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> That's just crushing for people that have done everything right and are trying to save for a downpayment on their first home, for some runway to do a startup,

> That's just crushing for people that have done everything right and are trying to save for a downpayment on their first home, for some runway to do a startup, for their children's education, for their retirement, or to help take care of their aging parents. No thanks! I don't think you really understand what 'crushing' means. A household of two-well employed adults each making, on average, much more than the median person, having to pay 15-20k more is not 'crushing'. A single mother working 2 minimum wage jobs, barely able to afford food, forget health insurance for herself, if she can get it for her children, while social support is being eroded - that's crushing. The millions of homeless people, including millions of children - that's crushing. The kind of ignorance and egoism that comes with living a cushy life, having no problem with walking over the people below you just so that the softness of your condition isn't threatened is amazing. "In a country well governed, poverty is something to be ashamed of. In a country badly governed, wealth is something to be ashamed of." - Confucius

maxharris 11y ago
You act as if I am responsible for creating those problems. Did I tell the single mother to have kids? No! (In fact, I've given money recently to Planned Parenthood to preserve her right to choose a better life for herself.) Half of people you label as "homeless" are in that state because of severe mental illnesses. Did I have _anything_ to do with causing anyone's schizophrenia? No! (In fact, I'm a tireless advocate for reforms to our mental health laws that will returns hundreds of thousands of people back to a state of safety and dignity.) What about people that are "homeless" due to domestic violence, or bad luck? Nope, I didn't abuse anyone, and I've never caused anyone to have bad luck. What I am against is a system where people that want to make a better life for themselves are blocked by unjust regulations. Think of someone whose passion is cooking, wants to start a new restaurant, but can't afford to buy $100,000 worth of commercial kitchen equipment required by today's laws. Or someone who wants to braid hair, but has to attend cosmetology school to learn to cut hair. Or someone that wants to work in software, but can't afford to live in the #1 city for it because NIMBYs have made it illegal to build new housing for decades. All you want is to pile on more rules and schemes that already hold back people that want to make something more of their lives.
- bubtubgub 11y ago
  > You act as if I am responsible for creating those problems. You live in a (somewhat) democratic system, you pay taxes and vote. Yes, you absolutely share responsibility. > Half of people you label as "homeless" are in that state because of severe mental illnesses. Did I have _anything_ to do with causing anyone's schizophrenia? No! But here you are speaking against measures that could help them because it might cost you a little money. > What about people that are "homeless" due to domestic violence, or bad luck? Nope, I didn't abuse anyone, and I've never caused anyone to have bad luck. Again, raising your hands and saying 'I had nothing to do with this problem, just let me ignore it.' is just disgusting, yes you weren't directly involved in these events, but don't fellow humans deserve compassion and empathy? > What I am against is a system where people that want to make a better life for themselves are blocked by unjust regulations. Think of someone whose passion is cooking, wants to start a new restaurant, but can't afford to buy $100,000 worth of commercial kitchen equipment required by today's laws. Or someone who wants to braid hair, but has to attend cosmetology school to learn to cut hair. Or someone that wants to work in software, but can't afford to live in the #1 city for it because NIMBYs have made it illegal to build new housing for decades. So you are against a system where the fairly-well-off face minor inconveniences, but people starving on the streets is a-okay? And, yes I agree that there are many stupid regulations that should be eliminated or at least reviewed, but most of these are not major issues, and many regulations are very valuable.
  - maxharris 11y ago
    Mental illness is different because in many cases, the people in question are do not possess the faculties required to live normally, decently, or (in rare cases, peacefully) in society. They often end up in jail. A proud person's only choice here is institutionalization of some sort. The alternative is the status quo: the able suffer injuries to their own rights, the mentally ill suffer indignities they had no hand in creating, and the able end up paying just as much to keep them in jail anyway. In a sense, I think the reason someone is poor is more important than the fact that they're poor at some given moment in time. I believe that a just system concerns itself with making it possible for those who desire more wealth and are able to earn it to do so, no matter what their present level of wealth is. For the remaining handful of people that don't fit into that category (and don't suffer from a grave mental illness)? Hey, no one is stopping you from helping them.

maxharris 11y ago

You act as if I am responsible for creating those problems. Did I tell the single mother to have kids? No! (In fact, I've given money recently to Planned Parenthood to preserve her right to choose a better life for herself.) Half of people you label as "homeless" are in that state because of severe mental illnesses. Did I have _anything_ to do with causing anyone's schizophrenia? No! (In fact, I'm a tireless advocate for reforms to our mental health laws that will returns hundreds of thousands of people back to a state of safety and dignity.) What about people that are "homeless" due to domestic violence, or bad luck? Nope, I didn't abuse anyone, and I've never caused anyone to have bad luck. What I am against is a system where people that want to make a better life for themselves are blocked by unjust regulations. Think of someone whose passion is cooking, wants to start a new restaurant, but can't afford to buy $100,000 worth of commercial kitchen equipment required by today's laws. Or someone who wants to braid hair, but has to attend cosmetology school to learn to cut hair. Or someone that wants to work in software, but can't afford to live in the #1 city for it because NIMBYs have made it illegal to build new housing for decades. All you want is to pile on more rules and schemes that already hold back people that want to make something more of their lives.

bubtubgub 11y ago
> You act as if I am responsible for creating those problems. You live in a (somewhat) democratic system, you pay taxes and vote. Yes, you absolutely share responsibility. > Half of people you label as "homeless" are in that state because of severe mental illnesses. Did I have _anything_ to do with causing anyone's schizophrenia? No! But here you are speaking against measures that could help them because it might cost you a little money. > What about people that are "homeless" due to domestic violence, or bad luck? Nope, I didn't abuse anyone, and I've never caused anyone to have bad luck. Again, raising your hands and saying 'I had nothing to do with this problem, just let me ignore it.' is just disgusting, yes you weren't directly involved in these events, but don't fellow humans deserve compassion and empathy? > What I am against is a system where people that want to make a better life for themselves are blocked by unjust regulations. Think of someone whose passion is cooking, wants to start a new restaurant, but can't afford to buy $100,000 worth of commercial kitchen equipment required by today's laws. Or someone who wants to braid hair, but has to attend cosmetology school to learn to cut hair. Or someone that wants to work in software, but can't afford to live in the #1 city for it because NIMBYs have made it illegal to build new housing for decades. So you are against a system where the fairly-well-off face minor inconveniences, but people starving on the streets is a-okay? And, yes I agree that there are many stupid regulations that should be eliminated or at least reviewed, but most of these are not major issues, and many regulations are very valuable.
- maxharris 11y ago
  Mental illness is different because in many cases, the people in question are do not possess the faculties required to live normally, decently, or (in rare cases, peacefully) in society. They often end up in jail. A proud person's only choice here is institutionalization of some sort. The alternative is the status quo: the able suffer injuries to their own rights, the mentally ill suffer indignities they had no hand in creating, and the able end up paying just as much to keep them in jail anyway. In a sense, I think the reason someone is poor is more important than the fact that they're poor at some given moment in time. I believe that a just system concerns itself with making it possible for those who desire more wealth and are able to earn it to do so, no matter what their present level of wealth is. For the remaining handful of people that don't fit into that category (and don't suffer from a grave mental illness)? Hey, no one is stopping you from helping them.