Why are homeless people homeless with all the government aid and shelters?

Question

The government is loaded! Why are people still eating out of trash cans? Drugs? Choice? This is America for Petes sake!

Answer 1

The people that are in the shelters are homeless. We have spent more money on the Iraq invasion and occupation than we have spent of welfare in the whole history of welfare put together. I just don't understand the priorities.

Answer 2

There are a great many reasons for homelessness. Some are actually homeless because they like it. Some are there because of financial and other troubles. Some people do avail themselves of homeless shelters and free food, from trash cans to government subsidies.
The government sadly, is not loaded, and in fact, the Federal government is quite deeply in debt. Most government programs are poorly funded and there is a bit of corruption along the way.
Government programs that do not work, place the blame on the intended recipients, calling them lazy, drug addicted and alcoholic, or simply, crazy. Feed the hungry, house the homeless and donate that old coat when it still has some use to it after you buy a new one.

Answer 3

i have to disagree with most of the answers.my family was once homeless. we don't do drugs or drink.there goes that big generalization made by most respondents.the park where our trailer(yeah i know ha ha trailer park trash another wrongful generalization. my father worked full time and after our house burned down we had to live in a trailer. not all people who do are trashy just some.)was in closed. we couldn't find anywhere in the three days we were given.also some people are afraid to go for help.some due to mantal illness(i.e. paranoia.). they feel if they go for help they'll be institutionalized.i have paranoia as well as other illnesses of the brain.as far as the government being loaded that to is a wrongful statement.the government does indeed have alot of cash but it also owes alot to other countries ( the national debt). so you see the government is actually quite broke. it spends too much money on other countries. i mean really what other country destroys another one in a war and then pays to rebuild it better than it was before?! as far as government aid .. we've gotten that before and it isn't always easy to get.if you are physically disabled but don't get disability( as i am i get a small va compensation check each month.) you are screwed because the government will say you are able to work even though you may not be physically able to.my doctor wrote me out of work years ago but that isn't good enough for the county.they want you to go to their doctors. who by the way will always say you can work. think about who pays them. why would they go against their bosses."don't bite the hand that feeds you". yes some people woulr rather stay on the streets than admit they need help. they fell ashamed and failures. that is just this former trailer park trash,paranoid scisophrenic's opinion on the matter. hope i didn't bore anyone or ramble on too much! yes some of them are druggies.

Answer 4

Because the government put them there--and keeps them homeless. 30 years ago we didn't have a homeless problem, except for small number of people--and every society has some.

But the government closed many institutions where people who had psychological problems were housed--with the promise of creating aresidences where these people could have a more normal life under proper supervidion. That promise was not kept.

In the 1970s also, urban renewal razed many decrepit areas--with the promise that, in addition to new businesses and office buildings, there would be housing to replace the old rooming houses and such that housed thousands of people. That promise of new housing was also not kept.

as for homeless shelters--those are mostly paid for by and run by private organizations. Not the government. The lack of compassion and the broken promises--mostly a feature of the so-called "moral values" neo-conservatives--but the Democrats have a good deal of guilt here as well.

Answer 5

I volunteer at a homeless shelter in a medium size city.

Most of the people who stay at the shelter I volunteer at are working poor or mentally ill. They have to pay $1 per night for a meal and a mat (not a bed) to sleep on. When bed opens up in a different part of the shelter, the men have to pay an additional amount nightly for the bed and a locker where they can store any belongings they may have. This place is only open from 7pm-7am so if you have guys that work a night shift, there is nowhere for them to go during the day.

Homelessness is a complex problem and one that is not solved by blaming the victim.

Answer 6

Because our government is more interested in helping other countries with their poor than the poor right here in the US,way too much money is being spent on the war therefore taking more away that could be helping those here who are really in need. The sad fact of it is, that many homeless are veterans,ones who fought for this country,yet our government doesn't seem to find them valuable enough to help them with housing,food and the basic needs . I think they do drugs to take them away from the reality of their life,so they don't feel the pain of living in the streets, imagine what it would be like out there in the cold,being sick and hungry and then watching as people walk by with $ 4,000 purses,fancy SUV's and children with fancy cell phones and I-Pods that has to break their heart. Makes me sad

Answer 7

I worked for about a year with homeless vets at the VA hospital and this is the way I understand it. Alot of them love to use drugs and most of the homeless shelters do not allow them to use drugs, nor half-way houses. So in order for them to do their drugs they stay homeless. This is just one scenerio. I honestly think some people just like that lifestyle. There are vets who actually get a check every month from the gov't and still like living in the streets, most of them are drug addicts. Its very sad, but very true. They have someone who has control of their money and only allows them a certain amount every month and they choose to live on the streets for their drug habits.

Answer 8

because the government doesn't help as much as people think they do. shelters can only house but so many people. once they're full they're full. the reason is greed. there are so many people with so much money they don't know what to do with it while there are people homeless and starving right in front of them. they have enough money to build shelters hell they have multiple homes with multiple bedrooms. it's ridiculous. as a single mother of 2 i can tell you it's hard to get assistance and it's harder to find a job than you think. employers would rather hire people with out kids because if you have kids you may have to call out because of your kids having illness etc. then if you make over 300 a month and aren't gettin child support you aren't eligible for TANF. i've never met anyone who could live off of 300 a month with no kids. if you own a car less than ten years old you can't recieve assistance of any kind. (in my state) you have to sell your car and get an older one if you want assistance. a lady i work with went to get assistance and they denied her and she said but i'm going to lose my home i'm going to be homeless. the worker said you have a van don't you? and she replied with yes i do. the worker looked at her and said 'well you won't be homeless then will you' people who have money and don't need assistance can never understand how hard it is to get any assistance. you have to literally have NOTHING before they want to assist you. once you have it it's easy to lose it. for a family of three i got $100 a month for food. that doesn't go very far. yes it's america the home of the greedy. the government isn't helpful at all. why would anyone WANT to be homeless??? that doesn't even make sense. i lived in richmond for awhile and there were a lot of people who were mentally ill who were homeless which is sad. they didn't even know where they were let alone much else. there are no longer places for people who are mentally ill and broke. these people have no family or money and can barely tell you their own name let alone get a job. some people get there because of drugs and once they get there it's almost impossible to change it around. where i lived there was one place that helped them get on their feet they had to work for everything. it's the only place that i've ever seen like it. i think if there were more places like that it would be less of a problem. they help them train and help them get jobs once they have the job they have a certain amount of time to get their own place and they help them with that too. but one place per city can only do but so much.

Answer 9

most of them are drug addicts or have mental disabilities. We used to institutionalize the latter group, often against their will, but social policies changed over time and we no longer do that. Those folks were incapable of making it on their own, so they became homeless. The vast majority of them fall into these two categories. Very few homeless people are the ones that Hollywood makes movies about - you know - the "decent" family that was one paycheck away from bankruptcy, then loses his job, etc.

Answer 10

Homelessness varies in reasons, a lot are outcast of family, drug and alcohol abuse, involuntary displacement, mental health issue, lack of affordable housing, by choice, and homeless due to being evicted from not paying their rent, and many more reasons.

Answer 11

Some choose to remain homeless I know a few like that I tried to give them a place to stay and get them jobs but they preferred life on the streets