Thursday, October 1, 2009
Homelessness
I think that there is a lot of homeless people out in the world. I think that it is our duty as citizens to help them. Just doing a little for someone can do a lot for them. Like if you just give a person five dollars than that will help that person all day. Also you can transport that person to a shelter if he/she doesn't know how to get there or is to far away. You could help the person get cleaned up and take them to a job interview to help make some money to have some food or to get back on their two feet again. I think that an important issue is the people that pretend to be homeless. That makes people think twice about donating money because they don't know if the person is going to use it for drugs or just to buy something else. Thats one of the reasons why I think there is so many homeless people because we don't give them money. We don't know where the money is going. I think that if we all go the extra mile then we can make a big diffrence. WHAT DO YOU THINK?
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Devin, this was another great blog post that you wrote! Homelessness is such an important issue. We live in the richest country in the world, and it's shameful that there are people in our country who are going hungry and have no place to live.
ReplyDeleteThe issue is somewhat complex. Some people are homeless because they lost their jobs in a really bad economy. Some have become homeless because they have mental illness and no family to take care of them. And some are battling drug addictions that have devestated them and left them without money or shelter.
You are absolutely right that many people are skeptical about giving money to people who appear homeless or "down-on-their-luck" because, as you pointed out in your blog, they don't know if that person will use that money to get back on their feet, or if they are going to use the money to feed a possible drug or alcohol addiction.
There is an old saying that says "If you give a man a fish, he will eat for a day, but if you teach a man how to fish, he will eat forever." I think what that saying really means is that it's important that we not just put a band-aid on the problem by helping someone out for one day, but that we really help them lift themselves up out of poverty by providing services that equip them with the skills they need to become self-sufficient.
So while I think that you're right that individuals should find it in their hearts to give some spare change or dollars to homeless people, it is just as important that we tell our elected officials that we want some of our tax dollars to go towards programs that provide services to homeless people that allow them to find permanent shelter and work.
I commend you for thinking about and writing about this topic. What type of game do you think you could create that deals with this issue? Maybe your game could have multiple levels, where in level one of the game, the player has a certain amount of food and money, and encounters homeless people and if the player gives them some food or money, the homeless person stops crying and having hunger pains for a little while but then comes back to your player for more food or money. The player gets through Level 1 by helping a certain number of homeless people. Level 2 could be where the player has to go to her/his elected officials to demand more mental health services, job opportunities, food kitchens, and shelters for homeless people. The player gets past level 2 once their visits to their elected officials result in more of these services. These are just some of my initial thoughts about how you could possibly make a game about this important issue. You can probably improve these ideas and come up with even better ideas.
Great job, Devin!!
David left me without words Devin. I believe Tiffany is going to steal David's game idea and add to it. Tiffany is very interested in ending homelessness. Devin is interested in promoting voting through a game. Anyone have any ideas how she could set a game up. Post them in the comment box or in a blog post.
ReplyDeleteI have read your post and really enjoyed reading it . you as person arewonderful and worry about the littlest things. so it's not a big change to see posting about the homelessness in the usa but, you are right as a conscerned citzin to worry about the health of you and others. then you also have to look at there is only so much we can do because we are human. though we can do anything that we sit our minds to if we have the right sources. so thank you for being my friend and be concerned too.
ReplyDeleteDevin,
ReplyDeleteWhat an important issue! As I was reading your post, I thought about two movies: The Pursuit of Happyness and The Soloist. Have you seen them? In these two films, the main characters are homeless, at some point in their lives, but for diverse reasons. Because the causes of homelessness are so diverse, it is difficult to have a “one size fits all” solution. I would have to agree with what David proposes – “we really help them lift themselves up out of poverty by providing services that equip them with the skills they need to become self-sufficient.” That, Devin, is our civic duty, whether through voice (talking to our elected officials and advocating) and/or through our actions (getting out there and volunteering or working in places that are providing these services).
Can’t wait to read more of your blogs, Devin!
-Ms. Dionne