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I put the word "homeless" in quotations because it is another one of those terms that the left uses to obfuscate and confuse the reality of a serious societal problem.
The real problem for the people who reside on our streets isn't a question of housing; it is in a real sense a health issue. And it is a health issue not only for those on the streets, but for all of us who are exposed to it.
My wife and I live in a nice middle class residential neighborhood in Southern California. In the past few years our area (along with much of the Los Angles area) has become a refuge for street people who bring with them dirty needles, rats, and diseases such as typhus. It's much more than a cosmetic problem it is a major health disaster.
Recently a form letter went out from our councilman to everyone in our neighborhood, which, I guess, was supposed to show us how concerned and involved he is in solving this issue. The letter was total garbage, outlining how the answer to the "homeless" issue is to build more affordable housing and initiate rent control.
His letter also claimed that the majority of those on the streets were not there because of mental conditions or substance abuse but because of "economic reasons," a statement that anyone who has studied the problem knows is totally untrue.
The following is my answer to the councilman's phony baloney letter. I share this with my readers this week because the problem goes beyond my neighborhood.
It is far reaching, extending all across our country in most if not all of our larger metropolitan areas.
It is also a glaring example of how progressive government has destroyed our cities while it continues to lie to the people.
Councilman Ryu,
Your ridiculous and dishonest form letter, which purports to list viable solutions to the filth, disease, and dangers that are now so prevalent in our streets and neighborhoods is an insult to all of us who must live among this on a daily basis.
Your claim that the majority of people who have taken up encampments under the freeway overpasses, in front of our businesses, and on our sidewalks are primarily there due to "economic reasons" is a lie.
The vast majority of these pathetic people are mentally disturbed, drug addicted, and alcoholic. They need institutional treatment, not "better housing."
The only way to really fix this problem is with a county wide emergency triage operation. Street people need to be gathered up (even if they object) and examined by doctors who will determine what their problem is.
The addicts and alcoholics need to be put into rehab treatment facilities, the mentally disturbed need to be put into mental hospitals. Any people who are living on the streets who have no mental or substance abuse problems can be directed to proper community service organizations. As the people are gathered up off the streets, the city needs to focus on cleanup right away in order to be sure that disease does not spread.
We are in an emergency situation. Our once beautiful neighborhood (and the rest of L.A. county) is turning into a third-world cesspool that will only get worse if proper steps aren't taken right away.
Building new housing and implementing rent control will never solve the problem. First step has got to be getting these people off the streets, and yes, by force if necessary.
It's way past time for our local and state government to get real and start serving the hard working citizens and homeowners who are paying the increasingly skyrocketing bills for all this.
Councilman Ryu's letter demonstrates either complete stupidity on his part or assumes stupidity of his constituency. More likely it is another attempt by government to lie its way out of a serious problem.
Sincerely,
Greg Crosby
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JWR contributor Greg Crosby, former creative head for Walt Disney publications, has written thousands of comics, hundreds of children's books, dozens of essays, and a letter to his congressman. He's been a JWR contributor since 1999.