Volume LIV: Minding the House

Hi everyone, hope You’ve all had a wonderful weekend.  Earlier this evening I was war King on the Letter to constable Christopher Jenkyn I was hoping to have ready to Present to You this week but it’s not quite ready, this Post Will get published very late if I finish, and I still have a few things to say to conclude the Simple Solutions from Saturday’s Edition,so I’m going to start there.

I started yesterday’s Post by comparing government to parents.  The House represents the country (Canada), rooms in the House represent safe, secure homes, chores represent labour, parents represent government policy, children represent citizens, the lawn represents the streets, the field represents ‘the wild’ (anywhere outside of civilization), and the barn represents emergency shelters.

In My little analogy yesterday, the children pleaded to the Parents to let the children who had been kicked out of the House for not doing their chores (and not being able to pay their rent) back inside the House.  Most of the children who were unwilling or unable to work began working again once they received the care they needed.  Those who were still unwilling or unable to work proved to have unique talents that were not included in the usual chores, but were of overall benefit to the House Hold.

In My little example, the children managed to get the chores done more quickly over time, allowing for extra (Creative) projects and more leisure time.  Eventually, the children had so much time left over that they would visit the children who were unwilling or unable to work for Ideas on how to productively fill their time.

I know it sounds like a perfect little scenario, but that was kind of the point.  Some concessions needed to be made.  Some of the children had offered to pitch in to take care of the chores for those unable or unwilling to work.  They split up the chores evenly so that everyone could earn enough to pay for their room, and added caring for those unable or unwilling to work to the list of collective chores.  They would visit their Brothers and Sisters (who couldn’t or wouldn’t work) every morning to tell them what they would be working on for the day, and again every evening to let them know what they had accomplished.

The solutions are simple, but how does this translate into a useful model for a city like Ottawa?  Well, right now those subject to social welfare are Given a budget of $386 to find or Keep an apartment, and $343 per month for ‘basic needs’.  An individual only gets the rental portion if they are already renting, so the monthly allowance for a homeless person in Ottawa, is $343 a month.  If a homeless person is Willing to Give up their ‘basic needs’ allowance to secure shelter, then they have a total budget of $729 a month to work with.  It is virtually impossible to find a bachelor or one bedroom apartment for $729/month in Ottawa, though if One is very lucky, they may find it.  Let’s presume that One does.  In order for a homeless person to rent the $729 a month apartment, they Will have to pay $1458 up front for first and last month rent deposit, and would have to save every penny of their basic income allowance for a period of 4.25 months (which really means five because cheques are only Given out once a month).

That’s the economic reality for a homeless person in Ottawa.  Now just consider the mental anguish of being homeless and knowing that five months is the best One can hope for, and that’s only if One is lucky enough to find an apartment for $729 a month when they have the cash.  This is the best case scenario and involves accepting the fact that One Will have nothing left over for food, toiletries, clothing, bills or other personal needs.

Canada’s social welfare program may as well be called Canada’s social dehumanization program – it is designed to Create homelessness, and to Keep People homeless.  The minimum basic allowance (social welfare) should be at least enough to Keep People in their homes.  If the Goal is to get people back to work, the very best Way to start is by getting People into a situation where they can be of benefit to an employer.  A man dealing with the health concerns and mental anguish of living in a shelter is (most often) not going to be of value to a potential employer.

For this to work, just like in My scenario with the Parents, everyone has to be in agreement.  One of the most important Themes in the Matrix (first one), is the concept of free Will.  If We choose to end homelessness in Ottawa, it Will be done.  The scenario is the same everywhere.  Make a decision, then start thing King about how to make that choice One’s reality.  I’m not a huge Nike fan, but they got it right when they said, “Just do it.”

We must choose to end homelessness in Ottawa, that has to be the first step.  I know I’m not the only One who Wishes to accomplish this task.  The Mayor of Ottawa, Jim Watson, promised the People of Ottawa he would end homelessness within ten years.  I’m not sure how long ago that was now, but I want to see him succeed, and I Will help him in any Way I can.

My complaint is significant because I have a lot of ammunition.  I have ‘the city of Ottawa emergency shelter standards’, I have copies of the contractual agreement between the Salvation Army and the city of Ottawa, including their obligation to remain in compliance with the emergency shelter standards in order to be eligible for city funding, and the same document outlines responsibility and requires the shelter provides proof of liability insurance in the amount of five million dollars per injury claim.

The city of Ottawa doesn’t have anything to lose economically, though it does have everything to gain.  The shelter is liable for any injury suffered by clients as a result of their negligence, and they have plenty of liability insurance; the pockets are deep.  If the city simply decides that shelters are an unfit environment detrimental to the psychological, emotional and physical development of their clients and must be shut down immediately, then all funding that was going toward the shelters can be redirected toward getting the homeless into housing.  That plan doesn’t cost the taxpayer anything.

If the city were to also find the shelters liable for the mental, physical and emotional decline of clients subject to living there, the city of Ottawa would be well on its Way to a Tort claim for funding any additional health care supports necessary for those who are truly not capable of living independently yet.

A plan like this would benefit the city of Ottawa in virtually every Way.  Filling up all the vacant rooms in Ottawa would stimulate new building projects, create more jobs and boost that sector of the economy.  If the city decided to also ensure the proper health care necessary, it would boost that industry, too. It would also make the Mayor look like a hero and virtually guarantee his position for a while.

This is the whole Idea behind taxes, that they be used for infrastructure and development of the country’s People.  Investing in health care (mental health, addiction, physical and emotional injury) would have the same effect as filling the current rental vacancies – it would stimulate more development and jobs in that sector.  When People are Happy and feeling cared for, they are that much more likely to want to contribute and participate in the economy.  If the economy is deliberately designed to cause injury and mental anguish, chances are those individuals aren’t going to want to participate so much.

We are expected to move out of the House when We grow up, but We haven’t grown up yet.  We still believe We need government to tell Us what to do.  But maybe this is how We collectively ‘grow up’.  Maybe We just have to start as King of Our Parents to be a little more forgiving and let the children back in the House.

Wow, once again publishing just before midnight (and later than that a couple nights ago).  I prefer Writing in the evening but it can get late quickly.  Sometime over the next week, My Goal is to get a day ahead!

Hope You’ve all had a wonderful weekend.

Love and Blessings,