Some basic things about homelessness most people don't understand

It was actually a hot day when I took this photo, and I was really tired when I made it to the downtown library, and sat down on a little ledge to rest a bit.  Then I turned around and saw the sign behind me.  This photo pretty much sums up what homelessness feels like day to day.  Pretty much everything a homeless person does day to day is either illegal, or frowned upon by most people. 

So here are a few things most people simply don't understand about homelessness:

For every panhandler you see with a cardboard sign asking for a dollar, there are AT LEAST A MILLION PEOPLE on Social Security Disability LIVING off of your tax dollars.  This is not an exaggeration.  I doubt any of you see more than 8 to 10 panhandlers in a day, and there are an estimated 12 to 15 million people on Disability.  It's very likely that at least half of those people on Disability scammed the system to live for free off your tax dollars.  Really.  And many of you are pissed about the guy with the sign asking for a measly dollar.

The moment you become homeless, going to the bathroom and sleeping immediately become illegal.  But you have to do both anyways.  Think about that, I have to either go to a public building (library, courthouse, etc.) or buy something (drink a fast food joint) to be able to use a restroom.  Every single time.  Going to the bathroom any other place could lead to getting a ticket or possibly even arrested.  The same goes for sleeping... anywhere.

A homeless person doesn't go to a fast food place just for breakfast or lunch.  By buying a drink or meal, a homeless person is actually RENTING a seat to sit down, a bathroom, heat or air conditioning, and often wifi for a phone or laptop.  Keep in mind, ANY form of work these days requires a phone for communication, and in most cases a computer to apply and send a resume'.  A laptop is also necessary for most freelance work, or for more entrepreneurial stuff like selling art, like I do, selling stuff on Ebay or Craigslist, or other 21st century type work. 

The best report I've found online (from 2004, I think) said there are about 2 1/2 to 3 million homeless people in the U.S..  But most are only homeless for a period or 2-3 weeks to 2-3 months.  There are actually about 800,000 homeless people in the U.S. at any given time.  You never notice most homeless people, because they get stuck with no place to live by some unfortunate series of events, and find a place fairly quickly.  Only a tiny percentage wind up being long term homeless.  Those are the people ( like me) you see on the streets.

There ARE ALWAYS more spare bedrooms, and often more empty houses and buildings, in this country, than there are homeless people.  But if a homeless person breaks into an empty or abandoned building, they can be arrested.  I've been sleeping on the porch of an abandoned building for three months or so.  The irony of that doesn't escape me.

"Rapid Rehousing" which many people have heard of, usually takes 6 to 18 months, judging by the people I know who've done it.  And then you are part of a program where you get kicked out if you work hard to actually increase your income.  Usually people wind up housed in apartments where they're afraid to leave their front door after dark.

There are two main ways people escape homelessness:  (1) Someone lets the person stay at their house.  The homeless person "plugs into" an existing living situation.  Often it's a toxic or dangerous situation, but it gets them off the streets.  But they don't have to buy all new stuff, pay utility deposits, need a good credit report, and all that.  (2) The homeless person gets an income high enough to rent a room or apartment, or more often, a "cheap" weekly motel room, AND buy all the needed items to rebuild their life.  Weekly motel rooms are not cheap at all, the one I plan to move into is $285 a week.  BUT, you don't need credit, there's no deposit, you don't have to turn on utilities, there's wifi, a microwave, a mini fridge, a TV, and so on. 

Going to a homeless shelter is basically like going to jail by choice.  It's almost as dangerous.  Things get stolen all the time, often by staff members.  They pressure people to "get in a program," either addiction or mental illness, and then lie and scam Disability to get a check.  Homeless shelters DO NOT work to help homeless people learn 21st century skills and to get good jobs.  That's why so many people prefer to stay on the streets.  

There are far more drunks, alcoholics and addicts living in houses than there are on the streets.  I was a taxi driver in super rich, Newport Beach, California, so I can say this for a fact.  Heavy drinking is damn near a prerequisite for wealth, it seems.  The difference between "respectable" drunks/addicts and homeless drunks/addicts is their social network.  Homeless people are homeless mostly because they don't have a strong family or social safety net to catch them in tough times.