Tedrico's Page Select Discussion Topic of the Week (5/23 -
Theodore Latham (tedrico@hotmail.com)
Sat, 30 May 1998 04:39:49 PDT
TEDRICO'S PAGE SELECT DISCUSSION TOPIC OF THE WEEK
Each week Tedrico's Page scavenges the WWW in search of a
controversial homeless discussion topic, and presents it to you, in
hopes of gathering varied and invaluable feedback for analysis:
On Sat, 23 May 1998 21:58:06 EDT Jeevan <JEEVSTER@aol.com>
wrote:
Subject: Is drug addiction usually a cause or consequence?
What would you say were the most common causes of someone
becoming homeless? Is drug addiction usually a cause or a consequence?
As a future physician, or if I were to start up an organization catering
to health needs of the homeless, would you
have any advice as to what concerns need to be met first?
*******************
Jeevan
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RESPONSES:
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On Tue, 26 May 1998 20:49:15 [EST] Tedrico Latham <tedrico@hotmail.com>
responded:
Jevan, speaking from personal experience ... I'd have to say both cause
and consequence! My life was going absolutely well until I
took that big BOOYOW (as they say in the streets)! Since the day I
did that, I slowly but surely lost my status as a promising, young,
future college graduate, my car, the love of my life, my sanity, my
rational thinking, my ability to walk amongst the "outside of
prison" population (for a brief period), my desire for intimate
relationships, my familie's trust, a roof over my head to call my
own, numerous well paying jobs, and I even almost lost my life on
several occasions. Drug addiction caused all of this over a short
time period of 4 years. As a consequence, I experienced the full
thrusted end of homelessness, unlike non-drug users who seldom blow all
of the opportunities to rise above homelessness like we hard
core users do every day ... all day!
----------------
On Tue, 26 May 1998 21:09:50 +0000 Jennafer Waggoner <refugee@gte.net>
remarked:
Cause or consequence? I'd say both. The first concern you should
have is asking the homeless in your area what they need. I am an
outreach worker for the Santa Monica AIDS Project and the things
that I see are mostly undiagnosable.
Most people's teeth are completely rotted out or missing. Skin disorders
are very common. Rashes, poisonous insects, skin
exposures and cancers are common and untreated here by the public health
system. I see people's faces colors of red you will never
want to see. Peeling faces showing red and garish pink oozing
wounds that are too painful to treat for most. Open wounds are
common, especially amongst alcholics.
I'd say the most common malady of the homeless is food disorders.
Foot infections are the number one disease of the homeless. The
number one crippler of the homeless. Swollen feet, athlete's foot isn't
the word for the maddening infection that occurs when you have no clean
socks or shoes. I know many people who resort to alcohol
and drugs because their pain isn't taken care of and counseling for the
homeless for psychological trauma is non-existent no matter how much
they say that it is, it isn't.
----------------
On Tue, 26 May 1998 20:49:39 -0700 (PDT) "P. Myers"
<mpwr@u.washington.edu> replied:
I think the primary cause of homelessness is the lack of social interest
in ending homelessness, by setting up automatic, non-judgemental,
peer-driven and individualised (non-porous) safety nets, so that, when
folks begin to slide into poverty, they do not have to ask for help of a
society that shames them; parade their
pain, grief, crisis, misstep, whatever, to prove that they are
sufficiently poor enough to deserve help, and deserving enough to
make what someone else might define as "good" use of "help." I think
people find themselves homeless for as many reasons as there are
those of us who are/have been / will be homeless. Many single
parents are one paycheck away from homelessness. I haven't managed
to pay full rent in so long I don't know why I'm not on the streets
right now...a *very patient landlady, and **very marginal home also,
I suspect.
Illness, job loss, spousal abuse or desertion; family or personal
illness and resultant bills; death and concomitant loss of some
family member's income; rental increase; housing discrimination by
gender, age, race (especially!), a social system that is regularly
fed sound bits that demonize homeless as dangerous, mentally ill and
dangerous, dirty, drunk and incontinent (whilst still providing nothing
like adequate shelter or private facilities for a population on the
streets); and a government that believes it must operate on
a mentality of scarcity (you know, there really *is enough to go
around...), which strengthens the notion of "I have to get mine
before s/he gets his/hers and there's none left for me ... and hey
presto!
But I guess in the final analysis, Tedrico, it's me. What do I do
or not do, every day, when am I silent when I ought to speak up and why;
when do I not speak with sufficient eloquence/clarity to help people
understand that homelessness/poverty/all the little marginalisations we
use to divide ourselves is part of the way the
man and woman in the mirror have been raised...the assumptions we
make (e.g. if I can make it, anyone can) that we may not know are
assumptions. The choices I/we make that keep a democracy in the hip
pocket of capitalism, without complaint ... So I accept my part in
the equation.
----------------
On Wed, 27 May 1998 01:07:13 EDT FChrisBro <FChrisBro@aol.com>
answered:
To answer the first question, there are so many causes of
homelessness that it is difficult to identify the "most common." Ask 50
homeless people and you're liable to hear 50 different stories.
In light of the large numbers of homeless children, perhaps it could be
said that one common cause of homelessness is having homeless parents.
Drugs--are they a cause or consequence of homelessness? The answer
is yes. Some people do lose everything, including their homes, after
becoming addicted. Others turn to drugs, especially alcohol, as a means
of coping with the mental and physical discomforts associated with
living on the street--that was my personal experience when I
was homeless, and I did not stop abusing intoxicants until after I
was off the street.
As far as the *immediate* health needs of the homeless are
concerned, they are fairly basic and are mostly associated with the
conditions in which they live. They include malnutrition and the
illnesses it causes, mental and emotional disorders, and, for children,
the lack of adequate vaccinations. Drug and alcohol addiction, AIDS and
HIV infection, and the effects of violence are also important concerns.
I guess one could say that the immediate health needs of the homeless
are food, clothing, and shelter.
----------------
On Wed, 27 May 1998 01:27:20 -0400 Graeme Bacque <gbacque@arcos.org>
wrote:
As a causal factor in homelessness, I would have to answer yes
*and* no to the above, with strict qualifications on the 'yes'...
if alcohol or drug use causes behavioral issues or compromises someone's
economic situation, then it would be a factor. But then again this has
to be viewed in the context that real economic
freedom belongs only to a very few to begin with, and as well this
society isn't kind to the human soul and seeking relief from pain seems
an entirely natural response to an often unlivable situation.
If you own a home and have good income these issues are usually shielded
from outside scrutiny but if you're homeless or
inadequately housed - or simply poor - these things are much more in the
public eye and are often met with harsh judgement. The one thing which I
can state with certainty (from painful firsthand experience) is that
substance use/abuse, or for that matter any debilitating condition of
body, mind or spirit can only be aggravated by homelessness. When it
comes to actual causes of homelessness, the most common by far in my
opinion is economic inequity complicated by an inadequate supply of
affordable housing.
----------------
On Wed, 27 May 1998 17:19:54 -0400 "Tim Macaulay" <macaulay@ellijay.com>
said:
I would say that drug addiction is more a consequence than cause
for homelessness but it can be a cause. The most common I would say
is lack of income, family support leading to or derived from depression
and lack of self confidence. I know many dope heads ..
very few are homeless. Most end up in jail which isn't fun but then
isn't really homeless either.
I am a Medical Technologist and work in a clinical setting. There's
a huge misconseption about the homeless and drugs. Truth is, it's
probably harder for homeless to get drugs. Who'd front them a
quarter bag, or an eightball if they had no income. Who'd buy from one?
Needless to say I have experimented most of my adult life ..
I'm not bragging just being honest. I was a brickmason 'til I was
26. I started college at that age in 1992. I smoked pot the whole
time both in college before and after. I quit doing crank on a
regular basis in 1987. I quit smoking pot in August of last year,
granted I miss the high but I have more free money. But never have
I been homeless or known one that was homeless because of drugs.
I've known people addicted to crank get so low they had no home but they
never slept outside either most at that point straighten up or overdose
and die.
----------------
On Wed, 27 May 1998 15:32:36 -0700 Andrew Rose <arose@macromedia.com>
wrote:
Kids need love and education and food so they grow up confident,
curious, and creative. The problems of people on the streets go way
back!
----------------
On Wed, 27 May 1998 21:37:23 EDT Rebecca <REB821@aol.com>
replied:
Drug addiction is definitely a cause. I have seen people go from
being very well off, to losing almost everything due to a drug
addiction. I am a firm believer in the fact that the wages of sin
is death. I interpret this to mean that their is a consequence to every
sin that we commit. If we abuse our bodies or the money which God
entrusts us with, the consequences can only be bad. Deal with
the drug addicts first. Drug addicts don't want to work or lead a normal
life, therefore we cannot expect them to help themselves get off the
streets if their brain is all fried. I'm sorry but I have
no sympathy towards people with drug addictions.
----------------
On Thu, 28 May 1998 04:07:02 -0400 David Ibbotson
<ibbotson@iosphere.net> answered:
Both and Neither! "FIRE WATER BURNS, and HURTS physically." To help the
"homeless" -> give, blood, bone marrow & $, if you were to ever have
any, again!
----------------
On Thu, 28 May 1998 11:34:09 +0000 Piotr kuzniar
<vanguard@tau.ceti.com.pl> said:
In Poland most of drug addicted homeless are scoff by the "normal"
homeless. The same is with Polish organisation helping homeless
(not so much). Drug addicted homeless have their own called MONAR.
The only group helping those people. 1st thing to do - in my opinion
- is help the homeless with heath - in Poland most of homeless need
'heavy' help of medicine doctors - medicines assurance, etc. Health
is the most important thing to solve. Without social help they're
left alone and only in Homeless Centres they might find appropriate
medicine help. They cannot find it government hospital so Homeless
Centres are the only hope for them. I don't know how it looks in USA or
West Europe, but it'd be main thing to do in Poland.
----------------
On Thu, 28 May 1998 14:23:40 -0700 (PDT) Bonnie Briggs
<s248_1132@hotmail.com> responded:
I'd say it is most often a consequence. Homeless people drink to escape
from the street and it's attendent pressures and terrors. My husband and
I were homeless at this time of year in 1987. That was because our
landlord sold the house out from under us. We didn't
find out about it until the deal was done.
As to what health concerns need to be dealt with first, I would say
basic, preventative health care. Homeless people need housing and
good food to remain healthy. We all know that TB is rampant on the
streets and in the shelters. When you're on the streets, you are exposed
to all manner of germs, illnesses, and diseases. Homeless people catch
these diseases more readily because their immune
systems are run down.
Also, homeless people don't get the proper diet for good health.
They may eat once a day, every other day, or not for several days. This
does not promote good health. Homeless people eat a lot of starch, (i.e.
Kraft Dinner). They also live off food from the food bank. A lot of this
food is second-hand food, some of it's going
bad, and it is heavy on starch and processed food. No one can remain
heathy on this kind of steady diet. People need fresh vegetables
and fruit, meat occasionally, (sorry vegans), and an array of foods
on a steady basis to stay healthy. I believe this is where you need
to focus your organization. I hope this helps.
----------------
On Thu, 28 May 1998 19:51:36 -0400 Paula <plebrun@cyberportal.net>
wrote:
Up in our area the substance abuse caused the homelessness because
of missed work, being kicked out of home/relationships/family for
repeated use/abuse. It's real difficult to help the user until they want
to help themselves and work on their addiction. Most every one
of our substance abusers who's found employment &/or housing, and didn't
stick to AA or other support services, lost it all again and again --
our repeaters at the shelter. What's real sad are the
parents who continue to use, collect welfare or work, the kids are
continually in a state of upheavel and have to pay for the problems
their parents are having. I've reported numerous families to the
Child Protective for abandonment and other various abuses and
neglect of children and received little or no reponse from them.
We try the police and local agencies as well. Usually the problem is
ignored since we're a 24 hr. staffed shelter...they think we're
supervising the children. A bunch of us are getting semi organized
to address this in our community.
To answer the pre-doctor, I'd say one of the greatest needs is $$
for meds, such as insulin-necessary medications. Substance abuse is
rough if you're dual diagnosed. Not many places will take them due
to that, as well as the fact that they're indigent. Also, dental and eye
care is difficult to get. We try to approach the substance
problem within the shelter when every door gets shut, but we've
never seen 100% success long term. These folks are so dedicated to their
addiction they'll go without to buy their "escape", take from others, or
con it out of someone. I've also never seen a person who was homeless
turn to alcohol or drugs because of their situation.
Addicts are the most frustrating type of client to help and deal
with. I've dragged them from the bars when they were suppose to be
at work, scared the daylights out of them, some went to detox and
rehab...but they were back at it eventually. Unless the person is
dedicated to ending the addiction themselves no matter what services and
supports are there, it just isn't going to happen. My suggestion to the
doctor...don't enable them, don't feel sorry for them. It's
as if they're on a suicide mission, and even if they were handed
life on a silver platter, they still wouldn't give it up. <-I've
tried it and it doesn't work. Addicts also seem to form their own
"group" and watch out for one another so they won't get caught,
kicked out of the shelter, share their 12-pack or whatever. For
those of us loosing sleep and putting our lives on the line trying
to help and often save these people's lives, IT STINKS!!! I've received
my share of black 'n blues from them, cried a few oceans
from frustration and exhaustion - then I head out again to try,
try, try... This is getting depressing!
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