4 ms·

You've raised valid points and I agree. Do you have any recommendations for further reading/watching that gives us more insight?

by kowlo 6y ago

ahelwer 6y ago
I don't think there's really a single thing I read that led me to this. I'll list off life experiences that come to mind, though: (1) I guess it probably started off back in 2015 when I read about Utah's "Housing First" approach to ending homelessness which got quite a bit of national news coverage at the time[0]. (2) I started talking to some of the people experiencing homelessness who hung around the grocery stores I went to in Seattle, seeing them as a person and not an unsightly problem to be swept under a rug. Ask them what food they want then buy it for them sometime, you might get a good conversation out of it; if they're not up to talking, well, someone got a meal out of it at least - and they shouldn't really owe you anything. (3) Then one year I went on a business trip to Copenhagen, and saw their hybrid system of both privately-owned & socialized housing; went to a BBQ at a coworker's place at one of the socialized housing complexes, which was very nice. (4) I bought a condo myself, and cheered as the price went up on Zillow. Then was struck with the somehow extremely obvious yet little-noticed contradiction that house prices appreciating in value, which is more-or-less the driving thesis of investment the largest asset class in the world, is diametrically opposed to the goal of making housing affordable - as in, cost less & thus be worth less! (5) I met my current partner, who is a medical resident in combined internal medicine & psychiatry. Their patient population is almost all homeless. I heard many of their patients' stories and the misery they experience. (6) I started watching some urban planning videos by donoteat01 on youtube[1], who is an entertaining presenter that uses Cities: Skylines to illustrate common concepts. I especially liked their video on gentrification[2]. (6) Somehow I heard about the Tax Amazon movement in Seattle[3], which aims to put a payroll tax on workers at large corps & use the proceeds to fund the creation of public housing. I thought - that sounds great! Even though I work at a large tech corp myself, I'll participate. Speaking with people at the various planning meetings (who were almost all outside the bubble of friends-who-work-in-tech I had) was really educating and solidified my views on all this. Sorry that isn't a link, but more a story of how I arrived here. Hopefully it helps you in some way. [0] https://www.npr.org/2015/12/10/459100751/utah-reduced-chronic-homelessness-by-91-percent-heres-how https://www.npr.org/2015/12/10/459100751/utah-reduced-chroni... [1] https://www.youtube.com/user/donoteat01/videos https://www.youtube.com/user/donoteat01/videos [2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdeirDrinWk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdeirDrinWk [3] https://www.taxamazon.net/ https://www.taxamazon.net/
- Chris2048 6y ago
  Reading the Tax Amazon FAQ, it looks like the "payroll tax" is on large corps, not their workers. Is this incorrect?
  - ahelwer 6y ago
    Oh yes you're right, mistyped! Actually the current status of this initiative is that it was voted into law by city council, rather than as a ballot initiative. So exciting times ahead! https://council.seattle.gov/2020/07/07/a-historic-victory-of-our-tax-amazon-movement/ https://council.seattle.gov/2020/07/07/a-historic-victory-of...
thundergolfer 6y ago
“Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City” is fantastic, really. It was by far the most recommended book by guests on my favourite podcast and so I has high expectations, but it exceeded them. I’d also recommend “Down and Out in Paris and London” by George Orwell. It’s a travel-log where Orwell actually becomes a “tramp” in order to best document the experience of homelessness and to meet people experiencing homelessness. Orwell recognised the basic truth about homelessness almost a century ago, and unfortunately nothing really has changed.
- scott_s 6y ago
  Seconded on recommendation for "Evicted". Mathew Desmond provides a clear description of the interactions of racism, poverty and homelessness. He has both the stats and real stories of people he profiles. The book deeply affected how I think about those topics.

You've raised valid points and I agree. Do you have any recommendations for further reading/watching that gives us more insight?

by kowlo 6y ago

You've raised valid points and I agree. Do you have any recommendations for further reading/watching that gives us more insight?

ahelwer 6y ago

I don't think there's really a single thing I read that led me to this. I'll list off life experiences that come to mind, though: (1) I guess it probably started off back in 2015 when I read about Utah's "Housing First" approach to ending homelessness which got quite a bit of national news coverage at the time[0]. (2) I started talking to some of the people experiencing homelessness who hung around the grocery stores I went to in Seattle, seeing them as a person and not an unsightly problem to be swept under a rug. Ask them what food they want then buy it for them sometime, you might get a good conversation out of it; if they're not up to talking, well, someone got a meal out of it at least - and they shouldn't really owe you anything. (3) Then one year I went on a business trip to Copenhagen, and saw their hybrid system of both privately-owned & socialized housing; went to a BBQ at a coworker's place at one of the socialized housing complexes, which was very nice. (4) I bought a condo myself, and cheered as the price went up on Zillow. Then was struck with the somehow extremely obvious yet little-noticed contradiction that house prices appreciating in value, which is more-or-less the driving thesis of investment the largest asset class in the world, is diametrically opposed to the goal of making housing affordable - as in, cost less & thus be worth less! (5) I met my current partner, who is a medical resident in combined internal medicine & psychiatry. Their patient population is almost all homeless. I heard many of their patients' stories and the misery they experience. (6) I started watching some urban planning videos by donoteat01 on youtube[1], who is an entertaining presenter that uses Cities: Skylines to illustrate common concepts. I especially liked their video on gentrification[2]. (6) Somehow I heard about the Tax Amazon movement in Seattle[3], which aims to put a payroll tax on workers at large corps & use the proceeds to fund the creation of public housing. I thought - that sounds great! Even though I work at a large tech corp myself, I'll participate. Speaking with people at the various planning meetings (who were almost all outside the bubble of friends-who-work-in-tech I had) was really educating and solidified my views on all this. Sorry that isn't a link, but more a story of how I arrived here. Hopefully it helps you in some way. [0] https://www.npr.org/2015/12/10/459100751/utah-reduced-chronic-homelessness-by-91-percent-heres-how https://www.npr.org/2015/12/10/459100751/utah-reduced-chroni... [1] https://www.youtube.com/user/donoteat01/videos https://www.youtube.com/user/donoteat01/videos [2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdeirDrinWk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdeirDrinWk [3] https://www.taxamazon.net/ https://www.taxamazon.net/

Chris2048 6y ago
Reading the Tax Amazon FAQ, it looks like the "payroll tax" is on large corps, not their workers. Is this incorrect?
- ahelwer 6y ago
  Oh yes you're right, mistyped! Actually the current status of this initiative is that it was voted into law by city council, rather than as a ballot initiative. So exciting times ahead! https://council.seattle.gov/2020/07/07/a-historic-victory-of-our-tax-amazon-movement/ https://council.seattle.gov/2020/07/07/a-historic-victory-of...

thundergolfer 6y ago

“Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City” is fantastic, really. It was by far the most recommended book by guests on my favourite podcast and so I has high expectations, but it exceeded them. I’d also recommend “Down and Out in Paris and London” by George Orwell. It’s a travel-log where Orwell actually becomes a “tramp” in order to best document the experience of homelessness and to meet people experiencing homelessness. Orwell recognised the basic truth about homelessness almost a century ago, and unfortunately nothing really has changed.

scott_s 6y ago
Seconded on recommendation for "Evicted". Mathew Desmond provides a clear description of the interactions of racism, poverty and homelessness. He has both the stats and real stories of people he profiles. The book deeply affected how I think about those topics.