Yep, the reality is the cities subsidise the suburban sprawl, and allow it to exist. Suburbs aren't self-sustaining. There's isn't enough property tax or business tax to pay for their infrastructure (in most cases - unusually rich suburbs may be the exception), so the only option for the city is to continue growing the suburban area so that they can get developers and property tax to pay for the new road or new school that they need to support it.
You really should look into getting a bicycle. I have no problem transporting all kinds of stuff on a bicycle. Actually, transporting long items is much easier. If push comes to shove you can use a bracket or a trailer. Last summer I was in Biarittz and saw many people using a bracket to carry their surf board along the side of their bike or moped.
Use an electric bike and you don't have to peddle that hard. With the right outfit, cold weather and rain aren't an issue; you'll be warm. Wool is a key ingredient. I'm cycling year round nowadays. When the road is icy, I put ty-raps on the rear tire for extra grip. Works excellent.
- The risk of being mugged or harassed is really not that significant (at least for me, being a 6 foot tall white guy). It never happened to me, and I didn't exactly live in the posh area of town.
- The risk of being mugged or harassed is really not that significant (at least for me, being a 6 foot tall white guy). It never happened to me, and I didn't exactly live in the posh area of town.
Realize that this is highly location dependent. A friend of mine grew up in Chicago and has been robbed at gunpoint twice. Seattle where I work is much safer but still not great, I have been hassled by vagrants on many occasions, some of them can be really aggressive and I've seen people openly smoking crack out of a glass pipe multiple times and this is all in broad daylight. A couple years ago there were three fatal shootings within a block of my office and it's in a relatively nice part of town. There are boarded up windows all over the place with some businesses being hit 5-6 times a year. Crime has increased dramatically over the past 2 years.
Longer term countries will have to realise that if you want to avoid the issues like this you need to fund proper social services because the rot from these people causing damage and economic depression is far greater than fixing the problem. I seem to recall in Finland they worked out that giving everyone homeless an apartment was cheaper than having the police, courts, hospitals deal with the consequences of homelessness. But it is not an easy problem to solve, and I don't think there is an easy answer that doesn't involve spending billions of dollars. Hardly politically popular.
just allowing vagrants to live on the streets and get high, making a living by stealing whatever they please from those around them
Quotejust allowing vagrants to live on the streets and get high, making a living by stealing whatever they please from those around them
How do you stop them?
How do you stop them?
Quotejust allowing vagrants to live on the streets and get high, making a living by stealing whatever they please from those around them
How do you stop them?
A lot of the issues I think with homelessness come from assuming these people want the life they are in. Maybe a small percentage do, but the vast majority are just ill, and with the right care and compassion they could be much better off, and that would be an ultimate benefit to society.
And then there are lots of uninhabited islands. Drop them off with all the tools they need to survive or kill themselves off, whichever comes first.
One word; Jail. Then rehabilitation but if they continue to commit crimes, then jail again but for an increasing amount of time. Eventually they either drop their drug habits and the associated crimes, or they go to jail for a very long time. Yes, jail time is expense for the taxpayers but far cheaper then the thefts, robberies, assaults and MURDERS and the many other problems that the druggies and the drug dealers commit.
I can see that you've never talked to many homeless people! I have. And if you ask many of them will tell you flat out that they live that way by choice. They prefer not to have a 9 to 5 job, or the headaches of renting or owning a home or other obligations. And to tell the truth, the safety net in the US is SO GOOD that they are able to live freely on the margins of conventional society. Sure, there are some people that have fallen on hard times and lost their homes, but how many people can you point to and honestly tell me that they would not have somewhere to go if that happened to them? I mean NO friends, NO family, NO church, NO public shelter or anywhere else.
"Homelessness" (choke, choke) becomes an ever increasing lifestyle-choice as societies become wealthier and people with money are more and more generous and are willing to give it to others; many of which would rather live on handouts than work for a living.
Have you ever talked to someone that has had the catalytic converter stolen from their car and asked them how much that cost them? Anywhere from $2,000 to nearly $10,000! That is just the repair costs and doesn't include their lost wages, rental car expenses or anything else. That is the costs for one single type crime! And just that single type crime is committed tens of thousands of time PER YEAR in the US city (population about 1 1/2 M) that I live in.
It's no coincidence that the countries with better social safety nets, such as the Nordic countries, have lower rates of criminality and homelessness.
The difference is that the STATE pays for ALL of their care while they are in jail
One word; Jail. Then rehabilitation but if they continue to commit crimes, then jail again but for an increasing amount of time. Eventually they either drop their drug habits and the associated crimes, or they go to jail for a very long time. Yes, jail time is expense for the taxpayers but far cheaper then the thefts, robberies, assaults and MURDERS and the many other problems that the druggies and the drug dealers commit.Is it? The average vagrant in, say, Philly, spends so much time stoned or drunk out of their mind that they can't do any more damage than just existing.
The cost of processing and jailing hundreds of thousands of people is utterly impractical, at a minimum of $30,000 per year.
And, don't forget the US already has the largest incarcerated population of any developed nation. About 1% of all citizens are in jail. How is that working out for decriminalising society?
I've no problem with convicting actual criminals, but it's definitely not going to solve the problem with mass homelessness.
QuoteThe difference is that the STATE pays for ALL of their care while they are in jail
I wonder where the state gets its funds from.
QuoteThe difference is that the STATE pays for ALL of their care while they are in jailI wonder where the state gets its funds from.
My point was that we know exactly what it costs to keep someone in person but I'm betting that all of the hidden costs to society from NOT keeping them in prison is much, much greater and are paid in many, many incalculable ways.
It requires spending money, but if you actually can fix these people and they go back into the workforce, that's a huge benefit to society as they pay taxes now.