If you want to educate yourself about the nature and scope of the issue there is a new book out that examines the structural roots of the homelessness crisis.
Over the course of the book, the researchers illustrate how absolute rent levels and rental vacancy rates are associated with regional rates of homelessness. Many other common explanations—drug use, mental illness, poverty, or local political context—fail to account for regional variation.
Do your collaborators account for the abject, utter failure of the federal (as opposed to local and state) government in it's responsibility for the welfare of it's citizens and it's not being held accountable for that failure? The willful blindness to not see that elephant in the room by so many is astounding to me. This is a problem that needs to be dealt with nationally, not in a piecemeal fashion by ill-funded and equiped localities. The federal government is the deep pockets, that can print money and carry massive deficits(unlike state and local) such that if this were a lawsuit the lawyers would be going after like flies on shit. I guess it's just so much easier( and in the end pointless and futile) to simply blame Eugene or the city of your choice.
That's interesting, last time I checked we still sent representatives to Washington via elections. Those representatives live to be re-elected. The reason they don't care (much) about the homeless issue is because their constituents aren't in their face about it. Oh, did I mention that's just as much the fault of a lapdog electorate as the government? Personally, I don't want my local government further turning this place into a 'homeless magnet' on my dime by producing (cheap/free) housing for all comers from across the land. There I've gone and done it now, fallen into the vacuous vortex of the homeless "debate"...must hit escape pod jettison button...bang!...I'm outta here!!!
And a big part of why they don't care is because the electorate, for a variety of reasons, has come to believe that political "participation" is simply voting every two(maybe) and four years and invariably returning the same clowns back for another term. Despite all the hoopla about the political divide, Americans have largely removed themselves from the political process. So it shouldn't be at all surprising that the elite pays them little heed.
There's no hard date one can point to, it's a process that has evolved over years, decades in fact. And it feeds on itself, as people come to believe their voice doesn't matter they become less likely to particpate. Events like Citizens United certainly play a significant part but I'd say they're more symptoms then anything. Americans have in essence decided that they have better things to do than engage fully in the "messiness" that is particpatory politics (aka democracy). Generally when people do engage it's on behalf of a particular cause(abortion,etc.) dear to them afterwhich they're likely to call it a day. It's sort of like they've become "specialists", when what is really needed are a lot more "generalists". So politicians can play to these "niche" causes to cement their base, which makes it appear that they "care". They're the "house" and we 're the rubes being played but it's our choice. My take anyway.
Federal policy has definitely played a role in getting us to where we are today, and should play a role in getting us out of the mess we're in.
Although, national level legislative politics are currently beyond dysfunctional and are unlikely to do things like reform the mortgage system or implement a practical housing guarantee.
A primary roll IMO, but as you say given the perpetual clown show in DC pigs will fly first. So things will only get worse since its unsolvable at the local(or even state) level and no amount of debate will change that.
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u/TormentedTopiary Aug 04 '22
If you want to educate yourself about the nature and scope of the issue there is a new book out that examines the structural roots of the homelessness crisis.
It's called Homelessness is a housing problem. and it's a collaboration between an academic and a data journalist.
A quote from the website: