Quote by Riff Raff
For a lot of these people it is a matter of choice.....They choose not to get their lazy arses out of bed in the morning..hence cant hold down a job, they choose not to live in hostels or support homes (I admit I have no real knowledge of what is on offer) because it means they will have to abide by a few common sense rules like..wash.. dont take drugs, dont fight or get so pissed you cant move..get a job dont steal etc...
They choose to sponge of society because it is easier than taking responsibility for yourself and others around you..
I left home at 18, moved to a city 150 miles from my parents (because i bluddy well chose to get out of there) and had nothing but 2 changes of clothes and about Â£100... I was lucky and had a place to stay for a few days...but that was it... I had to find a job, I had to pay my rent as quickly as i could...I had to work bluddy hard to get here I am today...and if i can do it...so can they....!

For a lot of people it is not a matter of choice.
I was homeless for the best part of ten years. It most certainly was not a lifestyle choice.
For only a relatively short period of that time was I actually street homeless i.e. living in doorways in Charing Cross in sub-zero temperatures.
Most of the time was spent squatting in derelict buildings, no water, no heat, no light, no furniture, etc etc
And there is the other sort of homelessness that I have experienced but which doesn't grab the headlines............sharing dormitories in overcrowded hostels run by exploitative landlords as so accurately described above by Neilinleeds. If Dickens were about today, etc.
People find themselves homeless for all manner of reasons...........abusive families, relationship breakdown, armed forces cutbacks, alcoholism, addiction, physical and mental problems, etc.
Similarly, homeless people come from diverse backgrounds.
I loathe the uninformed generalisations that are applied to the homeless.
I detest the lazy stereotyping of homeless people.
I equally abhor simplistic analysis and proposed solutions.
Try getting a job when you have no fixed abode.
Try holding on to documents that might help you get a job when you have nowhere safe to keep them.
Try keeping your body clean or your clothes laundered when you are living in a doorway.
Try to exude confidence and self-esteem in a job application or at an interview when you know you've just come from an abandoned, filthy, rat-infested building.
Before people propose their facile remedies they might like to find out what it really is like to live in grinding poverty without a roof over thier head. And I don't mean these publicity stunts that are favoured by MPs where they spend a week in a hostel. They still have well-shod feet and fine threads on their backs. They don't carry out their little social experiments long enough for holes to appear in their shoes. And they have the knowledge that their adventure will only last for seven days. I doubt if they'd be so bouyant if they had to endure those conditions day after day, month after month with no end in sight. That is spirit-crushing. Try "a few common sense rules...washing " when you are subsisting at that that level of despair, Mr I-had-to-work-bluddy-hard-to-get-where-I am-today.
There is no doubt that many BI sellers have substance misuse problems.
Just as many do not. So what. There are many actors and musicians who openly flaunt their drug-using. Am I to boycott their films and records ? But for the libel laws I would name several major retail brands that are headed by people with cocaine problems. Am I to eschew these products also?
I did not get out of my longterm homelessness predicament because I "took reponsibility for myself" or "obeyed a few commonsense rules."
I was fortunate enough to get help at a time and in circumstances where I was able to accept it. The context was important. Without going into detail, there were many times when I would not have been able to accept help even it was there. Alas, for many people the help is never available.
I am most grateful for the help I got.
It was a modest start and the timing was crucial.
I was offered a place at a half-way house from the street to what would eventually become a bedsit tenancy. Neither the half-way nor the bedsit could be described as palaces. From this base I got a place in college. And I decided to give back to society by being of use to those who were still living in circumstances like those I had recently left. That was seventeen years ago. I customised my degree to equip myself for working with the homeless and the addicted. And I'm bloody good at my job. Not so much because of my academic qualifications (though they are excellent too) but because of my experience.
Another way that i try to serve people who find themselves in situations similar to thos e that I came from is by challenging the ignorance and prejudice that many people show when discussing this issue. That's why I've taken more time in my contribution to this thread than I possibly have done for any other SH topic to date.
There is not a day goes by that I do not recall exactly where I came from.
And feel grateful for what I've got today. I am not a rich man in material trerms. I've got a modest little home now, a few possessions, nice wheels, etc. And that's about it materially. No big deal. What matters far more is the dignity that I've now got that was a million miles away and seemingly unattainable while I was homeless. That is priceless.
And I fight hard to maintain that self-respect. It's a precious and fragile commodidity for someone with my experience. There were plenty of people who tried to erode it a score or more years ago with their judgemental attitudes.
I have no more time for these people now than I had then.
I would rather spend time chatting with a BI vendor than hobnobbing with the "get a job and and get your together" crew.
And I do.
Don't be so hasty to judge people until you have walked at least a mile in their shoes.
End of rant :D :D :D
Riff Raff - Rant noted and listened to...As I said..I am of split opinion on this subject...I understand there are a lot of people in very difficult situations and they do not have or have not yet been offered a choice...They will always get my sympathy and support. But you made my point very well..you were offered help and you chose to do something with it to better yourself. It sounds like you worked Bluddy hard to get to where you are today too...and you have my greatest respect...hence I am not just telling you to feck off for having a personal pop at me.
I dont think my analysis of the situation was too far off the mark...essentially the people you refer to have problems...and there are people out there like your good self who are there and trained to help them (I assume that there are probably not enough of you though) but they have to CHOOSE to take that help and start somewhere..
I dont feel ashamed of not having to literally climb out of the gutter (through luck more than judgement) to get to where I am today..not that it is a particularly grand place, but i do not like to be made to feel guilty about it by the other section of the people discussed in this thread and by that I do mean the sorry arsed wast of space spongers who take up valuable time and money given by people (which does actually include myself) to try and help the genuine needy.
I have taken on board your description of homelessness and will try to do more to help...but I stand by my comments in my original post as I believe them to be correct
Regards
Mr I-had -to-work-bluddy-hard-to get-to where-i-am-today

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