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I want to echo the sentiments of some here who've recognized the plight of many living in current times. Even skilled carpenters and other tradesmen have been unable to scratch together a living approaching their norm as it stood a few decades ago. It's widely acknowledged that a growing proportion of the nation's wealth is increasingly concentrated in the hands of the super-rich who also strive to control legislators, media, and elections. Hawaii is particularly harsh because of its high cost of living. I would argue that the burgeoning homeless population is a symptom of the direction our culture has taken. Labor unions have shrunken, working people are finding it extremely challenging to support families and share in the wealth this economy produces. CEO's "earn" salaries and "bonuses" which dwarf the earnings of ordinary personnel working in the ranks of their companies. Their share of the pie would astound their peers who held similar positions in the sixties and earlier. They seem to fail utterly to recognize the dangers this kind of new plutocracy poses to the nation, and to themselves.
I would argue that the natural outcome of this progression has been a dramatic increase in the disharmony of this society. A world where marginalized citizens more easily lose their way, seek relief from a sense of futility in substance abuse, and take whatever they can from those whom they may view with the same lack of sympathy they believe has been directed at them by the rest of the world.
I've been the victim of burglars too many times and find the presence of desperate people on the street just as oppressive as most others who like me are fortunate enough to have a home and modest income. I don't remember encountering them nearly as often as a young man, and I can't fail to see that their circumstances are due as much to our current broader failure as a nation as they are to any personal shortcomings of the homeless and derelict characters that we turn away from, and in our relative comfort, sometimes even condemn.
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quote:
So, let me understand this.
You "live on the side of creation," blame the homeless situation for doing "far worse drugs" than alcohol, and would be pissed if YOU had to drive 35 miles to get your buzz on.
Actually, don't bother answering. I fully understand your problem.
You don't have to quote my entire spiel to make an ignorant statement in regards to my signature block.
I support and care for people who care and support themselves and 2. People who use that care to grow and appreciate what is given to them. People laying on the stoop of a bank and drunk or high on whatever do not fit into these categories. All one has to do is put their past behind them make a simple decision to live differently. Not rob, steal, loiter, or at best case waste their day begging from others. When their decisions effect me, my family, my property- even in the simplest form- And they don't contribute, seek help, or want to be better... Well, let's just say I am intelligent enough not to condone or support their lifestyles, or lose sleep over it.
I'm almost certain having to drive 35 miles to buy a six pack or bottle of my favorite booze would do nothing but encourage me to make my own brew- which is more rewarding and productive. So I guess I wouldn't mind it that much. You know, growing.
You don't know or understand me, and clearly you're a hole in your own pocket. Just don't be a hole to society's pocket, too. Enjoy.
STILL Living on the side of creation.
Living on the side of creation.
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seekir, I agree with your sentiments exactly, but I just want to point out that the homeless families that I know here (and I personally know one of them) are in hiding from the hoodlums that loiter and sell drugs on the streets, just like the rest of us. It's not often that I see the mother's and children out there. The families need help, and the mentally ill need help, and the criminals may need help if they are criminals because of drugs. And if all of this support was somehow put in place, then I imagine the crime rate in Puna would go down. I am not sure that having the homeless criminals scared out of the village center and to some other location will really work, but if it did- then I imagine the homeless families would become far more visible. There are huge problems right now with our bifarcated society.
Well there you go hereontheprimaledge, You brought to attention the homeless acts on Oahu. Now he has gotten rid of his sledgehammer and had a change of attitude towards the homeless problem. Or was the changes made to save HIS possible political future in Oahu. Would be a nice gesture on his part to buy 30 new carts and replace the homes he squashed with his aloha spirit. We as a community, and our mayor could do more in wake of this and set a much better example towards our homeless. What would probably happen though is the rest of the states homeless would see the better opportunities over here in Hilo, and more of these folks would move here. NOW, Would that be all that BAD? People who need and deserve better would be getting more help. The state and tourists could always see the aloha for their people in Hilo, if no where else. Desperation is a root to crime NOT homeless. Hilo and the big island could use the facilities and jobs that may come with the compassion towards humanity?. Hawaii had a 10% increase in homeless the same year they became the most exspensive vacation destination. Now the average daily spending in our state is $518 dollars by these kind tourist who visit everyday. We need better ideas for better treatment of a growing problem in the ALOHA state.
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I'm amused by the recurring claims that raising the minimum wage would "kill jobs".
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Minimum wage can cause businesses to cut employees or inflate the prices of their goods and services- That, or the business takes the loss, which usually doesn't happen in this day and age. People seemingly need to consume less and work harder to get by.
Living on the side of creation.
Living on the side of creation.
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Wages are frozen against an upward spiral of "cost", much of which is "administrative overhead" that does not, of itself, provide food, clothing, or shelter.
Raising the minimum wage would ultimately not really help, but it might stress the system far enough to make the structural issues more obvious (like anyone would pay attention).
Government is focused on the wrong part of the problem. Completely off-topic example: massive pressure against solar power. In red states, it's "the Republicans". Here, it's HELCO (and the contractors), providing Red pressure in a clearly Blue state. Did we elect them? Why are they making policy?
What the directionless miscreants need is simply a better value proposition, perhaps an ag collective where they can learn valuable life skills while growing their own food, yet somehow not be labeled a "dirty hippy weed-farming commune". Of course, the current "planning/development" regime makes this impossibly difficult, at least not without costing so much money as to defeat the purpose.
Related issue: despite living in a paradise where food grows on trees, some people would rather stand around and demand that others support their lifestyle choices. There are even people who do this professionally: they're clean, neatly dressed, and have big banners complaining that some employer won't pay a living wage.
...and let's not forget the closeted whingers, with their pseudonymous internet forum tirades. (Extra credit assignment: argue whether to capitalize "internet", as if I'm using lowercase as an intentional political statement.)
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well stated Seekir ,
Hawaii is , unfortunately, currently linked to the economic woes of the mainland.
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Homelessness is not a disease. Not contagious. It's the norm for many whom, if you work in the public at all, you may be in contact with everyday and never know. I certainly didn't.
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DqCFq1G-yL4
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quote:
All one has to do is put their past behind them make a simple decision to live differently. Not rob, steal... their decisions effect me, my family, my property... And they don't contribute, seek help, or want to be better...
Assertions that apply quite accurately to many of the captains of industry who have taken theft and selfishness to unprecedented new heights of excess. I would argue that in comparison to the problems the homeless present, the failures and predation of corporate leaders have a far broader deleterious affect on us all, and are contributing to the burgeoning rise of the disaffected and desperate. Tradesmen and other working people had pleasant lives, owned homes, and raised their families in relative comfort six decades ago. Now exorbitant property costs, low wages, and the general low esteem the culture holds for the common man take their toll. The number of individuals who surrender to these pressures has risen for some reason, and I don't believe this rise is taking place without cause. The short-sighted schemes many CEO's pursue diminish the quality of life for everyone, and destabilize society. This harm is destined to inevitably include the very wealthy who seem to believe they can continue on this course without eventually suffering the consequences that social unrest must bring to (what Don Henley calls) their own "tombs upon the hill."
"Oct 20, 2013 - At J.C. Penney, the CEO-to-average-worker pay ratio was 1,795 to 1 under Chief Executive Ron Johnson."
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-hi...122.column
"CEO-To-Worker Pay Ratio Ballooned 1,000 Percent Since 1950 ...":
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/30...84623.html
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