It’s almost impossible to discuss homelessness without a chorus of loud and insistent voices shouting, “It’s the drugs!” While drug use is indeed common among homeless people, reliable data confirm it’s rarely the cause of homelessness. If drug use were the cause of homelessness, you would expect to see a correlation among states with high numbers of drug usage and high numbers of homelessness. There is no such correlation. Hawaii […]
Homelessness in the San Joaquin Valley
No Drugs, Good Job — Still no Housing
California’s housing crisis shows no signs of ending soon as more and more people find themselves unable to rent or buy housing of any kind, even when they have work and good incomes. Dennis Lewis is only one of thousands of people who turned their lives around, went to work, then suffered a sudden reversal of fortune that led to months of homelessness. Drug free and awaiting a return to […]
Homeless — where your money goes Part V: The high costs of extravagant cruelty
As California politicians declare their commitment to dealing with homelessness, they should also acknowledge that it originates in the state’s chronic shortage of housing that shows no signs of abating. Dan Walters, 23 January, 2023 According to Lauren Lowry, Director for Housing and Community Development at the National League of Cities, “chronic homelessness costs the public roughly $30,000 to $50,000 per unhoused individual each year.” In 2019, when the City […]
Homeless — Where your money goes, Part IV: The rising costs of cruelty
In June, 2022, the Stanislaus County Civil Grand Jury released a report on homelessness noting that despite increasing costs, homelessness has gotten worse countywide. The report cited lack of focus and accountability among a myriad of agencies as critical factors in failed efforts to manage the county’s growing homeless population. Stanislaus County is not alone in failure. Throughout the entire state of California, a major negative influence has been the […]
Homeless: Where your money goes, Part III: The costly effects of good intentions
Despite the expenditure of billions of dollars, homelessness in California continues to burgeon. While every city and county throughout the state faces different challenges trying to manage the problem, there are enough similarities that all can learn from one another’s failures. Stanislaus County and the City of Modesto offer typical examples of tactics that have failed again and again. ed Frank Ploof may know more about homelessness in Stanislaus County […]
Homeless — Where your Money goes Part II: The Black Hole of Law Enforcement
California Governor Gavin Newsom’s pledge to dedicate $750 million of the state’s 2023-2024 budget to sweeps of homeless camps is only the latest example of the extravagant waste of taxpayer dollars on futile tactics aimed at reducing homelessness. In all, the new budget will devote $15.3 billion to homelessness, even though the state has already spent billions more, only to see a continual rise in numbers of people experiencing homelessness. […]
Homeless — where your money goes, Part I: The Black Hole of Rehab
No one should have been surprised when the Stanislaus County Civil Grand Jury found that local attempts to manage homelessness lacked focus, accountability, and positive results, despite the expenditure of millions of dollars. Like efforts to reduce homelessness most everywhere, Stanislaus County’s bewildering array of nonprofits, government agencies, and volunteer efforts fails for many reasons, but among the most common is the mistaken notion that rehabilitation should be the first […]
Overdoses at the Recovery Center? Yes
On December 8, we asked Stanislaus County CEO Jody Hayes whether rumors about fentanyl overdoses at the Stanislaus Recovery Center (SRC) were true. SRC is the county facility for treatment of drug addiction and mental illness. We also asked how many residents had been evicted from Stanislaus County’s low barrier shelter since January 1, and how many were denied entry since that time. Finally, we asked how many seriously mentally […]
Homeless: The Saints Who Walk among Us
Those who frequent the streets, alleys, parks and hideaways of the homeless often encounter humble missionaries of hope and charity. These are the people who feed, clothe and comfort the lost and forlorn on an endless mission of hope and charity. Almost always, they are people of modest means who embody the true spirit of Christmas all year long in humble acts of ministering to the poor. Many are faith-based; […]
Homeless: No Shelter from the Storm
Monday, homeless people in Modesto found no respite from the biggest rainstorm in years as Caltrans continued to sweep them away from encampments along Highway 99 and locations nearby. Governor Gavin Newsom’s ongoing program to get homeless people out of sight now includes pouring concrete along steep slopes under overpasses and erecting sturdy metal fences along highway borders as he attempts to sweep homelessness under the rug while he explores […]