4 ms·

Yeah, every homeless person I have ever talked to has had some bullshit story. Its almost as if the impulse to spew bullshit is the primary cause of homelessn

Yeah, every homeless person I have ever talked to has had some bullshit story. Its almost as if the impulse to spew bullshit is the primary cause of homelessness. Or some inevitable consequence of most mental health problems. Its so reliable that it makes me question the idea that housing costs are the primary cause of homelessness, but perhaps that just pushes more people on the mental margins over the edge.

Gh0stRAT 4y ago
Humans are narrative creatures. We literally think in stories, so it's not surprising to me that homeless people have a sad story that explains their homelessness. We all tell ourselves stories (whether true or not) to process our actions and their consequences. For people who have been victimized, they sometimes become a slave to the story they tell themselves which can lead to learned helplessness.
prawn 4y ago
My hunch is that talking about your problem can be easier than dealing with it. And people, even capable working homeowners develop a serious expertise in analysing what they should but don't do. I often notice myself doing it.
bambam3000 4y ago
This is a pretty mean-spirited comment, I don't even know where to start. Homeless people are just people like you and me. If you'd been born in their shoes, with their inherited genetic make-up, raised by their parents, surrounded by their friends, living their life experiences etc you'd very possibly be homeless too and 'spewing bullshit' as you put it
- gilmore606 4y ago
  Sure, and if I'd been born with Ted Bundy's genetic makeup and lived his life, I'd be Ted Bundy. This isn't the slam dunk you seem to think it is.
- quacked 4y ago
  I don't know that I agree that "the primary cause of homelessness is the tendency to spew bullshit", I but I definitely don't agree with the implication of the assertion "homeless people are just people like you and me". It's true that they're homo sapiens, but this cuts both ways--Donald Trump is just a person like you or me, so is Vladimir Putin, and yet I don't necessarily feel sympathy for either. At some point it behooves us to order ourselves around a set of behaviors or beliefs, and actually begin to make value judgements on what people do, or how they choose to behave. (This includes mental illness and addiction--even if we mentally those people as being in the grip of something beyond themselves, if a peaceful, non-grifting society is desired someone needs to make choices about how to restrict their freedom.)

Gh0stRAT 4y ago

Humans are narrative creatures. We literally think in stories, so it's not surprising to me that homeless people have a sad story that explains their homelessness. We all tell ourselves stories (whether true or not) to process our actions and their consequences. For people who have been victimized, they sometimes become a slave to the story they tell themselves which can lead to learned helplessness.

prawn 4y ago

My hunch is that talking about your problem can be easier than dealing with it. And people, even capable working homeowners develop a serious expertise in analysing what they should but don't do. I often notice myself doing it.

bambam3000 4y ago

This is a pretty mean-spirited comment, I don't even know where to start. Homeless people are just people like you and me. If you'd been born in their shoes, with their inherited genetic make-up, raised by their parents, surrounded by their friends, living their life experiences etc you'd very possibly be homeless too and 'spewing bullshit' as you put it

gilmore606 4y ago
Sure, and if I'd been born with Ted Bundy's genetic makeup and lived his life, I'd be Ted Bundy. This isn't the slam dunk you seem to think it is.
quacked 4y ago
I don't know that I agree that "the primary cause of homelessness is the tendency to spew bullshit", I but I definitely don't agree with the implication of the assertion "homeless people are just people like you and me". It's true that they're homo sapiens, but this cuts both ways--Donald Trump is just a person like you or me, so is Vladimir Putin, and yet I don't necessarily feel sympathy for either. At some point it behooves us to order ourselves around a set of behaviors or beliefs, and actually begin to make value judgements on what people do, or how they choose to behave. (This includes mental illness and addiction--even if we mentally those people as being in the grip of something beyond themselves, if a peaceful, non-grifting society is desired someone needs to make choices about how to restrict their freedom.)