Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

We can reduce homelessness if we follow the science on what works

newscientist.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

61–70 of 110 posts

Re: We can reduce homelessness if we follow the science on what works

#61

Post by [deleted] »

chimeracoder wrote: post #32
pessimizer wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Socialism becomes a lot more palatable to majority populations as long as minority populations are kept to a minimum. With a reasonable expectation that the recipients of help look like you, helping starts to seem more like an obligation than an imposition.

> Socialism becomes a lot more palatable to majority populations as long as minority populations are kept to a minimum. You're getting downvoted, but you're broadly correct. There's a lot of research showing how more homogeneously white populations are more likely to support leftist or socialist policies (policies, not affiliation) than people of the same demographics who live in more heterogeneous places.

[deleted]

Re: We can reduce homelessness if we follow the science on what works

#62

Post by LarryMullins »

DantesKite wrote: post #50

Serious question: Why didn't this approach work in San Francisco? https://www.city-journal.org/san-franciscos-housing-first-ni...

Local politicians are in bed with developers. The scheme is politicians giving public money to developers (their family/friends) for housing, which the tenants promptly destroy, justifying the acquisition of new properties. The politicians are incentivized to provide inadequate services/screening to ensure that the housing is destroyed. The whole thing is designed to fail because it's a grift.

Re: We can reduce homelessness if we follow the science on what works

#63

Post by bryan_w »

SebaSeba wrote: post #36

Some support for the idea: "Finland is the only EU country where homelessness is falling. Its secret? Giving people homes as soon as they need them – unconditionally" https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2019/jun/03/its-a-miracle...

So we ship all the homeless to Finland and that solves the issue. I'm sure we could do that for the same amount we spend on homeless programs today.

Re: We can reduce homelessness if we follow the science on what works

#64

Post by standardUser »

LarryMullins wrote: post #35
trynewideas wrote: post #29

Portland, cited in the article, announced it's beginning yet another sweep of homeless encampments yesterday. At the press conference announcing it, the mayor - who's been ordering sweeps his entire tenure - admits they don't and haven't ever helped the people being swept. He's also still pushing his plan to establish city-run outdoor camps for homeless people, and to criminalize rejecting those city-run camps when s…

From a NIMBY perspective, a city-run homeless camp sounds even worse than a normal homeless camp. At least in the latter case you can hope that the city will get rid of the camp soon, but if the camp is made by the city itself then what hope can you have? So I think this plan of his will never be implemented. Politically, talking about it makes more sense than actually implementing it.

The difference is that in practice, impromptu camps are often set up in city centers and dense residential neighborhoods. Officially sanctioned sites can be farther removed from those areas.

Re: We can reduce homelessness if we follow the science on what works

#65

Post by orangecat »

bradlys wrote: post #38

Homelessness increasing while the cost of housing has skyrocketed. Solution is more affordable housing? No, you don’t say. It’ll never happen though. We look at housing as an investment from a cultural perspective in the USA. This has been a brilliant plan by the capitalist landlords to further concentrate their holdings and become more fiendishly rich. But hey - your house goes up in value even though your kids will…

This has been a brilliant plan by the capitalist landlords to further concentrate their holdings and become more fiendishly rich.

It's not the capitalist landlords pointing guns at people who are trying to build more housing.

But your point is basically right. Both parties and a large majority of the public believe that housing should be "a good investment", which is equivalent to the position that it should become increasingly unaffordable for the average person.

Re: We can reduce homelessness if we follow the science on what works

#66

Post by lotsoweiners »

kQq9oHeAz6wLLS wrote: post #42
LarryMullins wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I guarantee I could produce a program that would be acceptable to conservatives and provide free housing. That's trivial; prison. (Ignoring the part where prisons now charge prisoners rent...) Finding a solution everybody can agree on is much harder than finding a solution only one side or the other can agree with.

> That's trivial; prison. This comment proves you don't know your adversary, which is a dangerous situation to be in.

Care to elaborate?

Re: We can reduce homelessness if we follow the science on what works

#67

Post by LarryMullins »

Ancalagon wrote: post #46
LarryMullins wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From a NIMBY perspective, a city-run homeless camp sounds even worse than a normal homeless camp. At least in the latter case you can hope that the city will get rid of the camp soon, but if the camp is made by the city itself then what hope can you have? So I think this plan of his will never be implemented. Politically, talking about it makes more sense than actually implementing it.

Don't these permanent "homeless camps" already exist though? When I was in Portland last January I saw a large grouping of what I can only describe as very-tiny homes - essentially glorified shacks on rollers and stilts - which were obviously city-sanctioned homeless encampments next to a bypass.

The camps that last the longest seem to be the ones furthest from neighborhoods where rich people might complain about it. Near or under highways is a "good" place for the camps since highways are noisy/stinky and properties next to highways generally aren't very desirable. Homeless camps in nicer neighborhoods might last for a few weeks/months but seem a lot less permanent than those under highways.

Re: We can reduce homelessness if we follow the science on what works

#68

Post by rs999gti »

bryan_w wrote: post #63
SebaSeba wrote: post #36

Some support for the idea: "Finland is the only EU country where homelessness is falling. Its secret? Giving people homes as soon as they need them – unconditionally" https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2019/jun/03/its-a-miracle...

So we ship all the homeless to Finland and that solves the issue. I'm sure we could do that for the same amount we spend on homeless programs today.

Finland

is nice to the homeless

Finland-land-land

Super cool to the homeless

In the city

City of Helsinki

Lots of rich people giving change to the homeless

Re: We can reduce homelessness if we follow the science on what works

#69

Post by Schroedingersat »

ErikVandeWater wrote: post #41

I wish this article were more specific on what "housing first" means. My understanding (correct me if I'm wrong) is that homeless shelters across the country have empty beds, and that these are not considered housing. When the article describes an alternative of providing the homeless "housing," what does this housing look like? What aspects of housing are provided that are not generally provided at homeless shelters…

"Shelters" with no privacy, no ability to protect your belongings, predatory salvation army evangelicals, and lurking pimps are not homes.
Post reply on HN