POPE FRANCIS : WE CAN FIND NO SOCIAL OR MORAL JUSTIFICATION... FOR LACK OF HOUSING

We can find no social or moral justification... for lack of housing...  The son of God was born a homeless person... 
Pope Francis

REMEMBER "CANDID CAMERA"? HOW DO HUMANS ACT WHEN THEY THINK THEY'RE DINING NEXT TO A HOMELESS MAN?

There are three actors here and the rest is reality.  We Loved This One!

HALF THE PEOPLE IN THIS VIDEO SPOKE UP FOR A HUNGRY STRANGER

SHELTERWISE MITERBOX HOMES are 150 SQUARE FEET EACH

SHELTERWISE OFFICIAL SITE - TINY HOMES   Derin Williams is the inventor.

ZILLOW BLOG ON TINY HOMES

"To make this possible, almost everything in The Miter Box serves a dual purpose. The kitchen has a hydraulic dining room table that converts into a bed, while a “wet bath” is designed as both a shower and lavatory with a flushing toilet.

These design choices make the house feel bigger, which is especially important in a space the size of some people’s closets.

“We are bombarded with buy, buy, buy,” Williams said. “If you limit your living space, you have to make smart decisions about what to fill it with.”

After visiting Africa with his wife and seeing how people live with less, Williams was inspired to design more space- and energy-efficient houses. To keep building costs down and make his designs portable, Williams’ tiny homes are also on wheels.

“People just keep asking us to put them on wheels,” he said."


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OUR QUESTION IS, does the design makes this house on wheels different than living in an RV when it comes to parking it and the police?

FOOD STAMP TRAFFICKING? THE FBI WANTS YOU! (YOU'RE NOT WORKING AT A FAST FOOD RESTAURANT ARE YOU?)

NINE RETAILERS ARRESTED FOR MILLIONS IN FOOD STAMP FRAUD - TRAFFICKING - FBI BALTIMORE  link to article.   (Arrests are being made around the country.)

"A federal grand jury has indicted nine retail store owners or operators on federal charges of food stamp fraud and wire fraud in connection with schemes to illegally redeem food stamp benefits in exchange for cash. The indictments allege the retailers received almost $7 million in federal payments for transactions in which they did not provide any food, a fraud scheme commonly known as “food stamp trafficking.” Stores allegedly split the proceeds with food stamp recipients. The indictments were returned last week and unsealed today. Federal agents arrested the defendants and executed search warrants at the stores and related locations this morning..." FBI web site.

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Our DO YOU SELL YOUR EBT? post is very popular, but we're not telling anyone to sell their stamps.  We understand that some of you do because you need things that the cash will buy and that no, you're not all using that money for beer or drugs... you are desperate. 

You might not be tempted to sell your stamps for cash if you could find a better job or your GR was a higher amount or maybe if your case manager wasn't threatening to kick you out of a shelter if you don't put more money into your account there.

It's illegal to traffic food stamps and the people who the FBI investigates and arrests are usually the stores that are giving cash for the fake sale. EBT users go into these stores with say $50 worth of stamps and the store gives them maybe $25 dollars and out they go with no groceries.  (We hear that when regular folks are selling to other regular folks the take is about 20%.)  How does that work?  They go shopping together and go out the door with groceries.  Then one person takes the groceries and gives the other person the cash agreed on. The people who get caught selling their stamps may not be arrested, but they may never be able to get the benefit again. Over a lifetime that can really hurt you.  It might even contribute to your death.

EBT/Food Stamps/Cal Fresh benefits may soon be slashed.  The House says slash them.  The Senate may not allow it.

So let's go through some issues here.

First of all, you apply for these benefits when you are unemployed or working a low paying job.  For instance people who work at Fast Food places may qualify for EBT.  Every 3 months (in California it may soon be every 6 months) you report in.  You resign the paperwork and if you read the fine print you'll see there are penalties for selling the stamps.

To be realistic, EBT/Food Stamps/ Cal Fresh are considered SUPPLEMENTARY FOOD ASSISTANCE but many people make do with this amount every month.  Many EBT users are ALSO going to Food Banks to stay in budget.  Homeless who cannot cook such as people living in rooms with no kitchen, SRO's (Single Room Occupancy) and so on and cannot cook have a bad time trying to eat a variety of health foods and afford it.

So if you are HUNGRY and NEED THE STAMPS, where are you getting enough good food so that you can actually afford to sell the stamps?  Some people are eating at shelters or feeds. Some get some food from friends or family or eat real cheap, like lots of hot dogs!

Some people actually go a bit hungry so they can get that cash and pay their vehicle registration.

The basic problem is POVERTY, isn't it?

DOES YOUR SHELTER EXPECT YOU TO WORK FOR CASH OR LESS THAN MINIMUM WAGE? SHITTY EMPLOYERS YOU CAN DO WITHOUT!

We've heard that some shitty employers are calling employment centers at homeless shelters expecting homeless to work for them for less than minimum wage, sometimes for cash, sometimes paying $25 for a whole day of standing in the sun holding up a sign for their rental properties or other business, sometimes expecting them to do other menial jobs like breaking apart cars for a wrecking yard, or sweeping up at a construction site. Sometimes expecting them to usher or otherwise "work" at conventions.

WE KNOW YOU NEED THE MONEY. What you don't need:

You don't need a job you can't list on a resume or a job that will provide no good reference.

You don't need to violate the terms and conditions of your GR, SSI, SSDI, or UNEMPLOYMENT!

You don't need to be injured on the job and have no Workman's Comp insurance.

YOU SHOULD NOT FEEL PRESSURED TO TAKE THIS KIND OF WORK TO IMPRESS CASE MANAGEMENT!

What to do if you are being forced to work for free or less than minimum wage? REPORT IT!

DO YOU SELL YOUR BLOOD OR PLASMA FOR EXTRA CASH?

Homeless, healthy homeless anyway, are often seen at blood and plasma centers selling theirs for cash, movie tickets, raffle prizes, gift cards from stores, or the latest - charge cards that are charged up so they can buy whatever they want.

SKID ROW LAS VEGAS

Abandoned Apartment Builds and boarded up homes... who would have ever thought that this city, where some of the richest entertainers in the world perform and some of the richest people in the world gamble and loss money - for fun - will allow this to happen. Lots of grafitti as self expression!

WASHINGTON D.C. HOMELESS IN THE SNOW

IS BAD CREDIT KEEPING YOU ON THE STREET?

We know people who are somehow working at jobs while sleeping in cars or in sleeping bags in the park... they have some money set aside but due to bad credit (especially evictions) they cannot seem to get anyone to rent to them, even in this GREAT DEPRESSION!

IS SECTION 8 HOUSING ON HOLD FOREVER ?

Due to the economic crisis SECTION 8 HOUSING is on hold. This means that vouchers for those on the top of the list are not coming any time soon. Some say 6 months, some say a year...

WHEN THE PROBLEM is THE OVERPRICE of APARTMENT RENTS and HOUSING as THE BIGGEST FACTOR IN THE COST OF LIVING, many people who are working but cannot afford to rent are homeless.