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Woman sues L.A. after being struck by car on a street where tents block sidewalk

latimes.com

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Re: Woman sues L.A. after being struck by car on a street where tents block sidewalk

#41

Post by kazinator »

dyingkneepad wrote: post #23

As a non-American person living in the US, I fail to understand one thing about its society. When I walk around town I see tons and tons of places advertising jobs, for simple stuff like kitchen, moving stuff around, etc. I even recently saw a store with a "talk to the manager and start working right now" sign. And then I walk around the streets and see all these homeless. It seems like a paradox to me, but I am obvi…

One factor is that employers don't want some scruffy, stinking homeless person anywhere near their business.

Basically, it's a problem of hygiene and grooming. To apply for just about any job, a given homeless person would have to take several baths, get a haircut, shave, and get into clean clothes.

Somehow, that is an insoluble problem.

Secondly, some of these jobs pay so shitty that if you've figured out how to live homeless, they are not worth your time. Your life won't be any better.

Can you imagine the hassle? Okay, now you have a job and have to come clean there everyday, and stay there for hours. Where do you clean up if you don't have a home? Who will guard your unsecured belongings while you are away from them? Suppose you get a home: oops, there goes all the pay. So now you live in some shitty home that sucks up most of your pay just so you have a place to take a shower to go to your shitty job. Man things were so much better with no boss, no landlord, under the fresh, open sky! The streets are calling your name, ...

Re: Woman sues L.A. after being struck by car on a street where tents block sidewalk

#42

Post by Spivak »

dyingkneepad wrote: post #23

As a non-American person living in the US, I fail to understand one thing about its society. When I walk around town I see tons and tons of places advertising jobs, for simple stuff like kitchen, moving stuff around, etc. I even recently saw a store with a "talk to the manager and start working right now" sign. And then I walk around the streets and see all these homeless. It seems like a paradox to me, but I am obvi…

Just because you’re homeless doesn’t mean you don’t also have a job. There’s a long way from first paycheck to actually getting an apartment.

Employers will never post it publicly but basically everywhere screens for the homeless.

Landlords also screen for the homeless so even if you have money you’ll have trouble finding a place.

Re: Woman sues L.A. after being struck by car on a street where tents block sidewalk

#43

Post by Forge36 »

dyingkneepad wrote: post #23

As a non-American person living in the US, I fail to understand one thing about its society. When I walk around town I see tons and tons of places advertising jobs, for simple stuff like kitchen, moving stuff around, etc. I even recently saw a store with a "talk to the manager and start working right now" sign. And then I walk around the streets and see all these homeless. It seems like a paradox to me, but I am obvi…

Many jobs require an address. Without a mailing address getting the job becomes MUCH harder.

Re: Woman sues L.A. after being struck by car on a street where tents block sidewalk

#44

Post by dhbanes »

encryptluks2 wrote: post #19

With millions facing eviction, it is really sad that many people still see the homeless as needing drug counseling to fix their homelessness. It couldn't be that the cost of housing has skyrocketed and now in many places it costs upwards of $1500 a month for rent in a small apartment and the punishment for losing a job and falling behind on debt is having to pay even more for rent or just not being able to have a saf…

Come to LA and talk to the people who live in these encampments. It will become very obvious to you that these aren't people who were living in a 2 bedroom apartment a couple months ago and just couldn't swing the rent.

Re: Woman sues L.A. after being struck by car on a street where tents block sidewalk

#45

Post by jeffbee »

dyingkneepad wrote: post #23

As a non-American person living in the US, I fail to understand one thing about its society. When I walk around town I see tons and tons of places advertising jobs, for simple stuff like kitchen, moving stuff around, etc. I even recently saw a store with a "talk to the manager and start working right now" sign. And then I walk around the streets and see all these homeless. It seems like a paradox to me, but I am obvi…

The proximate cause of homelessness in California is lack of housing. The majority of homeless, when surveyed, say they were employed at the time they most recently became homeless. The main cause of homelessness is cost of housing.

Re: Woman sues L.A. after being struck by car on a street where tents block sidewalk

#46

Post by Fellshard »

1270018080 wrote: post #26

Many Californians are struggling with the ultimate internal battle: Posturing about caring for the homeless while doing everything in their power to prevent housing from getting built. Because density "hurts the vibe of the neighborhood." Outsiders make fun of California for being overly progressive, but it's entirely surface level. Most are conservative beyond performative actions.

The issue isn't solely lack of housing.

Re: Woman sues L.A. after being struck by car on a street where tents block sidewalk

#47

Post by aeternum »

encryptluks2 wrote: post #19

With millions facing eviction, it is really sad that many people still see the homeless as needing drug counseling to fix their homelessness. It couldn't be that the cost of housing has skyrocketed and now in many places it costs upwards of $1500 a month for rent in a small apartment and the punishment for losing a job and falling behind on debt is having to pay even more for rent or just not being able to have a saf…

It's likely there is not just a single factor. Drugs, evictions, mental illness, housing supply are all factors. Humans love to simplify to fit a narrative but that is rarely the case in practice.

Re: Woman sues L.A. after being struck by car on a street where tents block sidewalk

#48

Post by Sebguer »

tigertigerbb wrote: post #34
dyingkneepad wrote: post #23

As a non-American person living in the US, I fail to understand one thing about its society. When I walk around town I see tons and tons of places advertising jobs, for simple stuff like kitchen, moving stuff around, etc. I even recently saw a store with a "talk to the manager and start working right now" sign. And then I walk around the streets and see all these homeless. It seems like a paradox to me, but I am obvi…

>Anybody would please be able to point me at what I'm missing? I strongly suspect that this is absolutely the wrong place to ask. I do remember a time without homeless people however.

There were millions of unhoused during the great depression, and homelessness didn't magically disappear after that (and obviously existed before it, too), so I have no idea how you could possibly remember a 'time without homeless people'.

What you probably mean is a time when they were brutally beaten and forced to live in even worse conditions than now, which based on your other comment about "having to be mean to some of them" is probably the system working as you'd like.

Re: Woman sues L.A. after being struck by car on a street where tents block sidewalk

#49

Post by vondur »

dyingkneepad wrote: post #23

As a non-American person living in the US, I fail to understand one thing about its society. When I walk around town I see tons and tons of places advertising jobs, for simple stuff like kitchen, moving stuff around, etc. I even recently saw a store with a "talk to the manager and start working right now" sign. And then I walk around the streets and see all these homeless. It seems like a paradox to me, but I am obvi…

Most of these people are mentally ill, in addition to most likely being addicted to drugs. They can probably never hold down a steady job.

Re: Woman sues L.A. after being struck by car on a street where tents block sidewalk

#50

Post by gruez »

pineconewarrior wrote: post #36
dyingkneepad wrote: post #23

As a non-American person living in the US, I fail to understand one thing about its society. When I walk around town I see tons and tons of places advertising jobs, for simple stuff like kitchen, moving stuff around, etc. I even recently saw a store with a "talk to the manager and start working right now" sign. And then I walk around the streets and see all these homeless. It seems like a paradox to me, but I am obvi…

In the US, that job may not offer the person any net quality-of-life improvements. Flipping that burger for 30 hours a week does not give them enough money to find housing. Now they're still broke but they're also tired, smelly, and angry.

>Flipping that burger for 30 hours a week does not give them enough money to find housing. Now they're still broke but they're also tired, smelly, and angry.

But now they still have $420 (based on CA's minimum wage of $14) more in their pocket?

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