Homeless in Abbotsford, BC
I DO NOT, HAVE NOT, WOULD NOT ever suggest throwing money at a problem. I am a REALIST, believing in examining a problem to understand what the situation IS. I am not an Ideologue who, wearing the blinders of ideology, looks at a situation and sees what they want to see, not what really is. There is NO perfect solution. A system dealing with people demands flexibility and denies neat, easy answers. Rigidly applying Ideology guarantees failure. How I came to homelessness: click Backstory below.
Revealing the Soul
The most recent presentation I attended by an organization addressing what they were about had a rather interesting denouement that went unremarked, perhaps unnoticed, by the others there – including the speaker.
This presentation had the “right” buzzwords: safe, compassion, gentleness, acceptance, consistent values and ethics, nurture, home, community, spirituality, et cetera.
It had warm fuzz stores and pictures that elicited an “aaahhhhh” as in aaahhhhh - isn’t that nice/sweet/touching.
The pitch painted a very positive overview of the organization; the kind of affirmative self-narrative organizations like to believe about themselves.
Been there, heard it before.
Except …. As remarked, the most revealing comment drew no attention to itself or what it said about the organization.
In speaking about Home and home being where the heart is, the comment was made that home for the homeless person living under the bridge was/could be under that bridge or that for their homeless person home was the shelter he found on the organizations property.
Their homeless person, making his home on their property; they did not chase him away or call the police to have him hauled away nor erect a gate to deny access to shelter or home.
All the nice words, stories and pictures do not say as much about these people as their action in granting shelter, a home.
Words are cheap, in many ways even many actions are cheap, but in the simplest, the mundane behaviours lie the soul, the spirit of an organization. In the simple grace of allowing this homeless person to shelter were he has chosen to, lies the true soul, the spirit, of this organization.
For it is in the simple, the unthought-of and the mundane behaviours that the true ethos of a person, an organization or community is revealed.
We all like to tell ourselves wonderful narratives about ourselves. The real question, the important question, is what truth are behaviours telling about you, your organization or your community?
The most recent presentation I attended by an organization addressing what they were about had a rather interesting denouement that went unremarked, perhaps unnoticed, by the others there – including the speaker.
This presentation had the “right” buzzwords: safe, compassion, gentleness, acceptance, consistent values and ethics, nurture, home, community, spirituality, et cetera.
It had warm fuzz stores and pictures that elicited an “aaahhhhh” as in aaahhhhh - isn’t that nice/sweet/touching.
The pitch painted a very positive overview of the organization; the kind of affirmative self-narrative organizations like to believe about themselves.
Been there, heard it before.
Except …. As remarked, the most revealing comment drew no attention to itself or what it said about the organization.
In speaking about Home and home being where the heart is, the comment was made that home for the homeless person living under the bridge was/could be under that bridge or that for their homeless person home was the shelter he found on the organizations property.
Their homeless person, making his home on their property; they did not chase him away or call the police to have him hauled away nor erect a gate to deny access to shelter or home.
All the nice words, stories and pictures do not say as much about these people as their action in granting shelter, a home.
Words are cheap, in many ways even many actions are cheap, but in the simplest, the mundane behaviours lie the soul, the spirit of an organization. In the simple grace of allowing this homeless person to shelter were he has chosen to, lies the true soul, the spirit, of this organization.
For it is in the simple, the unthought-of and the mundane behaviours that the true ethos of a person, an organization or community is revealed.
We all like to tell ourselves wonderful narratives about ourselves. The real question, the important question, is what truth are behaviours telling about you, your organization or your community?
Kerfuffle
Driving along in my car the argument in the papers last January concerning the income level in Abbotsford came to mind.
Listening to the radio one cannot help but hear the provincial government's advertisements for their low income level rent subsidy program.
The income level the provincial government considers low enough to need rent subsidies? $35,000. The income level in the original report setting off our local kerfuffle? $26,000.
I have no interest in getting lost in a debate about the exact nature of those whose income levels are under $26,000. No matter how one argues that point, the numbers clearly highlight the fact that there are a significant number of people and families in Abbotsford below the $26,000 income level. This is $9,000 under the point at which the provincial government acknowledges the need for rent subsidization.
However much of an apologist or economist one may be, only a complete denial of reality would allow one to refuse to acknowledge the significant, disturbing and unacceptable levels of poverty and economic hardship these numbers evidence exists in Abbotsford.
Questions.
I see that the suggestion was again made that the church bus the homeless to the church to feed them Cheerios. What would that accomplish, besides wasting money that should be spent on food not gas or transportation? You pick them up at the park take them to the church take them back to the park after breakfast they are still in the park at the end of breakfast.
No garbage? The homeless often help clean up Jubilee Park after breakfast and the church members clean up, often leaving the Park clearer than when they arrived.
No drug dealers? Yes John Smith and Bob Bos complain that after the church left more people and drug dealers arrived. How can any reasonable person hold the church, or anyone, responsible for the fact that people come to the park after they have left? Doesn’t the fact they come AFTER the church leaves suggest that instead of chasing Christians out of the Park you should be encouraging them to stay?
Or perhaps it is council’s true intention that the church not bus them back, leaving them stranded in some other Abbotsford neighbourhood. Then they blame the church, not their own actions lack of leadership or ideas, for these new homeless in that new neighbourhood.
Reduced costs since they will not have to spend tens, perhaps hundreds, of thousands of dollars for police and other costs; plus a scapegoat – sounds like a winning solution for City Council.
Let us be clear here – Council does not propose in any way to address or decrease homelessness and problems in Abbotsford. They merely intend to move it to some other part of the City.
If one thinks about it one is left with another attempt by council to bamboozle citizens on an important and major issue and one burning question.
Why is it that not only does council think Bob Bos and his Downtown Business Association should not have to share in the homeless/addiction problem with the rest of the citizens but they are willing, in fact plan to, move the homeless and addicted out of the downtown neighbourhood and into some other less favoured Abbotsford neighbourhood?
I see that the suggestion was again made that the church bus the homeless to the church to feed them Cheerios. What would that accomplish, besides wasting money that should be spent on food not gas or transportation? You pick them up at the park take them to the church take them back to the park after breakfast they are still in the park at the end of breakfast.
No garbage? The homeless often help clean up Jubilee Park after breakfast and the church members clean up, often leaving the Park clearer than when they arrived.
No drug dealers? Yes John Smith and Bob Bos complain that after the church left more people and drug dealers arrived. How can any reasonable person hold the church, or anyone, responsible for the fact that people come to the park after they have left? Doesn’t the fact they come AFTER the church leaves suggest that instead of chasing Christians out of the Park you should be encouraging them to stay?
Or perhaps it is council’s true intention that the church not bus them back, leaving them stranded in some other Abbotsford neighbourhood. Then they blame the church, not their own actions lack of leadership or ideas, for these new homeless in that new neighbourhood.
Reduced costs since they will not have to spend tens, perhaps hundreds, of thousands of dollars for police and other costs; plus a scapegoat – sounds like a winning solution for City Council.
Let us be clear here – Council does not propose in any way to address or decrease homelessness and problems in Abbotsford. They merely intend to move it to some other part of the City.
If one thinks about it one is left with another attempt by council to bamboozle citizens on an important and major issue and one burning question.
Why is it that not only does council think Bob Bos and his Downtown Business Association should not have to share in the homeless/addiction problem with the rest of the citizens but they are willing, in fact plan to, move the homeless and addicted out of the downtown neighbourhood and into some other less favoured Abbotsford neighbourhood?
Learn from past failures?
... Not Abbotsford City Council.
If you are planning to stage a crime spree in Abbotsford, you might want to have it ready to go at a moments notice.
With Bob Bos and his Downtown Business Association demanding council move the homeless etc out of Jubilee Park into some other Abbotsford neighbourhood; with this being an election year with politicians needing contributions to their political campaigns; with council dragging a Pastor down to City Hall to demand he not be in the park, removing credible witness to police behaviour from the Park; it is obvious that the city will shortly be engaged in the money wasting and pointless exercise of chasing the homeless out of Jubilee Park with the Abbotsford Police.
This is not the first time this fruitless exercise has been undertaken and like the last time any rational human being knows they can expect the homeless to return when police stop sitting around the park all the time.
Hopefully this will be the last time this pointless, expensive waste will take place. Not because it will be any more effective that the previous times it was done, but because in November the citizens of Abbotsford will have the opportunity to replace the “if we keep doing the same wasteful things, maybe they will actually work one of these times” current councillors with councillors who are interested in ideas that work, not engaging in the same pointless, expensive behaviour over and over and over and over and….
In the meantime the police will be wasting their time and efforts in Jubilee Park. I say waste because when the police are forced to move on to dealing with all the problems that built up while they focused on the Park, the homeless and other problems will once again return to Jubilee Park as has happened before.
So if you are planning a crime spree in Abbotsford, the police will soon be navel gazing at Jubilee Park, leaving the city ripe for the pickin’.
And if you are one of the non-preferential treatment ordinary citizens Abbotsford, you will get your chance to express your displeasure in November.
... Not Abbotsford City Council.
If you are planning to stage a crime spree in Abbotsford, you might want to have it ready to go at a moments notice.
With Bob Bos and his Downtown Business Association demanding council move the homeless etc out of Jubilee Park into some other Abbotsford neighbourhood; with this being an election year with politicians needing contributions to their political campaigns; with council dragging a Pastor down to City Hall to demand he not be in the park, removing credible witness to police behaviour from the Park; it is obvious that the city will shortly be engaged in the money wasting and pointless exercise of chasing the homeless out of Jubilee Park with the Abbotsford Police.
This is not the first time this fruitless exercise has been undertaken and like the last time any rational human being knows they can expect the homeless to return when police stop sitting around the park all the time.
Hopefully this will be the last time this pointless, expensive waste will take place. Not because it will be any more effective that the previous times it was done, but because in November the citizens of Abbotsford will have the opportunity to replace the “if we keep doing the same wasteful things, maybe they will actually work one of these times” current councillors with councillors who are interested in ideas that work, not engaging in the same pointless, expensive behaviour over and over and over and over and….
In the meantime the police will be wasting their time and efforts in Jubilee Park. I say waste because when the police are forced to move on to dealing with all the problems that built up while they focused on the Park, the homeless and other problems will once again return to Jubilee Park as has happened before.
So if you are planning a crime spree in Abbotsford, the police will soon be navel gazing at Jubilee Park, leaving the city ripe for the pickin’.
And if you are one of the non-preferential treatment ordinary citizens Abbotsford, you will get your chance to express your displeasure in November.
S-B-H Cheerios Theory - reaction from the Street
Upon hearing the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory, that serving Cheerios in the early morning even once a week results in the homeless and addicted flocking to that location and staying there, I was rather sceptical. Well truthfully, after seeing that Abbotsford city councillors Smith, Beck and Harris were serious, I was dumbfounded. I mean, HUH?
Just in case my reaction was influenced by having Councillor John Smith repeat almost verbatim the same excuse he has been using for the last two and a half years to absolve the city of any responsibility for acting on homelessness and rationalize their lack of leadership, I felt I needed to get feedback on the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory.
Unlike councillors Smith, Beck, Harris and far to many other people, when I have a question an matters of homeless, addiction, mental illness or poverty I approach those with knowledge and experience.
In this particular case I took advantage of a dinner for the homeless and hungry to seek the opinions and input of those who were homeless, addicted or in recovery from addiction in evaluating the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory.
Here is a representative sampling of their comments when asked to evaluate the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory and the claims that it is this serving of Cheerios that is drawing people to Jubilee Park and that if only the serving of Cheerios was stopped the problems in Jubilee Park would end as well.
“What drugs are they on?”; “Horses**t!!”; “Ya Right!”; “that’s funny!”; “are they nuts?”; laughter was a frequent response; it was repeatedly necessary for me to give assurances that, no I was not kidding – city councillors were serious in promoting the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory; a long time volunteer as a home owner and a taxpayer inquired as to whether it was possible to “get our money back”, a refund of salaries paid the councillors; numerous interviewees were left speechless by the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory; and finally many just sadly shook their heads.
The one person I was able to find who had left Jubilee Park to get food at the supper when asked about the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory nearly fell out of his seat laughing.
The fact that only one person had left Jubilee Park to get fed BBQ hamburgers, a walk of only 2 or 3 minutes, would seem to cast serious doubt on the councillors theory and claims that homeless and/or addicts are leaving downtown Vancouver to flock to Jubilee Park for Thursday morning Cheerios when they will not walk a few minutes for a meal of BBQ hamburgers.
Unless of course the homeless person hit the nail on the head with his statement: “those must be some powerful special Cheerios”.
Upon hearing the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory, that serving Cheerios in the early morning even once a week results in the homeless and addicted flocking to that location and staying there, I was rather sceptical. Well truthfully, after seeing that Abbotsford city councillors Smith, Beck and Harris were serious, I was dumbfounded. I mean, HUH?
Just in case my reaction was influenced by having Councillor John Smith repeat almost verbatim the same excuse he has been using for the last two and a half years to absolve the city of any responsibility for acting on homelessness and rationalize their lack of leadership, I felt I needed to get feedback on the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory.
Unlike councillors Smith, Beck, Harris and far to many other people, when I have a question an matters of homeless, addiction, mental illness or poverty I approach those with knowledge and experience.
In this particular case I took advantage of a dinner for the homeless and hungry to seek the opinions and input of those who were homeless, addicted or in recovery from addiction in evaluating the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory.
Here is a representative sampling of their comments when asked to evaluate the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory and the claims that it is this serving of Cheerios that is drawing people to Jubilee Park and that if only the serving of Cheerios was stopped the problems in Jubilee Park would end as well.
“What drugs are they on?”; “Horses**t!!”; “Ya Right!”; “that’s funny!”; “are they nuts?”; laughter was a frequent response; it was repeatedly necessary for me to give assurances that, no I was not kidding – city councillors were serious in promoting the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory; a long time volunteer as a home owner and a taxpayer inquired as to whether it was possible to “get our money back”, a refund of salaries paid the councillors; numerous interviewees were left speechless by the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory; and finally many just sadly shook their heads.
The one person I was able to find who had left Jubilee Park to get food at the supper when asked about the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory nearly fell out of his seat laughing.
The fact that only one person had left Jubilee Park to get fed BBQ hamburgers, a walk of only 2 or 3 minutes, would seem to cast serious doubt on the councillors theory and claims that homeless and/or addicts are leaving downtown Vancouver to flock to Jubilee Park for Thursday morning Cheerios when they will not walk a few minutes for a meal of BBQ hamburgers.
Unless of course the homeless person hit the nail on the head with his statement: “those must be some powerful special Cheerios”.
Woe unto anyone of generous spirit...
...and caring heart who dares to feed any hungry person in Jubilee Park as a Pastor and members of his congregation learned.
The Pastor was ordered to City Hall, in the manner of a naughty child to the principal’s office, when the usual Abbotsford Police tactics of physical intimidation, verbal harassment, placing visitors to Jubilee Park under surveillance and following people to their homes failed to stop the Pastor and his congregation sharing Cheerios with the hungry and destitute in Jubilee Park early Thursday mornings.
Councillors Smith, Beck and Harris, a plethora of city staff and several witnesses for the persecution were on hand to bully the good Pastor into obedience. The attempt to overwhelm was denied the city when members of the Pastor’s congregation, members of Christian leadership and several individuals experienced and knowledgeable on addiction and homelessness attended in support of the Pastor and his good works.
The councillors expanded their attempt to browbeat the Pastor into unthinking obedience to include demands that ANY church, church groups or group of churches get approval from city hall before taking any action. They proceeded to demand obedience to council dictates, even where the people involved felt that the council dictates were against their spiritual beliefs and the teachings of their faith.
This attempt to place council’s temporal dictates above matters of faith, spirituality and the teachings of Christ failed to impress the audience.
When the city failed to offer anything rational1 to support their orders, the Pastor declined to comply with the city’s dictatorial demands. Leaving the matter unresolved and the Pastor and public waiting on which police state tactic the City will attempt to force obedience with next.
Footnote:
1 The Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory on the causality homelessness and addiction was unveiled before the public for the first time at Abbotsford City Hall on Wednesday May 7.
According to the theory espoused by Abbotsford City councillors John Smith, Bruce Beck and Lynne Harris, endorsed by Abbotsford Downtown Business Association president Bob Bos, the social problems that have spilled into the city’s Jubilee Park are being worsened by a Church that serves Cheerios early Thursday mornings in the Park.
A further tenant of the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerio Theory, associating the serving of Cheerios with the presence of persons suffering homelessness and addiction in Jubilee Park, is that if the church Pastor and congregation members would cease serving Cheerios the Park would no longer be a “sick park” as they termed it.
One of the persecution witnesses presented by the city, when asked for clarification, stated that the swelling population in the park are homeless and addicts from Vancouver.
With Cheerios never having been one of my breakfast cereal choices I had no idea the allure of Cheerios was so powerful that hearing a church was serving Cheerios Thursday mornings in Jubilee Park in Abbotsford would have the homeless and addicted leaving all the resources to be found in Vancouver to Abbotsford’s Jubilee Park.
Under the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory should city council not be solving Abbotsford’s homeless and addiction social problems by leading a campaign to remove Cheerios from store shelves and making Abbotsford a “Cheerios Free Zone”?
Parents be warned: do not supply your children with Cheerios. Next thing you know it will be Fruit Loops the – gasp – Lucky Charms!
...and caring heart who dares to feed any hungry person in Jubilee Park as a Pastor and members of his congregation learned.
The Pastor was ordered to City Hall, in the manner of a naughty child to the principal’s office, when the usual Abbotsford Police tactics of physical intimidation, verbal harassment, placing visitors to Jubilee Park under surveillance and following people to their homes failed to stop the Pastor and his congregation sharing Cheerios with the hungry and destitute in Jubilee Park early Thursday mornings.
Councillors Smith, Beck and Harris, a plethora of city staff and several witnesses for the persecution were on hand to bully the good Pastor into obedience. The attempt to overwhelm was denied the city when members of the Pastor’s congregation, members of Christian leadership and several individuals experienced and knowledgeable on addiction and homelessness attended in support of the Pastor and his good works.
The councillors expanded their attempt to browbeat the Pastor into unthinking obedience to include demands that ANY church, church groups or group of churches get approval from city hall before taking any action. They proceeded to demand obedience to council dictates, even where the people involved felt that the council dictates were against their spiritual beliefs and the teachings of their faith.
This attempt to place council’s temporal dictates above matters of faith, spirituality and the teachings of Christ failed to impress the audience.
When the city failed to offer anything rational1 to support their orders, the Pastor declined to comply with the city’s dictatorial demands. Leaving the matter unresolved and the Pastor and public waiting on which police state tactic the City will attempt to force obedience with next.
Footnote:
1 The Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory on the causality homelessness and addiction was unveiled before the public for the first time at Abbotsford City Hall on Wednesday May 7.
According to the theory espoused by Abbotsford City councillors John Smith, Bruce Beck and Lynne Harris, endorsed by Abbotsford Downtown Business Association president Bob Bos, the social problems that have spilled into the city’s Jubilee Park are being worsened by a Church that serves Cheerios early Thursday mornings in the Park.
A further tenant of the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerio Theory, associating the serving of Cheerios with the presence of persons suffering homelessness and addiction in Jubilee Park, is that if the church Pastor and congregation members would cease serving Cheerios the Park would no longer be a “sick park” as they termed it.
One of the persecution witnesses presented by the city, when asked for clarification, stated that the swelling population in the park are homeless and addicts from Vancouver.
With Cheerios never having been one of my breakfast cereal choices I had no idea the allure of Cheerios was so powerful that hearing a church was serving Cheerios Thursday mornings in Jubilee Park in Abbotsford would have the homeless and addicted leaving all the resources to be found in Vancouver to Abbotsford’s Jubilee Park.
Under the Smith-Beck-Harris Cheerios Theory should city council not be solving Abbotsford’s homeless and addiction social problems by leading a campaign to remove Cheerios from store shelves and making Abbotsford a “Cheerios Free Zone”?
Parents be warned: do not supply your children with Cheerios. Next thing you know it will be Fruit Loops the – gasp – Lucky Charms!
The Official BC Liberal government excuse?
Listening to Claude Richmond respond to the recent think tank report on Income Assistance I was left wondering whether the BC Liberal government had adopted an official excuse for all matters pertaining to social policy.
“This does not take into consideration changes made …” Claude Richmond or Rich Coleman or Gordon Campbell or any other Liberal answering question about the latest negative evaluation of BC government social policy all spout the same deficient excuse.
Of course none of the numerous reports critical of government social policy took into consideration whether Gordon Campbell danced nude under the full moon in his back yard. A consideration that has just as much validity regarding dismissing or ignoring the reviews and reports critical of social policies as does the official “changes made” excuse.
The beauty of this Official Liberal Government Excuse is that it can be used anytime and anywhere, since there is always a time lag between the last information gathered for a report and the delivery of the report.
Thus it is that the BC Liberals can continue to bury their head in the sand on matters that their ideology wishes to ignore. Of course the fact the BC Liberals ignore social issues does not change the worsening reality faced by the most vulnerable in our society in dealing with homelessness, mental illness, addiction and poverty.
Mr. Richmond dismissed the report about the inadequacies of current Ministry of Employment and Income Assistance because the government had raised the monthly allowances by $50 + $50. Not only totally ignoring everything else the report had to say, but also ignoring the reality that even with the extra $100 a month it is not possible to survive in the lower mainland on $610 per month.
Not wanting to talk about the fact that, as the report pointed out, expecting people faced with the challenges of survival on $610 a month to conduct a job search and find employment is ludicrous; or any of the pressing issues raised in the numerous negative evaluations of the BC Liberal record of failure to deal with or address the serious social issues facing BC today, the government just labels them “out of date”.
Viewing the Liberal government’s policies from the streets one thing is clear: when Rich Coleman speaks of “not knowing what is happening on the ground” he is describing the Liberal government, not the authors of the reports that the Liberal government ignores.
Rather than continuing to use the same (lame) official excuse the Liberals should just admit they lack any understanding of what the reality on the ground is; admit they lack any knowledge of what is happening on the streets; acknowledge their lack of ideas, vision or leadership with which to address the growing poverty and social challenges faced by the province of BC.
This approach would at least have the novelty of truth.
Listening to Claude Richmond respond to the recent think tank report on Income Assistance I was left wondering whether the BC Liberal government had adopted an official excuse for all matters pertaining to social policy.
“This does not take into consideration changes made …” Claude Richmond or Rich Coleman or Gordon Campbell or any other Liberal answering question about the latest negative evaluation of BC government social policy all spout the same deficient excuse.
Of course none of the numerous reports critical of government social policy took into consideration whether Gordon Campbell danced nude under the full moon in his back yard. A consideration that has just as much validity regarding dismissing or ignoring the reviews and reports critical of social policies as does the official “changes made” excuse.
The beauty of this Official Liberal Government Excuse is that it can be used anytime and anywhere, since there is always a time lag between the last information gathered for a report and the delivery of the report.
Thus it is that the BC Liberals can continue to bury their head in the sand on matters that their ideology wishes to ignore. Of course the fact the BC Liberals ignore social issues does not change the worsening reality faced by the most vulnerable in our society in dealing with homelessness, mental illness, addiction and poverty.
Mr. Richmond dismissed the report about the inadequacies of current Ministry of Employment and Income Assistance because the government had raised the monthly allowances by $50 + $50. Not only totally ignoring everything else the report had to say, but also ignoring the reality that even with the extra $100 a month it is not possible to survive in the lower mainland on $610 per month.
Not wanting to talk about the fact that, as the report pointed out, expecting people faced with the challenges of survival on $610 a month to conduct a job search and find employment is ludicrous; or any of the pressing issues raised in the numerous negative evaluations of the BC Liberal record of failure to deal with or address the serious social issues facing BC today, the government just labels them “out of date”.
Viewing the Liberal government’s policies from the streets one thing is clear: when Rich Coleman speaks of “not knowing what is happening on the ground” he is describing the Liberal government, not the authors of the reports that the Liberal government ignores.
Rather than continuing to use the same (lame) official excuse the Liberals should just admit they lack any understanding of what the reality on the ground is; admit they lack any knowledge of what is happening on the streets; acknowledge their lack of ideas, vision or leadership with which to address the growing poverty and social challenges faced by the province of BC.
This approach would at least have the novelty of truth.
Herd Management
The preliminary results for the Fraser Valley homeless count are out and no doubt there will be debate about what the numbers mean.
A nice academic exercise for those who are not homeless. The reality for those who are homeless is that a debate will only waste more time in pointless activity that won’t house a single homeless person.
A homeless count, is that not a wonderful concept? Counting people in the same manner we do bears, eagles and other wild animal populations in order to “manage” the population. What a wonderfully demeaning manner in which to treat any group of people.
Why is there a need to count the homeless population? Why do we need to provide numbers to prove that the homeless population has grown so large that we need to take action? It is not enough that the streets and shelters are full of people without homes/shelter?
Is that not a damning truth about us as people and a society? That we have to count the homeless to prove there are enough homeless people that we are forced to take action on homelessness.
The fact that there are any people suffering homelessness, mental illness, addiction on our streets is all that should need to exist for society to act. NO ifs, no ands and no buts – if there are people in need: just do what must be done.
The preliminary results for the Fraser Valley homeless count are out and no doubt there will be debate about what the numbers mean.
A nice academic exercise for those who are not homeless. The reality for those who are homeless is that a debate will only waste more time in pointless activity that won’t house a single homeless person.
A homeless count, is that not a wonderful concept? Counting people in the same manner we do bears, eagles and other wild animal populations in order to “manage” the population. What a wonderfully demeaning manner in which to treat any group of people.
Why is there a need to count the homeless population? Why do we need to provide numbers to prove that the homeless population has grown so large that we need to take action? It is not enough that the streets and shelters are full of people without homes/shelter?
Is that not a damning truth about us as people and a society? That we have to count the homeless to prove there are enough homeless people that we are forced to take action on homelessness.
The fact that there are any people suffering homelessness, mental illness, addiction on our streets is all that should need to exist for society to act. NO ifs, no ands and no buts – if there are people in need: just do what must be done.
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