[kibwen]

> look at the full situation and conclude that the best available option is to just throw in the towel and hire private security

Someone who is looking at the full situation would realize that hiring private security does not cause the homeless population to suddenly evaporate. An outsider might start to get the impression that the fundamental right of the upper-middle class is the right not to be reminded that people in poverty exist.

[323454]

No one cares what outsiders think when they are being assaulted on their walk home from work. If you want justice you must first create order.

In addition, it's not like these people don't have sympathy for the plight of the poor: they voted to spend vast sums on tax money trying to fix the root cause of the problem. It's not their fault that these efforts are failing.