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WendyArmbuster t1_j6esziq wrote

Reply to comment by [deleted] in Missouri Camping Ban Squeezes Rural Homeless Population by user10085

I saw one of my recently former students with a sign on 44 and Kansas, and I asked some of my current students about it. They said they used to work with him at Taco Bell, but they saw him walking past the store when he was scheduled to work and so they fired him. He was completely capable of working, he just didn't want to.

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randomname10131013 t1_j6ex5ec wrote

Does your student sleep outside?

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WendyArmbuster t1_j6f51ff wrote

Last I heard he was living with his girlfriend, who he knocked up. Not all who panhandle are homeless. Not all homeless panhandle. He is absolutely at risk of being homeless though, because of his choices, and that's the point I'm making here. I support the opposite of this law that bans camping on government property, and I wish we could build areas that are safe and have resources for camping for the homeless. Not as a solution to homelessness, but as a small part of a multi-layered approach that addresses the issue holistically, from treating drug abuse and mental illness, to the housing shortage, and to the lack of available resources for those who don't have the executive function that many of us enjoy.

I can oppose this law, and still expect and encourage people to make the best decisions they're capable of.

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