Australia's Homeless

[Julia]

A heartbreaking account on Four Corners this evening about those who are homeless or struggling to survive in Australia today.
It followed an account on "PM" of about 40 'regulars' who sleep on Platform 1 at Sydney's Central Station, one woman having been there every night for years.

When I glance down the list of threads on this forum, we have topics such as how much % increase we have seen in our portfolios this year, what's happening with gold, etc etc. Nothing wrong with that. It's a stock and investment forum.

But it's in such stark contrast to that whole other world of misery endured by many ordinary Australians.

It's easy for us to write them off as no hopers, people who don't try to take control of their lives, and no doubt that's true of some. But adverse circumstances can befall the hardest worker, such as sudden and incapacitating illness or redundancy. The income ceases, the mortgage or the rent can no longer be paid, and suddenly you're on the street.

Such an instance was depicted on Four Corners with a woman, probably about 40, with a teenage daughter, who was not homeless but who found it nigh impossible to pay rent and utilities out of Newstart, the benefit which she'd been moved to after a short period on a Sickness Benefit. She was forced to go to a charity to ask for assistance, and to see her moved to tears of gratitude for a $60 supermarket voucher was a reality check for those of us who probably think little about just buying what we want when we want it. She was thrilled that she was able to buy her teenage daughter 'a decent deodorant'.

I've never been homeless but had a mercifully brief period of being hard up after leaving a marriage. It was humiliating and socially isolating. I always knew in a relatively short time I'd be back on my feet.
But for so many people, even just by virtue of their lesser capacity than that most of us enjoy, or their disadvantaged circumstances, poverty becomes a perpetual state.

I have no idea how this can be addressed. Does anyone have any suggestions?
For that matter, do any of us really care, save the occasional passing "oh, it's awful, isn't it."?

 

[MrBurns]

Julia - snap !

I just sent the link to my sons asking that they watch it, I came in here to post it and you beat me to it.

[video]http://www.abc.net.au/iview/#/view/40370[/video]

 

[prawn_86]

I have no idea how this can be addressed. Does anyone have any suggestions?
For that matter, do any of us really care, save the occasional passing "oh, it's awful, isn't it."?

I agree that it is a big issue. IMO it is one of the 'problems' of capitalism. When you can make a profit from a pretty basic human right (housing) then there is always going to be those who cannot afford it. Over regulation then also plays a part, in 2nd and 3rd World countries some of the more industrious 'homeless' build shanty towns, it's not much, but it is shelter and a form of community

 

[MrBurns]

It hit me hard, it put a face to the homeless and I'm ashamed we aren't doing more.

 

[prawn_86]

Perhaps one idea is to start some form of charity to move some of those willing to work out to the country, similar to Woofing, plus a small stipend to get them back on their feet

 

[MrBurns]

Rip the waste out of Govt spending to help these people would be good.
Needs thought you have to help without just throwing money at it, they need dignity , they need work.

 

[sptrawler]

The major drain on peoples money, is housing.
The cost of a house filters down to the rent asked for a house.
The government needs to gets serious about reducing the incentives, which keep driving up prices. Or get real about building low cost housing.
If neither are done, things will get worse for the poor.

 

[boofhead]

Governments need to get serious about developing public housing. Distributed, some of it designed for 1 or 2 people. Rents charged are important. On top of that is develop suitable inspection systems of said housing and remove people as needed. Desperate people will do what they can to hold on to suitable living. The sooner the riff-raff is moved on the better the areas are for people doing it tough and in need of low cost housing.

Once that is taken care of some smarter development of minimum wage part time work. The programs need to be kept small. Even if it is some weeding for government areas, rubbish collection, some working with green groups, others. Some part time education. From improved literacy and numeracy through to computing skills, understanding finances, certificate 1 level courses (introductory) for disability and aged care (rising demand). A number of people have managed to get paid work in the care industry starting as volunteer. A government subsidy (minimum wage for some brief hours, the hours used as valid Centrelink participation uses) improves their money situation, develops routine, develops verifiable skills, people develop a record of reliability. It is a cost but over time society develops. It is like a smarter work for the dole.

Both points deliver clearer pathways to putting a roof over the head and money in the bank to be able to survive. Reduces anxiety.

As for the 4 Corners story, I was a little suspect about the young male that had paid work, needed to have an operation and returned to find he essentially lost his job and was volunteering to get his foot back in the door. I felt like the nightclub is taking advantage of a bad situation.

Oh, and in a number of months the story will be forgotten. Many will be back to bashing dole bludgers and anyone collecting Newstart for more than a couple of months are not worthy.

 

[FlyingFox]

I agree that it is a big issue. IMO it is one of the 'problems' of capitalism. When you can make a profit from a pretty basic human right (housing) then there is always going to be those who cannot afford it. Over regulation then also plays a part, in 2nd and 3rd World countries some of the more industrious 'homeless' build shanty towns, it's not much, but it is shelter and a form of community

+1. Consumerism even more. What surprised me was the fact some of the people in the story were employed til very recently but had almost no savings. Granted many are among the lowest paid, but still we have become such consumers with keeping up with the neighbors and taking on debt that savings is a dirty word.

 

[sydboy007]

Was reading an article about a homeless guy last year.

He'd had a good life, job, wife, then something happened, marriage broke down and before he knew it he was on the streets and one of those people he'd walked past and realised maybe a lot of them aren't no hoping drug addicts.

Once your homeless it's very very hard to get back from that. Difficult to get any assistance from centrelink and you have to hope a charity might be able to get you back on your feet.

It would be an expensive problem to sort out. Certainly the Govt could step in to build some affordable housing and set up some programs to help these people move back into society - if they choose.

Surely we can start building some flatpack style accommodation on the cheap?

 

[Judd]

It is one of the conundrums I face when I am asked to donate to charities. In a country as affluent as ours is supposed to be, I find it almost contradictory that charities are needed to assist our fellow citizens.

I don't donate to those which are associated, worthy though they may be, with researching diseases as I consider it to be a public health issue and, as such, should be adequately funded at a Federal level in order to reduce future health care costs if possible, plus it fragments to research dollar.

So the only way I can resolve my own conflict is to donate to those charities specifically to assist the homeless, especially youth plus to involved in overseas aid, such as Doctors without borders.

A weird approach I know, but that is the only way I can personally resolve my attitude. Others do it differently.

 

[Knobby22]

The major drain on peoples money, is housing.
The cost of a house filters down to the rent asked for a house.
The government needs to gets serious about reducing the incentives, which keep driving up prices. Or get real about building low cost housing.
If neither are done, things will get worse for the poor.

True. I agree. We should change the tax system to encourage new cheap housing rather than pushing up the prices of existing housing.

 

[MrBurns]

We need to identify the genuine cases first...........weed out the rorters then use those savings to REALLY help those in genuine need.

 

[Gringotts Bank]

I have no idea how this can be addressed. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Very simple. You go down to Hardcase St and you ask any one of the homeless people if he'd like to use a spare room in your house, rent free. When he has a job and is back on his feet, you repeat the process.

ASF policy-making amounts to nought.

 

[Calliope]

Very simple. You go down to Hardcase St and you ask any one of the homeless people if he'd like to use a spare room in your house, rent free. When he has a job and is back on his feet, you repeat the process.

ASF policy-making amounts to nought.

+ 1

 

[MrBurns]

Very simple. You go down to Hardcase St and you ask any one of the homeless people if he'd like to use a spare room in your house, rent free. When he has a job and is back on his feet, you repeat the process.

ASF policy-making amounts to nought.

That's a great idea, can I pay him too ?

 

[Gringotts Bank]

That's a great idea, can I pay him too ?

You wouldn't have to pay him because you wouldn't take him in the first place. You'd prefer to partake in web forum policy-making, which does nothing except ask "how can we get someone else to fix this problem?"

 

[MrBurns]

You wouldn't have to pay him because you wouldn't take him in the first place. You'd prefer to partake in web forum policy-making, which does nothing except ask "how can we get someone else to fix this problem?"

The Govt is responsible for such matters.

Do you seriously expect individuals to take matters into their own hands ?

 

[Zedd]

Very simple. You go down to Hardcase St and you ask any one of the homeless people if he'd like to use a spare room in your house, rent free. When he has a job and is back on his feet, you repeat the process.

+1

ASF policy-making amounts to nought.

-1 Better it's discussed than not.

 

[Calliope]

Mr Rudd already has the problem in hand. In May 2008 he included the homeless in his his Social Inclusion Agenda. Problem solved.

But yesterday, the homelessness paper - Which Way Home - allowed the Prime Minister back on to the front foot on the social inclusion agenda.

The paper blasted the system for providing little more than a "crisis response" to homelessness and criticised mainstream services, such as health, education and justice, for washing their hands of the issue.

Mr Rudd said his secret visits to homeless shelters ahead of November's election convinced him of the need for an overhaul of the system.

"Homelessness is a national obscenity," he said after addressing the fifth national homeless conference.

"We can do better, we must do better. Put simply, our homelessness policies aren't sufficient to deal with the scale of the problem."

Mr Rudd has very active with this agenda;

1. He sleeps rough once a year to show his is still caring.

2. He could call a conference.

3. If all else fails he will give them one of his apologies.

Or he could cut out the bullsh*t and admit there is no solution.

Zedd says;

-1 Better it's discussed than not.

Why? So that we can all sit in our cosy homes and go "tut tut".

Mr Burns says;

The Govt is responsible for such matters.

Do you seriously expect individuals to take matters into their own hands ?

Not if a matter of putting your money where your mouth is.