The vast majority of homeless are drug addicts and alcoholics. The receive welfare but choose to spend their rent money on booze and drugs. We should take the potion of their benefits intended for housing (50%?) and ensure that is spent on hosing.
To do this all welfare payments should be divided into two approximately equal parts. One part should be given to a government agency who will spend it to provide housing and the second part would be paid to the beneficiary. This would end the financial benefit of being homeless and encourage them to leave the streets.
From a practical standpoint I doubt that it would work. That was basically the concept of housing projects. Housing a bunch of addicts increases the problems. The last thing addicts unwilling to work need is to be artificially government subsidized housed next to each other and bringing all of their kids into it with them.
Flushing them out of homeless camps while offering drug rehab and mental health programs as an option to jail with a very temporary homeless shelter for those that choose to take advantage of it is the most humane and practical option IMO. It’s sad but some won’t take advantage of it due to very severe mental or chemical problems. As a society they still need to be ran out of camps that are a magnet for societal problems for them and everyone else.
Giving addicts or the mentality ill free housing is not humane. It’s bad for them and worse for their kids. They’ll take the free housing and minimal welfare support and then pay for their habit with rampant crime.
The most humane solution for them and for society is to jail them for all of the crimes that come with homeless populations. Open intoxication, vagrancy, theft, fights, drug use, prostitution ect and offer drug and mental health facilities for those that choose to take advantage. Some will take advantage and some won’t lock up the ones that won’t. Sad but realistically what else can you do?
