If Silicon Valley billionaires want to help the American poor, they should consider manufacturing domestically to create jobs, stop industry recrutiment collusion and importation of foreign talent to hamstring existing employee income, and pay full U.S. taxes instead of funneling profits through overseas shell corporations.
A few outdated cellphones is cheap PR and shameless misdirection.
A few outdated cellphones is cheap PR and shameless misdirection.
4
I agree with many of the commenters that giving homeless people free phones they cannot afford to use is a faulty solution. Why not donate tablets to libraries, put terminals in post offices and shelters -- or have these things been tried?
3
This is silly. Wont last. The plan, the maintenance. The next phone. The charging station.
Go to any public library and you will see where homeless people go to surf the web. Google better to fund libraries.
Go to any public library and you will see where homeless people go to surf the web. Google better to fund libraries.
5
This is wonderful news. Technology can be an important element of helping disadvantaged people improve their lives. Years ago Newt Gingrich proposed that every homeless person be given a personal computer. The sneering and jeering from the left was instantaneous and loud. About 20 years after he proposed the idea the wisdom of his vision is becoming evident.
2
There are better things going on here that seem to have been neglected in this article.
There was a recent local summit on proposing new ideas for solving homelessness, called by a techie who was humbled after making some very insensitive comments about homeless people and educated himself on the problem.
There's the LavaMae bus, a "startup" sponsored by many tech companies that provides free showers and sanitary supplies to homeless people in a repurposed former Muni bus.
There was a recent local summit on proposing new ideas for solving homelessness, called by a techie who was humbled after making some very insensitive comments about homeless people and educated himself on the problem.
There's the LavaMae bus, a "startup" sponsored by many tech companies that provides free showers and sanitary supplies to homeless people in a repurposed former Muni bus.
1
Homelessness is a complex issue and requires a complex network of support services to address- temporary and transitional housing, job services, mental and physical health services, sometimes legal services. All of this is exacerbated in the bay area by the overheated economy and housing market. It is beyond ludicrous, sad, and delusional to think that a phone could even begin to address this complex network of problems- but, I'm sorry to say, all too typical of the tech mentality.
2
As part of a School of Engineering in the Silicon Valley where they have developed an app to help the homeless identify local overnight housing, food, and medical services , I would like to disagree with many of the comments here. Let's not throw the baby out with the bath water. Utilizing modern technology to alleviate some of the day to day problems that occur in these homeless communities, is a good start, not the belly of the beast ,but a start..
The income gap in the Silicon Valley is far and wide.
As one who has only worked for non-profits in Silicon Valley over the last 15 years, I am acutely aware that the technology revolution and subsequent its financial windfall , has left out the marginalized in our own backyard.
Silicon Valley has a long way to go, but lets not throw them under the bus for giving homeless folks a cell phone.
The income gap in the Silicon Valley is far and wide.
As one who has only worked for non-profits in Silicon Valley over the last 15 years, I am acutely aware that the technology revolution and subsequent its financial windfall , has left out the marginalized in our own backyard.
Silicon Valley has a long way to go, but lets not throw them under the bus for giving homeless folks a cell phone.
8
But from what I understand, the people who receive free cell phones are required to pay for the service. It's like giving them cars but telling them they need to pay for insurance and gas. What good is the car?
It is not surprising that young, well-to-do professionals are enamored with the tech companies. But this report is insulting.
Silicon Valley at the forefront of addressing human needs, as opposed to addressing profit-making wants? Really ?
Several years ago I found towns in the Canadian prairies setting up storefronts, where homeless people (and anyone else who did not have a computer) could come, get on the internet, have a physical address, and do what they needed to do to "look respectable" for a home, a job, or whatever. It would not surprise me if some of these towns have been handing out phones the past couple years.
Silicon Valley handing out some tax-writeoff phones is, to put a foolishly optimistic spin on it, merely trying to solve a bit of the problems it has created. More likely, they are trying to neutralize what little opposition is left to creating a society dependent on an endless stream of their highly perishable products.
The article refers to Google giving out phones as charity. Ha!
The appropriate analogy was well described a half century ago by Tom Lehrer in his song, "The Old Dope Peddler."
"When the shades of night are falling,
Comes a fellow ev'ryone knows,
It's the old dope peddler,
Spreading joy wherever he goes.
Ev'ry evening you will find him,
Around our neighborhood.
It's the old dope peddler
Doing well by doing good.
He gives the kids free samples,
Because he knows full well
That today's young innocent faces
Will be tomorrow's clientele.
Here's a cure for all your troubles,
Here's an end to all distress.
It's the old dope peddler
With his powdered happiness."
Several years ago I found towns in the Canadian prairies setting up storefronts, where homeless people (and anyone else who did not have a computer) could come, get on the internet, have a physical address, and do what they needed to do to "look respectable" for a home, a job, or whatever. It would not surprise me if some of these towns have been handing out phones the past couple years.
Silicon Valley handing out some tax-writeoff phones is, to put a foolishly optimistic spin on it, merely trying to solve a bit of the problems it has created. More likely, they are trying to neutralize what little opposition is left to creating a society dependent on an endless stream of their highly perishable products.
The article refers to Google giving out phones as charity. Ha!
The appropriate analogy was well described a half century ago by Tom Lehrer in his song, "The Old Dope Peddler."
"When the shades of night are falling,
Comes a fellow ev'ryone knows,
It's the old dope peddler,
Spreading joy wherever he goes.
Ev'ry evening you will find him,
Around our neighborhood.
It's the old dope peddler
Doing well by doing good.
He gives the kids free samples,
Because he knows full well
That today's young innocent faces
Will be tomorrow's clientele.
Here's a cure for all your troubles,
Here's an end to all distress.
It's the old dope peddler
With his powdered happiness."
4
I think a better option would be lending phones for a specific purpose (getting a job or apartment) because the cost of internet and email access on a phone is too high for struggling people. Plus, for what it's worth, it's free at the public libraries.
3
According to a 2013 article by the SF Examiner, "63 percent of the total number of homeless counted reported having a mental illness."
63 percent.
If you walked down any street in SOMA, the heart of SF's tech boom, you'd know it feels more than 80%.
While I give kudos to tech companies for doing something (it's better than nothing), SF doesn't have a homelessness problem so much as it has a mental health crisis. In 2002, SF Gate wrote that then-Mayor Willie L. Brown was asked if a majority of chronic homeless were mentally ill. '"A majority?" he replied, "You are way too conservative. The vast majority is, and if I could get them to take their medication, I could save the city millions."'
What I'd like to see is the city (where the hell is Mayor Ed Lee on this topic?) and the tech companies that are making millions as part of the SF community be innovative enough to use technology to address mental health. Put your engineers on that task.
63 percent.
If you walked down any street in SOMA, the heart of SF's tech boom, you'd know it feels more than 80%.
While I give kudos to tech companies for doing something (it's better than nothing), SF doesn't have a homelessness problem so much as it has a mental health crisis. In 2002, SF Gate wrote that then-Mayor Willie L. Brown was asked if a majority of chronic homeless were mentally ill. '"A majority?" he replied, "You are way too conservative. The vast majority is, and if I could get them to take their medication, I could save the city millions."'
What I'd like to see is the city (where the hell is Mayor Ed Lee on this topic?) and the tech companies that are making millions as part of the SF community be innovative enough to use technology to address mental health. Put your engineers on that task.
8
Maybe if you suddenly found yourself homeless with no prospects you would have a "mental illness" too.
Guess what-- all the people without homes aren't necessarily on display for you. Walking down "any street in SOMA" does not make you an expert on the problems of people without homes.
This really isn't "better than nothing". It distracts from the larger problem-- lack of affordable housing and jobs that don't pay enough to secure adequate housing.
Guess what-- all the people without homes aren't necessarily on display for you. Walking down "any street in SOMA" does not make you an expert on the problems of people without homes.
This really isn't "better than nothing". It distracts from the larger problem-- lack of affordable housing and jobs that don't pay enough to secure adequate housing.
6
@kat: The problem in SF is partly due to the rising rents and cost of living, yes, but it's also one of mental health. As a self-designated sanctuary city, SF is obligated to care for anyone that comes - a policy that was abused by certain hospitals in Nevada, for instance, who would ship their homeless mentally ill out on Greyhound buses with little more than a sandwich and a bag of pills.
Also, the comment about walking through SoMa was accurate not because the homeless are "on display," but because they are often actively exhibiting signs of delusions, schizophrenic catatonia, and other symptoms of severe mental illness. Being out on the streets definitely doesn't help, but their mental health problems would most likely still be there even if they had housing and economic support.
Also, the comment about walking through SoMa was accurate not because the homeless are "on display," but because they are often actively exhibiting signs of delusions, schizophrenic catatonia, and other symptoms of severe mental illness. Being out on the streets definitely doesn't help, but their mental health problems would most likely still be there even if they had housing and economic support.
2
This article leaves out important analysis.
On the Phones: Not mentioned in this article is the millions of dollars in annual corporate profits to companies including the providers: Assurance, Virgin, Sprint, TracPhone, and sales groups. I'm not saying that funelling govt. funds to corporations isnt an efficient way of providing poor folks with funds - but this is not charity - its a govt. contracts to Obama Donors.
On Zen Desk and Twitters actions in the Market Street District: Not mentioned is the $100 Million + tax breaks given by the city of san francisco to Zen Desk and Twitter among others, of which part of the negotiation of the break was a community benefits agreement to which they promised to contribute a third of this amount back into the community. The projects mentioned here are a part fo that deal.
In leaving out these facts the author tries to portray profitable actions of these companies as charities - which is grossly misleading. This is Poverty Capitalism at its best, and the Upshot inaccurately represents these actions.
On the Phones: Not mentioned in this article is the millions of dollars in annual corporate profits to companies including the providers: Assurance, Virgin, Sprint, TracPhone, and sales groups. I'm not saying that funelling govt. funds to corporations isnt an efficient way of providing poor folks with funds - but this is not charity - its a govt. contracts to Obama Donors.
On Zen Desk and Twitters actions in the Market Street District: Not mentioned is the $100 Million + tax breaks given by the city of san francisco to Zen Desk and Twitter among others, of which part of the negotiation of the break was a community benefits agreement to which they promised to contribute a third of this amount back into the community. The projects mentioned here are a part fo that deal.
In leaving out these facts the author tries to portray profitable actions of these companies as charities - which is grossly misleading. This is Poverty Capitalism at its best, and the Upshot inaccurately represents these actions.
6
The article refers to Google giving out phones as charity. Ha!
I believe the correct model was well described a half century ago by Tom Lehrer in his song, "The Old Dope Peddler."
"When the shades of night are falling,
Comes a fellow ev'ryone knows,
It's the old dope peddler,
Spreading joy wherever he goes.
Ev'ry evening you will find him,
Around our neighborhood.
It's the old dope peddler
Doing well by doing good.
He gives the kids free samples,
Because he knows full well
That today's young innocent faces
Will be tomorrow's clientele.
Here's a cure for all your troubles,
Here's an end to all distress.
It's the old dope peddler
With his powdered happiness."
I believe the correct model was well described a half century ago by Tom Lehrer in his song, "The Old Dope Peddler."
"When the shades of night are falling,
Comes a fellow ev'ryone knows,
It's the old dope peddler,
Spreading joy wherever he goes.
Ev'ry evening you will find him,
Around our neighborhood.
It's the old dope peddler
Doing well by doing good.
He gives the kids free samples,
Because he knows full well
That today's young innocent faces
Will be tomorrow's clientele.
Here's a cure for all your troubles,
Here's an end to all distress.
It's the old dope peddler
With his powdered happiness."
3
We are way behind other countries, (including second and third world ones) in cellphone/internet usage. Also we have much lower quality and higher costs.
Making the internet recognized by the FCC as a permanent, public utility would be a great start.
That being said, how about offering computers for all U.S. schools/children who may need them? Preschool/day care centers?
Or more micro loans available for U.S. low-income women (and men)?
These things I often read about are becoming available to those in other countries, but for some reason or another our poor and disadvantaged are somehow overlooked or forgotten.
If we don't start taking care of our own at home first, we will be destined for 3rd world status in no time. In some parts of America we're already there.
And if the disparities continue, the outcome will not be very good for any of us.
More beds at mental hospitals and rehabs would be wise investments as well.
No more prisons please. Homelessness/hunger/mental illness is not a crime.
Making the internet recognized by the FCC as a permanent, public utility would be a great start.
That being said, how about offering computers for all U.S. schools/children who may need them? Preschool/day care centers?
Or more micro loans available for U.S. low-income women (and men)?
These things I often read about are becoming available to those in other countries, but for some reason or another our poor and disadvantaged are somehow overlooked or forgotten.
If we don't start taking care of our own at home first, we will be destined for 3rd world status in no time. In some parts of America we're already there.
And if the disparities continue, the outcome will not be very good for any of us.
More beds at mental hospitals and rehabs would be wise investments as well.
No more prisons please. Homelessness/hunger/mental illness is not a crime.
8
None of these are crimes. Theft, assault, mugging, and shoplifting are.
2
The act of validating the existence of women and homeless people to include them is an obligation from those with six-figure incomes, not the largesse of the noblesse oblige. The very struggles faced by the homeless reveal and affirm their struggle for survival and to preserve the identities for which they seek validation from society every day. Connecting them to services conserves the resources these services share. It ensures that individuals who reach out for help will receive the services they merit. A hand up is what this appears, not a hand out. Kudos!
4
"Some argue that is true worldwide. Melinda Gates, who leads the Gates Foundation with Mr. Gates, wrote in The New York Times this month that cellphones are essential to lifting women in developing countries out of poverty."
Just women? Just a needless accoutrement for men, I guess.
Just women? Just a needless accoutrement for men, I guess.
5
Ms. Cain Miller is vying for the same feel-good journalism award Gretchen Reynolds regularly receives with her Well blog articles about the fountain-of-youth properties we unleash after we move our physical bodies in any fashion other than by getting out of bed.
Here Ms. Miller shills for Silicon Valley in their newly found wisdom about doing good public relations after a string of bad press concerning the inherent sexism and Robber Baron mentality of so many of their manly libertarian types like the 40 year old proto-frat boy, Travis Kalanick who bragged about his sexual prowess as the head of Uber by saying his pick-up app for getting the ladies is called 'Boober'. Ouch. No wonder the company hired the former Obama operative and political pro, David Plouffe, to run interference for them.
If free smart phones can solve homelessness, pigs can fly. I heard Mr. Kalanick likes to go kite-surfing.
8
The 2016 race for president will see billions being spent. Couldn't that be better spent on issues like the growing homeless population? We need leaders not the well financed. They are out there- we just can't see them because the playing field has been stacked so only those with billions will win.
It will take a critical thinker to solve this issue as well as the many others the nation faces. Campaign Finance Reform is the mantra we should all be chanting until it is accomplished. All problems we face will not be settled fairly until we have representation.
If you care about the future and where the nation will head you will get behind Campaign Finance Reform. Call your Congressional Members and demand it. Billions of dollars would go along way to helping the homeless instead it is spent on buying an office.
It will take a critical thinker to solve this issue as well as the many others the nation faces. Campaign Finance Reform is the mantra we should all be chanting until it is accomplished. All problems we face will not be settled fairly until we have representation.
If you care about the future and where the nation will head you will get behind Campaign Finance Reform. Call your Congressional Members and demand it. Billions of dollars would go along way to helping the homeless instead it is spent on buying an office.
5
Note: Twitter's headquarters are not located in the Tenderloin area, but the Market Street area. The tax breaks they received for opening offices in SF are temporary. There are far more than 6400 homeless people in SF.
1
I don't know, but something just doesn't feel right about this. The technology may be useful it's somehow missing the point.
3
It is giving people a fancy electronic toy to play with -- or yak with friends -- it isn't giving them EDUCATION -- TRAINING -- JOBS!!! -- or affordable housing.
When a house costs a million dollars, how is giving something a smart phone going to help???? It's rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.
When a house costs a million dollars, how is giving something a smart phone going to help???? It's rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.
3
Seriously? I have some experience with the homeless. Many of them are drug abusers and they use their free phones to make drug deals!
9
Is your experience with the homeless using drugs with them (?)
4
When the tech company's hand out free cell phones, they should also provide a well-organized, usable list of online resources of microfinancing and crowd-funding, educational, employment, community, and medical resources. I keep seeing references to craigslist, which is usually good for a one-off find of an apartment or work, but it has its limitations. It's great to empower with technology, but technology isn't information.
10
In NYC, instead of hiring 1000 more police the money should be directed toward the homeless.
9
It's nice to see this but even nicer would be a real effort to address why so many are homeless: the lack of jobs with decent pay, the lack of affordable housing unless one is making 6 figures. If we work 35 to 40 hours a week we ought to be able to find decent affordable housing to live in that doesn't leave us with a two hour commute to get to work. And the job should pay enough so that we don't have to use food stamps to cover our groceries. Yet step by step we've seen our chances at a decent working or middle class life chipped away until homelessness has become so common that many of us worry it will happen to us.
It's about time that America started to pay attention to those who keep the country running. Hint: it's not the CEOs. It's the hourly employees, the supervisors of those employees, the janitors who clean, the administrative assistants who handle group calendars, the nurses who carry out doctors orders, the lab assistant who feeds the cultured cells. Yet we are the ones who are discarded like trash and told that we have to try harder. Why don't the politicians, CEOs, and others in positions of influence try harder? Why do they insist that we are somehow defective for wanting a decent salary, place to live, and a middle class life in return for doing a decent day's work? And many of these CEOs do not help their companies but we are the ones left holding the bag, going broke, etc.
It's about time that America started to pay attention to those who keep the country running. Hint: it's not the CEOs. It's the hourly employees, the supervisors of those employees, the janitors who clean, the administrative assistants who handle group calendars, the nurses who carry out doctors orders, the lab assistant who feeds the cultured cells. Yet we are the ones who are discarded like trash and told that we have to try harder. Why don't the politicians, CEOs, and others in positions of influence try harder? Why do they insist that we are somehow defective for wanting a decent salary, place to live, and a middle class life in return for doing a decent day's work? And many of these CEOs do not help their companies but we are the ones left holding the bag, going broke, etc.
30
hen3ry,
In your comment you ask "Why don't the politicians, CEOs, and others in positions of influence try harder?"
The answer is because they are campaigners not leaders, they are espousers of sound bites not critical thinkers. If we truly want a government that represents us not their financiers of campaigns then the only recourse we have is CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM. The 2016 race for president will see billions being spent. Couldn't that be better spent on issues like the growing homeless population? We need leaders not the well financed. They are out there we just can't see them because the playing field has been stacked so only those with billions will win.
In your comment you ask "Why don't the politicians, CEOs, and others in positions of influence try harder?"
The answer is because they are campaigners not leaders, they are espousers of sound bites not critical thinkers. If we truly want a government that represents us not their financiers of campaigns then the only recourse we have is CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM. The 2016 race for president will see billions being spent. Couldn't that be better spent on issues like the growing homeless population? We need leaders not the well financed. They are out there we just can't see them because the playing field has been stacked so only those with billions will win.
2
Silicon Valley at the forefront of addressing human needs, as opposed to addressing profit-making wants? Are you kidding ??
A number of years ago I found towns in the Canadian prairies setting up storefronts, where homeless people (and anyone else who did not have a computer) could come, get on the internet, have a physical address, and do what they needed to do to "look respectable" for a home, a job, or whatever. It would not surprise me if some of these towns have been handing out phones the past couple years.
Silicon Valley handing out some tax-writeoff phones is, to put a foolishly optimistic spin on it, merely trying to solve a bit of the problems it has created. More likely, they are trying to neutralize what little opposition is left to creating a society dependent on an endless stream of their highly perishable products.
A number of years ago I found towns in the Canadian prairies setting up storefronts, where homeless people (and anyone else who did not have a computer) could come, get on the internet, have a physical address, and do what they needed to do to "look respectable" for a home, a job, or whatever. It would not surprise me if some of these towns have been handing out phones the past couple years.
Silicon Valley handing out some tax-writeoff phones is, to put a foolishly optimistic spin on it, merely trying to solve a bit of the problems it has created. More likely, they are trying to neutralize what little opposition is left to creating a society dependent on an endless stream of their highly perishable products.
18
Jagoda is right. Tech doesn't solve the problem of homelessness, which is complicated. It might help people though. But the article is misleading to lead with the story of a homeless person looking in Craig's list for a place as if the entire problem of homelessness is for want of access to apartment listings. Tech is a tool.
27
Hey, you know what would be really nice? If giant tech corporations actually paid US taxes; Google doesn't, nor do Apple and Microsoft.
Then we'd have billions more each year to spend on real social programs and services rather than depending on the charity of tax-dodgers looking for some good PR.
Then we'd have billions more each year to spend on real social programs and services rather than depending on the charity of tax-dodgers looking for some good PR.
69
Actually these companies do pay US taxes. But a lot less than one would think.
Instead of paying the federal tax of 35% on profits from sale of products in the United States, they use a technique called "Double Irish with a Dutch sandwich" to effectively bring down their tax rate to less than 3%. Some companies, in some years, may be able to deduct more in expenses, and actually claim a refund instead of paying 3%.
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2012/04/28/business/Double-Irish-With...
The link contains a graphic explaining how this technique works. It's allowed according to the tax laws, and it's all legal.
Instead of paying the federal tax of 35% on profits from sale of products in the United States, they use a technique called "Double Irish with a Dutch sandwich" to effectively bring down their tax rate to less than 3%. Some companies, in some years, may be able to deduct more in expenses, and actually claim a refund instead of paying 3%.
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2012/04/28/business/Double-Irish-With...
The link contains a graphic explaining how this technique works. It's allowed according to the tax laws, and it's all legal.
13
What these companies are doing is far better than the militry-industrial complexes do - They get tax breaks and they kill people
1
You don't think these companies work with the military industrial complex?
If you are going to the library to charge your phone anyway, can't you use their computers to access the internet?
My fear is that it might be difficult to keep the phone from being stolen, and if it gets stolen, the program isn't worthwhile. But I really don't know if that's a valid concern.
My fear is that it might be difficult to keep the phone from being stolen, and if it gets stolen, the program isn't worthwhile. But I really don't know if that's a valid concern.
4
Libraries limit the amount of time/day you can use their computers. It's often not enough time to do a decent search and get the results. This is why internet access is now a necessity like electricity or running water or the phone.
9
@hen3ry: as a frequent library user, that is false. There is a time limit, because computers are popular and often some people will "hog" a computer to play long online games, or stay on Facebook literally all day.
But in normal situations, most libraries have a lot of computer stations and if there is no line, you can stay on for quite a while. I have maybe been kicked off twice in 10 years. Usually I can stay on as long as I like. (And BTW:, this is not a wealthy area, but one hard hit by the foreclosure crisis, and homeless people in the library are a common sight.)
The homeless are not doing complex "web searches". Be realistic. And I am not sure internet is really a utility, but even if ti was -- electricity and water and landline ARE NOT FREE.
But in normal situations, most libraries have a lot of computer stations and if there is no line, you can stay on for quite a while. I have maybe been kicked off twice in 10 years. Usually I can stay on as long as I like. (And BTW:, this is not a wealthy area, but one hard hit by the foreclosure crisis, and homeless people in the library are a common sight.)
The homeless are not doing complex "web searches". Be realistic. And I am not sure internet is really a utility, but even if ti was -- electricity and water and landline ARE NOT FREE.
"Sometimes, Silicon Valley’s belief that tech can solve any problem — not just ordering cabs and sharing selfies, but ending homelessness or poverty — can seem like a stretch."
And it still seems like a stretch. A cell phone does nothing to change the fact that there is an utter lack of affordable housing in San Jose or any city actually. This is due to myriad government policies (at all levels of government) that exacerbate inequality, and our distorted housing market.
As long as we are talking about cell phones, we are not talking about these other things. That's the way Silicon Valley likes it.
And it still seems like a stretch. A cell phone does nothing to change the fact that there is an utter lack of affordable housing in San Jose or any city actually. This is due to myriad government policies (at all levels of government) that exacerbate inequality, and our distorted housing market.
As long as we are talking about cell phones, we are not talking about these other things. That's the way Silicon Valley likes it.
24
Ah, but if you have a cell phone, you can be reached by someone
with possible work for you or someone offering you a place to crash for a few days.
For the homeless keeping in touch is vital.
with possible work for you or someone offering you a place to crash for a few days.
For the homeless keeping in touch is vital.
9
I want to say something terrifically snarky about this piece my "street cred" on the subject is certainly undeniable- I've been between homes for close on a decade now. The irony that slapped that inclination back was the fact that I am responding on a very old laptop found in a senior housing project dumpster- one of the retirees retired permanently and bequeathed it to me I guess.
This said starbucks and the library provide my free Internet access (the kids at the former have arrainged for almost free coffee thx to gift cards and promotions- in a way I wish they didn't or even better it was someone else they were being kind to). This is how I know homelessness. How a woman can become "un homeless" by finding a cheap rent on craigs list is simply not a valid picture of her situation- trust me. While their may be some good in handing out free techonology I don't see it aleviating much more than the donors ill defined social welfare obligations. We do think so much of our technology. I can't help but think that it displaces the more important need for mid and long term facilities to train then transfer back into society people with some prospect of self sufficiency which I really hope this woman has. Without these you can put free phones under the pillow at every homeless shelter and they will be about as effective as mints for the likes of her (and me).
This said starbucks and the library provide my free Internet access (the kids at the former have arrainged for almost free coffee thx to gift cards and promotions- in a way I wish they didn't or even better it was someone else they were being kind to). This is how I know homelessness. How a woman can become "un homeless" by finding a cheap rent on craigs list is simply not a valid picture of her situation- trust me. While their may be some good in handing out free techonology I don't see it aleviating much more than the donors ill defined social welfare obligations. We do think so much of our technology. I can't help but think that it displaces the more important need for mid and long term facilities to train then transfer back into society people with some prospect of self sufficiency which I really hope this woman has. Without these you can put free phones under the pillow at every homeless shelter and they will be about as effective as mints for the likes of her (and me).
45
When I gre up-before portable communication technology, the first thing a person needewd to be a paret of society was-and still is--a house with an address where mail can be delivered and they can be found from time to time. Unless your businesss IS travel, everyone needs a place to hang their hat and a bed to lie down on, out of the weather .
Most of what average people do on portable phones they can do with a cheap old computer or learn to read paper books. But A bed and bath you can't put in a purse and run on batteries
Most of what average people do on portable phones they can do with a cheap old computer or learn to read paper books. But A bed and bath you can't put in a purse and run on batteries
3
Having been homeless in the past and having worked at a shelter for homeless families for the last six years, I can say unequivocally that I don't trust you.
Many of the folks at the shelter are victims of the one-lost-paycheck-away-from-homelessness condition that is all too common nowadays. They can use smart phones if computers are inaccessible--and, while library access is widespread, it is very time-limited.
The shelter where I work provides several computers for people to look for work &/or jobs, but getting calls about these quests is something that would be much tougher without phones.
Your closing sentence is just false for most of our folks. They are basically capable people in hard times. They may need help with some parts of their lives (which the shelter staff provide), but they are not necessarily the borderline incompetents you imply with that statement.
Many of the folks at the shelter are victims of the one-lost-paycheck-away-from-homelessness condition that is all too common nowadays. They can use smart phones if computers are inaccessible--and, while library access is widespread, it is very time-limited.
The shelter where I work provides several computers for people to look for work &/or jobs, but getting calls about these quests is something that would be much tougher without phones.
Your closing sentence is just false for most of our folks. They are basically capable people in hard times. They may need help with some parts of their lives (which the shelter staff provide), but they are not necessarily the borderline incompetents you imply with that statement.
Technology is indeed marvelous. But unlike the toaster that is donated to the Salvation Army, or the Goodwill Industries, where do the used cell phones go? Who gets them? There are so many USED smart cell phones in this country every year, month, etc that could be given away to the homeless. Where is the national call for donations of $10-$20 a month to help people pay for their cell phone usage? Or a voluntary fee of $1.00 extra a month on everyone's cell phone to help defray the costs to the cell phone carriers (they need to donate also). There are a lot of hot spots around this country provided by small businesses like Panara Bread, Starbucks, McDonald's, etc that if the homeless had a smart phone, they could use.
I really hate the idea that there are men, women, and children in this country that do not have the basic Food, Clothing and Shelterplus hygiene equipment like showers and toilets. I wish I was smart enough to come up with a comprehensive plan to help everyone through education, medication (for the mentally handicapped) etc. but without going to socialism, which I am opposed to, I just cannot. Hopefully some day Americans can look beyond their selves, not to other countries, but here at home to solve this nation's problems.
I really hate the idea that there are men, women, and children in this country that do not have the basic Food, Clothing and Shelterplus hygiene equipment like showers and toilets. I wish I was smart enough to come up with a comprehensive plan to help everyone through education, medication (for the mentally handicapped) etc. but without going to socialism, which I am opposed to, I just cannot. Hopefully some day Americans can look beyond their selves, not to other countries, but here at home to solve this nation's problems.
8
Sorry, but our own American history has shown that socializing social welfare programs is far more effective and efficient than relying on private charity in "our own backyard" in addressing monumental human need. Private charity has prooved time and time again insufficient to meet the needs of mass poverty and unemployment and this lead to the New Deal social welfare programs. The New Deal and subsequent, though crumbling, infrastructure is why more people were not thrown into poverty and living on the street during the Great Recession. Socialism is what spared my grandparents and now my parents the indignities of living in poverty in their old age. Socialism is partly why my mother-in-law was not left destitute after the long and costly illness that took the life of her husband three years ago. If human needs are met and lives given an opportunity to flourish, who really cares and what does it matter if we look abroad for solutions to homelessness? It is a the sheer arrogance to assume that we have nothing to learn from cultures who might be doing better in some area than we are. It is an arrogance that contributes to perpetuating the problem.
9
This article describes what I describe in my book (Not So Fast: Thinking Twice About Technology) as "de facto technological autonomy." The conventional wisdom is that we have a choice whether or not to use technology. Unless you're willing to live a life that's completely marginalized, that's simply not true.
11
All too often, the problems are right under people's noses in their own neighborhood and they are not aware of it. In our modern electronic, connected world, all too often that connection is useful, if not vital, for an everyday life.
2
The marvel of internet technology being metamorphosed into a giant and cute helping hand to the needy is enough justification for the sprawling popularity of the mobile .It augurs well when such philanthropic giants as Melinda Gates could find it appealing to make positive comments on this energetic line of mass communication. Undoubtedly, the intravenous infusion of data for the abject requirement of the needy at the times of their utmost dependence would be a standing ovation to the success of everyday technology in linking information with the connectivity to those that seek .This is nothing short of science and technology holding its hats off to the service of common man.Added,a pestering problem of the homeless, which pertains to the domain of the civil administration, is sought to be solved incrementally by the incidental good will of the silicon pundits till it tapers into nullity.Every boon has a bane ;it depends on how wise will the society be in harnessing the bonanza of science to its pressing needs of purveying basic comfort for the ordinary folk who, nevertheless,will call the shots in the elections in a democracy.
2
Barbara Ehrenreich expressed a similar idea in "Nickeled and Dimed," that a very small amount of money could build an insurmountable wall for the poor. In her book, the amount of money that assured transience was three months rent. Without it, even working people were forced into unstable arrangements like weekly rentals.
The cell phone is a new addition since Ehrenreich wrote her book. A relatively small amount of money can build a wall that people just can't climb over. They can't apply for jobs, housing, or get calls when their applications are accepted.
I wonder if we had a micro-loan program in the US that would fund things like the security deposit, or a cell phone for short periods of time, if we could get some people over the hurldes that become intractable once they have time to really establish.
The cell phone is a new addition since Ehrenreich wrote her book. A relatively small amount of money can build a wall that people just can't climb over. They can't apply for jobs, housing, or get calls when their applications are accepted.
I wonder if we had a micro-loan program in the US that would fund things like the security deposit, or a cell phone for short periods of time, if we could get some people over the hurldes that become intractable once they have time to really establish.
37
kiva.org is a microloan program that depends on ordinary people to make $25 loans for small projects. They payback rate is extremely high. I wish more people knew about it.
5
We do have a federally funded program to assist. It's call Continuum of Care and it's part of the Housing First policy. There are also Rapid Rehousing programs which pay security deposits and 120 days of rent.
What exactly constitutes irresponsible cell phone usage? Sexting? This seems to be a condescending attitude toward their clients.