain to try to prevent this.
You and me both!
me too!
Thank you for being sane people. I cannot fathom the ignorance of people in this country. Better policies for healthcare and homelessness for example would be cheaper than what we're currently doing. Yet the corporations have everyone saying "But how would we pay for it?" Same way we pay for cruise missiles and aircraft carriers. I'm exhausted with this country and the masses of people who have no inclination to educate themselves about even the most basic things. We have the resources to make this country great. The only thing standing in the way of real progress are corporate monied interests whose propaganda has been devastatingly effective.
Thank you for trying to protest this incredibly stupid law.
@@tylerheinrichs2806 well said.
"Tired of seeing it-imagine how tired they are of living it." Well said!
That criminal record is also going to make it harder for homeless people to get a job; ya know, that thing the GQP keeps yelling at homeless people to do.
Yes 😕CRAZY!
Absolutely
Cruelty is not a byproduct of conservative policy, it is pretty much the entire point.
It's not the GOP that's legislating this, and yes, getting a job is usually a positive thing.
@@PhilLesh69 x100. But they will always find some 'I'm morally superior' way to justify that cruelty to themselves.
Hubert Humphrey said it quite well:
“The moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and the handicapped.”
We should measure progress not by the ceiling of human accomplishment, but by the basement of human equity.
WOW!! He said it all right there. As did you!
Follow the money ... somebody is going to make a solid profit from jailing the homeless, a bigger profit than other solutions would allow...
Private prisons?
I think it's more of an indirect profit issue. Real estate is booming, tourism is coming back and booming. Having tent cities in the most 'attractive' areas looks bad and is seen as bad for business.
@@magpietexas9475 Yet designated areas of tiny homes would look nice and give the town some heart. Always money, isn't it. The people in the tiny homes schemes tend to look after their areas and each other. Shame that habit can't spread to their neighbors.
Karens, privileged white men and real estate developers incessantly harangue mayors, police and city councils to clean up their expensive neighborhoods because they want to believe the world is perfect for everyone now that they've secured a tiny slice of the good life.
@@PhilLesh69 so true. Once they get theirs its to hell with everybody else. Doesn't work in a country of 330M.
I'm an outreach nurse that supports underserved homeless communities in California and Nevada. I see the extreme contrast in the public's perception of homelessness throughout both states, you were right, we need to change the mind of the people before laws will follow.
From my experience homeless communities are so diverse and intricate, with multiple distinct skill sets and social groups . There are some photographers and writers who will immerse themselves in a community and publish some works, but they are a sparse breed. For many, one bad or scary experience with someone, and people seem to revert to thinking everyone who is homeless is like this. Public perception is everything, it’s ingrained in our culture.
I think a lot of people know anyone can become homeless, that’s why they are fearful, and angry, and push them out of sight.
I live in Austin, i was also homeless in Austin years ago. There are people that want to be that way, I've met them. I've also met an elderly vet in a wheelchair, mothers with children, etc... It may not be nice to look at but pushing them back into the woods will increase crime including sexual assaults. I know.
Criminalizing homelessness will never work. Only making things worse. Much worse.
Nothing good happens when you force thousands to camp in the woods
Christina M, so glad you have a home these days. Blessings, and thanks for commenting. 🙏👋
I don't know if it's a major cause, but I did read an article recently that spoke of the dismal situations in some shelters, where there is rampant drug-dealing, intimidation, and threat to the legit homeless who try to find respite there. Others have mentioned that some run by religious groups are unwelcoming to those who will not accept their evangelical message. There is so much work to do to find out what these people need and ways to help them get out of situations they can't handle alone. Reagan throwing the mentally ill out on the streets was a huge kick in the backside for society, too.
@@chezmoi42 amazing that many of these problems were caused & most were accelerated by Ronnie Raygun the rethuglican saint.
A better solution: compassion, empathy and "Little houses for the homeless." We are our brother's keeper. Homelessness can happen to any of us.
A living wage would help more be housed.
UBI gets rid of this problem. No need to make legal homeless camps. We have a lot of empty houses/apartments in America.
So if the homeless are removed where are they going to go? How much is it going to cost to have them jailed? Don’t complain about tax dollars again because whewwww that’s going to send taxes through the roof. Plus having officers take them to jail will negate them from their real job 🤷🏽♀️ it’s a lose lose situation honestly.
Oh, I'm sure there are some lovely for profit prisons that are going to benefit from this.
More than 50 yrs of crazy news out of Texas in my adult lifetime. I think that hot sun dehydrates brains. I've been in many states and Texas gives me the most belly laughs, and tears. The Texas government is disgusting. They damned near destroyed the entire state over petty crap about disconnecting from the national power grid. Why?
@@warriorscholar41 Run by (companies partly owned by) Republican Senators...
Oh it's a win for private police companies and private jails. 😠
Plus all the "He tried to run after we woke him up, so we had to shoot him 46 times to keep him from getting away."
"It can't be done" very often boils down to "I don't want to let you do it, but don't want to say it in so many words"
I'm so tired is this! I'm so tired! This society chews us up, spits us out and makes our existence a painful crime time and time again!!! And people are so heartless!! WHERE AM I SUPPOSED TO GO???!!!!!!!!
Away. They don't care where, just away.
Go west, away from gentrification. Get a satellite map of the U.S. at night, and go where the dark areas are. The greatest threat to "the American Dream" is other Americans.
😢 sorry this is happening have been lobbying for years. The area Iive in rubber stamps the R candidates who won't even vote to help their own constituents.
I live in Austin and voted against the prop for just these reasons. Thank you for calling it out more nationally.
Have you considered abandoning the sickness that is texas?
Thank you.
Being from a small town, we have homeless people but not as noticeable as bigger cities. I've been homeless myself for awhile about 15, 20 years ago. Thankfully I got off the streets, got a job, worked every hour i could just to end sick and now on disability. Our town has been working on a shelter for homeless folks for quite awhile. While some choose to live like that, it's very disturbing to know that towns and cities would rather lock you up instead of helping you get back on your feet. My prayers for all people living without a roof over their head. Thanks Beau for all you do✌
That whole "choose to be homeless" line pisses me off so much. Because no one who says that can ever point to real examples of people choosing to be homeless. They've never actually seen or met someone who's chosen to be homeless, they just use that line to rationalize not caring the tiniest amount about an entire population of the most vulnerable human beings in our society. It's an evil line, pure and simple. Only evil people say that.
Exactly. It's usually a choice between homelessness or even worse, like physical and sexual abuse, or starving in the dark because rent takes all the money.
You are correct.
There was an elderly homeless lady in front of me in line at the store. She was saying how much she wanted cabin in woods. I wouldn't even need electricity if I had wood and a fireplace. I could use candles.
She forgot to pay for part her stuff and was having the cashier ring it up
The guy at the back the explodes and starts cursing at her. All I could think of was how cold it was outside, and wishing I could give her that cabin.
I married an engineer who would tell you every reason why a project couldn't be done. Nice easy-going guy, but life goes on and 30 years of the "it can't be done" attitude turned my family home into a dump. Beware the "it can't be done" folk.
That is a very powerful parable about the moral bankruptcy of the academic and scientific establishment when it comes to the climate crisis. They know all the numbers behind the problem but they don't want to admit that something could be done (or have been done) about it -- this attitude has killed so many already. Nihilism is not okay anymore. Thank you for telling it.
@@Winspur1982 true
I live in Austin & your thought process is EXACTLY what mine is about this issue. It’s so sad & ridiculous & is absolutely not an effective solution.
Giving the homeless free reign to do what they like where they like is also not a solution.
"In its majestic equality, the law forbids rich and poor alike to sleep under bridges, beg in the streets and steal loaves of bread". - Anatole France, 1844-1924
Sounds just like Republican doublespeak! I remember them actually arguing that they supported gay marriage. They said that marriage was open to all without descrimination. As long as you married somone of the opposite sex, they didn’t oppose gays getting married.
Acording to the “argument”everyone has an equal right to marry somone of the opposite sex. I don’t know how they live with their hypocrisy, but they do it quite well.
@@BrianGay57 of course a gay male couple and a lesbian couple marry each other’s partners and then they just live with their own partner lmfao.🤣. Sorry that was probably in poor taste but I couldn’t resist.
Soon after many rooms in castles opened up to move into. We have the pitchforks and heads will roll.
How many rich get evicted from apartments because they can no longer afford the rising rents for the same unimproved property while still getting paid minimum wage that Republicans in Texas REFUSE to support an increase. This is the solution to criminalize the homeless instead of offering programs for job training and supporting a raise in wages? THE DISGUSTING REPUBLICAN WAY. You won't see any RICH begging for food to feed their kids.......instead they turn their noses up at anyone with less than they have.
@@suzanne9150 They are also the ones raising the rent and the price of food while not paying the farmers a penny more for their product or their workers enough to afford the rent. The rich own the banks credit cards and the pay day loan robber lending.
So... we’re blaming the victims and that is supposed to fix what exactly!?! 😑😒🙄
The people supporting measures like this just want homeless people to disappear. They don't care if they pay to lock them up, as long as they aren't seen.
This is what gentrification does to communities. Then all the liberal hipster trust fund kids are upset they have to see starving families lined up outside a shelter while they blow their parents money on booze and drugs on 6th street.
Joe, exactly. It fixes the problem of rich white folk having to see people who don't fit into their pretty white world. 🙄
Politicians are in the business of justifying not fixing. You need city planners, engineers, emergency management, money and lots of volunteers to fix these problems. Feel free to add to the list.
blaming victims is the American way. maybe it's fixing the patriarchy's crave for our blood and bones.
I live in Canada. Volunteered in homeless shelter before.
Homelessness is a very complex social issue. Financial status is just one single aspect of the problem. There are at least few dozens more reasons why people are homeless. Criminalizing homelessness will not solve the issue. It will only make it much worse.
A living wage & affordable housing would go a long way in the USA.
@@sunshine3914 - affordable housing is an issue here in Canada too. A two bedroom rental in my building in Toronto is creeping up on $2700 now ($2200 USD), and there's still a waiting list, despite all the evictions. A 120-year-old rundown semi-detached dumpsterfire of a house is like $600-700k (when it should really just be condemned). A decent small town home is $700-800k. The $80k house I grew up in is like $1.2 million right now.
We already have a $15 minimum wage, and nobody at that level can afford anything I mentioned (that's $2600/mo on average before taxes and food) unless they go in with like eight other people.
Hell, even a house in Manitoba is like $500k. That's crazy! I love winter, but even I wouldn't want to live in Winterpeg :P
welcome to the true "Christian" core of the bible belt.
hypothetically , if their Jesus, was to return, they would brand him as a left wing radical, and would not listen to him
Siding with the rich man over Lazarus won't end well for them.
“I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”
- Mahatma Ghandi
Too many HypoChristians follow the prosperity gospel. They replaced Jesus with Ayn Rand.
@@jenniferr9624 We have the 1# purveyor of the prosperty heresy right here in H Town! It’s sure made Joel VERY prosperous.
I drive some of the areas in Austin where homeless camps are. And there are wooded areas near some of these. There are also extensive areas of natural areas. If people are kicked off the areas along the roadways, they move into the woods. Just one of the problems with this is that emergency services can't get to them. Making people hide is NOT the answer.
"Just one of the problems with this is that emergency services can't get to them." Of course! And in the eyes of the petty burghers who back this kind of malignancy *that's its advantage*. If the poor can literally be driven into the woods, there to die out of sight with no public expenditure, how is that *not* precisely what right-wingers and businessmen dream of? They can never be truly honest about their goals, but dead poors dotting the outback is no problem for them at all. It's a kind of final solution, you might say. Meanwhile, look at those property values in Austin soar!
@@samuelglover7685 They skyrocketed a decade ago. Police & bar hoppers would step in front of anyone in streets & tell you, flat out, “Ignore them!”. Yeah, ignore the hungry while you’re stepping in for a $6 beer?
It wasn’t the same zany, affordable place I had lived five years prior. Sadly, it will never be the same.
I’d rather be in the woods, at least it’s easier to protect yourself . Out here in Boston there are plenty of wooded nooks and cranny’s. Problem is they send in cops or groups to shake them out of the area. They lose their tent, any possessions, clothing, you name it. It’s exhausting, and a daily battle. But living in the woods is a different skill set than in the city, and the formed social groups are different.
I can't cope with this how does make sense to make our existence illegal we have nowhere to go.... The cruelty just never ceases to amaze me after all these years
The only outcome they care about is not having to see homelessness. Most of them couldn't care less what happens to the actual people so long as they stay invisible.
this reminds me of what Giuliani did in New York City.
@@SirPhysics If they don't want to see homeless people, they should help them get housed.
@@ChrisPage68 Unfortunately that goes against everything they believe. The only way they can tolerate homelessness is by convincing themselves that homeless people deserve to be that way, whether because of laziness or bad decisions or "sin" (drugs, alcohol, etc.). They demonize homeless people because humanizing them would force them to confront how fucked up the current system is, and their entire worldview is dependent on the idea that the system is fair.
The cruelty is the point. The more horrible the conditions at the very bottom the more those above will tolerate and work to please their masters. The reason we treat illegal immigrants so bad is largely to keep those imported by the wealthy as cheap labor compliant, this is why we don't heavily penalize those who knowingly employ them to skirt labor conditions.
“Generally speaking, pretty much always it is cheaper to be a good person.” -that needs to be a mantra in America, at least for the people that are so concerned about how expensive poor people are for them.
Two stories.
One in the news yesterday.
A city in Switzerland offered it's homeless the equivalent of $20USD and a Rail Pass to any other place in the EU, if they would leave and sign an agreement not to come back.
In the late 1990s, the city of Dallas enacted anti panhandling laws.
Police were supposed to arrest or cite offenders.
After two years. The city had spent 21 million dollars on court filings and court related processes to deal with the paperwork, warrants etc.
The city had collected $431.00 in fines.
This has been a problem in Austin for decades.
Austin is a runaway destination.
The rich get RICH
& the cops get paid
To milk the way
As the 1% rules America
SPREADING THE DISEASE
Off the iconic
OPERATION: MINDCRIME
Queensryche
It resonates as much today as it's inception, 1988.
OMFG !!!
"It is CHEAPER to be a good person..." 🙂👍
Spend lots more money to not solve the problem. It's a social and engineering problem. But we're letting economists make those decisions. God I can't wait for a point when choice are done for moral reasons, not currency ones.
I saw a piece recently on our local news station about a group trying to build “tiny houses” for the homeless in our area. I was so excited to see this and hope to become a part of it. Why can’t people have more empathy for those that have so little? I imagine being homeless and it scares me to death.
Why can’t we have a living wage? Those who work shouldn’t be living in the streets.
@@sunshine3914
$15:00/hr was mentioned in 2015.
It's 2021
And Politicians are talking maybe in 2031.
$28:00 an hour is what's paid to a burger flilper in Mcdonald's Oslo. 🇮🇪🇪🇺
The tiny houses would get destroyed and vandalized to the point of becoming uninhabitable within weeks, if not days.
It's very noble to want to help and make a difference, but in the end it's not appreciated by the very people you're trying to help.
@@BobSmith-uw8fl 👄What have you researched about the tiny house communities? About their success? You have made an asinine assumption!!
@@renecurry6551 They made trial runs on something similar in my community and they failed. They had no chance of success.
What, does it shock you to think that some mentally ill, drug addicted, drifter is going to trash the place? Time for a reality check.
‘It is cheaper to be a nice person’.
And way more fun.
Love it
"Imagine how they feel about living it..." Porta-potties, dumpsters, plastic refillable jugs all serviced weekly. Pod cabins or hotels. Shower trucks. The same temporary infrastructure that supports events & festivals can be put in service to houses people. My small city believes in "ignore them & they'll go away" & keeping them uncomfortable & invisible. With a sweep or 2 thrown in.
The homeless camps in Austin have trash service, porta poties, and hand washing stations. Most of them can't be bothered to use the trash cans provided for them compliments of the tax payers.
@@josephkordinak1591 Yep. Lots of the same here in western Oregon. But not all. At worst, the dumpsters will be there for the next sweep. Maybe less poo.to clean up. At best, less resentment & maybe a few folks do try.
I'm not sure why people would rather force the homeless to hide themselves from the public, instead of just making more shelters for them. I've even seen videos about how they make benches as uncomfortable as possible, to keep people from sleeping on them. They even wanted to fine a guy for making tiny homes for homeless, so even the good people are punished for helping.
I'm sure you'll find plenty of conservatives spouting nonsense about how homeless shelters somehow encourage homelessness, similar to the way they oppose needle exchanges and other public health measures which have been proven to help addicts. They're not interested in solving the problem; they just don't want to have to see it
@Joseph Norm Poor people are just another group they've decided is "The Other". Like immigrants, or minority races. Not "one of us", so may as well dehumanize them.
Most Republicans claim to be Christians when they are nothing like the christ I read about in the bible.
Nothing like Christ.
@@BrianGay57 They sure like the old testament sometimes, though, probably while also hating Jews, and not seeing the irony of that.
@@BrianGay57 One day they will stand in judgement before Christ and try to explain their lack of regard. Not for me to judge, but I suspect that it won't go well for them.
This issue again highlights that, despite what we'd like to believe about this nation, what we value above all else is money. That people are forced, most often though no fault of their own, to live on the streets should be a source of shame to us all.
Pushing homeless out of a city does nothing but put the pressure of the population on another city. When Rudy gentrified midtown, the homeless population here in Newark and Hackensack sky rocketed. I was working at a shelter at the time and getting these folks shelter and medical resources was NUTS. This is gonna happen there.
The situation, will be a whole lot worse, when the pandemic is over, and the courts can order evictions again. preventing evictions during the pandemic, while it is a good thing, it only delays the day when landlords will be applying to the courts
Nothing wrong with that. Rudy's responsibility was NYC, not Newark or Hackensack.
@@BobSmith-uw8fl He should have given them all bus tickets to your town. Nothing wrong with that.
@@sunshine3914 That's right. My town wasn't his responsibility. His responsibility was to the people of NYC.
@@BobSmith-uw8fl
As previously displaced person, thank you Beau
The amount of money spent on jail could put them all in tiny houses within X time. Especially those printed houses.
And we would never hear the end of conservatives whining about how unfair it is that some people get "free" houses
@@SirPhysics Imagine living in a big house and being resentful of people forced to live in tiny houses...
@@ChrisPage68 I mean, that's pretty much the conservative MO. Imagine opposing a living wage because other people being able to afford food and rent would devalue other sectors of labor. Conservatives love to ask the question "why should minimum wage workers make as much as a teacher?" without ever considering that maybe both minimum wage workers AND teachers are underpaid.
@@SirPhysics Conservatives will find any excuse to justify their lack of empathy.
Some cities are starting to realize this. Oddly they aren’t cities run by Republicans. They have a totally different agenda.
Continued cheap labor for the capitalist system without having to let those brown people come in and work for slave wages.
Slave owners had to feed, cloth, and house their slaves. Minimum wage workers don’t make enough money to supply these same things for themselves.
We would all do well to think about that more.
As soon as you said Austin I knew Prop B had passed. I saw the vid and literally yelled 'God dammit'
Adler made this one pass.
We live here and are devastated that our community voted this way.
Same. Do I like the camping everywhere? As a woman, do I feel safe around the large camps? No, but I’m hopeful enough to believe there are plans in progress to help and that fining and jailing isn’t a solution. Sadly, Austin has taken entirely too long to get an alternative plan underway (honestly, Adler is an ineffective mayor). And once camps started popping up in “precious” northwest Austin, Arboretum, etc....you know they voted in favor of the proposition.
@@TheAggromouse
They Don't believe in Social Housing but will Build Prisons to become Social Housing . And be taken care of at the pleasure of the State ( yep Logical)🇮🇪🇪🇺
@@derekmulready1523 if course it is that way. The homeless don't contribute to campaign funds, but you sure as hell know every aspect of the prison industrial complex throws money at any and every politician that will take it.
Did you expect anything different? Adler caused this. He tied the cops hands and opened the flood gates and turned Austin into a bums paradise without any plans to handle the situation. Freaking Abbot did more by dedicating state land for a homeless camp.
The City Council in Las Vegas did that too. It is ridiculous that our country is so cruel to the poorest among us.
When we lose those christian values?
As a Texan, thanks for bringing up some of our state's problems, this is definitely a wrong way to address homelessness. Also, loved hearing your dog(s) at the end :)
Texas sickens the rest of the world
@@dougn2350 you know I don’t live in TX and unfortunately I spent way too many years in the butthole of the USA in west TX, it stinks there and many are wealthy from the oil business, but Texans in general are some of the most friendly people I’ve ever met and they will look you straight in the eye and tell you what they think weather you think they are right or wrong they tend to pretty honest about what they think. Now I would not move back there for a million dollars a year job but I do occasionally visit the state because I still have family there thankfully farther northeast of where I lived. So no, Texas is a hell of a lot better than living in the upper Midwest where people won’t even look you in the eye and are scared of their own shadow.
Beau I was born and raised in Austin and I feel this vote was so many steps in the wrong direction again among many more thoughts about what's happening to my beautiful city and who's doing it. You have a better grasp of what's going on here and what it means to the country than anyone I've heard speaking on these concerns. I don't what made so such a good man with so much humanity in your heart but bless you brother.
Beau of the Fifth Column 2024! :)
How long has it been since you lived in Austin?
@@josephkordinak1591 I still do
Looking backward for ideas that didn’t work the last time we tried them.
To all the so-called Christians supporting this, just remember: “Whatsoever you do to the least of my brothers, that you do unto me”. We can do better.
“Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.”
, they just opened Pandora's box. And a whole big serious box of expense. This is Southern hospitality, Southern Christianity. We love you as long as you look and act like the way we think is acceptable. Don't really care what Jesus said, he don't live here anymore.
Nailed it Penny Wells! Been thinking this for years.
Thank you for saying that. True Christians don't act like this. The Bible says you'll know them by their fruit. So much rotten fruit!
Christianity is dead in the US. There are millions of evil religious zombies pretending to be Jesus followers, but they wouldn’t even let him across the border if he returned today!
@@BrianGay57 It's not totally dead, but the true Christians aren't the visible ones. True Christians aren't looking for attention.
Eloquently said.
I remember the homeless situation in the 80s. Reagan administration looked at these people choose to be that way.. Cut funding to housing. Nothing seems to change
but it is apparently harder to be a decent ,good, person. And once they have a criminal record it will be harder.
Depending on the state they may also lose their voting rights if they have a criminal prosecution.
And once someone has a record, mistreating them becomes less risky. It's easier to use the stick and the hose on bad guys.
I lived in Downtown Atlanta for YEARS.
MOST of the “homeless” people I met, were struggling with Mental Health Issues.
The other Small group I Noticed were People who had Problems with Addiction.
In the WEALTHIEST COUNTRY on EARTH,
WHY are we Not helping the People, who need it MOST.
ESPECIALLY, IF We consider Ourselves to be a CHRISTIAN NATION?!
What?! Criminalizing homelessness? That’s nuts! What’s wrong with some people?!!!
Evil..
Well, it just wouldn’t seem right, throwing a $100,000 party with people sleeping on the sidewalks.
How many are you going to take in?
The ones who "choose" to be homeless usually have a mental issue. Their paranoia won't let them. They don't want help and they don't shelter. Maybe they could have access to mental health and medicine. Maybe then they would "come inside"
I wish I was surprised....I live in Austin and I knew this was going to happen. They did nothing to help people that are homeless they just allowed them to camp where they chose to and they left areas full of trash. I knew some people were not gonna tolerate that for long and I knew nothing was going to be done about it. So here we are sweeping the "mess" under the rug. It's a sad day in my city.
I find it amusing when the culture that claims to "worship Jesus" does the opposite. But seriously, it's about control or at least the illusion of it. These are the same folks that have faith, but need to feel in control by carrying a gun.
@@donaldspaulding6973 Thank you. That's exactly the way you bring that out and Him in, especially if you happen to be a 'Non-believer' that at least has SOME knowledge about the Word. Great comment!
@@donaldspaulding6973 The shacking up of the Republicans with Evangelical Christianity has perferted Evangelical Christianity as well as the fracturing the Republican party, hopefully destroying it.
Evangelicals and Republicans have fucked each other and they have both lost their way as a result. Hopefully it will be the effective end of both of these scourges on our country.
You could leave texas. There other, better places to live.
@@dougn2350 If that works in Texas, you just stay tuned it will be coming to a State near you!
I’ve been homeless. My partner decided she wanted a new life and locked me out of my home.
I was fortunate in that as a shopfitter I spent a lot of my time in hotels anyway but there were times when I had no work and had to sleep in my van. Believe me it only takes a few days before you smell a few days after that you stink.
I’ve had sympathy for the homeless ever since. Certainly for a few it is a choice but not for the majority. When you hit the bottom it’s hard to claw your way back up.
You can also choose to be homeless because the alternative is worse. Which doesn't have to mean *at all* that you in any way like being homeless.
@@brlsn233 Exactly. I have seen and experienced what is considered "help" in a WEIRD* country.
*Western Educated Industrialised Rich Democratic
I am honestly shocked that this went through. I know a whole lot of people in Austin who I know voted no on this.
Well 2/3 of the votes went in favor of in an overwhelmingly blue city with a completely blue city counsel. It was this that might light a fire under local government to do something or for like the last two years give them free reign of the city.
Especially in a pandemic when many in a republican government got no help! Such a freaking catch 22.
thank you sir . Again you have shined a light on just how mean we can be to each other ,when being nice is easier and cheaper , time to change the people in charge !
"Americans can always be trusted to do the right thing, once all other possibilities have been exhausted.” --Attributed to Winston Churchill. I would add "several times." at the end of the statement, though.
Apparently "all other possibilities " include returning to previously tried and failed possibilities. History folks.🍺
Well, he was half American - and had some abhorrent attitudes himself.
Perfect! 😊
At around the same time of the vote the Austin Police Association posted and removed a meme saying "Can you imagine the reduction in officer involved shootings if people would just comply and complain later?" I'm more afraid that we're going to start seeing murders than fines.
Hopefully the for profit prison industry will discourage the murder of their cash cows.
@@BrianGay57 😢😓😥
“This is a big issue...”
And that’s why government exists!
Hey, Beau! I heard that in California's skid row, 50 blocks of homeless, they (?) are going to hotel/house, all these thousands, in 6 months... what have you heard? Jeannie in Lakeport California
So when the failures of unregulated capitalism make themselves shown, you simply hide them under the rug. Or laugh when homeless people die during cold snaps in otherwise warm cities. Neal Boortz, the radio show host in Atlanta, used to do that quite a lot, probably he still does.
it's actually regulated capitalism - i.e. monopolism - that rears its ugly head here.
This is because regulation is what creates beneficiaries and losers.
Adam Smith on the matter, 250 years ago:
_"The interest of the dealers [referring to stock owners, manufacturers, and merchants.. anyone really], however, in any particular branch of trade or manufacture, is always in some respects different from, and even opposite to, that of the public. To widen the market and to narrow the competition, is always the interest of the dealers. To widen the market may frequently be agreeable enough to the interest of the public; but to narrow the competition must always be against it, and can serve only to enable the dealers, by raising their profits above what they naturally would be, to levy, for their own benefit, an absurd tax upon the rest of their fellow-citizens."_
&
_"The proposal of any new law or regulation of commerce which comes from this order, ought always to be listened to with great precaution, and ought never to be adopted till after having been long and carefully examined, not only with the most scrupulous, but with the most suspicious attention. It comes from an order of men, whose interest is never exactly the same with that of the public, who have generally an interest to deceive and even to oppress the public, and who accordingly have, upon many occasions, both deceived and oppressed it."_
PS: I don't say anything about social help being provided by capitalism.. that's a social thing. If we got enough economic equality the social side will come by itself, because people share if they have plenty (except for the greedy that are winning right now).
I will always be amazed by how you speak and what points you make Beau. I wish more people had your mindset when discussing these issues.
Logical thinking is not one of the Criteria for being a Politician in the US.🇮🇪🇪🇺
It’s a detriment to to the GQP. Their base hates logical though.
@@BrianGay57
I'm sorry.GQP I had to look that up.
A fictious quassi conspiracy theorist Political Party taking over the REPUBLICAN POLITICAL PARTY.
Can American politics get more insane.🇮🇪🇪🇺
@@derekmulready1523 I could tell you “ain’t” from around here as we say in Texas. 😜
Most Europeans seem to know much more about our “political system” than the average American does, but often they don’t “understand” some of the odd “nuances” of how it works in reality.
@@derekmulready1523 And yes, it can get more insane. The Republican party has gotten progressively more insane for my whole lifetime.
I though Nixon was an abberation. Then came Reagan! I thought surely they can’t get worse.
Every time I think they can’t get worse they “own me” by doing exactly that.
@@BrianGay57
Social programs work in the EU
🇮🇪🇪🇺
Scrooge: Are there no prisons are there no work houses?
Texas: Hold my beer.
Next story Austin complains about taxes going up.....
Someone needs to sue Texas and take them up to the Supreme Court. This is so vile, surely it must be unconstitutional.
Far from it, loitering and vagrancy laws were deemed constitutional, as long as they have a narrow scope and avoid vague language. This bill would fit those standards.
The Supreme Court is also an appellate court, they can rule on the constitutionality of laws but would ignore this case because of precedent. Also, there is a 6/3 conservative edge in the Supreme Court, what makes you think they would be in favor of hearing the case, much less ruling against precedent?
I agree with the sentiment. It is vile.
@@dannyb7981 thanks for the education. It was a little depressing tho
Shouldn't this be a violation under some Geneva Convention or other?
"some choose to be homeless, some isn't all" - I had this conversation with a friend online, did some back of the envelope calculations based on published estimates of transient vs permanent homelessness, backgrounds/reasons for homelessness, and demographics. "Some choosing" ended up being about 5k nationwide. Liberally.
your friend thinks some choose to live shitty lives, because..... it´s attractive?
@@themetricsystem7967 most people who make these arguments havent thought it through that far. it's usually easy to identify such rationalizations due to how facile they are - for example, see Beau's recent video about Rosa Parks vs. Mask Mandates.
@@CaptTerrific i saw it. lack of knowledge, understanding and empathy. but the american society is overall a society permeated by a immediate profit-over-all attitude
Because rent is soooooo high!
They ignore that those who "choose" to be homeless are doing so because of severe mental illness or because the only available homeless shelters are unsafe.
Boy....that sure is a solution to the problem....NOT!
How many homeless people could have been given a home from last year's _increase_ in the defence budget?
Greed will be the demise of humanity!!!
**I AM THAT PROBLEM** I lost my job at 61 1/2 yrs old- after working at a company for 11 yrs. They were kicking out older workers to cut costs on company medical plans. They literally counted backwards from the day I would turn 62 and could qualify for early Soc Sec benefits- (after unemployment and 6 week severence would end) I can only assume to appease their conscience that at 62 I probably wouldn't get hired at any REAL job with benefits, but at least I would have SS. ( and you LITERALLY lose half your benefits by taking them that early) They even made their parents sign up for Medicare- (which they considered welfare.) Luckily?...I had been researching traveling fulltime in an rv for a few years. My home of 22 yrs was 3 yrs from payoff, and highway/ shopping development near my house was encroaching and surveyors repeatedly measured the main road- indicating the houses next to me may be taken by eminent domain. So I took the leap and sold it all and got a newer/used classB+ motorhome and hit the road. Its been 2+ years and I now will qualify for Medicare this fall. (Haven't taken Soc Sec benefits yet) I am soooo fortunate to be healthy and able to live on my small pension from a divorce 25 years ago. Covid unfortunately has caused a huge glut of rv-ers booking campsites 12 mths out- shortages of rv techs and trustworthy rv dealers/service centers have made maintenance difficult and pricy. I do boondock a lot but more and more regulations don't allow overnight stays at store lots or restaurants. Local municipalities are all passing their own ordinances also. Conglomerates are buying up local campgrounds and state/national parks are booked. So I guess I won't be headed to TX anytime soon since I can't afford camping there...or many other places. I love when people say rv-ers trash camp areas to. I scope out an off road area and see huge couches, double door residential refrigerators and endless big old box tvs littering off road areas. Things that were never part of rvs. I am always armed with my Dollar Tree trash picker stick and garbage bags. My last stop I pulled 2 tvs, a huge trash bag filled with God knows what in it... and then filled 6 bags full of trash. I flagged down a local guy in a pickup and asked if he could take it to a dumpster for me. He said he would get it on his way back. Who knows if he did. All I know is.. those of us fortunate enough to truly live the lifestyle are caretakers of the land. True homeless people are not the problem either. They are a symptom. Corporate profits RULE THIS WORLD and will destroy it. They've made people disposable and dont see the true cost in the end.
You’ve hit the nail on the head. Conglomerates are busy buying up every mobile home park, every campground & every RV park... & even our toll roads.
Always thought Texas should give free access to dump sites, if they gave one damn about appearances.
BTW- John Oliver did an excellent show on the mobile home lords, a few years ago.
@@sunshine3914 I'll have to check it out. The movie Nomadland shows just how many people live on the road. Its been going on for 30+ years and it has increased tremendously the last 5 yrs. People like me who have a college education, no credit card debt, make $20/hr and still cant keep up a home like my 990 sq ft little house due to taxes and upkeep costs. I am currently living off $915/mth. I banked my house sale profits and use savings ONLY for rv maintenance... and I've never been more relaxed. Its far from easy and you have to love nature and a challenge! I am also EXTREMELY fortunate to have no health issues. Dont take a pill for anything...but have hadboth covid shots!! Last thing I want to be is a typhoid Mary!!
What your long-time employer did was despicable! It's good you had been making plans for alternative living and had the resources to do so. It must be daunting, trying to find a place to park your RV overnight, let alone find a longer-term location. I hope things improve for you.
Thank you, Beau. Colorado has gone back and forth on this issue as well. It is absurd to criminalize and fine the homeless.
Maybe other counties should send bus loads of homeless people there and let Austin pay for their lodging and food (means prison).
I guess that would quickly put an end to such shameless effort
Unfortunately, transporting homeless people to Austin from other cities has been going on for years. The city has tried multiple ways of addressing homelessness, from ignoring the problem to buying older hotels to house them. However, Governor Abbott doesn’t like seeing them and has chosen to try to strong-arm the Austin leaders into taking drastic measures. I don’t know what the solution is, but it has become a huge issue in Austin over the last 10-15 years.
@@glendamaikell4224 from what I hear in Germany about homeless people is a big issue all over the USA.
I will not argue with you whether homeless people are brought in from other counties , I don’t think that there are people cruel enough to do that even in the USA, but I will tell you that locking people up will not solve the problem.
First of all you end up paying more for keeping them in prison.
Then your taxes will get increased because certainly it will not be paid for by taxing businesses.
And at the end, these people will be released some day and will be - homeless. And after that experience they may decide that they have nothing to loose and turn to get what they need to survive any way, including violence.
Unless you help them which would be more effective doing so before you put them in prison.
Unless, of course, you put a death penalty to being homeless. But that is also a pretty expensive and long road for taxpayers…
So much for Texas Christian values.
Stop Debtors Prisons!
*Love and Light from New Mexico ! HOOOAH*
I live in Texas and am saddened by this. My question is... "What the hell do they expect these people to do now? Where are they to go? How are they to live? Not providing solutions is a total cop-out.
So how many are you going to take in?
@@josephkordinak1591 Don’t go there. It is a losing position.
@@josephkordinak1591 Calling what is happening in Austin bad is not quite the same as having the resources to “take in” the homeless. Jeeze!
I was homeless for 2 years, and i had a job at the same time. Some times things get out of your control.
"How dare people be homeless! Just get a home kek"
Yup! How dare you work 3 low paying jobs!
When i finally got help for my issues, folks said that 'continuing to do the same thing, expecting different outcomes' was insane, yet certain groups of pubic servants, sure seem to be unaware of that simple construct.
With all of the techies moving from California, you're going to have a lot more homeless people. We are having the same problem where I live. With all the gentrification you have more and more homeless people, let's not talk about the families living in hotels. They're not even being talked about.
Hotels, in their cars & in RV parks in their cars.
Two years ago I traveled with a friend who has been on the road for over a decade. If was eye opening to see so many families using their cars as homes.
I don't know whether to laugh at the ridiculousness or cry at the callousness. I have a long list of questions for the people who thought of/voted for this.
They forget, or just don't care, that homeless people are . . . people.
Driving in my community yesterday, I noticed at least half a dozen of campsites set up in the empty areas. I live in the high desert in So Cal. So we have a high homeless and transient people. It’s eye-opening just like all the police shooting and violence against the elderly and mentally impacted! I am no longer blind but I feel helpless.
My favorite quote and a message to America:
You may choose to look the other way but you can never say again that you did not know.
William Wilberforce
Find an organization that addresses homelessness in your area and volunteer or donate?
All I can say is.. WOW!
I guess we can't fix indifference.
It's worse than indifference. It's "fuck you, I've got mine", which right now is the majority of the republican platform.
@@MuaddibIsMe unfortunately you may be right. I hope we're able to overcome the hatred. May mercy be granted to us all.
Thank you for talking about this topic. I live in Austin and have been saying these exact same things for months now. This doesn't solve the problem and just end up costing more in the long run. But people didn't care because they didn't want to have see these people anymore.
But low taxes as Elon says (in fact quite regressive sales taxes - make the guy buying his kid's school books pay for jailing homeless people)
The same law was defined as unconstitutional in Colorado. Homelessness was something that a person may not be in control of like color, sex or religion. The supreme court in Colorado determined that homelessness itself CAN NOT be illegal. So with that in mind any lawyer worth an once of salt could get the law over turned.
Here in Dallas, the city and a non-profit (can't think of the name), just finished building a new shelter for people in need. It look''s like a 4 story hotel almost. It has a playground and a swimming pool out back. They also put in a new bus stop so I suppose people have access to employment. I drive by every day on the way home from work. I was pleasantly surprised to see what it was when it was finished. Anyways, a little good news for the bad.
Thank you for that. Tired of seeing the homeless, but when shelters are considered going up near your community, you don’t like that either. It always seems like a damned if you don’t, damned if you do situation. Plenty of empty shopping centers as we build new ones. Why can’t they be equipped with dorm rooms, and a a small medical clinic? They’re all on bus routes, easy access for going to jobs. A lot of these empty centers are used for Charter schools, why not classes offering GED, reading or language, job training? Cut out part of parking lot and make green zones, or vegetables. We have so much wasted space. Most of these centers have been dead for years, while we build new ones.