Clothe the Naked

Why is it so hard for people in the U.S. to feel compassion? To feel: "There but for some luck or grace go I"? I'm sure some will disagree with me, but the myth of the lone pioneer or cowboy staking out on his own, or the corporate mogul starting from nowhere and taking over the world Horatio Alger-style really doesn't take into account the fact that there are many people who simply can't take care of themselves adequately. Our society really ignores these people.

I now work, for the first time in many years, in what can politely be called an emerging or developing neighborhood. The homeless and hopeless abound. Walking to work this morning from the subway, I passed a man in rags doing his morning stretching on his front porch, which was of course, sidewalk grating. Walking to the park (and in the park) near my office, the mentally altered through drink, drugs, or insanity teem.

Our current social safety network really doesn't make provision for these people. Yes, they should get jobs. I certainly wouldn't hire them for anything I wanted done. They have trouble walking in a straight line and not stinking (and some have that truly scary metallic and odd chemical smell that I associate with the serious heavy duty psychotropic drugs that are the hallmarks of real and thorough departure from reality). The paperwork necessary to obtain SSI benefits (which are miniscule) is way too much for them to handle. Even if they obtain the benefits, the best they can do is an SRO (single room occupancy hotel) where they can be preyed on by criminals. Their chances of eating right are slim, especially since they are forbidden to cook in their rooms and basically dine one prepackaged food available at high prices from corner stores and trash can pickings (really -- I saw that in action yesterday). This is the capital of the current version of the Roman empire. We have large numbers of people sleeping on grates, eating food from dumpsters, and with severe mental and physical illnesses that go untreated within less than a mile of the Capitol and the White House. It's shameful.

These people can't care for themselves. We should take care of them. Me as an individual, you as individuals and members of various organizations, and our (the U.S.) government.

I know, I know. They might take the dollar I give them and buy a beer. It's called self-medicating. Anyway, I've said it before and I'll say it again: Let them buy the beer. If I were homeless, I'd want a beer, and if you were, so would you. It's not like anyone is going to hire these people or help them live more productive lives. Why is the fact that there are literally hundreds of people (five in one two block walk at 7:30 a.m.) in this situation not news? Oh, I remember why, for the most part, the government and the citizens of this country really don't give a flying fuck. To steal a great line (maybe misquoting): at long last, have we no shame?