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This is a very interesting idea. Airbnb (or the sharing economy in general) for providing homeless housing in spare bedrooms. Obviously a big problem is the fe

This is a very interesting idea. Airbnb (or the sharing economy in general) for providing homeless housing in spare bedrooms. Obviously a big problem is the fear many people have of poor people. I think it's mostly just fear of people who are different, but someone would have to give hosts confidence in their own safety. If you could solve that ...

ilaksh 11y ago
How different are they though, really? How many paychecks could the average person miss and still afford their mortgage or rent? What would happen to you if you became mentally ill and didn't have family or friends to take care of you? If, for whatever reason, you had no apartment or home to stay in and actually had to sleep in a box without a shower, shave, or change of clothes, would you become dangerous? Or just unshaven and smelly?
- hackuser 11y ago
  To be clear: I think the fear is unfounded and generally agree with what you say. However, that fear really exists for many people and would have to be addressed.
Kalium 11y ago
Safety, property, damages, etc. When the homeless population in your area skews significantly mentally ill, this ceases to be mere "fear of people who are different".
- hackuser 11y ago
  > When the homeless population in your area skews significantly mentally ill, this ceases to be mere "fear of people who are different". I think that's the same thing applied to mental illness; people don't understand mental illness and fear it. Why is someone who is depressed or bipolar threatening? What do we really know? Does mental illness make people more likely to commit crimes? * It's the wrong question, because if there is any effect (and I don't know that there is), it probably depends on the illness and its severity. * Mentally ill people commit crimes, but so do mentally healthy people - in fact I expect that 99% of crimes are committed by the latter. * What is mental 'illness'? It's not a binary condition; it's a continuum. Also, many people living in homes and probably working at your office are mentally ill; would you trust them in your guest bedroom? * Finally, homeless people (especially those who are mentally ill) are often the weakest in our community, often poorly fed and unable to care for themselves. Those are not the people to fear (fear strong, healthy, bold young men). If the homeless people were criminal and had intiative, they wouldn't be living on the street.
  - Kalium 11y ago
    I understand mental illness. Judging by your rhetoric, perhaps better than you. I know full well how dangerous someone suffering hallucinations can be. You'll have to forgive me for not wanting to welcome such a person into my home. Please, spare me your "Not everyone suffering mental illness is violent!" rhetoric. I know that. It's neither a helpful nor useful point in this context. I also know that some are, that a given homeless person is disproportionately likely to be such a person compared to the general population, and that there's no reliable way for a layman to mitigate this risk other than keeping the person at a reasonable distance. Please, just for a moment, stop and consider that maybe I am not just some terrified waif, shaking in my boots because someone said "OH TEH NOES! MENTAL ILLNESS!". Perhaps some of us have real concerns about what you propose. Perhaps some of us are aware that being homeless, mentally ill, or both doesn't magically render a person incapable of offering significant violence, despite your claim. Also, try being less condescending about it. I'm (poorly) fighting the urge to tell you to go do something anatomically unlikely because of all the silly things you just wrote.
warfangle 11y ago
There are programs like this. Not necessarily sharing economy, because chronically homeless need much more than just a place to rest their head. They need critical social care, job training (and placement), often psychiatric help, et cetera. This is the kind of thing that organizations like the Doe Fund here in NYC do. Unless you're talking about trying to short-circuit the downward spiral and help keep people from becoming chronically homeless. I've been knocking an idea for a mutual aid organization / app, but haven't really nailed anything down yet. 'Cause the truth is, even if you're employed with good health insurance, quality psychiatric/psychological care is really fucking expensive.

ilaksh 11y ago

How different are they though, really? How many paychecks could the average person miss and still afford their mortgage or rent? What would happen to you if you became mentally ill and didn't have family or friends to take care of you? If, for whatever reason, you had no apartment or home to stay in and actually had to sleep in a box without a shower, shave, or change of clothes, would you become dangerous? Or just unshaven and smelly?

hackuser 11y ago
To be clear: I think the fear is unfounded and generally agree with what you say. However, that fear really exists for many people and would have to be addressed.

Kalium 11y ago

Safety, property, damages, etc. When the homeless population in your area skews significantly mentally ill, this ceases to be mere "fear of people who are different".

hackuser 11y ago
> When the homeless population in your area skews significantly mentally ill, this ceases to be mere "fear of people who are different". I think that's the same thing applied to mental illness; people don't understand mental illness and fear it. Why is someone who is depressed or bipolar threatening? What do we really know? Does mental illness make people more likely to commit crimes? * It's the wrong question, because if there is any effect (and I don't know that there is), it probably depends on the illness and its severity. * Mentally ill people commit crimes, but so do mentally healthy people - in fact I expect that 99% of crimes are committed by the latter. * What is mental 'illness'? It's not a binary condition; it's a continuum. Also, many people living in homes and probably working at your office are mentally ill; would you trust them in your guest bedroom? * Finally, homeless people (especially those who are mentally ill) are often the weakest in our community, often poorly fed and unable to care for themselves. Those are not the people to fear (fear strong, healthy, bold young men). If the homeless people were criminal and had intiative, they wouldn't be living on the street.
- Kalium 11y ago
  I understand mental illness. Judging by your rhetoric, perhaps better than you. I know full well how dangerous someone suffering hallucinations can be. You'll have to forgive me for not wanting to welcome such a person into my home. Please, spare me your "Not everyone suffering mental illness is violent!" rhetoric. I know that. It's neither a helpful nor useful point in this context. I also know that some are, that a given homeless person is disproportionately likely to be such a person compared to the general population, and that there's no reliable way for a layman to mitigate this risk other than keeping the person at a reasonable distance. Please, just for a moment, stop and consider that maybe I am not just some terrified waif, shaking in my boots because someone said "OH TEH NOES! MENTAL ILLNESS!". Perhaps some of us have real concerns about what you propose. Perhaps some of us are aware that being homeless, mentally ill, or both doesn't magically render a person incapable of offering significant violence, despite your claim. Also, try being less condescending about it. I'm (poorly) fighting the urge to tell you to go do something anatomically unlikely because of all the silly things you just wrote.

warfangle 11y ago

There are programs like this. Not necessarily sharing economy, because chronically homeless need much more than just a place to rest their head. They need critical social care, job training (and placement), often psychiatric help, et cetera. This is the kind of thing that organizations like the Doe Fund here in NYC do. Unless you're talking about trying to short-circuit the downward spiral and help keep people from becoming chronically homeless. I've been knocking an idea for a mutual aid organization / app, but haven't really nailed anything down yet. 'Cause the truth is, even if you're employed with good health insurance, quality psychiatric/psychological care is really fucking expensive.