There is no benefit, economic or otherwise, to making life harder for the homeless. Nobody is benefiting from this situation.

Government services will not meaningfully fix problems among needy populations that very wealthy, well-resourced people can’t fix in themselves. Wealthy people and celebrities struggle to beat drug addictions and mental health issues; the guy living in a tent under I-35 has even less of a chance.

Sadly, I think that as long as we are automating out huge numbers of jobs, the homelessness crisis — already acute in nearly every major US city — will continue to persist.

I am also redirecting some of my personal volunteering efforts to try and make a dent in things, but it is going to be a long battle.