You think your life sucks? Winter turns dangerous. Try being homeless

[rpannier]

How'd you like to be homeless and in the Illinois-Iowa Quad Cities?

Temperatures plunging far below zero and high winds will create dangerous to life-threatening wind chills tonight, Thursday and Friday morning, the National Weather Service said today.

All Illinois Quad-Cities metro area school districts announced around noon that they've canceled classes on Thursday.

snip

Tonight it is expected to be clear and very cold with a low around 16 below zero before the wind is factored into the equation. A northwest wind, blowing 10 to 20 mph, will create a wind chill of 42 below zero, Mr. Pierce said.

Thursday morning will be sunny, but cold with a high around 7 below zero. West winds are expected to blow 10 to 15 mph creating a wind chill of 41 below zero.

snip

Area homeless shelters were reporting very little, if any, room available.

link:
http://qconline.com/archives/qco/display.php?id=421383

[JeffR]

1. K & R

Thanks for this post.

[az chela]

2. How sad that bush and company have taken this country

to this horrific place.No shelters and food and yet there is 350 billion dollars doing nothing.My heart aches for these people.This used to be such a rich powerful country that took care of its own,look at what we have become

[chill_wind]

3. Meanwhile, cities like DC cracking down...

DC Libraries No Longer Provide 'Shelter' for Homeless

http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/DC-Libraries-No-Longer-Provide-Shelter-for-Homeless.html

I wonder where they'll hide them during the big gala..

[Ocracoker16]

10. This is sickening

Homeless people have hung out at MLK library for a longtime. I have never witnessed any homeless individual causing any trouble there. Homeless people are tolerated in too few places much less welcomed. Many stores don't allow homeless people to even look around for a few minutes. I know a few homeless people who have been asked to leave Starbucks, because they were sitting in the cafe reading the newspaper without purchasing a beverage. They were being quiet and just enjoying being out of the cold.

Unfortunately, most shelters aren't open during the day. DC law mandates that they stay open in hypothermia conditions, but I don't think that they are enforcing that. Most shelters are infested with rats and bed bugs. I don't think that is very much oversight so people are forced to live in those conditions. I would like it if our mayor spent the night at one of these places so he might wake up to the fact that he is subjecting human beings to awful conditions that nobody should have to live in.

The stigma of being homeless is just awful. People need to realize that homelessness is caused by the lack of affordable housing. Handing out soup and blankets is merely palliative in nature. If we want to fix the problem, we have to be willing to make serious changes in how we manage our resources. We might realize that we have to make some sacrifices if we are being serious about our intentions.

[bobbolink]

7. WAIT.... it's so easy to blame them, but homelessness has been ACCEPTED by Dems LONG before *!!

If your heart truly aches, then start demanding that low-income housing become a priority!

Have you written the Transition Team about this?

It only takes a minute to do so, and if enough of us do, we will be heard.

edited to add this URL and explanation:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=4509397

Thanks for taking part in this..it's easy, and we must make our voices heard. Please share this with everyone you know!

Thanks!

[roguevalley]

8. we have had -30 here in Alaska for weeks before it just breaking

off. There are homeless here too, which terrifies me and villages rationing fuel and food. What a legacy that little pimp is taking
with him.

[zazen]

4. made me think of 'The Little Match Girl" . . .

[B o d i]

5. Imagine being homeless in Alaska, or Nunavut, or Greenland...

http://www.google.com/search?q=homeless+Alaska

http://www.google.com/search?q=homeless+Nunavut

http://www.google.com/search?q=homeless+Greenland

:scared:

[bobbolink]

6. Thanks for posting this! It's always nice to be remembered.

We are so invisible, and forgotten.

HOWEVER, remember that the summer heat is just as deadly, if not more so.

The answer is NOT shelters, is HOUSING!

[truedelphi]

9. Proud to be K & R number 14.

The tragedies of homelesness. I fear homelessness more than death. My heart aches for those who experience a life on the streets.