> If we wanted [better upward mobility (out of homelessness)], we should've invested in low-income housing, and public transit infrastructure so that people cou

> If we wanted [better upward mobility (out of homelessness)], we should've invested in low-income housing, and public transit infrastructure so that people could live elsewhere, and commute. Also, healthcare for folks who struggle with mental health. I want to focus on the "If we wanted that," part. The "we" part is notable and problematic. I'll mention two senses here: * desire (measured by preference aggregation): what do "we" want, based on aggregating (somehow) individual preferences * action (collective action): what can we agree to do? My point is this: Just because _action_ hasn't happened does not mean that _desire_ is not there. There is big gap between the two. One recipe is: 1. define the group with the desire 2. find and organize them 3. identify the common preferences 4. accumulate political capital 5. wield the power I'm not a naive optimist; this is hard. But don't assume the _desire_ is not there! It takes effort to align a previously scattered group of people into something with cohesion and identity.