I was thinking to myself, these homeless people have made it to the top of the homeless food chain. To be homeless in such a tropical paradise! I was so proud of their achievement. I almost wanted to join them - but that would be cheating. I'd have to start out in some cardboard box in chilly New Jersey and pay my dues like the rest of them.
Hawaii has the worst homeless problem in the U.S. In Honolulu, they have doubled in the past year (up to 12,000 now).
People actually plan homelessness in Hawaii, getting there is half the battle. I’ve overheard younger leftists discussing the benefits.
I’d imagine a city in any climate with four season warmth that offers very generous benefits to homeless is inundated.
as I walked out on the streets of Laredo
as I walked out in Laredo one day
I spied a young man on the sidewalk
sleeping in a cardboard box
I was last in Hawaii in 1988-89, walked that same street and had the same thought, except I wondered how they could have become homeless in Hawaii, as the ones I saw appeared to be haoles, not natives. (How'd they get the money for a 1-way ticket to Hawaii?)
I know there are a couple of such encampments in NJ, which surprised me because of the weather; if I lost everything I’d head south on 95 until I was in a climate warm enough to sleep under a bridge year-round. While these aren’t in the best of areas (I believe one is in Lakewood and the other in Passaic), they are close enough to people of substance that I’m surprised they are tolerated.