Encountering ‘homeless’ folks while camping

[2gypsies]

2 hours ago, agesilaus said:

They finally got laws passed, the patients in theory went to community treatment programs which were and are a total failure. The patients actually ended up sleeping under overpasses, med and treatment free. These graduation to their current status of 'street people'. The states were free to spend all that money elsewhere where they thought they could more effectively buy votes.

And that is the source of the current problem.

Can you honestly say that these folks are better off drinking rotgut, taking drugs, not eating, diseased, subject to criminals and living on the street than they were when their predecessors were 'warehoused'??

 

Now they're thrown in jail.    https://www.governing.com/now/homeless-mentally-ill-and-behind-bars.html

[RV_]

Bruce, you got it. I can't imagine the stories you have.

[Payroll Person]

Some institutionalized in the 60’s were experimented on. Mistakes were made.

Yet I am saddened our state facilities are gone, having been converted to essentially prisons.

Government is just another business, with a bottom line. Not likely to change until a majority of those who vote stop thinking of only their own wallet. Of course, this will not happen in my lifetime any more than people will stop shirking jury duty.

 

 

Edited July 2, 2022 by Payroll Person

[NDBirdman]

While some homeless are that way because of misfortune beyond their control, some are there because they just plain lazy or addicted to drugs.  I've camped in areas even in ND where there was homeless camped out in tents.  Those were some pretty nice folks, working odd jobs trying to make enough to get *back* into the norm of society.  Did not bother us to camp near them.  Then we've seen others that worried us being within a mile of.  Just need to access every situation as it arises.

There's a documentary that is an interesting watch.  On Youtube:  Seattle is Dying.  This documentary is real about the homeless and dangers around them, we have seen this many times, every time we go visit there, it's just plain dangerous.  We feel sorry for the *real* homeless but can you tell the difference when you set up your RV next to them?  That docu is about one city but it is a problem in most areas in every state.  Something is wrong with society that turns a blind eye on the needy.  The real needy, not the druggies/criminals.  Well, those too but that subject could turn me political real quick so I'll leave that alone, for now.

 

[sandsys]

17 hours ago, Danfreda1 said:

pick up your trash. You do not need a service to do it for you. 

Picking up and bagging trash is only part of the process. Are you saying, you don't use any service to handle your trash? No public trash cans? No community dumpsters? No garbage collection trucks? No landfills to which you drive? You just keep it inside your RV forever? Because that's the only place that is accessible and free of charge. I'm curious, where do you dispose of bags of trash?

Linda

[2gypsies]

9 minutes ago, sandsys said:

Picking up and bagging trash is only part of the process. Are you saying, you don't use any service to handle your trash? No public trash cans? No community dumpsters? No garbage collection trucks? No landfills to which you drive? You just keep it inside your RV forever? Because that's the only place that is accessible and free of charge. I'm curious, where do you dispose of bags of trash?

Linda

I believe he was referring to living on the streets with a RV (or not).  There are always trash cans available everywhere.  I agree, it doesn't take much to dispose of trash as you make it.  I even see 'normal' folks walking on the streets that will just drop their trash.  It's just common sense to dispose of it properly and it doesn't take a lot of work.  If boondocking just gather it and dispose of it when getting near civilization.  There are always places to do so. We never paid to get rid of our garbage when RVing.

[SnowGypsy]

7 hours ago, NDBirdman said:

While some homeless are that way because of misfortune beyond their control, some are there because they just plain lazy or addicted to drugs.  I've camped in areas even in ND where there was homeless camped out in tents.  Those were some pretty nice folks, working odd jobs trying to make enough to get *back* into the norm of society.  Did not bother us to camp near them.  Then we've seen others that worried us being within a mile of.  Just need to access every situation as it arises.

There's a documentary that is an interesting watch.  On Youtube:  Seattle is Dying.  This documentary is real about the homeless and dangers around them, we have seen this many times, every time we go visit there, it's just plain dangerous.  We feel sorry for the *real* homeless but can you tell the difference when you set up your RV next to them?  That docu is about one city but it is a problem in most areas in every state.  Something is wrong with society that turns a blind eye on the needy.  The real needy, not the druggies/criminals.  Well, those too but that subject could turn me political real quick so I'll leave that alone, for now.

We have been in RV parks across the country, and you are spot on!  Probably the worst that we have seen was in a couple of RV parks, where a church in town got someone to lend them an old RV, and moved some people from a halfway house into them.  They didn't have to stay next to them.  Neither time was it the greatest experience.

I have seen "Seattle is Dying", and yes, that is something to see if you don't understand the variety of people and reasons that people end up homeless/stay homeless, it is an excellent reference.

Homeless people come from all walks of life, so be as weary of them as with others.  They all aren't "nice" people down on their luck.  There is a lot of drug use that puts these people out on the streets, and many of them are not into caring about anything other than their next fix.

One should be able to judge from a distance whether to steer clear though.  "Vibs"!

7 hours ago, NDBirdman said:

 

 

[Danfreda1]

Have you never seen public trash place that “anyone can walk , ride a bike or drive to” and yes we bag our trash and others to drop off when we get to a town that has dumpsters at a city park or truck stops that will let you use their dumpster. Don’t call the people who are in rv or tents homeless, they have a place to stay might not be what they want but we live full time in our rv too, we don’t consider ourselves homeless. It’s all about choices. 

[Zulu]

4 minutes ago, Danfreda1 said:

It’s all about choices. 

Are you saying homelessness is a choice?

[Danfreda1]

If you are saying people who live in rv are homeless then yes. We chose to sell our home and 40 acres to travel and live in an rv. I don’t consider us homeless but some people on here say people living in tents and rv’s are homeless, not the case all the time. To answer your question yes I consider some homelessness a choice but not all. And maybe it was choices they made earlier in life that put them where they are today. No one but them knows

[bruce t]

We need a definition of homeless. Remember for some living in an RV is a 'choice'. For others it's a necessity.

This is not a new 'problem'. Talk to folks who lived through the 1930's. The media and in particular social media make it more of an issue that we are all aware of.

The answer is ? 

[Danfreda1]

This is as close to social media as I get and don’t believe half the news whenever I see it

[Zulu]

2 hours ago, Danfreda1 said:

. . . don’t believe half the news whenever I see it

Which half?

[GeorgiaHybrid]

11 hours ago, Zulu said:

Are you saying homelessness is a choice?

 

In many cases, yes, it is a choice. There are people living that lifestyle because they CHOOSE to live it. There are people with mental issues that can't hold down a job, elderly people who have lost their saving due to medical bills or other issues but a significant percentage of the "homeless" are there out of choice.

Look at ANY area in this country and you will see "help wanted" signs in the windows of most businesses. Even in rural parts of the south, fast food places are paying $15 to $20 an hour and begging people to work. The people most of us are complaining about have figured out how to game the system and get money without working.

The next time you see a "homeless" person on the corner begging for food, offer them a job. Have them wash and wax your RV for $250 or $300 and tell them that you will furnish everything they need to do the job. See how many take you up on it. Even more telling, offer to buy them a meal, no cash, just take them somewhere and buy them a meal. Most of them will tell you to screw off, they want money.

It might be an eye-opening experience for you. When you have them throw trash out the window of their RV instead of placing it in a can or dumpster or dumping their black tank in a storm drain you simply have lazy people that have no respect for others or themselves.

Those are the people that I have an issue with.

[Chalkie]

11 hours ago, bruce t said:

We need a definition of homeless. Remember for some living in an RV is a 'choice'. For others it's a necessity.

And a good many that are living in RVs as a necessity are not really homeless. My home base is an RV park with quite a few fulltime residents that couldn't move house if they wanted yet they all have jobs and drive nice cars. The necessity is the price of conventional housing. I just saw an ad for a one bedroom one bath apartment over a 3 car garage. It was actually just one small room that combined kitchen and bedroom and a bathroom no larger than ours in the 5er. The price? $1100/month + utilities. The median home price in the US is now over $400K and rising which is forcing gainfully employed folks to look for alternatives. 

[2gypsies]

6 hours ago, GeorgiaHybrid said:

Look at ANY area in this country and you will see "help wanted" signs in the windows of most businesses. Even in rural parts of the south, fast food places are paying $15 to $20 an hour and begging people to work.

Those are the people that I have an issue with.

Quite often it's very difficult for a truly homeless person to go to work without an agency to help them. Many areas don't supply this help.  A homeless person needs money to even begin thinking of applying and then taking a job.  He needs clothes, transportation and a place to live so he can rest properly and clean up properly.  It's not as easy as saying "just apply for a job".

[agesilaus]

This one of those issues where we are split into two factions:

The liberals (from my observations from the opposite side) don't believe people are responsible for their own lives and behavior.

The conservatives, me included, believe that most people are captains of their own ships, and can take charge of their lives and change their circumstances. And that they should be held culpable for misdeeds.

I think both sides agree their are mentally ill people who generally are not responsible. But we disagree on what should be done with them. Libs are for free ranging them and ignoring the terrible effects doing that; and Cons are for incarcerating them. Either in jail or preferably in a mental institutions. And keeping them there until then are responsible. If that rare event ever happens.

We are just talking past each other since convincing the opposite side is a very rare occurrence.

Edited July 3, 2022 by agesilaus

[franco-bolli]

 I think the OP got more than they bargained for when they asked their question. 
I don't recall a request for moral, ethical or poltical opinions about the subject.

If you read through, they haven't commented (posted) on any of this since the question was asked about what they might encounter.

[Ray,IN]

On 6/30/2022 at 1:24 PM, sandsys said:

All full timers are homeless. We all come from a variety of lifestyles. Those who live in vans or cars are no different. We all have the same basic needs. The community of van dwellers is growing rapidly--increased by the number of people who are downsizing from larger rigs. Being friendly to all is a good thing.

If you want to learn more about those pushed into this lifestyle, I recommending reading the blog entries at https://cheaprvliving.com. Lots of good people out there.

Linda Sand

So that family living in the custom Prevost towing a fully-customized 1956 Ford  1.5T panel truck we met in a CG in W. Kansas was homeless? He had been a housing contractor in California for 20+ years. They sold the business, their house and property and were fulltiming and home-schooling 2 high-school age children.

Sorry for the spliced pictures, I couldn't get both of them in the same frame.

Edited July 4, 2022 by Ray,IN

[Chalkie]

9 hours ago, Ray,IN said:

So that family living in the custom Prevost towing a fully-customized 1956 Ford  1.5T panel truck we met in a CG in W. Kansas was homeless?

In the RV community they would not be considered homeless, but in the greater population I think people that live in RVs are considered just that no matter how grand the RV. After all where is that 2nd bath, 3rd bedroom, yard, swimming pool, and hot tub?

[Roamer]

16 hours ago, franco-bolli said:

 I think the OP got more than they bargained for when they asked their question. 
I don't recall a request for moral, ethical or poltical opinions about the subject.

If you read through, they haven't commented (posted) on any of this since the question was asked about what they might encounter.

@franco-bolli You are correct, but I’m not surprised. My point in starting the post was to simply find out if I we would have to deal with the same homeless crisis camping as a fulltimer that we currently deal with living in a major city.
 

Through all the commentary and opinion, it seems that the answer is no. And I’m happy about that!

So...thank you all for weighing in! 

[NDBirdman]

Should RVrs be called homeless, or house-less?  Many make an RV their home.  Alot of them sell their SnBs, so while not homeless as they make where ever they are their home.  But many sell the SnB, so they are just house-less.  We were never either one as we were not full times and did/still own our SnB.  What would you call us after we lost our RV due to a weather incident?  Stressed out non campers/RVrs?  LOL

Honestly, during our camping days, I can only think of a couple times we saw anyone in a groomed campground or boon-docking we could call homeless.  Drive through, just as an example, Seattle area (and many other city/small towns) if you want to see true homeless.  Saying that, I would not worry much about an RV park, majority of them are well taken care of.  Not all, but most.

Edited July 4, 2022 by NDBirdman

[RV_]

I thought politics was off limits here. I know Kirk and other weekend mods have deleted political posts regardless of side but now it seems political posts can be posted here. Mods and admins enforce the rules or tell us what the new ones are.

Edited July 4, 2022 by RV_

[RV_]

On 7/3/2022 at 2:36 PM, agesilaus said:

And that they should be held culpable for misdeeds.
 

Rule #2: Absolutely no discussions regarding religion or politics. Posts that are political or religious in nature will be removed and all participants will be warned.

[bigjim]

ANothing is all 100% one way or the other in my opinion.  I have been in a couple of developed campground that have had the occasional issue with the homeless but nothing too overwhelming in most cases. One I volunteered at is a NP campground near DC and  a few time homeless or mentally challenged were dumped in the campground.  We had one instance with an unstable man with just pants on attempted to enter a tent of 2 females. We had police presence at the front of the park at distance at the front of the park but they blew me off when 1st reported him before he had done anything but when the campers called in they responded immediately.

Where I am now there are sometimes issues with the homeless but we are a NF right up against Albuquerque NM.

As far as getting political I know we sometime go astray. I know I have been warned a few times with my big mouth but I wouldn't want to be the one having to police us about it even if I don't always agree with their decision.  I can't even be in charge of myself  much less all of us old coots. 🙃