Department of Labor Launches Web Site For Homeless People...

[phillybri]

The Department of Labor (DOL) today launched a Web site to help America's homeless find jobs through mainstream as well as targeted training, education and placement services and to provide a vital link to government- wide resources.

"This Web page furthers the Administration's commitment to helping the homeless, including homeless veterans," said U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao, who serves as vice chairman of the Interagency Council on Homelessness. "The Department of Labor is committed to pooling our resources and working together with Congress, our federal, state and local partners to achieve the President's goal of ending chronic homelessness in 10 years."

http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=139-07202004

I'm not making this up...:crazy:

[Beetwasher]

1. Homeless W/ Laptops and Wireless Connections!

It's the new rage!

[greenbriar]

2. so they can just plug their computer into

any outside outlet right

how stupid

[wryter2000]

3. I guess if they're homeless

They'll have to access it from their laptops.

[bobbyboucher]

4. Internet ready cardboard boxes.

See them all the time.

[freetobegay]

5. I did a job search for jobs available in my zip code from this site

95% of them require some type of college degree. Correct me if I am wrong but WTF? For homeless people?

[Mel]

6. I realize you are not making this up

but I swear the first thing I thought when I read the head line was ahhh haa The Onion

[mtnester]

7. No, the site is to TRACK homeless

right after they get a mandatory chip implant in order to get free green beans....so they can "be rounded up".

THAT would be the REAL plan to ending chronic homelessness.

<heavy (not really) sarcasm>

[tandot]

8. I always wondered why so many homeless people push shopping carts

Never thought it was because carrying a desktop, monitor, and printer around would just be too heavy. :crazy:

Another sign that these idiots are just completely incompetent.

[BootinUp]

9. I wonder if

anyone at the DOL realizes the stupidity of this news release.

[BurtWorm]

10. I wonder if John Poindexter has perfected a way of transmitting Web pages

to homeless people's brains?

[Not Me]

11. Contrary to what you might think...

Many homeless people are very 'net connected. It blew me away too.

When I lived in upstate NY, I used to volunteer at a homeless shelter. The shelter would open at 8:00pm and the guys (it was a men's shelter) would need to be out by 8:00am. During the day, the shelter had laundry facilities and a hot lunch program.

After the guys left for the day, those who didn't have a job (not all homeless people are unemployed) generally had a route: coffee at McDonalds (free morning paper read) and a number of other 'stops'. Very often this included the public library where there are internet terminals. Most of the guys had hotmail accounts, and were pretty up on issues of the day, as well as sports. Surprised the hell out of me, but why not???

The shelter which was an outreach of our church also fielded calls and messages for the men who were staying at the home for the winter...often job related or Social Services messages.

[mtnester]

13. I agree

But I still think it is a pretty inefficient/ineffective way to reach out to folks who are really having the toughest of times. Does not really show "connection" with the real world, at least to me anyway. It is about as bright as a half watt bulb.

And these folks are supposed to be the experts. What a shame...common sense is a terrible thing to lose.

[calico1]

12. Homeless people with laptops?

Reminds me of the time our computers went down at my job. They sent us an e-mail to let us know they were fixing it. :eyes:

[Kanary]

14. Bwahahaha!

Thanks, I was badly in need of that laugh.....

:hi:

Kanary

[mtnester]

15. Yeah, like Road Runner suggesting you go online

to get help with a problem, when usually problems involve your service NOT working....so very helpful.

[rlev1223]

16. True story:

I used to know someone who did some contract ad work for Microsoft, at least 10 years ago. She swore that
Bill Gates once read about a homeless person in SF who used a library connection to put up a personal web site ...not so common back then... and Gates was delighted. He wanted to use it in Microsoft advertising, sort of "if this guy can do it, so can YOU" His publicity dept. was appalled and managed to talk him out of it.

[mtnester]

18. What he should have done is found him and given him a job

That would have made a better story...THEN tie is all shamelessly in to an advertising campaign.

[kentuck]

17. A chicken in every pot....a computer under every bridge....

Yeah, this is a great idea! How much can we spend on it?

[tabasco]

19. I'm not sure I would put this on my resume...

if I were the genius that thought this up.

[Joanne98]

20. Elaine Chao the well known humanitarian

Somebody, nominate her for the Nobel Peace Prize quick. You know you've hit bottom when the American Enterprise Institute takes control of the Labor Department.:-(

[tom_paine]

21. Orwellian Craziness. This is all for show. A website for homeless?

You know, I just walked my a cardboard carton on the street corner, it's insides aglow from the dcomputer inside.

:silly: :crazy:

These people are as insane as Soviets. If they finish transforming our nation into the New BushPutin Totalitarianism of "Managed Democracy", the will do MUCH more.

Don't be caught by surprise like a Jew in Nazi Germany.

[pinto]

22. Seems a typically bumbling attempt...yet homeless do use internet at

libraries routinely.

How they'll hear about the service is another thing entirely....

[SoCalDem]

23. Is the Dept of the Homeless providing them with wireless laptops?

What a waste of resources.. Why not actually improve their lives, instead of providing a silly website..:(

[Terran]

24. Ha Ha, funny. Now that you've all had a laugh

at the expense of homeless people, you need to understand this:

By far the majority of people who experience homelessness are like you and me. They once had jobs, homes, friends, social lives, the works. But for any of a variety of reasons, that majority is now relying on shelters and public assistance to survive. These homeless people are not the ones you see pushing shopping carts down the street and living in cardboard boxes and talking to themselves (those are the folks the govt is currently labeling "chronic" homeless). The chronically homeless make up only about 10% of the total estimated homeless population in this country. No, these homeless people, the majority, DO have access to computers, and quite a few of them have college degrees too.

This is the mistake *everyone* makes about homelessness. It's a vastly worse problem than any of you imagine it to be, because you don't have to be subjected to looking at 90% of the homeless people in your area; that 90% is in the shelter/services system, not on the street. I have no great love for DOL or HUD under Bush, but this website is at least an attempt to do something right. And BTW, it's also targeted at service providers and case workers, not just the homeless themselves. So it may actually help someone. Even if just one person found a good job and made their way back to stability, it would be worth it.

[sangh0]

26. Bravo, dirk

At least someone knows something about something which isn't right in front of their eyes day after day.

[mtnester]

27. I don't think any of us were laughing at Homeless people

We were cracking on an out of touch bunch that does not have, nor wants to have, the slightest idea of how to help people in this situation other than offering obligatory lip service delivered via a web site (DOL).

That being said, I am sure that MILLIONS upon MILLIONS of people in this country are 1-5 paychecks away from being in the same scary position. In the deep of night, or the car on the way home, I betcha that is a secret fear we all have had, and unfortunately, during the economy of our current resident in charge, many have come to experience first hand.

[sangh0]

28. Not laughing *AT* poor people

It's laughing AT POOR PEOPLE's EXPENSE.

The joke depends on a stereotyped view of the homeless that isn't true. Repeating this mistaken stereotype only serves to maintain the mischaracterization of the homeless as drunken bums who wouldn't know about computers.

[mtnester]

29. You win

sorry

[Terran]

30. Yeah, most of you pretty much were.

That image of a filthy guy pushing a shopping cart with a wireless laptop in it, that was real funny.

My point is, it's not DOL who's out of touch, it's most of the people on this thread who are; if you knew anything about the homelessness issue, none of you would have been making those jokes.

[mtnester]

31. Funny,

Out of all the posts here, YOU were the only person that used the words "filthy" and "drunken bum".

[Terran]

32. Is that supposed to be a defense against what I'm saying?

And I never used the phrase "drunken bum". "Filthy" wasn't meant to be a judgment; it's just a fact of life that chronically homeless people don't manage to bathe every day.

[mtnester]

33. Drunken bum apologies

That was another poster defending your post.

Not a defense, more an observation.

[sangh0]

34. I used the term "drunken bum"

and though it wasn't stated explicitely, it seems obvious (at least to me) that the "humor" of this policy was based on people's idea of the homeless.

[mtnester]

37. Look,

Maybe we did not go about it the way you would have liked, but I am not insensitive to these issues. My husband and I actively SUPPORT, both with our time and financially, our church's open mission for people who find themselves caught up in the crappy times we are having, or suffering through some personal tragedy that could strike any of us and put us in the same position as too many.

I just found it galling that using the internet in this instance to "fix" or address the homeless problem (by the DOL)reinforces the out of touch manner this administration has on this and many other issues. You CANNOT help people until or unless you can see the face of their suffering, whatever form it takes. If nothing else, you have to admit it leans on the bizarro side of how to address this crisis. Real solutions involve footwork and hands on contact, real solutions to real problems, not impersonal patronizing of the many different types of homelessness.

That being said, those individuals I have conversations with in this situation use their humor to help them through difficult times. Those that have foregone their humor are the ones that seem to suffer the hardest in the soul of who they are.

[sangh0]

38. I'm sorry. Did I post anything hostile?

Maybe I'm just reading this in, but you seem to have taken offense at something I've written, as if it had criticized you.

Nothing in my posts is directed to anyone person in particular. My comments about how people were laughing at the expense of the poor, and NOT at the poor directly, were not hostile or rude. I merely explained how the comments in this thread were working at the expense of the poor. I wanted to clear up the misunderstanding you had that someone had accused others of laugh *AT* the poor.

Later on, when you and another poster spoke of the phrase "drunken bum" I posted to take responsibility for the comment, and to explain myself.

I have not claimed that you are insensitive, or anything like that. I apologize if anything I've said made you feel that I had.

just found it galling that using the internet in this instance to "fix" or address the homeless problem (by the DOL)reinforces the out of touch manner this administration has on this and many other issues.

Yes, I do understand that. On it's face, it is out of touch. But when you examine the issue deeper, it's not all that out of touch. And I'm not saying this to portray YOU as out of touch. I say it, because it is true.

[mtnester]

42. No, I have quick fingers and hit reply

when I should have moved up the file posting and hit reply there...my bad

[sangh0]

44. Don't sweat it

It happens to the best of us. Even me!! :-)

[mtnester]

47. Thanky-sai

:)

[Terran]

49. mtnester, for what it's worth...

I didn't see you making any jokes at all, just serious comments. So my original observation was not directed at you. I surely thank you and your husband for helping out through your church. In my work, you have no idea how many real Christians I've met who are dedicated to furthering that central tenet of their religion--helping the poor. Most of the small-time operations I deal with here in Missouri are organized around churches and religious folks, and many don't receive any funding beyond what their congregations raise.

Please don't be *too* quick to assume that the federal government is incompetent when it comes to trying to ease homelessness. Despite the Bush administration, there are still numerous federal programs distributing money to the cities and states for this purpose (even though it's never enough). This website idea is, if anything, a little more 'hands-on' than much of the usual federal approach. To me, getting information to people is critical to success in this area, so I view the website idea as a good thing, even if rather late in the game.

Dirk

[mtnester]

51. I am normally a lot quieter than this

just my quick hit and out comments...but for some reason I had a nerve going here...hope everyone ducked in time

:)


(edited for a terrible misspelling of the word "some)

[Kanary]

35. You're absolutely right, dirk, on every point.

Every single thing you said is true, and I appreciate you posting it. (Where's that dang applause emoticon when you need it?)

What's really sad is that there are a number of "liberal" people right here on DU who will be happy to say that these people don't deserve any help from Dems, because they "don't vote".

Yeah, that's the reasoning now.

Pathetic, eh?

Kanary

[sangh0]

36. That's not what they said

I read the post you referring to and no one blamed the poor and no one said they don't deserve help.

Misrepresenting others isn't going to help your credibility or your arguments. I challenge you to post a link to a post that says the poor don't deserve help

[Terran]

40. I don't think Kanary meant any particular post

But he/she is right, I have certainly seen that attitude here at DU myself. Homelessness has become one of those issues that even many progressives find it difficult to discuss intelligently and compassionately because it such an intractable problem, and it can make people of good will defensive for no real reason (I guess it's classic "Liberal Guilt").

[sangh0]

45. Actually, there was a particular post

that pointed out that many poor people don't vote, and that, at least partially, explained why politicians don't do enough for them. In response, Kanary accused the poster of hating poor people and thinking that they did not deserve to be helped.

[Terran]

41. Thanks Kanary (nt)

[BootinUp]

39. Good points

I don't disagree with anything you said.

One question comes to my mind after reading your post. If you asked people that depended on the library for web surfing, whether there were terminals normally available to use, what would the answer be? And is it the same in most major cities (say the top 20 by population).

[Terran]

46. Not sure I understand the question...

If you asked people that depended on the library for web surfing, whether there were terminals normally available to use, what would the answer be?

By "people," do you mean homeless people, or non-homeless people? As in, are homeless people taking away the use of computers from other people? Or, are there enough computers to accommodate the needs of homeless people?

In either case, I don't know. I would say that for many if not all homeless people, the daily grind of survival takes up too much time for them to be spending all day in a library surfing the web. People on the street may have more freedom that way, but those in the shelter system often have to observe a strict schedule of movement and activity in order to utilize the services being offered. In big cities, it often means a lot of travel by public transit from place to place just to meet elementary needs and obligations.

[Kanary]

50. "lot of travel by public transit from place"

That's for the lucky ones who are in an area with public transit that gets them where they want to go, and they get vouchers for using said transportation.

For many, if not most, it's hoofing it, for many, that means MILES a day on foot.

And, THAT on a chronic lack of sleep.......

Yeah, a glamorous life.

Kanary

[iconoclastic cat]

25. While this site is a lame attempt to look compassionate,

I can attest that witnessed homeless people surfing the web. I was doing some research on the types of literature available to young adults in Chicago's public libraries last November, and I went to about two dozen branches during that month. I generally visited each branch between 9AM and 3PM, and each time that I went, the computer banks were packed with people--nearly all of whom appeared to be homeless. I finally asked one of the librarians if this was the case. She said, "Well, it's very cold outside today."

The homeless thank you, Chimpy.

[laylah]

43. My first thought was

WTF? I swear, things in this misadministration just get curiouser and curiouser by the day! :silly:

Jenn

[Neshanic]

48. Wanted: Greenspan office doorknob polisher. Free Cardboard.

No Medical.