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Whenever I see someone sleeping on the streets, I find myself wondering how they got there. What happened to them? Did they lose their jobs, were they abandoned by family, did they lose everything after an illness or perhaps go through something that completely changed their lives? I often wonder how many of them had normal homes and families before life took an unexpected turn.
I know people make mistakes, but I find it difficult to believe that everyone living on the streets simply chose that life. It makes me sad to think about how easily someone can lose the security most of us take for granted.
What do you think? 🤔
What Girls & Guys Said
Opinion
22Opinion
Caused by? Circumstance. Often beyond control.
Maintained by? Typically being too worn and weary to fix anything, lacking social network and basics like clothes that don't smell. Of course drug abuse is incredibly common too.
I am reminded of Finland's Housing First policy.
For those unaware it is basically a policy that provides private housing and essentials without demands. My own country provides it too but demands things like "Get clean" and "Show up for government arranged activities".
Finland's version asks for nothing. Basic living expenses and a home. Access to free support like therapy, job hunting professionals etc.
The amazing thing here is that Finland's versions sees 80% or more of the homeless return to working conditions and able to stay off the streets. That is to say, less than 20% ever end up back on the streets again. Those are amazing numbers.
Not only are those numbers amazing, they are also Cheap! In fact it is much cheaper than basically every other option. If we're being realistic it is outright Profitable.
I think it is caused by shitty circumstance and kept up by bad habits often hard to control. And well, when you are there and everyone you know is too? If you get a little money saving it in your shoe to pay for a laundry to maybe hopefully get a job unless the interview goes badly is going to take an astounding amount of personal strength compared to sharing it with your friends who shared theirs with you.
Wow 😳
You have such a big heart, I hope you find a way to greatly contribute to life. I hope you know yourself... strength and weaknesses so that you can make most of your compassion.
I've seen a few as I'd engage with homeless. I think a lot of it is stress... trauma which can start at early life and snowball as bad decisions. People get overwhelmed... be it emotional, financial. Sometimes parents get burried and if not working together, get torn apart by stress. sometimes it's an illness.
In general it's bad decisions, but what leads to that... it's training, trauma. Sometimes its circumstances. Met an older couple that lost it all in 2000 crash. bad decision to invest with someone and put it all in tech stocks.
Met a woman living in her car, she was in bad shape. separated/divorced from husband and kids. I could have helped her, but I dont like doing tha ton my own and needed a group. didn't pull that together in time... she's probably dead from last years freeze. maybe she got out, but doubt it.
sometimes people are unfortunate. Doesn't take much to have a car accident, be hurt, lose car, lose ability to pay bills... screwed. very hard to recover when hit bottom if don't have family.
We met a kid on streets of family. that mental illness, but why don't know. he didn't think he had to work, so sat there waiting for people to care for him. something wrong.
go out, in a safe way, and learn. watch videos. mostly, take care of yourself... get plenty of rest, good food, balanced life. out of that give back.
I could talk for hours regarding this subject. Because i'm arguably, "obsessed" with financial security, and have been for the past 3 decades roughly. And one thing life has taught me is how little is in a persons control. Most people will work till the day they die. And that is how you keep from being homeless. But i can understand why some people end up there anyhow. Because we do not have a perfect system. And how do you think you'd respond if someone informed you at 20 that regardless of what you do in life you'll never get ahead. That you'll probably work at at a job you don't like for 40 years., retire, and then discover you don't have enough to make ends meet. So you'll work a job (only part time if you're lucky) to fund treatment for your failing health till you finally expire. Because that is probably the most common tale in America.
To answer you question, yes a lot of people who are homeless are there of thier own making. But a lot of them are there because they finally broke. I'm not excusing anything per se. Because life is one long continuous battle until you pass away. If you're fortunate it's got some enhoyable moments of respite. But they are brief.
If i knew when i was born what i know now i think i would have refused to come out of my mother's womb.😆
Thank you for your opinion 🙏🙏
There's a homeless guy who lives near a McDonald's in a certain part of new jersey. A few people know who this guy is but he was a heart surgeon who attempted suicide after his family died in a car accident, it didn't work and he just lost his ability to care I guess. When you talk to him you can tell he's fucked in the head but also there's a smart, totally normal person in there.
There's a point where blaming yourself or decisions someone made doesn't help anymore. Almost nothing is ever 100% unavoidable.
🥺 my prayers 🙏 goes to him.. I hope he gets help
I was homeless for about a year and a half, in my late 30's, and my downfall was simply a broken heart. You lose the one you know you are supposed to be with and you just stop caring. You say to yourself, 'I did everything right, and I'm still screwed'. You get tired of going home to an empty condo every night, and you ask yourself why you're working so hard to pay the mortgage on an empty place, and eventually you don't even want to go home anymore. That's how it was for me.
Sorry about the sad experience, I'm glad you're back on your feet
Thanks! The woman I married earlier this year is crazy about me, and she's probably a hundred times better for me than the one I ended up on street for, but you can never truly replace the love of your life, who said 'No'. At least this one's younger, and I know she'll always love me.
If we blame mental illness then we have to ask why governments feel it's OK for the mentally disabled to sleep rough.
If we blame laziness or lack of drive then we have to ask why so many veterans end up on the street.
The real reason there's homelessness is there's no interest at the top to solve it. Why? Because seeing homeless people on the street makes you feel grateful for what you've got and keeps you obedient. You know you're only 2 wage packets away from being homeless so you shut up and take the shit.
Bad decisions and my view is based on watching to relatives who's bad decisions lead them to living on the streets. They ignored all the warnings against using hard drugs and drinking excessively but jumped into both anyway. At the start other family members attempted to help them by giving them a place to stay and offering to pay for them to go to rehab. But they never took anyone up on it and if they where ever in your house you had to watch them like a hawk, because anything they though they could sell to get money to support their habits, they would steal it. As time went on we all pretty much gave up on them and distanced ourselves from them. Simply because your attempts to help them ended up costing you in the end. It got to the point where my aunt would rather stay in the shed behind a drug den and give up custody of her kids to CPS, so she could keep feeding her addiction. Rather then go through rehab and get her kids back with family members paying for her rehab.
The great American system is designed to fuck people over every step of the way.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/XdacctqrSlUIt's so sad
I don’t know about other areas of the world. I worked at a gas station for five years and spent a lot of time dealing with many homeless people. I’d say 80% of them here in Southern California are drug addicts who want no responsibilities beyond finding their next bag of dope, and the other 20% are either mentally ill or people that have fallen upon unfortunate circumstances. There’s a very small percentage who reject modern society norms and responsibility and just want to be a bum slacker, and honestly I can relate to that 🤣
Unfortunate Circumstances!.
Can Shape a Person to develop tendencies of Bad decisions..
So it creates a ripple effect!.
Only solution is To arrest and jail the Homeless, But not for Confinement, but more like in a Military training camp, Training them for 1 yr before Giving them way back into society
@Veronika_p Too many people living like that to simply be 'circumstances. I, like you, ask the same question, and I have no answer, as I see them every day.
Every day we get out of bed, we make decisions, and people make bad decisions every day.
Most homeless people are adults, and it's generally just bad circumstances in life. Losing their jobs, a divorce, bills accumulated. Often a bad circle that ends up badly.
I agree with you
Unfortunate circumstances.
Letting your parents know who you are shouldn't be a bad decision. It's unfortunate they're bigoted.
Losing the job you needed to pay the mortgage isn't a bad decision. Usually.
You're in the US, so I'd say the most likely reason to be homeless is not having universal health care.
A lot of homelessness is caused by mental illness, which leads to bad decisions and ultimately unfortunate circumstances.
I guess 😔
Homelessness is also, to a large extent, an intended side effect of capitalism.
Homeless people will provide cheap labor, thus increasing profits.
Unfortunate circumstances. Even I've been homeless for a short period of time.
People are born into vastly different safety nets. Some people can make terrible choices and still land on their feet.
I think both can be a reason into homelessness in people but it's usually one or the other for individuals.
It can be both as well as it could happen to the best of people.
most of the time bad decisions. Nobody told them to take drugs or drink to excess.
A little bit of both that depends on the person. Some people are unfortunate. Some people are using drugs. Some people are lazy. It all depends
Most homeless people have mental issues or drug issues.
once you have to disclose a medical condition or time in jail you will never get a job
In my country? Mostly due addiction.
Drug use and low IQ
It's caused by society making people commodities
Both but more unfortunate circumstances
That and addiction