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Yes, some homeless have made the choice to live outside society's dictates, but a far greater number are mentally ill.
I don't know how it works in Sydney but a Chicago Tribune study some years back determined that over half the homeless in Chicago were schizophrenics. Many were formerly residents of mental institutions who no longer had insurance or were deemed "harmless" to the general public, so the are relasesed on their own recognizence - and without suitable emotional and interpersonal skills, they end up jobless, homeless and alone.
Yes, it breaks my heart, but one-on-one help does little good. Change must be made in the way we treat our mentally ill.
Canada does a pretty good job - they sometimes even let Urge use the computer all on his own like a big boy:D
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"Little, vicious minds abound with anger and revenge, and are incapable of feeling the pleasure of forgiving their enemies."
Earl of Chesterfield
"A man that studieth revenge keeps his own wounds green, which otherwise would heal and do well."
Francis Bacon
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