Do you think some people want to be homeless?

I can't imagine people wanting to be homeless; but here in the United States, we have many welfare agencies that help people with food, clothes, and shelter. That makes me think that people almost need to volunteer to be homeless for more than a short time.

during my years on the road hitching i spoke to a LOT of people i met that were homeless . most all of them were happy with the lives they had actually chosen . fair comment that the majority of them were fellow travelers like myself and not homeless that didnt move out of the big cities . i was technically homeless for 2 years on one of my trips but i was on the move the whole time. i had a place to stay in my home town if i ever got back there but chose to stay out .i dont agree with sponging off the government in any way and would never do it in the very worse of circumstances . i know theres folk who do though even with a house and try to screw the system which i think is terrible .
if for some reason i was made homeless right now i honestly could say it wouldn't bother me that much . im used to the life and enjoyed my years on the road and would be a good excuse to go on another 1 or 2 year long trip .

I read a book about the life style, which you describe. Unfortunately, I don't remember the title or the author. It used the word, tramp, to describe people who tramped, or moved from, one place to another. It also used the word, hobo. I don't remember how a tramp was supposed to be different than a hobo. Maybe it was that a tramp walks from one place to another, and a hobo rides on a freight train.

I see what you're saying. But because charity is given with a free will, it is open to both the deserving and the undeserving.

the term "leather tramp" (as in shoe leather) is used for people who walk or hike . "rubber tramp" (tires) is some times used for hippies who travel in vans or campers . a hobo is some one who travels from place to place with no fixed address or permanent job but working in towns he passes through

There might not be too much difference between the two. I'm sure not every homeless person has willfully chosen their lifestyle but they are also living off society. Where do you think that soup comes from and how do you think that soup gets there? They are still piggybacking off the donations and hard work of others. Most of these soup kitchens are operated by churches, which do not pay taxes and are subsidized by the government. I have known homeless people who also receive a disability check, so again receiving a government handout.

I'm sure there is a lot of pregnant mother s who might be taking advantage of the welfare system but I have also known of some who have not willfully chosen their lifestyle. Unless you have lived in their shoes, I would not judge them because it is judgment that defeats us.

Can you imagine a society that does not care for those people who are less fortunate than others are? What kind of world would we be living in? I, for one, do not mind a percentage of my tax money set aside to help these people out. Sure, the people who are taking advantage of the system upset me; however, just as an occasional innocent person is wrongfully convicted, there is no perfect system.

Everything ever done to actually elevate homelessness has come from government initiated plans and infrastructure. Charity doesn't work, it papers over the cracks, governmental change is the only thing that works because it is the only thing which is one a wide enough scale to work. The reason governments don't do it is because there isn't the political clout. Nup, you can't tax people who can afford to survive because that infringes their liberty...

Wow, I thought for a second that you were referring to my ex-girlfriend! lol

And so the issue comes once again full circle:

While there can't be a "cure" for homelessness, at least charities/churches/individuals get off their butts and waste no time making a difference in homeless people's lives.

And that's more than a time-wasting, do-nothing-until-the-political-climate-is-perfect government will ever do.

They can if we make them. Don't get me wrong Charity has its benefits, I volunteer for Shelter, a homeless charity here in the UK, and have been politically involved in them. I know and they know that the best chance of making real change is by creating political change, something we did (to an extent) in Scotland. Unfortunately that is going backwards now but the political pressure we put on the government has made more of an actual change than any private charity has.

No one would choose to be homeless. They became homeless due to circumstances they can't control (i.e. layoffs in the suck a** economy.)

Not true. I have known people who were homeless by choice.