It's really quite a bit more complicated than the article describes. Like most decent sized cities, homelessness has become a serious problem here and I'm not aware of any simple solutions. Here are a few things to consider:

• There isn't a single type of homeless person or homelessness solution: some have lost their jobs and homes and are desperately trying to find a way to survive; some truly are mentally ill and in pre-Reagan years would have been cared for in mental institutions; some are addicted to drugs and alcohol and have no desire to get help; and some truly enjoy the freedom of living off the grid and want to just take advantage of every handout they can get.

• Residents object to homeless people ruining parts of their neighborhood: leaving trash everywhere they go, dumping their shit (as in feces along with regular trash) in local waterways, threatening people who walk past their "territory", taking over parks and trails, scaring women and children; and generally making lives miserable for each other and those around them.

• Even in our cold weather, many homeless people prefer their campsites over warm public accommodations due to the use of drugs and alcohol, general misbehavior, sex, pets, etc.

• Crime and vandalism appear to be part of the homeless culture: trash cans, shopping carts and bikes routinely appear in their campsites; aggressive panhandling scares the locals and tourists (a big part of our local economy); numerous complaints about people stealing anything left outside or in unlocked vehicles; needles left lying around in public parks and trails.

We have a couple of legal recreational marijuana shops and some people think that attracts a lot of bums, but the problem is much bigger. I can assure you that even the most compassionate people who live in this area are finding that the quality of their lives along with their property values are being severely impacted by the homeless population. It's pretty sad when you can't take your kids for a walk in the park without having to watch some asshole jerking off in public.

People complain to the police over and over and every few weeks they head out to some of the larger campsites and do an eviction and cleanup, but no one goes to jail and they just move a little ways away and set up their new sites.

There are a lot of good-hearted people and even city officials who keep trying to find solutions, but so far nothing seems to make a dent in the problem.

That is an excellent article and should be mandatory reading. Needs to be broadcast on all media until it is beaten into the thoughtless masses. I do believe it has one thing incorrect, but that is something that can't be known for sure; I believe and other studies have shown that their number of homeless is a lot higher.

That last myth gets me. "it's their own fault they're homeless". That means we don't have to take responsibility. Why are we allowing this? Why aren't our governments taking care of their own people? People are born into an unequal world. It makes me sad and it makes me angry.