There Is A Big Difference Between Shelter & A Home

I agree that we should ensure that everyone has protection from the elements but there is a vast difference between this and owning a home. I don't know about other cities but in Toronto there seems to be adequate shelter beds, even in the worst weather, but many go empty because some individuals don't want to put up with the regimentation and we have social in-activists crying that forcing people to go to shelter for their own safety is a violation of the homeless individuals civil liberties. Add to this the fact that our left wingnuts at city hall will find accomodation for homeless people while we have thousands of peopl who have been on the waiting list for affordable housing for years. Social in-activists don't seem to understand the meaning of affordable.....it means that people who need a hand up, rather than a handout, will take some responsibility.

THOMAS ROSE: ANALYSIS

Should having a home be a human right?

September 22, 2006

Let's face it. The homeless are not an attractive people. It is hard to be around them. They can look frightening, they can smell bad, and they most often want something from you. They make us uncomfortable, fearful and, yes, guilty.

Why don't they just all go away? But where?

In the past, some cities have tried to encourage the homeless to move on, even offering to pay their transportation and put a few dollars in their pockets. But that doesn't solve the problem, it only shuffles it about. And with signs suggesting the number of homeless will grow, cities everywhere are grappling with what to do with them.

Montreal recently banned overnight stays in public squares. Penalties include hefty fines and even jail.

Victoria has a similar bylaw, prohibiting the erection of any shelter in a public place as well as sleeping overnight in downtown parks.

Housing advocates say criminalizing the homeless this way is a disturbing and perhaps immoral trend. Rather than penalizing the homeless, they argue, homelessness itself should be declared illegal, and having shelter should be elevated to a basic human right, alongside freedom of religion and the right to vote.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/viewpoint/vp_rose/20060922.html