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Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

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Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#291

Post by sdinsn »

jakelazaroff wrote: post #108
dsabanin wrote: post #86

What's up with the critical comments in here? How many of the judgemental and jaded posters here donated anything close to this to a charitable cause? Good deeds must be applauded, not shamed for not being better. Especially if the definition of "better" is made up randomly on the spot.

No one's shaming him for not doing something better. They're shaming him for having a direct role in creating the problem this charity is supposed to resolve.

Let's not pretend that homelessness has nothing to do with addiction and mental health. Stop avoiding the real issues- it's harmful when everyone pins Washington's problems all on Bezos.

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#292

Post by tejaswiy »

throwaway2048 wrote: post #141
tejaswiy wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So you'd rather have him hoard his wealth and do nothing? Or somehow handicap Amazon so it doesn't compete? Your argument doesn't really hold up.

2 billion dollars is a drop in the bucket compared to what he has extracted.

You didn't really answer the question.

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#293

Post by jakelazaroff »

corysama wrote: post #263
lev99 wrote: post #148

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Increasing home prices in Seattle, where the median rent is $2,400 [0]. By bringing in people from out of state with high salaries Amazon is making the housing market in Seattle much more expensive as more people compete for a mostly static stock of housing. Zoning laws, mandatory parking, improved public transportation, affordable housing regulations, and new development could all improve the current situation so lo…

:/ The math you are presenting is “One family gets a large raise. Another gets a slightly harder time finding affordable housing”. Multiply that by a large number and you get a large number of families cannot find affordable housing. But, a similar number got large raises. It’s not a universal win, but it’s still a net win. It’s not even a horribly skewed distribution. If I could make a genie wish, it would be that t…

How is increasing inequality a net win? The situation you've presented is even somewhat zero-sum, i.e. the first family's gain comes at the expense of the second. That's exactly what we should be trying to prevent.

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#294

Post by smileysteve »

lev99 wrote: post #148
NeonVice wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How is Amazon creating more homeless people?

Increasing home prices in Seattle, where the median rent is $2,400 [0]. By bringing in people from out of state with high salaries Amazon is making the housing market in Seattle much more expensive as more people compete for a mostly static stock of housing. Zoning laws, mandatory parking, improved public transportation, affordable housing regulations, and new development could all improve the current situation so lo…

> Zoning laws, mandatory parking, improved public transportation, affordable housing regulations, and new development could all improve the current situation so local and state governments play a role

Wow! "Play a role" has an amazing undertone here; It's Amazon's fault for offering good salaries in Seattle; a better company would offer fewer jobs, at lower salaries, spread out (oh that's what's happening at the warehouses).

Local and State Governments (and the people they represent who are profiting from real estate in San Francisco and Seattle) should not be the distant second you're pointing at here!

Indeed, Amazon HQ2 is considered by many cities to be a giant opportunity for economic growth.

And this is to ignore that Amazon Seattle is located where a previously blighted community was.

Nay, I say, I've considered Seattle as having a higher cost of living since 'You've Got Mail' came out.

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#295

Post by jasaloo »

ithilglin909 wrote: post #158

This isn’t popular, but I’d challenge anyone who thinks homelessness in Seattle isn’t primarily an addiction and mental illness problem to go spend a few afternoons in areas with significant homeless populations (3rd Ave in Pioneer Square is a great place, if you need a suggestion). It’s not that affordable housing isn’t a problem in Seattle. I know people who couldn’t live on their own in Seattle anymore due to rent…

Right. And famine is just a location issue.

the 1980s called, bro-- it wants its shoddy Neoliberal think tank talking points back.

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#296

Post by jakelazaroff »

sdinsn wrote: post #291
jakelazaroff wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No one's shaming him for not doing something better. They're shaming him for having a direct role in creating the problem this charity is supposed to resolve.

Let's not pretend that homelessness has nothing to do with addiction and mental health. Stop avoiding the real issues- it's harmful when everyone pins Washington's problems all on Bezos.

Who's pretending that? I said Bezos and Amazon play a direct role in creating poverty and homelessness, not that they alone are culpable; obviously there are many factors. Let's also not pretend that homelessness has nothing to do with our economy and political systems.

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#297

Post by village-idiot »

fjsolwmv wrote: post #209
softawre wrote: post #201

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed. See also, on reddit: /r/almosthomeless /r/homeless even subs like /r/povertyfinance contain some people that live in their car at times.

Living in a car is homeless.

Homeless, but not shelterless. Worse than apartment, better than a tent.

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#298

Post by rezashirazian »

kangax wrote: post #285
ageitgey wrote: post #222

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed 100%. I live in California which has the same massive homelessness issues as Seattle. I also travel to Europe frequently and have noticed the same stark contrast where they seem to do much better at this. To try to understand why homelessness feels so much worse an California than in Europe, I did some very basic research (which I also posted on a similar thread once before). The numbers are shocking: San Fran…

I'm wondering why homelessness is not as large in NYC? The prices here are as high as in SF. Is it due to the slower rate of a price increase? Colder weather?

Places that get cold usually have less homelessness.

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#299

Post by village-idiot »

zouhair wrote: post #210
asdkhadsj wrote: post #179

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is really frustrating when a man makes that much and does so little. Like, I don't think/know if it should be law. I'm not talking about being Robinhood with our taxes or whatever. I don't know any of that. All I know is it's frustrating . Look at all the good Gates is working towards. There's just so much room for people with that much wealth to strive for. Honestly.. I think what's most frustrating is I can't ev…

That's the charity of Kings. The French king gave a lot to charity with one hand and created a lot more misery with the other. This is just the return of the times of charity.

I’ve maintained again and again, the current trajectory of American business and finance looks a lot less like capitalism and a lot more like feudalism.

Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless

#300

Post by passivepinetree »

kangax wrote: post #285
ageitgey wrote: post #222

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed 100%. I live in California which has the same massive homelessness issues as Seattle. I also travel to Europe frequently and have noticed the same stark contrast where they seem to do much better at this. To try to understand why homelessness feels so much worse an California than in Europe, I did some very basic research (which I also posted on a similar thread once before). The numbers are shocking: San Fran…

I'm wondering why homelessness is not as large in NYC? The prices here are as high as in SF. Is it due to the slower rate of a price increase? Colder weather?

NYC has a homeless problem that's actually worse than San Francisco [0]: Their homeless population in 2017 was upwards of 76,000 people.

Where are you getting the information that New York's problem isn't as bad?

[0]: https://www.wnyc.org/story/more-homeless-people-live-new-yor...

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