America may have to accept shantytowns

[kpete]

America may have to accept shantytowns


The “Nickelsville” homeless camp in Seattle.

The government of Virginia destroyed a town this morning. It wasn’t on any maps, and it didn’t have a mayor, but it was a town. For its 80-some residents, it was home. The problem: The town was made up tents, and was lived-in by people who would otherwise be homeless. It was, for all intents and purposes, a shantytown.

When Virginia State Police cleared out the town this morning at the request of VDOT and State Delegate Scott Lingamfelter (R-Prince William), it did so ostensibly to improve safety, since the town was near a highway. In so doing Northern Virginia becomes merely the latest example of a widespread trend where shantytowns pop up, and the government clears them out.

Since, you know, that solves the problem of homelessness.

It seems clear that shantytowns like these are here to stay. We’ve made a social decision in this country that low taxes are more important than an adequate social safety net. That decision has consequences, one of which is that people who fall through the cracks will naturally find non-traditional ways to provide for themselves and their kin. That was the idea, after all; let the poor pick themselves up by their bootstraps, if enough of them fall off the grid, let them start their own. Well, it’s working! Poor people are taking care of themselves. Shantytowns are a natural byproduct.

the rest:
http://beyonddc.com/log/?p=2585

[Tippy]

1. Out of sight....out of mind....

[ixion]

2. They want people to have a McJob, and spend their lives enriching the few

what a sad statement that is on our species.

[Lorien]

12. They want SOME people to have a McJob. They want the rest to be unemployed

so that no one will complain about the shitty pay and conditions of their McJobs.

[ixion]

13. good point

and I'd agree.

[Sirveri]

20. Plus then they can cycle them out to deny them promotions and benefits.

Perpetual underclass forever!

[rucky]

3. If only we could find 14 million or so unoccupied homes somewhere.

Oh, here's some: http://money.cnn.com/2011/03/28/real_estate/us_housing_vacancy_rates/index.htm

[SlipperySlope]

18. That is just *crazy* talk.

There is no way any sane country would have millions of people living homeless while millions of homes were vacant. That is such a far-fetched misallocation of resources that it would boggle the mind.

[Angry Dragon]

4. They should all just move to DC

and let the Regressive Party take care of them.........

This country has lost its soul and mind ........

When people get to the point of having nothing more to lose then you will see more violence

[Dappleganger]

5. Just wait until adults with autism and other disabilities are wandering across the highways in FL.

My guess is that this state is due for some pretty horrific accidents with Governor Voldemort's complete metamorphosis into the worst governor in Florida's history.

[Marblehead]

6. Capitalism

the rich get rich and the poor should just die.

[bobbolink]

17. Yes, we are quite aware that we live under capitolism. We lived under capitolism with slavery, but

we worked to end that.

We lived with capitolism but fought to win the right to vote for women.

We lived with capitolism but fight for gay rights.

Is there some hidden reason we are supposed to just lay back and let people die of homelessness????

[FiveGoodMen]

7. Only so long as we allow a few bastards to hoard all the nation's wealth

[raccoon]

8. K&R. nt

[CountAllVotes]

9. there are some of these in Sacramento

My 80+ year old "relative" (or whatever she really is) lives there and she was actually complaining about them and the occupants. She was telling me that they keep moving the tent cities around and that the inhabitants are "breeding like rabbits".

She has no sympathy for them obviously but she lives in a nice 1/2 million $ house so what she worry? :grr:

:kick:

[phantom power]

10. He's being unfair! The *real* gop plan is we all become wealthy investors.

Or lawyers. Or something. Bootstraps! Ponies!
:woohoo:

[Mnemosyne]

11. ... n/t

[roxiejules]

14. Have you called your legislator today?

Especially if you have a Republican in your district?

There isn't a gap between rich and poor, it is a BARRIER which allows the wealthy to hoard.

We have built these barriers, and we can bring them down.

[bobbolink]

15. Or "progressive" media, which never talks about homelessness?

Even the simple basic facts are not understood.

Homelessness is the orphan of "progressives".

And, sometimes, the abused step-child.

[Cali_Democrat]

16. K&R

[Hugabear]

19. What about all these retired military bases?

There are military bases that have been closed down all over the country, many with buildings still sitting vacant. No, I'm not suggesting that we turn these abandoned military bases into a quasi-concentration camp as some (both here on DU and elsewhere) have suggested. Just seems that with all these bases with their military housing and barracks not being used for anything, it could be a start.

Between this and all the home foreclosures, it seems criminal that anybody should be denied a place to stay.

[bobbolink]

21. You want to herd people from different parts of the country to a military base, but that is NOT a

"concentration camp"?

I sometimes wonder if people actually think about what is entailed in homelessness. The total lack of connnection to reality is stunning.

[Hugabear]

22. Show me where I said I wanted to "herd" people anywhere

Many of these military bases are located near populated areas, areas where there are already homeless people. Here in Orlando, the Navy closed down its training center, which is located just miles from downtown. The city of Orlando decided it would be a good idea to practically give that land away to a private developer.

And by the way, nice try wondering if I actually think about what's entailed in being homeless.

[bobbolink]

24. Yeah, that is what it amounts to... herding. Unless, of course, you aren't talking about ALL

homeless people.

In which case, what about the others?

There is a national shortage of over 3 million low-income housing units. What is this country going to do about that?

People keep saying the same thing in these threads, yet doing absolutely nothing.

What are you doing in YOUR area to deal with the local authorities and police to at least stop the shoving homeless people from place to place, as is mentioned in the article?

[Hugabear]

27. Hmmm...

There have been a few threads suggesting that the millions of foreclosed homes could be used to house some of the homeless. Would you consider that to be "herding"? I'm not talking about loading homeless people up on buses and sending them hundreds of miles to abandoned military bases. All I'm saying is that if there happens to be a base nearby - in my example, it was literally just a couple of miles from downtown - and there are hundreds or thousands of housing units sitting there unused, then why not use those to house people?

[bobbolink]

29. As I said, people keep saying these things in these kinds of threads, and the same replies are

posted, yet it never seems to occur to people that it is past time to stop repeating the same things and start taking action.

First, it is always brought up that there would be so much red tape that it would take YEARS to unravel it, if it could even be unraveled. Given that "progressives" don't have the interest to even make sure that homeless people aren't harrassed by the cops in Their Own Cities (you didn't answer my question about that, so I know what that means), why in the world would you think that anyone is going to put that kind of money and effort into this?

Could you start by finding out the information on two things in you area...

1. What is the policy towards homeless people in your area, and how are cops handling it?

2. What would be required to convert base housing into housing for homeless people?

3. What are local progressives, and progressive media, talking about concerning homelessness? Do the people in your city understand the basic facts, or are they still just repeating the same false myths? Are they concerned enough to start taking action?

[Shagbark Hickory]

23. I always wondered if the goverments here would allow shanties to persist.

Township in Soweto Source: Matt-80 {{cc-by-2.0}}

I just cant see the government letting people live in shanties.

[bobbolink]

25. Of course not. We aren't even allowed to live in tents or our cars.

Yet, "progressives" don't seem interested in doing anything about it.

[Shagbark Hickory]

26. Of course by the time it gets that bad, there probably wont be much government left to chase you out

nt

[bobbolink]

31. What are you talking about???? What I described is HAPPENING NOW!

Are you NOT aware of the Criminalization of Homelessness?

What is happening in YOUR area, as far as homelessness is concerned? Do homeless people get run out of town? Are they arrrested for falling asleep in public? Etc?

[Shagbark Hickory]

32. dupe. skip this one.

[Shagbark Hickory]

33. I meant as bad as the actual shanty town in my picture. Like the movie District 9.

[bobbolink]

34. OK, so you didn't read what I said. The situation now is WORSE.

Can you grasp that?

We aren't even allowed to have THAT.

And its because people in this country, and that includes those who call themselves Democrats and "progressives", don't give a damn.

[handmade34]

28. sadly... accepted for a long time now

gentrification, foreclosures, low wages, etc, etc...

http://courses.cit.cornell.edu/crp101/student%20work/Limner_2008_Poster.pdf

[kenny blankenship]

30. Now now. We all have to share the sacrifice

But some of us will be sacrificed more than others.