And we are homeless, homeless; Moonlight sleeping on a midnight lake

This would be good news, if 'twere true:

Chronic homeless population down 15%, U.S. says

But of course it's not true, it just reflects Bushco's redefining of 'chronically homeless':

In general, a chronically homeless person is an unaccompanied disabled individual who has been continuously homeless for over one year.

So to be 'chronically homeless' you also have to be disabled and without a family.

Bushco also redefined 'homeless', ignoring the law that already defines 'homeless.'
Bushco Law:

This is the third annual national HUD count, and in previous years, some cities had been counting families who were living two families to an apartment, for example, or those living in RVs, as homeless. This year, they weren't. This count, say the report's authors, is the most successful to date in tallying only those who were actually in shelters or on the streets — the official HUD definition of a homeless person.

Actually, if you go on the HUD website, their official definition is the same one that is established in federal law:

§11302. General definition of homeless individual
(a) In general
For purposes of this chapter, the term “homeless” or “homeless individual or homeless person” includes—

1. an individual who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence; and

2. an individual who has a primary nighttime residence that is —

1. a supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodations (including welfare hotels, congregate shelters, and transitional housing for the mentally ill);

2. an institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized; or

3. a public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.

That's pretty clear, and it's the only definition of 'homeless' on the HUD site. (Why can I Google something in 2 minutes that Time's reporters can't find in a month of research?[/rhetorical question])

And the Federal definition of homeless is pretty accurate, if it's not your home you are staying at, you are homeless.

Having been homeless a couple of times I can tell you it's really great to have family and friends that put you up until you can get back on your feet. But I was just a single guy and even then I sometimes wore out my welcome. I can't imagine what would have been my welcome if I'd had a wife and children.

And I really don't want to imagine what my life would have been like if I had no other place to go except a homeless shelter, or more probably an underpass or less elegant accommodation because all THE HOMELESS SHELTERS ARE FULL!

And it's just going to get worse. Between the record home foreclosures, bank failures, high unemployment and food & gas prices we're in for a bumpy ride for years after Bush and his minions are gone.



Cross posted at VidiotSpeak