I submit for your examination the theory....

I submit for your examination the theory that America would be better served, big business would be better served, small business would be better served and this great nation would be better served with the elimination of poverty, homelessness and illiteracy in our country.

I read in 2012 the number of homeless topped one million in this country but that number was from an "official" report.  The report found that "46.2 million Americans, or 15 percent of the population, were living in poverty" The unofficial reports have the numbers of homeless at two to three times higher but lets just work with the number, one million (1,000,000). Look at all those zero's. In fact it's not just a number, it's a number that represents people.

From a strictly commerce point of view how would the real estate market and rental property market react to an infusion of one million new customers? Would this be a positive thing? I don't need to be a Rhodes scholar to realize the positive impact of one million new customers to the housing market. 

I also read the number of homeless is about one percent 1% of the population and I wonder if that number appeases the 99%

In 2008 when I was working downtown Chicago people from the Mercantile Exchange put up a sign in their window,

"We are the one percent"

 

A photo of the sign is attached. In this instance they are referring to the top tax bracket. Their sign was braggadocios in nature and meant to inflame and enrage the less fortunate. What the less fortunate could use is motivation and inspiration.

The occupy wall street group failed in delivering and articulating a single message that resonated within this country's less fortunate group. Their message never gained any real traction and eventually they went gently into that goodnight but I digress. Back to my hypothesis.

Imagine the one million homeless able to find jobs and becoming tax paying citizens. Imagine their paychecks feeding the various businesses in their neighborhood, cities and towns. ----- Isn't that something worth imagining? Doesn't that vision make sense to anyone other than me? Isn't that vision worth fighting for?

The volunteer teaching I did to the prison inmates back in 2007 was supposed to educate, motivate and inspire them in a way no one else could. Who else has a resume like mine? I don't know if I succeeded but that teaching felt the best of all the teaching I ever did. It felt "right", as in this is what I am supposed to be doing. Unfortunately, during one of the volunteer classes I was teaching, the job offer came in to go to work for the Federal Government. The job offer was how the Universe responded to my need for a job after helping those in need. I could not pass that job offer up. I did not particularly like the work but it sure looks good on my resume.

I had a student years ago when teaching for a vocational school that was homeless. Even though she was homeless she showed up to class every day and was one of my better students. She confide in me about situation as she would spend a night or two here or there, on the couch of a family member or friend, then she would move on. She was fighting to improve her situation through education when one of the government employee working for the vary organization paying her tuition began hounding this poor girl and trying to get her kicked out of the class. Why? Why was that crusty old frustrated woman so hell bent on getting this girl kicked out of class? I got involved after that. My  first thoughts, someone get a rope. It's time for a little old testament justice for the person trying to interfere with this girls future. No, just kidding. Violence is rarely the answer and it was most certainly not the answer in this situation. -------- Long story short, I got the old bat off the girls back. She completed the program and as far as I know she found a job and went on to become a tax paying citizen.

I like stories where people become their own hero's in life.

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