4 ms·

> No matter what I do, these people are allowed to exist where I live, but I don't consider them part of my community at all. this makes me sad to hear. who w

> No matter what I do, these people are allowed to exist where I live, but I don't consider them part of my community at all. this makes me sad to hear. who would disallow them to exist? and how would that disallowing happen? how would things change if you did consider them part of your community? maybe your interactions would be different if your attitude and energy changed?

ndiscussion 6y ago
In many cities, they are bused out to become someone else's problem. I'm not sure what the solution is, but many of these people are obviously extremely unhappy, and they show no sign of changing soon. If I viewed them as part of my community, it would probably be like pouring money into a black hole. Heroin tolerance goes up very quickly, and the associated costs go up just as quickly.
- sep_field 6y ago
  wow. these are human beings you are talking about, not animals. busing people out is incredibly dehumanizing, and is widely acknowledged as a violation of human rights. it destroys these peoples support networks and ability to receive aid. if you are unable to give them money you can at least acknowledge their common humanity and treat them as a person, and not a problem to be fixed. --edit-- HN is not letting me reply right now so to answer your question i'm putting it here: i live in the SF Bay Area, which is far more dense than Portland. I work with a lot of unhoused people. I volunteer to feed them, distribute blankets to them, and make an effort to let them see how people still care for them. Do some of them ramble incoherently? Sure, a few, but frankly, not much more than the average Fox news viewer.
  - ndiscussion 6y ago
    I don't support busing them out, and actually, I used to acknowledge them and treat them as humans. Eventually, it became a large time sink, and not a pleasant one (give a mouse a muffin). Out of curiosity, do you live in a large city? Try crossing the Burnside bridge in Portland, OR every day for months and get back to me.

ndiscussion 6y ago

In many cities, they are bused out to become someone else's problem. I'm not sure what the solution is, but many of these people are obviously extremely unhappy, and they show no sign of changing soon. If I viewed them as part of my community, it would probably be like pouring money into a black hole. Heroin tolerance goes up very quickly, and the associated costs go up just as quickly.

sep_field 6y ago
wow. these are human beings you are talking about, not animals. busing people out is incredibly dehumanizing, and is widely acknowledged as a violation of human rights. it destroys these peoples support networks and ability to receive aid. if you are unable to give them money you can at least acknowledge their common humanity and treat them as a person, and not a problem to be fixed. --edit-- HN is not letting me reply right now so to answer your question i'm putting it here: i live in the SF Bay Area, which is far more dense than Portland. I work with a lot of unhoused people. I volunteer to feed them, distribute blankets to them, and make an effort to let them see how people still care for them. Do some of them ramble incoherently? Sure, a few, but frankly, not much more than the average Fox news viewer.
- ndiscussion 6y ago
  I don't support busing them out, and actually, I used to acknowledge them and treat them as humans. Eventually, it became a large time sink, and not a pleasant one (give a mouse a muffin). Out of curiosity, do you live in a large city? Try crossing the Burnside bridge in Portland, OR every day for months and get back to me.