Is A Celebrity Millionaire Losing His Million Dollar Mansion A Housing Crisis?

When thousands and thousands of hard-working Americans, saving every dollar earned to grasp the American Dream of homeownership, lose their home because of foreclosure, our country certainly needs to stop and re-examine its distribution of wealth.

However, I’m sorry, but when Johnny Carson’s sidekick, Ed McMahon, is whining on the Larry King Show that he might lose his $6 million Beverly Hills mansion because of foreclosure, I just don’t think it’s the same.

The media is portraying this as another victim of the foreclosure crisis. I see this as another celebrity millionaire mismanaging his personal fortune.

The media needs to keep highlighting the tragedy of hard-working Americans losing their homes. Not reckless millionaires misspending a personal treasure that could literally permanently house hundreds of homeless people.

The headlines of a millionaire losing his mansion are certainly attractive. But they are not the main story. The main story is that our country is in a housing crisis that will certainly push more Americans into a life on the streets.

One Less American Squatter Community

Looks like Seattle is struggling with their own squatter community. Not wanting to have such conditions harm the city's image, they have cleared the homeless encampment.

Their offer to help was temporary housing.

Here is the AP article:

Seattle city workers in white overalls, wearing goggles and gloves have cleaned out mattresses, garbage and other debris from a homeless camp in a Seattle greenbelt.

Police rousted a few remaining residents but most were already gone today when the garbage truck arrived. The city gave residents advance notice and offered temporary housing and other services.

About three-dozen people had been living at a dozen campsites in a wooded area near the Queen Anne neighborhood.

A Parks Department spokeswoman, Dewey Potter, says workers will be back next week to make sure the campers don't return.

(Pic from http://seattletimes.nwsource.com)

Regional Communities Blame Skid Row For Their Increasing Homeless Problem

For the past two years, communities within the County of Los Angeles saw an increase in homelessness, and blamed the LAPD sweeps in downtown LA’s Skid Row area as the cause.

Areas like Santa Monica, Hollywood, Long Beach, Pasadena, and east San Gabriel Valley all pointed fingers at downtown LA. The LAPD action was called Safer Cities Initiative, that included an increase of 50 LAPD officers in Skid Row. And, indeed, it made downtown LA a safer place to be.

Now, communities outside of Los Angeles County are also pointing the finger at Skid Row.

Santa Barbara, an upscale beach community just two hours north of Los Angeles, is seeing an increase of homelessness among the mansions and beach houses. Santa Barbara is known recently for its parking lot shelter program that allows homeless people with cars to park in a safe lot.

Here is what their business journal is saying about their homeless issue:

One question tends to pop up more frequently in the Tri-Counties' downtown areas as soon as temperatures rise: “Can you spare any change?”

That question might be asked even more this year because of a sinking economy and the clean-up on Los Angeles’ notorious homeless hangout Skid Row.

The notorious Skid Row area of downtown Los Angeles has been the scene of consistent efforts by police to uproot chronic transients. The result has been an exodus of homeless to more friendly climates including the beaches and downtowns of the Tri-Counties.

The American Squatter Community Grows

Looks like there is another American shantytown taking root on our “first world” soil. Southern California struggled with a tent city in Ontario, a city east of Los Angeles. Miami and other cities have their own struggles.

It looks like Reno, Nevada is dealing with a tent city of about 130 people who are homeless. They are living along a railroad track.

An AP article reported:

"It's kind of an unusual situation with all those people living out there, and we want it to be as safe as possible," city spokesman Kevin Knutson told the Reno Gazette-Journal. "With the economy the way it is, homelessness is a growing problem, and we need some way to get the resources to people."

What Does A Hospital Settlement Mean?

The big news in Los Angeles this week, is the settlement on homeless “dumping” by the Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital. They were accused of dumping a homeless patient into downtown’s Skid Row neighborhood.

The settlement is a one million dollar commitment to help discharge homeless patients into safer and more healthy situations, rather than the streets.

I have blogged before on this situation. Although I do believe that hospitals have the moral obligation to insure that their discharged patients are not put into harms way, I don’t believe it is the hospitals responsibility to make sure their patients are no longer homeless.

The responsibility of preventing homelessness, and helping the indigent fall on the shoulders of the County. Their multi-billion dollar annual budget, our tax paying dollars, is geared toward safety, security, health, and services for all citizens, including the indigent.

If there are too many homeless in a county, like 73,000 in Los Angeles County, it is not the responsibility of private hospitals to end the county’s homelessness. Having homeless people flock to private hospitals for health care, is a result of the county not providing adequate health care for the indigent. It is also a result of the county not building enough affordable housing, and not providing enough social services to help homeless people transition into housing.

Granted, homelessness is the responsibility of the whole community—private and public. But who has billions and billions of dollars in their disposal to help the poor and homeless? The county.

We cannot point the big blaming finger solely at the hospitals. We must also look at the bigger picture of why homeless people are going to private hospitals emergency rooms, rather than going to medical services that are more geared toward helping the poor.

(Pic from http://www.interet-general.info)