homeless ness has been part of american culture for - no, more accurate, is to say that homeless ness helped found american culture. and, why it continues to plague lives, streets, statistics, is satisfactorily explained under american culture

so, why isn’t this focus. how

what de-persons someone to homeless existence. in spite of its self, america won. therefore, homeless ness is not a necessary evil. all natural-order arguments aside. for too long others have worked toward a better ‘order’ system. all mental health charts trashed. modern science, not-so modern science already provided one option. all financial burden commentary hushed. money is abundant when public and private pressure are applied conclusively

my story: i was riding with my mom. there was a homeless man by the side of the road. he was two lanes over. in a wheelchair. holding a cardboard sign. homeless . . . vet . . . money . . . wants a beer i wanted to give him a dollar. i only had 3. what difference would it make in his life. in mine. my mom said give him credit for being honest. yes, but. in this instance lie to me

my story explicits my vote on hour-earned money mandated to support others - whether grown and able bodied, but insolent and assuming. or, whether clinically disabled on some overall level, and lesser able but still assuming. there are always options that don’t include my being put out for you to continue to stay out

a woman sits
her back to the crowd, although, they can see her face. she has severed her connection with the world, and gone to a place. she is battered. she is. and, with no reason for such misfortune – no good reason. she is battered but has no marks upon her face. a battered soul. beyond the physical realm of life. and here, two stories, hers & his - both true an old woman,

not old as old is,
but old that her mind has gone ill, ill of decay from a world of bad health and rough living - it is winter, and in the cold she wears a mini skirt, belly hanging from the seams. overtly her shame is non well perceived. she walks with her head high as if nothing. her little out-of-season skirt, and matching out-of-season top. a bus-load of folks. they remark. and laugh. and shriek in disgust. she, this other she, smirks. and falls sullen, embarrassed that she could share the amusement. disgust

how can they laugh

she, the first she, the she of mini skirts in winter time, walked on. not hearing. their words. not seeing their eyes. her head is high. and, the battered woman was left justified. only by the same tongue wronging her. be quiet before I have her ride this bus or something similar is the silencer. silence in laughter. scream. don't want to. scream. do it. mad she is homeless, poor, hungry,

naked
not her, but him. walking. down town. wave to him. he waves back. the gesture of respectability lost in the confusion of attention. in the confusion of identity, un named, but spotted. in the confusion of comic relief. on a blistery day. misread as warmth. from strangers, shaking their heads and pointing. at him, him naked and walking. carrying on with life

life is harsh, turbulent. the battered woman notices. sitting calm, unnerved. like life is a vicious dog. and, any sudden movement will trigger it. the end within her self. kant would be proud. meanwhile com 101 teaches no news is new news. all happened before. still, one more shattered being. how bored is she with the commonality of her, situation... breathing of pain. how many breaths to the heart of common... is the heart of common comfortable, warm

ok, so. resources are available. information is widespread. campaigns are underway, and hopefully the needy will self-select in remarkable numbers. still, i beg. how. how does someone become homeless

and, key in the brew is that the individual is de-personed. not how all homeless people look alike. how homeless people become fixture and debris

and, any study, any news print is only going to produce case study. as much as i’d love an exact answer, an exact fix.

my other story: i was a journalist. i featured an animal clinic. feral cats. captured. undeniably - in the universal language of distress - the creatures were ‘helped’ against their will. doped. spaded. neutered. restored - eye infection, parasites, f.i.v. fed. sheltered, temporarily. placed.
forgotten into a statistical success. were they - escaped or broken. how long until the home no longer can afford the feral presence. is the presence still feral. a flicker of light, an unkind word, mental illness, world disassociation, societal expectation. stubbornness. what triggers. and, how many captures before feral is just feral. can the home sleep comfortably with feral, with former feral, with predisposition, with acquired taste for feral in the home. is the feral chained, locked each night until escape or broke. or worse, abandoned

the news reported a story about a woman who ‘helped’ katrina victims. the family was relocated. given a home. rent was paid for one year. and, the woman met unexpected financial circumstances. it was printed that the family would have to leave their home, new home, in a foreign area, with no family, no friends, except this woman who would fix everything. where was the plan

she fixed their material needs. for a little while. good start. a long, hot shower always does wonders. the plan must be holistic. mental component, because new states can be new countries. occupation/skill component, because the same job in a new place can require new skills. financial component, because relocation alone takes time and time requires money. education component, because progress stalks everyone. support component, because something as simple as a welcoming face can make all the difference. management component, because expectation and demands require frequent reassessment for efficiency. fun component, because no r&r is bad for health on all levels

there was a time when families and towns could and did collectively oust an individual, a family not contributing to society. there was a time when mentally ill disappeared, or worse, sterilized, guinea-pigged. this is a time of opportunity. a time of options

a deep sigh on life

he exists as a poem
inspired

gone to going, and such
when he shouldn't

a verbal portrait
in screaming nakedness
a reflection of feminine pain
no wounds
a flag conquering her battle womb

masterfully
tucked in exposure to the world
self
more dependable than material cover
courting meaninglessness
in his copper-colored defense

see him
witness the birth of pain

the only thing i can concede is the 'conditioned homeless' - those homeless for so long they prefer it. a home is prison to them. and they can’t cope in it. is this the man walking naked. naked in public to provoke arrest. arrests increase during the cold season. the homeless would rather be locked in warmth. than defenseless against winter. and still, i’m not convinced homeless means without a home

many of us are x dollars from poverty. poverty is the stew of homelessness. poverty of skill. poverty of motivation. poverty of money. poverty of trust. poverty of love. poverty of self. temporary job loss, settle time after relocation, loss of deeded structure don’t equate to homelessness. although each is worth its mmhg in stress. to have had a job, and feel loss of it. . .to pursue a new place, and take time to learn you in it. . .to purchase a house, and know the empty of its destruction. . . involve solid sense of self, monetary flow, possibility. this is not homeless ness

these, instead, mean a support system. independence. aspiration. these mean there was, is and will be a plan. homeless ness lacks a plan

homeless ness is being at the bottom. and not knowing that's where you are. because, you just are. not self destructing, but destructed. no longer a time’s future, but forever in time

diagnosis: commercial racism & jobism

case study:

1) radio ad begins with agreeable rap verses, announcer states 'radio may never be clean' before launching sale pitch for vacuum cleaner

2) radio ad begins with woman complaining about thanklessness of job as waitress, stating no songs are written about waitresses before announcer launches sale pitch for stripper/dancer job

issue: 1) racist against black men, and 2) sexist/jobist against women

comment

the vacuum ad could have used any music genre. why use rap? and, at the very least, if it had to use rap, the ad should have used rap lyrics that are blatantly offensive. yes, what is offensive is subjective. still, to hear curse words in the elevator while at work... to hear kill all politicians... to hear bomb the u.s., let's say, would be a universal automatic offense. therefore, what is offensive is not without objectivity. the rap verses used in the ad are agreeable - whether edited or not, as played over the radio in the context of the ad the lyrics are not offensive. it shouldn't be necessary to mention the offense factor of the composition of music behind the lyrics, but... a preference not to hear certain types of music does not make the music offensive. and, as music goes, there's never been a composition of music that in and of its sound-self is offensive. ok, back to the lyrics. based on the lyrics used, the ad states that rap is inherently offensive. especially since black men have revolutionized the concept of self-made millionaire by demanding respect and honesty of 'self' through rap and hip hop . . .

the stripper/dancer ad is perpetuating the myth that waitresses don't make money. they get a check plus tips. true, minimum wage is insulting. but the amount a waitress makes also depends on where the job is, with what company, the market it services and that market's ability and willingness to dish tips. not all people in a given job earn the same amount of money. BUT, worse than this is... the stripper/dancer ad is on the radio. why? and, even if it is legal to aire the ad, the radio show has social responsibility. families listen to the station. young girls hear the ad. the same young girls who are already facing challenges in a community of little options, and in a world of unreasonable pressure, such as supermodel size. young men hear the ad. the same young men who are also already facing challenges in a community of little options, but with the added perceptions of females as eye candy and flesh toys. at the very least, this ad should not be aired until late night. at the very least, this ad can drop the comparison. at the very least, this ad can include specific candidate requirements

final say: restrict these ads. restrict similar ads. 1,000 feet distance, minimum. of schools, of churches, of libraries, of any high minor-trafficked and potentially high minor-trafficked entities. which means no radio presentation. this would not be censorship, i oppose censorship, it will be a civil approach to fighting words