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Why are there so many crazy bums on San Francisco streets?

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Re: Why are there so many crazy bums on San Francisco streets?

#31

Post by alan_cx »

kevingadd wrote: post #11
ams6110 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why did you let your mom live on the streets?

A fair question, I suppose, but before judging too harshly it's worth remembering that many people do not want to be helped.

If we are getting deeply and uncomfortably honest, some people simply don't like their parents, and dont want anything to do with them. Not all parents are particularly great to their kids, to greater or lesser extents.

In no way am I suggesting this is the case with the example bravely given.

Re: Why are there so many crazy bums on San Francisco streets?

#32

Post by acjohnson55 »

pstuart wrote: post #5

My mother was one of those "crazy bums". She spent the last 3 years of her life on the streets there. She lived in the East Bay before, so when she finally lost it it was natural to migrate to the nearest large city where she could "live in peace" on the streets. I think a key problem is not just that the mental institutions are closed, but that it's now impossible to detain them unless they are an immediate threat t…

That must have been an extremely painful situation. Sincere thanks for sharing your story and some real-world perspective that's sometimes lacking in policy discussions here.

Re: Why are there so many crazy bums on San Francisco streets?

#33

Post by narrator »

San Francisco native here. We have homeless in San Francisco for the same reason that Burning Man is in the Black Rock desert and we have the Folsom Street Fair. We want to make it a little uncomfortable for the fussy intolerant people who tend to show up in this great city on a regular basis. I'm kidding, but only sort of. :)

Re: Why are there so many crazy bums on San Francisco streets?

#34

Post by clarkm »

jonnathanson wrote: post #19

California accounts for nearly a quarter of the entire homeless population in the United States [1], largely due to its climate, its support programs, and its dense network of municipal services and population centers. Approximately 14% of all homeless in the US are military veterans, many of whom suffer from PTSD and were turned out of VA clinics in the 1970s and 1980s due to budget cutbacks. The article is correct…

Considering that veterans make up 8.9% of all US adults [1] and that both veterans and homeless people are overwhelmingly male, 14% doesn't sound very high. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if veterans were actually underrepresented in the homeless population as compared to the general population with similar demographics.

[1] http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/...

Re: Why are there so many crazy bums on San Francisco streets?

#35

Post by sigstoat »

justin66 wrote: post #12
ams6110 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why did you let your mom live on the streets?

I'm pretty sure you missed the "impossible to detain" line in his post, or misunderstood it. There is not necessarily a way to commit a mentally ill person in CA if they're not a threat to themselves or others.

i think you interpreted the question in the least favorable light.

i read it as "why didn't you take care of her yourself?" not "why didn't you call for big burly men to stuff her in a box?"

Re: Why are there so many crazy bums on San Francisco streets?

#36

Post by baddox »

jonnathanson wrote: post #19

California accounts for nearly a quarter of the entire homeless population in the United States [1], largely due to its climate, its support programs, and its dense network of municipal services and population centers. Approximately 14% of all homeless in the US are military veterans, many of whom suffer from PTSD and were turned out of VA clinics in the 1970s and 1980s due to budget cutbacks. The article is correct…

> California accounts for nearly a quarter of the entire homeless population in the United States

And, just for reference, 12% of the US population lives in California.

Re: Why are there so many crazy bums on San Francisco streets?

#37

Post by jimgardener »

3 decades back ,in the state of Kerala in India,the govt built houses for the poor, under a scheme called Laksham Veedu(hundred thousand houses).Now, most of these houses are in a pathetic state due to lack of repair.Here is what the govt agency website says http://www.kshb.kerala.gov.in/index.php?option=com_content&v...

Re: Why are there so many crazy bums on San Francisco streets?

#39

Post by collyw »

baddox wrote: post #36
jonnathanson wrote: post #19

California accounts for nearly a quarter of the entire homeless population in the United States [1], largely due to its climate, its support programs, and its dense network of municipal services and population centers. Approximately 14% of all homeless in the US are military veterans, many of whom suffer from PTSD and were turned out of VA clinics in the 1970s and 1980s due to budget cutbacks. The article is correct…

> California accounts for nearly a quarter of the entire homeless population in the United States And, just for reference, 12% of the US population lives in California.

So around double what you would expect.

Re: Why are there so many crazy bums on San Francisco streets?

#40

Post by collyw »

kevingadd wrote: post #11
ams6110 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why did you let your mom live on the streets?

A fair question, I suppose, but before judging too harshly it's worth remembering that many people do not want to be helped.

I heard a good few years ago that Denmark had 16 homeless people. 16.

I think these are probably the few that don't want to be helped. "Many don't want to be helped" is probably an overstatement.

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