WHY PANDER TO HOMELESS WHO DO NOT WANT TO CHANGE

No matter how clever the signs may be, giving cash to homeless beggars is just plain stupid.  Truth be told, the same applies to non-profits giving endless amounts of outreach to drug addicts, alcoholics and lazy people who take whatever is offered without any desire to better their situation.

There are any number of places that feed the homeless.  Noble idea, but how many of these homeless are truly 'hungry?  Does 'hunger' apply to individuals who get 318.00 in food stamps?  EBT receivers who sell their food stamps to buy alcohol, drugs or tobacco products?  How many starving people does one really see in the food lines?

Many of the homeless receive government benefits.  Cash.  Every month.  Is one really homeless if one makes the choice to not pay rent and use the cash received for drugs, alcohol or tobacco?

There are any number of non-profits in Hawaii who receive public monies to service the homeless.  The same pool of homeless are provided an endless stream of outreach effort by one non-profit organization after another.  Yet the number of homeless in Waikiki, Chinatown and Hawaii continues to grow.

The 'bright young things' in non-profits now want the public to believe that you can give housing to homeless folks without requiring any effort on the part of the receiver of such housing to change the behaviours that might place them in homelessness in the first place.

Call me cruel but I find it very hard to feel any sympathy for drug addicts or alcoholics who do not want to stop drinking or abusing drugs.  Better to do outreach to folks who really want to change their condition.

If it be true that most of the homeless are folks with mental problems, would we not be better served in providing better programmes to deal with mental illness?

Homelessness is not unique to Hawaii.  The homeless are to be found everywhere.   Truth be told there will always be homelessness.  Having a clever slogan that promises to end homelessness in ten years is not going to change that and is an out and out lie.

Mind, there are lots of 'bright young things' toiling away at a non-profit that need to fill out a resume or just make a living, and the public monies to be had seem to never end.  Guilt is a good way to keep the monies flowing.